Developed and published by CIGames, the same company behind Sniper: Ghost Warrior and Lords of the Fallen, comes Alien Rage - Unlimited; a sci-fi FPS title that's packed with non-stop action. Originally released in 2013 for PC, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3, the game has only seen a minor following to date, and it has received mixed reviews that weigh mostly on the negative side.
Let's just go ahead and rip the band-aid off; Alien Rage is a generic shooter when it comes down to the plot line and characters. It only took me about six hours to finish the game, and I couldn't even tell you what their names are, except for the guy you play as... his name is Jack. However, bland story and people aside, Alien Rage is actually an excellent, solid shooter when it comes down to it. Not to mention, it's one of the few sci-fi shooters that is currently available on Steam that doesn't involve some kind of stealth mechanic.
The basics of the plot are as such: Earth colonized on some asteroid to mine an energy substance known as Promethium. An alien species known as the Vorus got word of this, joined the Earth team on the asteroid, and helped mine the energy source. The Vorus realized that they could have the Promethium all to themselves, and turned on the humans, wiping out the miners completely. Jack is sent in to wipe out the scum, and there are a lot of them to stick bullets in to. While you're there, you gather audio logs to fill in the blanks of the story that the very brief and minor cutscenes fail to explain.
Be forewarned, this game is not for those who are not good at shooters or FPS in general; the difficulty, even on the lowest setting, can be maddening at times. There is no sticky cover system like in Gears of War, it's up to you to find something sturdy to hide behind while bullets and plasma bolts are whizzing by your head. At times, it also seems like no matter where you stand, or what you do, the enemies will be hitting you anyway. It's also incredibly easy to be overrun by Vorus, and it's best to maintain your distance at all times.
Speaking of foes, there are enough enemy types that will keep you satisfied kill after kill in Alien Rage. Everything from your standard rifle-wielding hooded Vorus, grunts that will turn invisible and bum rush you, mini-gun powerhouses, to plasma blasting elites. Each nasty alien is a force to be reckoned with, and in large groups they are nearly unstoppable. Luckily, you can use the aid of explosive barrels and secondary weapon fire to make your pest control service go as smooth as possible. There are also 9 bosses to be dealt with across the 14 levels that you will play through, and while they all have a weakness to exploit, they are immensely powerful and your death will come swiftly many times over while facing them.
There are a total of 10 weapons, from a standard assault rifle, shotgun, pistol, rocket launcher, sniper rifle, to alien weaponry such as the plasma gun. Each one has its own unique secondary firing mechanic, most of which result in a large grenade catapulting from your weapon. Using the secondary fire, you can do some sure damage to the highly destructible, and impressive, environment. While many of the areas look similar, it's important to remember that you're in a giant mining facility, although you do venture out onto the asteroid a few times. The whole game has a very cold, surgical, clean feel to it; despite the strewn about blood and guts of the former Earth miners.
For a title released 3 years ago, Alien Rage surprisingly enough looks as if it was released this year. This is of course due to the fact that the game was made in Unreal Engine 3, and it does well in showing off some highly impressive graphical and mechanical technology. The controls feel sturdy, your character feels beefy, and the optimization is near-flawless. I did experience some framerate issues while transitioning between some sections, and when there were large explosions; however, the results were a brief dip into the mid-40's, and then it was back up to 60 FPS in no time. I also wanted to add in here that the soundtrack for this game is filled with some great beats that are sure to keep your blood pumping the entire time.
Well, there you have it. For a generic shooter, as many people have laid claim to in the review sections of many sites and forums, Alien Rage does have its perks. It's a solid game, with great mechanics and gameplay, and it's surprisingly fun despite it's obvious downfalls. It's really a shame that we're lacking so heavily in action based sci-fi FPS titles, and if more games such as this one came along with a better story and more developed characters, it would be a welcome change of pace from the tried-and-true military shooters that have flooded the market. If six hours of gameplay is enough for you to sink $21.99 CAD over, then go for it. Otherwise, hold out for a sale and definitely pick this one up in the $5-10 price range. Don't miss out on this one if you're craving a great action packed, sci-fi shooter.
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