Space Invaders Extreme

Believe it or not, it’s been 30 years this year since the creation of Space Invaders. One of the cornerstones of gaming, Space Invaders is often one of the first games to come to mind when the term “old school gaming” is mentioned. And like most retro games from that time period, Space Invaders is now entertaining for a total of five minutes. Quite often, I wonder how mentally challenged people of the 70’s were, when they tell stories of being entranced by games like Space Invaders or Pac-Man. But then I recall my addiction to games like Mc Kids or Bugs Bunny’s Birthday Bash on the NES, and I think the same of myself.

The original Space Invaders has had many sequels, including the official arcade sequel Space Invaders Deluxe, but they were all pretty much the exact same game. So, when I heard that after all these years, Taito was going to create another “sequel” to Space Invaders, (along the same lines as Pac-Man Championship Edition is a sequel of Pac-Man) I was certainly skeptical. I didn’t see how reviving Space Invaders at this point in time was at all possible. Surely, the game was much too simple in design to improve upon, and any deviation would just make it feel like a different game entirely, so naming it Space Invaders would seem pointless, but for the marketing aspect. Right?

Wrong.

Enter Space Invaders Extreme; the logical next-step for the series, and one I’m surprised hasn’t been done yet. Sure, there have been different variations on the Space Invaders formula, but it’s never been done like this, and certainly not as well.

The crux of Extreme is to utterly bewilder you with insane Invader attack patterns, kick up the “combat” mechanics with terrific power-ups, and even test your brainpower with some devious boss battles. The game features some classic Invader patterns, but they’re constantly changing and trying new things. The first time an Invader rushes you from the top of the screen, you’ll immediately get the feeling that things have changed, and these new enemies are going to take advantage of it. The classic Invader forms are all in effect, but there are various twists on all of them. You’ll run into smaller versions, bigger versions, and even versions that flip sideways in order to flatten themselves and avoid shots. On top of this, you have new enemy types, including suicide Invaders and Invaders employing different types of shields. Aside from the old and new Invaders, Extreme also features several boss Invaders, who range in attack patterns and abilities, all of which have certain hard to hit “weak points” that must be destroyed in order to move on.

The power-up system is one of the more rewarding aspects of Extreme, allowing you to annihilate large groups of enemies in few shots. When killing Invaders, the color type corresponds to a certain power-up. Killing a certain amount of the same color Invader in a row will cause one of 4 different power-ups to drop to the bottom of the screen. Aside from this, there’s also the “Fever Mode” activated by shooting down a glowing UFO and then completing the mini-game that follows. In Fever mode, your ability to destroy Invaders is unmatched, and it lasts much longer than any of the other power-ups.

An aspect that seems to have overtaken these types of puzzle/arcade games at this point is the music. In games like Lumines, connecting blocks created different musical notes that added to the overall soundtrack, the same is done for games like Everyday Shooter and Rez, except the notes are made when you destroy an enemy. Space Invaders Extreme takes the same type of approach as the latter two games, where the destruction of an enemy adds a note to the background music. This works better on some stages than others, but when it works, it’s a great addition, really complimenting the terrific soundtrack.

Each stage is fairly short, but the ramp up in difficulty is decent, so you won’t be blowing through the entire thing straight away. On top of this, playing well in certain areas allows you to access new stages via a branching path, which adds a bunch of replay-ability to those who would like to see everything the game has to offer.

Space Invaders Extreme does everything you’d expect a competent revival to do - It refines the aspects that made the original so popular all those years ago, while adding just enough to the experience to spice it up for a new generation, without allowing it to become another game entirely. The friendly interface allows for quick sessions of play, making it a perfect choice for a handheld, and the addicting nature of arcade high-scores gives you more than enough reason to keep coming back once you’ve seen everything there is to see. Space Invaders fans, anyone looking for a great arcade shooter, or just a game to play on their dusty handhelds, should give Space Invaders Extreme a go. At the low price-point, it’s well worth it.