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These aliens are huge jerks and I do not feel bad that they are dead now.
A roguelike shooter mimicking old-school black and white games, Rogue Invader is nonetheless a stylish new-wave roguelite sidescrolling shooter, and it’s finally out. Released on December 15 of last year, Rogue Invader’s launch flew under the radar for many—me included.
There’s only one reusable drop pod and it only fits one person, so you’re invading the alien home world one grunt at a time. (We lost all the supply ships, apparently.) That might seem nasty, or evil, but the aliens started it and also their king is a huge, huge jerk. Seriously, King Zeno heckles you relentlessly and I hate him.
The graphics, of course, are a huge selling point. They’re more complex than anything from the early ’90s ever was, but they have that same heavily shadowed charm. There’s a lot of fun in just seeing how the visual effects splash over the landscape, or how cover blows up and is rebuilt by the aliens in later runs.
What I’ve played of it has a pretty satisfying gameplay loop, one where I found new and innovative ways to die. (Blown up by own grenade, fell into bottomless chasm, river of lava, etc.) You can find Rogue Invader on its official website and you can buy it on Steam for $20.
Jon Bolding is a games writer and critic with an extensive background in strategy games. When he’s not on his PC, he can be found playing every tabletop game under the sun.
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