All art assets have been hand drawn by Synj and have a poorly drawn children’s cartoon look to them. Despite the intended look the artwork is actually very well drawn and has significantly improved since the original Flash release. Animations are incredibly smooth and showcase just how great a tool Flash can be for eager new game creators. HD visuals in the XBLA release are particularly beautiful with an incredibly rich colour pallet sure to delight even the pickiest of players.
In addition to the main game there are also a series of mini-games including the “PDA” mini-game which is basically a simple platformer in the vein of the original Super Mario Bros., but with Game and Watch style graphics and ridiculously short length. Luckily there are over 200 levels so length isn’t really an issue.
Alien Hominid HD has all the features of the previous releases including some new content such as leaderboards, Xbox Live play and all new mini-games. What’s even better is that all this can be had for only a mere 800 MSP, making it easily the best bargain on XBLA.
If you like run and gun games, buy it.
If you like beautiful games with a great art style, buy it.
If you like Flash games, buy it.
Simply put if you really like games, just buy it. Great art work, traditional run and gun game play and the best price you could ever hope for, it’s next to impossible to find a fault with Alien Hominid HD.
Alien Hominid HD is rated T (Teen) by the ESRB for Blood and Gore and Cartoon Violence. This game can also be found on: GameCube, PS2, Xbox (PAL only) and on Newgrounds.
Article comments
1 - Matt Paprocki
No co-op play in the main story mode via Xbox Live is enough to drop this one down to a four.
2 - Jason "Njiska" Westhaver
Having seen how online Co-op turned out in other XBLA games, most notably Contra, i'm happy to not see online co-op. I'd rather have none then have a twitch shooter burdened with that crap.
Besides mant there's just so much other content in the game. This one lost doesn't change the fact that Alien Hominid is a damn near perfect game.
3 - Ken Edwards
I think an entire star is a bit harsh, Matt.
4 - Andrew Ogier
I agree with Jason, even without online campaign, Alien Hominid is more than worthy of five stars.
It's simply brilliant. Everything from the achievements to the minigames are very well designed and certainly pack enough bang for the 800 points entry fee.
Shame that the hat collector is glitched really... there are 3 hats you can't unlock :( Otherwise I'd have the full 200 on it by now