Titan Attacks! Review

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Reviewed on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita
→ May 12, 2014Titan Attacks is proof that certain games are timeless and endlessly influential. While some folks claim that nostalgia is a powerful blinder, I'd argue that the opposite can also be true. Some developers understand that brilliant gameplay nuggets remain buried in dormant 30-plus year-old games, and no amount of $100 million marketing budgets, four year dev cycles, or never-ending promises of something new will change that.

Beware the Martians.

As such, Taito's timeless arcade shooter Space Invaders -- first released in 1978 -- is the blatantly obvious inspiration for Titan Attacks, and developer Puppygames wisely decided to run towards the comparisons instead of trying to hide from them. Titan Attacks isn't as difficult as Space Invaders -- nor is it as quintessentially excellent -- but it does encompass the same spirit as Taito's coin-gobbling classic, keeping you engaged with its endless cycle of high score-chasing. Except this time around, those high scores are global and online instead of on a single machine in your local pizza parlor.
Titan Attacks looks both retro and modern, with simple graphics befitting a game like this, and it looks the part whether you're playing on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, or PlayStation Vita (Titan Attacks is cross-buy, and it plays virtually identically on all three platforms while sharing a Trophy list). Its sound effects and musical accompaniment aren't all that impressive, though I found the experience most fun on Vita while watching hockey on TV… so muting it is certainly a viable option.
To play Titan Attacks, simply abuse the X button on your DualShock controller or Vita while using either the left analog stick or directional pad to move your ship to the left or to the right (there is no vertical movement allowed). The beauty of such an easy control scheme -- another hallmark of old-school arcade shooters -- is that it's accessible. Its depth isn't hidden underneath a litany of obtuse control options. You shoot and you move, and that's pretty much it (unless you want to demolish your enemies with the occasional Smart Bomb, that is).
Unlike Space Invaders, Titan Attacks isn't plodding and deliberate. It's fast-paced and souped-up. You'll see everything it has to offer in only a couple of hours of play, but that's because it moves at such a fast clip. Enemies will rove back and forth atop the screen -- and some will even shoot back at you with all manner of lasers and bombs -- and it's up to you to move along with them, dodging their assaults while obliterating them as quickly as possible. It's a simple and undeniably fun premise, one that doesn't take too much thought or require too much attention. It's easy to develop a rhythm while playing, and part of Titan Attacks draw is that you're likely to see a demonstrable increase in your own skill level after only a little bit of practice.
Apart from the speed of the game and the overall mayhem on your screen, a major differentiator between Titan Attacks and Space Invaders is Titan Attacks' emphasis on earning money to buy ship upgrades. Indeed, much of the experience revolves around stashing away hard-earned loot to spend on increasingly significant alterations to your craft, like the addition of new guns, the ability to shoot more bullets at a time, and -- perhaps most critically -- the hording of defensive energy that allows you to withstand endless barrages of enemy fire (and the occasional ill-timed ship collision).
Unfortunately, such upgrading slashes the difficulty perhaps too significantly. By the time you've maxed your ship's guns, bullet capacity, and speed, you'll be smashing your way through some late-game stages in literally seconds. The real challenge comes from the busier levels with lots of crossfire and aggressively-roving enemies, but even then, you're usually only in danger of dying during one of the game's five boss battles (unless you've neglected to buy more health for your ship, at which point you could die just about anywhere).

Travel to the Moon... and Mars... and Saturn?!

Interestingly, the sheer chaos your upgraded ship can unleash does interfere with one of Titan Attacks' unique components. Every so often, a ship you destroy will crumble into wreckage and fall towards you, allowing you to shoot it again for bonus points. Likewise, every so often, an alien pilot will bail out of his crippled ship. Shoot him, and you'll negate a possible monetary bonus. But capture him, and you'll earn some extra cash for your digital wallet. Saving aliens becomes a near impossibility once you're peppering your foes with a ton of bullets at a time, rendering this interesting feature somewhat moot and half-baked.
Still, these are minor asides for a game that is, at its core, a fun time-waster, especially for those who like to grind away on high score leaderboards. I especially like how -- in old-school fashion -- Titan Attacks never actually ends, even after you get through its 100 stages. You simply begin again at level one with your score and craft intact, with slightly ramped-up difficulty. This is a nice way to beckon you to come back for more, if for any other reason than besting your buddies on the scoreboard. Just expect to throw a few curses out when you get hit and lose that precious score multiplier.



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