Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers is an arcade like, spaceship shooter with 2D gameplay and an incredible 3D Environment.
Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers is a game that is full of surprises from developers Loomiarts and Fehorama Filmes. At first it may not seem that way. An arcade style 2D shooter with a 3D environment doesn’t necessarily scream innovative and surprising, but this game is just that. The story of the game is pretty straight forward, aliens have attacked in this early 1950’s scenario and you as the player must fight through waves of enemies, bosses, shield generators and more to defeat them.
Because of this, Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers innately takes on the style of a cheesy, early 1950’s sci fi movie, complete with out of sync dialogue, and constant ‘fuzz’ with the image and of course, the black and white. This all gels to create one of the more unique 2D shooters out there, certainly the most interesting this year.
When it comes to Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers gameplay, there is very little to complain about. Everything about this game is tight; The controls are fluid, the shooting is easy to grasp and the special abilities and easy to use and useful to boot.
The flamethrower in particular was one of my favourites as cleaning up any prospective alien escapees was a provider of endless joy as you send the vicious invaders into the sea. The 3D visuals also add elements to gameplay, for example, now enemies can appear ‘on your line’ from the background. Shadows can appear in the distance and slowly come into view ready for you to shoot them, it gives this 2D game a surprising amount of depth.
It should be stated that this game plays better with a controller. Whilst using the keyboard is fine, the controller simply felt more comfortable with the style of movement that the game has, of course this may come down to personal preferences, but a controller enhanced the experience and made it much more enjoyable to play.
Speaking of enjoyment, one thing that should be mentioned is the difficulty of Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers. While it is not the hardest game released this year, it certainly isn’t the easiest. Two lives and instant death on collisions makes every encounter that much more deadly and intense as you swerve past enemies in the hope that they didn’t quite catch you.
While on average Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers sticks to the fun side of ‘making a game difficult’ sometimes you can’t help but feel cheated and that you were almost forced into failure by the game, which can make it more frustrating than it needs to be, whether its the number of enemies or even the placement.
In addition to this, the boss fights in the game were also very unique and very fun. Boss designs were incredible and totally fit that ridiculous 50’s sci-fi War of the World’s style. While the bosses in some cases did feel like ‘bullet sponges’ with some of their attacks just being the regular enemy attacks but ‘a little better’, the intensity of near death ensured that the bosses remained to be a very fun experience.
In terms of Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers performance there are also no complaints. The game runs very smoothly and there were little to no frame rate dips whatsoever, with the exception of a few issues with a very complicated 3D environment. Moreover, the upgrade system is also something that makes Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers feel unique.
Regardless of whether players finish the mission they are on or not, they are given a score and are allowed to upgrade. This makes the game feel more like a roguelike in a sense, as you are recognising the patterns and slowly getting stronger the more your progress, and of course once a level is mastered you can always go back and get the three stars score for finishing.
What makes Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers the most unique however, is not its gameplay. It’s the aesthetics. Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers is just oozing with style. Every enemy looks incredible and the animations have been made to seem like the ships are on wires like they would have been when making sci-fi movies in the 1950’s.
It invokes a sense of a cheesy movie, even the cutscenes are not always animations as every now and then real actors will appear on screen, acting out the cheesy dialogue and really taking this game to another level. This is all combined with the design of your very own plane. The plane looks incredible, from the propellers to even when the flamethrower spews from the plane’s back, it all looks exceptional.
The black and white image is something of a double edged sword. While yes it does look great, it should be stated that it can sometimes be difficult to manage the enemies because of the black and white image. When a lot is going on, the black and white can make a lot of enemies clash, particularly if bright explosions are occurring, it can make managing enemies difficult and is quite frustrating in a game that is already has a high bar for difficulty.
The 3D environment is something that takes Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers to the next level, particularly in the way the developers utilised it. Rather than wasting the depth, they have the player navigating through tunnels and buildings (sometimes automatically) which does add a great deal of the depth to the visuals and makes it feel that much more stunning.
Moreover, the use of environmental hazards such as an avalanche or a storm at sea could not be truly experience were the game purely 2D, this 3D environment makes the game feel more alive and oddly enough more hectic as you see enemies and allies in the background fighting.
The audio in the game is also fantastic, the sound design of the plane, the enemy UFO’s and more and all spectacular and serve as a neat little bow on the fantastic package that this game is. All of this in conjunction with incredible 50’s style music makes this game a visual and audio treat.
Overall, Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers is a tremendous game. The gameplay is fun, intense and the visuals are stunning. The 50’s style is felt throughout the whole experience and really solidifies the title as a whole. While sometimes the black and white image can become a little difficult to manage with a lot going on (Which there usually is in this game) and the game can be quite punishing, it still maintains a high level of quality and is one of the most fun games released this year.
Squad 51 vs. The Flying Saucers is available right now on Steam, with consoles version slated to be coming soon. Here at GamesCreed, we cover everything gaming. From the latest news to stellar reviews, GamesCreed has you covered.
