TA Score for this game: Posted on 29 September 09 at 13:35, Edited on 07 April 13 at 04:54 This review has 16 positive votes and 0 negative votes. Please log in to vote. Description The first game released by the Behemoth (better known for their later hit, Castle Crashers), Alien Hominid HD is a visually touched-up version of their Gamecube/PS2/Xbox conversion of what was once a Flash game. Alien Hominid is a 2D side-scroller. The plot is straightforward: you are an awesome alien who is shot down and crashes into earth. Your ship is stolen, you must get it back, shooting, slicing, and biting your way to victory. The main game is 16 levels spread over three chapters. In addition, it comes with seven mini-games. Two players can locally play the main campaign, and some of the mini-games support up to four players via Xbox Live. Now, to the meat & taters of the review: Graphics/Sound (7/10) This is definitely the shiniest version of Alien Hominid. The game benefits from its HD make-over, and fans Dan Paladin's art style are going to have a blast with the various characters and enemies he drew. However, a lot of the background scenery is forgettable and not worth a second glance. This doesn't hurt game-play, but with so many games that even make stunning backgrounds (for those that choose to examine them), this one ends up being pretty average on that score. Audio works well for Alien Hominid. ![]() I found the music catchy without ever becoming annoying, and the sound effects for the weapons work well (in an arcade style rather than taking a realist approach). For me, audio that doesn't call attention to itself is good audio, and Alien Hominid pulls that off. Controls (6/10) I think nothing kills a 2D-scroller like bad control design. Alien Hominid HD thankfully avoids a bad control setup, but it also isn't much improved upon the average structure. Buttons for jumping and attacking are laid out well enough, though some of the moves felt a bit uncomfortable to my hands to execute. Alien Hominid: Shooting Game, Your UFO has crash landed, and the FBI is out to get you! Time to take them out! ![]() ![]() ![]() By-and-large this wasn't a huge deal.Alien Hominid is not a platformer so one doesn't need super precision. However, anything that requires a lot of repeating (or is needed during critical game spots, such as boss fights), should feel smooth and fluid. My biggest control gripes would be trying to jump while charging the weapon for a super blast, and using the crouch mechanic from an elevated position. The former can be done but felt clumsy to me, so much so that generally if I had to jump I didn't bother trying to charge my gun. As to the latter, the problem is crouching and pushing the jump button results in jumping down from your elevated position. This is fine, unless you need to stay up top and jump over something. This was mainly a minor annoyance, till the final boss fight, where a wrong jump would have fatal results. The bottom-line is a boss fight should never be hard just because the controls stink. Story (5/10) Alien-crashes-and-must-retrieve-spaceship. It's not a bad story, and it's not a good story. It's an average story that serves the game well enough without being noteworthy in its own right. Replay Value (5/10) The game is very difficult. One hit kills the Alien (except on Easy, where you get a one-hit shield so you actually die on the second glorious shot). As such, this is very traditional in its challenge rating. However, any level you clear you may start from in the future, on any difficulty setting. Given this, even the Win on X Difficulty achievements are straightforward and require very little time investment. Some of the other achievements will take a bit longer (or a lot if one has trouble completing some of the skill-based ones), but almost all of them are simplified by playing in particular levels and so little full replay need is achieved through that. I'd say collecting all the hats probably does the best job at upping the replay value. The saving grace for Alien Hominid HD comes from the PDA games (the mini games). Those do provide a replay outlet of sorts, so those bored and done with the main story but wanting to enjoy the artwork do have another venue. Overall, though, I'd say this is pretty average in the replay department (something they improved on greatly for Castle Crashers, but that's another review). 