Indie remakes and homages to classic retro games don’t
always capture the same thrills as the originals – see the huge number of bad
2D platformers released in the last 5-years – but sometimes they’ll strike gold
again and come up with something just as good, if not better, than what they
were inspired by. Case in point is
Ultratron, a twin stick shooter lovingly crafted in the image of the beloved
Robotron 2084. Ultratron takes the
basic concept of Robotron but kicks up the gameplay and introduces a great
upgrade system that adds some much needed variety to the experience. Ultratron is a fresh take on a classic for
the modern era, and is a total blast to play.
See our review for details.
Game Details
- Publisher: Curve Digital
- Developer: Puppy Games
- ESRB Rating: “E” for Everyone
- Genre: Twin Stick Shooter
- Pros: Looks cool; upgrade system; solid gameplay; co-op
- Cons: Can be hard to see sometimes
- MSRP: $10
Ultratron is a 2D twin stick shooter where you blast your
way through waves of enemy robots that spawn into the arena. The enemies start out as mostly easy
targets, but new enemy types are quickly added that can shoot back, place
bombs, take many more hits to kill, and more.
Every few levels there is also a boss fight against a giant enemy robot
where you have to shoot off various components to kill it. The game has a nice difficulty curve that
introduces things at a fairly even pace to allow you to adjust as more enemies
appear and enemy types are added in each round.
What sets Ultratron apart from Robotron or many other
entries in the genre is the fascinating upgrade mechanic between each
round. You pick up money from all of
the enemy robots you defeat, which you can then spend on new upgrades. You aren’t just getting more powerful with
the upgrades, though, as you also have to re-supply your shields and smart
bombs between rounds as well. This
creates interesting strategic choices as you have to decide whether to buy new
shields or increase the power on your weapons.
Or maybe you should buy some little robot buddies to follow you around
like options in a shmups. Or a stronger
magnetic pull so you pick up money from further away. Or a turret. Or a number
of other upgrades. All of these options
add a ton of variety to the game and give it a fantastic strategic element many
twin stick games lack.
When you put all of this together, Ultratron is a total
blast to play. The controls are
responsive – really it’s just move and shoot on the sticks and pull the trigger
for bombs - and the game feels great to play.
Things get even more fun when you add in another player in co-op.
My only real complaint is that it can sometimes be hard to
see what is going on. The game is very appealing looking with a dark playfield highlighted by bright neon colors, but
the enemy robots and backgarounds both use the same colors in each level so it
can be hard to distinguish enemies from the background. The screen can also become filled with
bullets and explosions and enemies and it can be hard to see where you are and
what is going on. I love the way the
game looks, but more could have been done to make it easier to see.
All in all, Ultratron is a pretty spectacular upgrade
to an arcade classic. It plays great
and looks really, really cool, and the upgrade system gives it a surprising
amount of depth. At just $10 it won’t
break the bank, either. If you’re a fan
of twin stick shooters, and particularly if you want to play co-op, give
Ultratron a try.
