Game Review #399: Super Mutant Alien Assault (Nintendo Switch)

Reviewer: Steven Green

Developer: Cybernate

Publisher: Fellow Traveller

Category: Arcade Action

Release Date: 07.12.2019

Price (at time of review): $9.99

Buy Super Mutant Alien Assault from the Nintendo Switch eShop here.

Explosive Action

Super Mutant Alien Assault is a 2D action game in the arcade format in which you traverse a set of levels in order to complete the game. Each level increases in difficulty while adding new mechanics along the way. Blow up aliens, carry massive batteries, and do all of this while wielding the arsenal that Arnold Schwarzenegger always wished he could. Explosive action to the nth degree awaits you in this well-designed little indie title.

Random Ruckus

Randomized rooms are the name of the game here, and you will have to make your way through a set of a dozen rooms in order to say you have successfully made it to the end of this challenging, yet fair action title. You are clearing out a space freighter to remove the aliens who have made themselves a menace on this journey. You are a security droid who has been tasked with this mission while defending the last surviving humans in deep cryo sleep. Can you survive to the end?

Level Mayhem

Each room is set up with an objective, whether it’s to just survive, take out all the enemies, or maybe something a bit more interesting. For example, in some levels you have to carry massive batteries filled with fuel back and forth across the level while surviving the waves of aliens in order to get the ship fueled up enough for you to progress. With a few different objective modes like this it allows for a bit of spice to be added to the otherwise straightforward and chaotic gameplay. Besides that, the name of the game is to just kill everything. You have aliens of all shapes and sizes coming after you, and with a set amount of health you have to successfully avoid harm while dealing out as much punishment as possible. Luckily for you, there are a ton of different ways to accomplish this goal.

Weapons Galore

This title doesn’t mess around when it comes to giving you some serious firepower to defend yourself. You have everything from fast spraying mini guns to high powered sniper rifles that allow for a vast array of combat styles and strategy to take down the alien menace. No weapon is really better than the other with all having their place on this journey.

You also have different explosives to choose from in order to blow your way out of trouble. You can fling grenades around the level (with the ability to accurately cook them as well) on top of having various bazookas and grenade launchers at your disposal as well. There is a fair share of boom booms available for you to get into trouble with.

Continuing on that trend you also have various abilities you can gain that help in defeating the baddies, like a bouncing attack, that makes for some more interesting ways to survive. Along with various defensive moves and other perks you have a fairly customizable approach you can take to this challenge.

Curveballs and Wrenches

There are some key things you have to take note of in order to progress successfully through Super Mutant Alien Assault. Killing enemies quickly is crucial, as a pulsating green ring of radiation increases the damage intake and size of the aliens, causing for things to just get harder if you take your time. You also have some seriously tight spaces to maneuver through at times, meaning your platforming skills and quick twitch ability will also have to be on point in order to successfully make any sort of progress through this game, as it has no problem laying on the difficulty as you move deeper and deeper through the ship itself.

User Options

The game can be played solo or with a friend and I found that playing with a friend really amped up the fun you can have in this title. Playing alone is a fine experience as it is, but it is sort of like what I would expect a solo campaign of Duck Game to be without the ducks. And although I would play that in a heartbeat, the real fun and core to a title like Duck Game is the fun and shenanigans you have with your buds on the couch.

You also have the ability to unlock skins and different robot types for you to command as you make your way through the game, allowing for the game collectors of the world to rejoice at another thing to grind for, and the fashionista gamers in our ranks to have a choice in style before jumping head first into gore and mayhem.

The randomly generated levels also make for a new experience every time you make a run. This adds to the replay capabilities of a game that otherwise could be a quick one-and-done title for most people. And if you are good at the game you really can finish a run in a very short amount of time, so this way you might have a reason to come back and play some more.

Colorful Chaos

The game looks beautiful and is popping with color and style. The pixelated graphic style lends itself well to this arcade style of gameplay, and the game just absolutely explodes off the screen with the design and artistic choices made in this one. If you want to add a game to the list of pretty indies, then you have a good one for that here. Masterfully animated explosions and gunfire throughout, with just the right amount of gore make for some of the most realistic pixel graphics you can find. The soundtrack is also hot. Pumping tunes are a perfect match for the gameplay in this one.

In Closing…

All in all, Super Mutant Alien Assault is a fine experience that really does well what it is setting out to do. Crazy good graphics and music paired with a fun gameplay loop complete a product that will be something I would say most will enjoy. However, there isn’t a ton of depth here, and anyone looking for some sort of explanation as to what is happening are barking up the wrong tree. This game is following its arcade roots of just being some fun, action-packed gameplay, and not trying to impress anyone who isn’t into that sort of thing. Any arcade lovers or SHMUP-aholics should keep this one on there radar.