'Fun' Factor (7/10) Despite the replay and control issues I noted, I think this game ranks pretty high in the fun department. I was afraid this would have been too difficult for me to get into, but with the ability to start from any level you cleared, even someone like me was able to make visible progress at a reasonable pace. The Alien itself is just a fun sort of creature. You do fairly horrific kills, but the context is humorous, as if even the very destructive force of the Alien is channeled into some form of.cuteness. Even though I've beaten the game and have all the achievements, sometimes I find myself going back to the story and replaying a couple levels with some of the more interesting bosses, either to experience those particular fight gimmicks again or just to enjoy the art. Overall score average: 6.0 Score-to-Star Translation Guide: 5 stars: 9.01 to 10 (out of 10) 4.5 stars: 8.01 to 9 4 stars: 7.01 to 8 3.5 stars: 6.01 to 7 3 stars: 5.01 to 6 2.5 stars: 4.01 to 5 2 stars: 3.01 to 4 1.5 stars: 2.01 to 3 1 star: 1.01 to 2 0.5 stars: 0 to 1. November 18, 2004 • PlayStation 2 & Xbox •: November 21, 2004 (PS2) •: May 27, 2005 GameCube •: November 23, 2004 Mobile •: May 23, 2005 Gizmondo •: 2005 Game Boy Advance •: February 3, 2006 •: April 2007 Xbox Live Arcade • WW: February 28, 2007 iOS • WW: December 8, 2011 Mode(s), Alien Hominid is an video game developed. The game was developed from a originally released on in August 2002. Released the game for and in North America in 2004, whilst released the game in Europe for PlayStation 2,, and in 2005. The Xbox version is not compatible with. A port for the, co-developed by, was also released in Europe in 2006. A version titled Alien Hominid HD was released for on February 28, 2007. Contents • • • • • • • • Gameplay [ ] The game is a side-scrolling shooter in a similar vein to games like, where one hit instantly kills, and can be played simultaneously with one or two players. Players play as the titular hominid who has to fend off waves of secret agents. His main arsenal is a blaster, while players can also melee close-up enemies and use a limited number of grenades. Advanced moves include rolling under shots, jumping on and biting off enemies' heads, temporarily scaring other enemies, and digging underground and dragging enemies down with them. Players can collect a variety of power-ups which simultaneously give players extra grenades, a shield and unique ammo. Players can also drive vehicles, ride on top of a monster and pilot a UFO. Completing certain tasks will unlock hats the players can dress their Hominid in. The main game features sixteen stages spread across three areas, Urban, Russia and Area-51. Outside of the main game, there are three multiplayer modes; Challenge, Neutron Ball and Pinata Boss, a PDA game, featuring around 200 levels and a level editor, and a retro minigame, Super Soviet Missile Mastar. The PAL version contains an extra mode, All You Can Eat, while the PDA level editor is absent from the XBLA version. Differences between U.S. And European releases [ ] When the PAL version was developed for Europe in 2005, a number of new features were added. • instead of (at least on version) • 25 levels built by U.S. Fans were added to the 200 level PDA Game. • A 'replay rewind' function was added to single-player allowing play at any point in a level. • A brand new 2-4 player mini-game called 'All You Can Eat', featuring the Fat Kids, was made exclusively for the PAL version. It is a button masher where you have to eat all of the food in front of you to win. This idea was later re-used in The Behemoth's next game,, under the title 'All You Can Quaff'. • A glitch in level 3-5 that allowed a player to get massive numbers of points was removed. Development [ ] Alien Hominid began as a flash game developed by programmer Tom Fulp and animator, which was released on in August 2002. It is often referred to as the Alien Hominid 'prototype' by The Behemoth. Inspired by side-scrolling shooter games such as, the flash game features a little yellow alien who has crash landed on Earth and must fight through countless, bloodthirsty striving to capture him. The game consisted of one level containing two bosses, who would later reappear in the retail version. It became very popular among the online gaming set and has currently been played over 20 million times. Later in the year, then-co-worker John Baez approached Paladin