Game Review #301: Zeroptian Invasion (Nintendo Switch)

Reviewer: WoodmanFLG

Developer: Josyan

Publisher: Ratalaika

Category: Shoot ‘Em Up, Arcade

Release Date: 4.26.2019

Price (at time of review): $4.99

Buy Zeroptian Invasion from the Nintendo Switch eShop here.

A Sick Combo of Arcade Action

Take a dash of Galaga, a smidge of Space Invaders, a liiiiiittle Galaxian, and mix it all together with some modern flavors, and you are going to have something akin to Zeroptian Invasion for the Nintendo Switch! Another fun, cheap indie game published by the always awesome Ratalaika, and Developed by Josyan, Zeroptian Invasion is a modern spin on one of the most classic of genres, the old arcade shooter—you know, the one shot on the screen kind of shooter—so, you are going to have to make sure your shots fly true, or else you might be stuck in a situation there is no getting out of! Let’s take a dive into what makes this game stand out from its predecessors and earn its place in your library!

Space battles!

The game starts out… pretty much as Space Invaders. White and black fill the screen as the few pixels move around the screen. You have 3 barriers—like in Space Invaders—that will take some shots for you as you take down the enemy fleet. You repeat this a few different times, maybe get a power-up or two, which can include a power upgrade, allowing you to have two shots on the screen at once—which is a HUGE boon—a speed upgrade so you can dodge better, or a shield upgrade that can take a hit for you!

After you clear a particularly large fleet, the one remaining barrier, which has protected you up until now, sprouts wings, grows an eye, and begins to attack! I really liked that. I was not expecting it honestly. Not the hardest fight, but it was a cool surprise, nonetheless. After that, a red portal opens up, and you fly through it and on to the next world!

Color-Coded

This is where It gets interesting: each world adds another color to the palette, so instead of just white everywhere, now it’s red and white, and the next world adds blue, and so on, until things are looking pretty colorful! The second world brings much more enemy types, as well as giving them a different method of attacking you! They will come at you in Galaga-style waves now, rather than just moving back and forth as they gradually make their way to the bottom of the screen like in Space Invaders, and this is welcomed! You will also have to deal with falling rocks before long, and even worse, a giant spider! After that, a Blue portal appears and off you go!

This next world brings some really tough enemy types, and even more environmental hazards to give you a hard time. This game is not easy, it’s arcade hard; like, it’s trying to eat your quarters. Thankfully, if you get a Game Over, you can forgo your score in order to start the world over again; but just like the arcades, the real goal is a 1CC clear, no continues at all! I imagine it would take quite some time to pull that off, but it would be real satisfying! For added arcade authenticity, you can even enable a Taito mode to use your Switch as a vertical screen! The arcade visuals are simple and pleasing, and the beeps and boops sound straight out of an arcade from back in the day, but what really had me going was the MUSIC! It was some seriously toe tapping beats that had me humming them throughout the day.

The Wrap-Up

This game was a ton of fun, satisfying and hard to beat! I loved the building gameplay, the unique enemies each world bought, as well as the way the enemies’ individual attributes would work together to make your life hell! Zeroptian Invasion is a fun-as-anything romp that would make a great addition to any arcade enthusiast’s collection. It’s a little simple, but it properly accomplishes what it sets out to do, and I can’t bang it for that! I give Zeroptian Invasion an 8/10. I had a blast with it, and for $4.99, you can do FAR worse!