Alien Space

It’s somewhat curious that the twin-stick shooter – which charts its ancestry all the way back to 1982’s Robotron: 2084 – has flourished so magnificently on a device which possesses no physical controller at all.

iPhone and iPod touch have been inundated with dual-control blasters and Alien Space is yet another to add to that rapidly burgeoning list.

Like all the truly great arcade shooters in video gaming history, this is a title that dispenses with such trivialities as storyline and characters, choosing instead to drop you straight into some xenomorph-toasting mayhem.

The controls need little explanation: move with the left virtual pad and shoot with the right-hand one. Weapon switching and proximity mine deployment are handled by separate buttons.

Alien units appear almost randomly, teleporting close by your saucer-like craft. In the opening levels you face off against relatively feeble grunts, but as the stages roll by the forces you encounter become stronger, sturdier, and more intelligent.

Regardless of their status, a group of opponents can spell certain doom, so it’s best to avoid large crowds of enemies.

Your craft comes equipped with light and heavy weapon variants. The former has unlimited ammunition and fires in a rapid, concentrated burst. Unfortunately, it also drains your energy gauge, which shuts down your laser for recharging when depleted.

Your heavy weapon suffers from no such power limitations, but depends on a finite ammo stock. You can unlock more powerful weapons as you progress thanks to credits awarded at the end of each mission. These can also be spent on improved shields and stronger hull armour.

Speaking of which, your zippy fighter craft has two methods of protection. The shields which blanket the hull can sustain a moderate amount of punishment and recharge fully once you’re clear of a combat situation.

When your shields eventually fail your fragile hull is exposed to enemy fire. At this point, all it takes is a couple of hits before a breach occurs and your once proud ship is reduced to tinfoil. Thankfully, you have a stock of lives to work through and it’s possible to pick up additional lives as you zoom around the vacuum of space.

When you’re not engaging in thrilling dogfights with hostile aliens you find much of your time is taken up blasting asteroids.

This has two-fold benefit: not only does it grant you some breathing space (unsurprisingly, floating rocks damage your ship), but the demolished asteroids offer up restorative items which can boost your shields, replenish your laser energy, and even patch up your hull.

Alien Space is big on action, all of which is dished out in a lengthy single-player campaign, which involves progressing through increasingly difficult levels and upgrading your ship between each mission.

The only other choice is the self-explanatory Survival mode, which drops you deep into enemy territory and lets you fend for yourself until you’re eventually overwhelmed.

Obviously, the subject matter lends itself to high score chasing and OpenFeint support provides even more reason to bag the best performance possible. Multiplayer of some sort would be great, though the lengthy campaign and leaderboards provide sufficient value.

Alien Space is just as enjoyable as any of its twin-stick rivals and its status as an indie creation makes it undeniably impressive, even if more variety could make it an even cooler shooter.