as a fan of Alien Hominid. He suggested that Paladin and Fulp make a console version of the game, even offering to produce the game. Paladin and Fulp agreed, forming. In the course of two years, Alien Hominid became a much larger project than its online prototype. While 3D graphics were considered initially, The Behemoth decided nothing compared to the traditional 2D stylings of the prototype. The art of Paladin, who drew all visual aspects of the game by hand, became much more refined (though still cartoon-like and inviting). The project was entirely re-coded for consoles, and many new gameplay features were created. Matt Harwood of Petrified Productions, who had previously worked with Paladin, created all of the music for the game. DJH has been credited with extensive play-testing, citing Alien Hominid as 'the pinnacle of arcade entertainment'. Press [ ] Even before its release, Alien Hominid received notice in gaming magazines such as Play,,,, and even popular non-gaming magazines such as. In reviews for the game, it was critically acclaimed for its old-school style gameplay, tough level of difficulty, and quirky humor. The game also won many small awards, most notably at the (for Innovation In Visual Arts, Technical Excellence and the Audience Award). Copies of the game are sold primarily through its online website,, for ten dollars (American). The website also offers merchandise such as skate decks, T-shirts and action figures. The website was developed by Tom Fulp. Alien Hominid became one of the games spoofed by on June 3, 2008. Legacy [ ] Hominid appears during one of the levels in The Behemoth's 2nd game,, using a lance weapon based on his ray gun. He is playable to anyone who has also downloaded Alien Hominid HD on the XBLA version, while he is unlocked by completing said level on the PlayStation Network and Steam versions of the game. The green eyeball from an early boss fight also appears as an Animal Orb, firing lasers at enemies. Hominid appears as a playable character in Team Meat's, another game that originated as a flash game on Newgrounds. [ ] The Super Soviet Missile Mastar minigame from Alien Hominid was released as a free app for on February 7, 2011. An improved version of the PDA Games minigame was released for iOS on December 9, 2011. Developer Tom Fulp has cited the PDA Games as being the inspiration for The Behemoth's third game,, which features unlockable Hominid character heads for those who own Alien Hominid HD. Reception [ ] Reception Review scores Publication Score 6/10 8/10 B− B− 8.4/10 7.4/10 8.4/10 8.5/10 8.1/10 8.1/10 8.5/10 3.5/5 7.5/10 Aggregate scores 88% 82% 79% 81% 76% 78% 95/100 78/100 78/100 76/100 79/100 The game received 'generally favorable reviews' on all platforms except the Game Boy Advance version, which received universal acclaim, according to the website. • • Webber, Scott (July 20, 2006).. Console Monster. Archived from on July 22, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2016. • Dunham, Jeremy (February 18, 2005)... Retrieved July 15, 2016. • Mega64 (June 3, 2008)... Retrieved July 15, 2016. • Revak, Kelly (January 11, 2011).. The Behemoth. Retrieved July 15, 2016. • Revak, Kelly (February 7, 2011).. The Behemoth. Retrieved July 15, 2016. • ^ Fulp, Tom (December 9, 2011).. • The Behemoth (April 2, 2013).. • Gillen, Kieron (June 14, 2005)... Retrieved July 16, 2016. • Reed, Kristan (February 28, 2007).. Retrieved July 16, 2016. • ^ Liu, Johnny (December 28, 2004)... Retrieved July 16, 2016. • Davis, Ryan (November 18, 2004)... Retrieved July 16, 2016. • Stuart, Keith (June 15, 2005).. Retrieved July 16, 2016. • Davis, Ryan (November 18, 2004).. Retrieved July 16, 2016. • Gerstmann, Jeff (March 1, 2007).. Retrieved July 16, 2016. • Schiaparelli, Frank (November 19, 2004)... Retrieved July 16, 2016. • ^ Sulic, Ivan (November 9, 2004).. Retrieved July 16, 2016. • Brudvig, Erik (March 1, 2007).. Retrieved July 16, 2016. • 'Alien Hominid (GC)'.. January 2005. • Davison, John (January 2005)... Retrieved July 15, 2016. • 'Alien Hominid HD'.: 74. February 2007. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Archived from on September 13, 2008. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Archived from on September 13, 2008. Retrieved July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016. External links [ ] • • • • • at • at •.
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