Super Mutant Alien Assault

 
Developer: Cybernate 
Steam Release: Aug 2015
Hours Played: 5.2
Similar To: Muffin Knight / Room 13 / Super Crate Box
Rating: 4/5 Parsnips

GAMEPLAY
SMAA joins the line alongside titles such as Muffin Knight and Room 13 in paying homage to the classic Super Crate Box formula of old. Rather than following the gameplay to the letter though, like Muffin Knight, SMAA tinkers with it and ends up playing out much more like Room 13 albeit with the backdrop of an out-of-control spaceship rather than an horrific slaughterhouse. Enemies don't fall into play from a trapdoor either or get stronger if they fall down a pit at the bottom but spawn at a few random entrances and get boosted in strength by radiation spewing forth from machines. The player controls a box-shaped mech and, in a series of randomly generated levels, leaps about from platform to platform blasting enemies and swiftly interacting with dispensers that dish out such items as weapons, grenades or health.  
 

BALANCE & PACE
The battlefield fits a single screen so it's easier to trace enemy movement. The levels themselves differ in flavours from the kill-all type to the simple survival format. In between you'll get: pressure levels (where you'll need to deactivate valves before it causes you to lose health); hyperdrive and thruster levels (pick up and deliver tanks of fuel or gas balls); and, of course, vanquish levels (where it's time to fight a fast-moving and annoying boss). Weapons are very well varied ranging from the explosive shotgun to the powerful sniper rifle to the ridiculous heavy-duty plasma pogo stick! Ammo is limited and will run out if not monitored so be prepared for regular trips to the weapon dispenser. With an Xbox controller at the ready, SMAA is a greatly satisfying romp and plays out as the best Super Crate Box alternative.  
  
 

PRESENTATION & DESIGN

The game is presented in the not-quite-pixel-art style with quite a garish colour-scheme initially dominated by pinks, purples, blues and oranges. A good, pumping soundtrack thumps nicely as you arrive at the home-page which I found to be a bit uninspiring and incongruous with the rest of the game. For example, progression is indicated by twelve plain boxes dotted across the top of the screen. I also didn't care much for the dubstep-style tunes but this is just a matter of taste and counterbalanced by other more melodious material. Control and movement of your character is superb and, as mentioned, works like a dream with an Xbox controller. The sound-effect of machines being activated along with those blistering weapons is a clear and definite strength. 
   
      

PROGRESS SYSTEM
Lives are indicated by hearts in the top left with the all-important ammo gauge present. You'll also pick up globs of green goo to fuel special ammo for a special attack conferred upon you during play. Additionally many other unlocks occur as you destroy and pick up the contents of crates. The game itself is divided into three galaxies containing four random levels or ships that you teleport between. This makes it a 12-level game altogether but getting to that third galaxy will be tough even on normal difficulty. If you do manage to get that far, fear ye not for the game will ramp up the difficulty by throwing an heroic and epic level of difficulty at you... so unless you manage to complete all 36 levels the fun never ends. Endless mode will also unlock somewhere during Galaxy 2.  
     

CONCLUSION

SMAA may appear like a simple run and gun action platformer at first but hides a wealth of unlockable goodies underneath. You'll pick up moves such as the dash ability or a special attack like the plasma blast along the way. Grenade use, with some being activated by remote control, is also a thing of beauty when timed correctly as you become more efficient with how to handle them. You'll also be issued with a sidearm with unlimited ammo so you'll never be caught short. In fact, the only real downside is in having to remember so many keys for all the actions. Seriously though, apart from a hardly noticeable framerate issue that occurs when the ship starts to shake during a brief transition (and that cheap looking home-page), SMAA gets a hell of a lot right and is ultimately a real joy and an absorbing challenge to play.