Review
Release Date: 12.13.2006
Platform:
Xbox Live ArcadeDeveloper:
Wanako GamesPublisher:
Sierra StudiosReviewed by
Richard Brownell on 1.11.2007
| Review Rating: 8/10 | User Rating: 5.5/10 |
There's one form of control type that is quickly becoming the most popular on Xbox Live Arcade: dual-analog stick shooters. First we had
Geometry Wars, which many still consider to be the best game on XBLA. Then we got
Smash TV, a port of the retro arcade hit. Later, we got
Crystal Quest, an update to one of my favorite computer games of old. And most recently, we now have
Assault Heroes from Sierra.
Developed by Wanako Studios,
Assault Heroes puts you in the driver's seat of a small armored vehicle. You are the only hope for blasting through thousands of enemies and getting to their secret underground lab. It may not be much of a story, but it's one of the only games on XBLA that actually has one, for what it's worth.
The dual-stick gameplay in
Assault Heroes is similar to games like
Geometry Wars. Throughout the game, the camera is facing you from directly above. You move your vehicle with the left analog stick. But unlike games like
Geometry Wars, your vehicle has to go through some turning to be pointed in the direction you move the stick. Your character shoots in whatever direction you tilt the right stick. The controls work the same when you are inside your vehicle or walking on foot.
Your vehicle comes equipped with five weapons. A minigun is your standard machine gun, good for all-purpose shooting. For close-up annihilation, a flamethrower is available. And a slow-firing flak cannon does massive damage to round out your three standard right stick weapons. You also have a limited supply of grenades, which are aimed with the right stick, and nukes, which cause a huge explosion all around you. In co-op mode, you can activate three special co-op weapons to punish your enemies even further.
Your enemies are varied and numerous. There are everything from regular foot soldiers (cannon fodder) to gigantic bosses. Everything in between includes tanks, helicopters, bunkers, towers, and even suicide bombers.
Assault Heroes could not rightfully be called a "bullet hell" shooter, but many times there is a lot going on. On easy mode, it's a cinch, but the higher difficulties are where the challenge lies and where the levels truly flow as intended. But when enemies overwhelm you and destroy your vehicle, you'll need to fight on foot with a weak little machine gun until a new vehicle appears for you.
Throughout each level, you fight wave after wave of enemies, and certain ones contain power-ups. These increase the power of one of your three main weapons - the minigun, flamethrower, and flak cannon - each up to level three. You'll also find extra grenades and nukes. And occasionally you'll need to get out of your vehicle to get them.
You also go on foot in underground levels, one for each zone. In these, you fight the standard soldiers and suicide bombers as well as some robot enemies. Unfortunately, these levels just aren't as fun as the above ground missions. They feel a bit tacked on, but also you can't upgrade your weapon on foot, so you just feel like a humdrum weakling and hope to move on soon. Thankfully, if you do want to skip these underground sections, you can.
The only time you aren't in your standard vehicle or on foot is in a special mission where you are in a watercraft on the ocean instead. Though the entire game looks great, this is probably the most visually impressive as the water is fairly good looking and you can even see huge creatures swimming underneath the surface. Don't take too long of a look though or your vehicle will be toast and instead of being on foot, you'll be in a dinky, hard-to-control jet-ski contraption.
The bosses are your standard pattern-based shooter bosses. They have weak spots, and you'll want to make use of the appropriate weapons for each boss. It wasn't a consistent experience though as some bosses, like a heavily armed submarine robot, seemed much more fresh and exciting than others, like a walking wall...with weak spots.
With each week (except a few where
Microsoft held out on us), XBLA gets more and more offerings. And your points can now go to buying and renting music and movies, (respectively), too. But
Assault Heroes is one of the best things XBLA has to offer. It's got a very fun co-op, a good set of achievements, and replayability that isn't present in many XBLA games. No shooter fan should miss it.
