Alien Breed Evolution: Episode 1 Review

Alien Breed for Xbox Live Arcade is an eerie top-down shooter with simple controls that anyone can master, using the industry-renowned Unreal 3 Engine. It is also one of the better looking arcade games available on Xbox Live. The game features a story mode, free play mode, and a co-op mode for players to dip into. As far as XBox Live Arcade games are concerned, Alien Breed is one of the better choices available - however, there are a lot of minor flaws that can add up and detract its enjoyment.

First Thoughts of Alien Breed Evolution
Upon loading Alien Breed I was immediately reminded of Mega Man X for Super Nintendo. Both games start with the scrolling text of a computer system booting up. Pressing the start button immediately unlocks a gamer picture, which was a pleasant surprise. The story mode starts with moving comic book panels. Annoying flickering static during story board sequences made me check the connection between my XBox 360 and television; it is, however, part of the game.

Alien Breed Evolution Has Small Illegible Text
One irritation I encountered during my analysis of Alien Breed was the small light-blue text in the bottom left of the screen that is hardly legible when picking up items or receiving instructions. Even on a 42 inch HDTV I had to strain my eyes to make out the instructions. Luckily the text is irrelevant to the game play because every time instructions are received, a way point is created on the mini map in the top right of the screen.

Alien Breed Evolution Will Have You Running In Circles
At its core, Alien Breed is one-third scavenger hunt, 1/3 looting, and 1/3 shooter. The vast majority of the time is spent running around to way points in places that you've already been to in the level. The scavenger hunt-like qualities of the game can become extremely repetitive. One example is backtracking across the level to find a key card for a door that will not open: you will have to go right back across the map after the door has been opened to find destructive charges because the door still just won't open. After blowing open the door to your aggravation you will find out that you now have to go back again to find the controls to put out a fire before continuing.

More Time Looting Than Shooting in Alien Breed Evolution
Opening lockers and looting human corpses takes up another third of the time playing Alien Breed. Rather than simply picking up items from bodies by hitting the A button like when ammunition is found, one must instead wait three full seconds before the item is retrieved. This leaves the player exposed to enemies that will pop up out of nowhere and damage you. If one stops to shoot the aliens, then they must wait an additional three seconds before retrieving the item off of a human corpse or out of a locker.

Lack Of Save Points In Alien Breed Evolution
A major flaw in Alien Breed is the inability to save the game at any moment from the start screen like most modern games. One may only save the game at save terminals that are generally fifteen to twenty minutes apart from each other. Dying between save terminals only serves to highlight the repetitive nature of the game. One tip to anyone who picks up this title is to only play one level at a time - or better yet split up each level and play in half hour increments. This will keep the game from becoming too mindless and will help alleviate its repetitive nature.

Extended Play of Alien Breed Evolution: Episode 1
Unfortunately there are only three levels that are available for co-op play, rather than being able to enjoy the entire episode. As long as one player remains alive, the other will spawn after death - making co-op play unbalanced. Getting high scores on the leader boards is not the only reason to play this game again. Obtaining the "Elite Force" and "No Stone Unturned" achievements proved to be a real challenge.

Alien Breed Evolution: Episode 1 Recap
If there was less time involved in looting bodies, opening lockers, running back and forth across the level, and more time spent killing aliens then Alien Breed would be a much better game. Between Alien Breed's repetitive nature and lack of save points one quickly becomes frustrated if playing for any extended period of time. Hopefully Alien Breed Episode 2 will deal with these issues and provide a much more enjoyable game experience. Despite its flaws, Alien Breed is still a fun game that will provide hours of entertainment for a mere 800 Microsoft points. Alien Breed is cheaper than going out to the movies and buying popcorn, and it will certainly provide you with much more bang for your buck - making it an obvious choice for any XBox Live Arcade fan.

7/10

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