Monster Shooter

Assumptions are a terrible thing. Monster Shooter has a lacklustre name, it's made by Gamelion (a company that doesn't have the best track record for its output), and it's a downloadable on a service that's lacking in hits.

You could easily assume that Monster Shooter is terrible, completely overlooking it in the process.

But, while it's not going to blow your mind with its technical prowess or incredible gameplay, Monster Shooter is a surprisingly good arena-based shooter with great controls and a compelling weapon upgrade system.

Get your gun

You know exactly what you're getting when you purchase Monster Shooter. You shoot monsters. Well, strictly speaking they're aliens, but they're pretty monstrous ones.

There's a Survival mode, in which you face off against waves of enemies, but the main game is where most of the action is. You start off with a basic machine gun - which can't be upgraded - and you fight through mission after mission on distant planets.

Pretty soon you'll want a little more punch in your arsenal, and you collect money throughout to assist you in this. Between missions you can access a shop that stocks grenades, armour, and (best of all) new guns.

Rocket launchers, shotguns, rail guns: you name it, it's available for purchase. Your choice of weapon will determine how you approach the onslaught of monsters, with shotguns letting you get close and wipe out large crowds and rocket launchers giving you splash damage attacks from afar.

There's no limit to how many you can bring to battle. You just shift between them, and ammo is unlimited. Survival depends on using these in the right contexts: you flee from enemies that swarm around you, blasting them with thousands of volts of energy, then switch back to the machine gun for mid-range crowd control, chucking a few grenades when things get really hectic.

You can then upgrade these further, both in the shop with permanent buffs to power, reload speed, and clip capacity and on the battlefield with temporary boosts. Kill enough bad guys and you'll have gained enough XP for one of these status effects - such as less recoil, reduced reload times, and so on.

Raw cut lawn chair

The shooting can get pretty hectic, with creatures approaching from all sides, meaning the controls have to be spot on. With generous targeting assist in place, it can sometimes feel as if the game is holding your hand a little too much, but this frees you up to think about positional play on the map and selecting the right gun for the right situation.

Presented from a top-down perspective in a fenced off arena, the game is reminiscent of the alien scenes in Metal Slug crossed with the viewpoint and gameplay of a more sedate Smash TV.

It won't win any awards for innovation, and there's little personality to the events that unfold, but it's not really needed when the basic gameplay is this entertaining.

It's not too deep, and you'll tire of it before the 60-odd levels are over, but while it lasts it's a really satisfying blast-a-thon.

Let this be a lesson to us all: from humble beginnings, great things can arise. Or good things at least. Monster Shooter has a tedious name, but don't let that deter you from sampling its brand of dumb fun.