Alt+Games - Gamma Bros

This article is a port and update from my previous Alt+Games site . I'll post these in our new site once in a while as I return to the games I've covered earlier.

A review of IGF07 finalist: Gamma Bros offers tight-grip 8-bit-neoretro-shoot' em up action in your web browser.

Gamma Bros is a Flash based web shoot 'em up game developed by Pixeljam Games. The game was one of the finalists on this years Independent Game Festival's Web-based Games series, and was edged out by Samorost 2, which won the series.

The game operates similarly than other vertically or horizontally scrolling shooters, with one crucial exception: besides moving his/her starship on all four directions (with the arrow keys) the player can also shoot in each direction (with the a, s, d and w keys). The enemy waves come from every direction and the action is twice as hectic compared with traditional shoot 'em ups. An excellent innovation to the 2-D shmup genre and it works really well in practice too.

The audiovisual quality of the game is not a show of the latest technological effects but instead is based on the aesthetics of 8-bit games of the good old times. The style is sympathetic and works well in conjunction with whats happening in the game. The sound effects and the music do not stand out, but instead complement the visual style very well. The music signals the arrival of new kinds of enemies and more dangerous enemy waves.

The gameplay is pure action. The game is based on the gradual escalation of both the difficulty level and the resources player can use: the enemies' number grows and they become faster and more dangerous as the game progresses but in the same time the players weapon arsenal gets heavier. The diffivulty level is just right in the beginning of the game and progresses so that in most parts of the game the player is kept within the sweet zone, escaping boredom and major frustration. Player's ship doesn't destroy on the first hit; it takes a certain amount of hits before it is destroyed and the player continues to go on with only a jetpack on his back. The jetpack can sustain two more hits. If the player can hold on with his jetpack for a while, his sidekick (the other Gamma Bro) will offer his ship to replace the destroyed one. Even if the original brother does not make it, the player can continue by taking the role of the other brother. When both of the brothers are gone, the game is over.

All in all, Gamma Bros is a quality game for those who love shoot 'em ups that require fast reflexes and good coordination, not to mention to those who have appeal for that distinctive neo-retro style. The difficulty level is not steep; with adequate skills the player should be able to progress pretty easily. The game may not up to it for a longer commitment though, because it has no real save feature. The downloadable version has a password feature which allows starting the game in the later levels. This is less than optimal, though, as the levels are pretty lengthy. Still, Gamma Bros is an excellent entertainment for short breaks and it's shooting mechanic a well-come addition to the genre.

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