Alright brodies, I’m shady, and today I’m gonna talk about cxrest’s The Invader. I gotta say, before playing the game, I wasn’t entirely sure what I was gonna be expecting. Just by the simple title and thumbnail, I knew it was going to be either something fun or just a boring, generic platformer game. The thumbnail itself looks a bit bland because of the lack of a real background, but it does appear somewhat promising.

     First off, the gameplay. The game is a pretty basic action/adventure game with a pretty simple story. You get your weapons, kill the enemies, and advance to the next place. I have to say, it’s done really well. The enemies aren’t placed too little or too much, and the enemies used work well. They don’t seem random or anything, nor are they incredibly annoying. The weapons that are available make killing the enemies a little too easy for my taste, but it’s not so easy that it gets boring, it’s pretty fun and satisfying. There are also some simple little puzzles and a few roadblocks that get in the way, but they’re not incredibly difficult. They’re more for advancement of the story and the scenery, like the barrels that are blocking some of the entrance ways, or the Sandblock that blocks you in the beginning of the game.

     The scenery is amazing. I love the way cxrest uses graphics in this game to give the alien/mutant aesthetic. The graphics themselves are also really well done. They’re very detailed and blend with each other very well. They enemies look like they belong with the setting, which is very good. The use of the 8bit graphics also work very well. This game does it right and as someone who does care about the looks of my games a lot, I am very pleased. However, some of the color schemes aren’t exactly the best. There are some parts where it contrasts in a very odd way and it throws me off a bit, but it doesn’t happen often.

     The story itself is pretty basic. You’ve landed on a planet so you decide to invade it. You break into and infiltrate the lairs of these alien creatures and then leave. It’s very basic and the game definitely tells the story, don’t get me wrong, but I would like to see more of the story. With all the effort put into designing this game, I wanna know more. Who is the player, what is his backstory? Who are the creatures? Why am I invading this planet? Am I a bad guy? Does the planet have something to hide? There are a lot of questions I have about this world. It’s a very interesting world. It leaves me hanging in terms of what happens after you find the escape pod and leave the planet.


Pros
Great aesthetic
Great scenery
Good enemy placement
Just generally fun to play

Cons
Generic story
Weapon placement makes killing the enemies a little too easy
Could use more health scattered around


   I love this game, and I’m sure you will too. It’s a fun little shoot-em-up with great graphics. The game as a whole is rather difficult, but some parts are pretty easy once you figure them out. The way you advance through the game is very rewarding, and it is just generally a fun game. I highly recommend playing this if you wanna have some fun. - Shady <3