[Review] Alien Hominid Invasion – Nintendo Switch
Developed and Published By: The Behemoth Categories: Shooter, Roguelike Release Date: 11.01.23 Price: $19.99 *Game Download Code graciously provided for the purpose of review
Has it really been over twenty years since the original flash game Alien Hominid came out? Holy shit, this game can drink! Well, unless we’re talking about the console release, that was 19 years ago…but that’s a different review to talk about. Go read that one. There’s finally a sequel, and it’s a roguelike! Wait, don’t leave!
Yes, I know the genre is overflowing on the Switch. I’m very aware. But that doesn’t mean that this game isn’t a blast. Oh, not to mention, it has co-op. Both online and local. But keep in mind, you’re all sharing a screen, which can and will be a big issue. So your mileage may vary with that.
Lets begin a run. Each level is pretty straightforward. You have goals to do. Get the doc’s from the feds, kill all the purple suits, just try to survive! After you do three of these, you’re free to leave, but the prospect of getting more loot is nice, isn’t it? Money, hats, weapons, maybe a boost you’d benefit from? Everything has it’s own perks and downsides, weapons can get higher rarities and be stronger, maybe have some of those nice boosts on them. That loot you got, won’t mean a thing if you can’t get back to your hideaways however. It’s worth it to go to them. If not just for a chance to relax, you also can use the coins you picked up to buy new weapons, new hats, boosts, colors. Just play with the grossest looking shite looking color you can find. If you’re at all familiar with Newgrounds or Behemoth’s previous games, some of those hats are gonna be familiar.
Invasion feels just as fast paced as it should. It’s perhaps a bit too chaotic for it’s own good sometimes, but I never felt overwhelmed unless I was fighting specific bosses with a friend. Then it just feels like a bullet hell, except those have patterns. Also, I really miss head chomping.
Lets talk mutations though, a gameplay improvement I think might just make up for that. You know that grenade button? Cool, now if you complete a run, you can get a mutation, which replaces that. Fire trailers when you run? A healing orb that just floats around? JUST FUCKING FLYING AT SOME POOR BASTARD AND EATING HIS GODDAMN FACE TO HEAL? Or you could just flex. These all have some heavy trade offs with stats, but it very well might be worth it, especially if you have the right boosts.
Final Thoughts
I have a bit of nostalgia for Alien Hominid, but nothing compared to the friend I did co-op with. They were hooked and really digging into the game, more than I was admittedly. I think that’s probably more important? Invasion is pretty tight though.
