Xbox Indie Review: Radiangames Inferno

For the third time in about half a year, Radiangames has cranked out a stellar shooter that manages to rejuvenate a tired, dormant style by infusing it with modern sensibilities and some spectacular aesthetics. JoyJoy was stylish and polished, though sadly dismissed as just another twin-stick shooter, and Crossfire stood out as a unique twist on the Space Invaders-style arcade shooter. Inferno continues the prolific developer’s trend and is like a delicious cocktail with one part Geometry Wars fused with one part Gauntlet; the results are pretty intoxicating.

As in Gauntlet, up to four players explore labyrinthine mazes while wiping out swarms of baddies and collecting keys in order to advance to the next stage. Inferno ditches the sweaty, drunken dwarves and scantily clad mages in favor of radiangames’ trademark neon spaceships and thumping techno beats, while adding light RPG upgrade system.

Radiangames sure enjoys the flashing neon, and even in the solo game, the screen is constantly bombarded with colorful firepower and huge mobs enemies that range from hot-pink tanks to baby-blue jellyfish. The players can even get helper drones that produce their own neon beams. Multiply all that firepower by four in the multiplayer, and the sheer amount of lasers on screen would make Pink Floyd envious.

The backgrounds may appear bland in screenshots, but any other design choice would probably be very distracting when actually playing the game. The wire-frame layouts of the level and the actual ship designs themselves is also a bit reminiscent of Pac-Man, except this time he gets to puke death at his enemies instead of always fleeing in search of power pellets.

Although technically a twin-stick shooter, don’t lump Inferno in with the endless waves of twin-stick releases that infest the indie marketplace. It distinguishes itself by expanding upon the established norms for the genre. This isn’t a twin-stick shooter so much as it is shooter that happens to use twin-stick controls. It’s important to make that distinction and not label it into a category and dismiss its accomplishments. That would be like labeling Bioshock as just a first-person shooter and overlooking everything it does to advance the genre and break out of the quicksand.

One of the reasons I quickly tire of most twin-stick shooters is that they’re often presented in a wave-based format. The objective isn’t to get to a particular place or accomplish a goal, it’s only to survive as long as possible in a blank, open terrain. When the goal of a game is to not die against ever-increasing odds, the result can only be disappointment and frustration. It may seem like a bit of an artificial distinction, but I think there is a psychological effect when playing the game.

Inferno fixes this nagging pet peeve of mine by taking the accessible controls of Geometry Wars and plopping them into a game with structured levels. The result is an experience that feels far more focused and objective based. Instead of merely surviving, there is a clear-cut task and a path to take in order to reach the next level. There is nothing wrong with the twin-stick design for controls, there is merely a lack of innovation that makes each game feel rote.

The levels provide a lot of obstacles, which again, add structure and strategy to the open-world chaos of most twin-stick shooters. It is possible to hide behind cover and find angles to fire from in order to pick off stationary enemies one at a time. The multiplayer adds other dimensions, where one person can enter a room with his/her shields up to draw fire from the enemy, opening a path for other players to attack.

The upgrade system also adds a sense of progression and makes Inferno feel like an actual game and not just an exercise in surviving in a gladiatorial arena. Acquired money can be spent on upgrades such as improved shield, health, firepower, spread and homing shots. The upgrades are equipped by using slots that unlock as the game progresses. Upgrade slots are continually unlocked, so each level brings the hope of earning new spots to improve the ship.

While it would be cool if the RPG elements were a bit more fleshed out, there is still a respectable amount of customization. With thirty levels, a new game plus mode, four-player co-op, lots of different enemies to destroy and some fancy, glittery graphics, Radiangames Inferno is an unbelievable value and most importantly, it’s a ton of fun.

Visit the Xbox Live Marketplace to add a free demo of Radiangames Inferno to your Xbox 360 download queue.

Radiangames Inferno was provided for review by Radiangames. It is available for 80 MS points ($1).

By Mike Wall at January 22, 2011.

About Mike Wall

Mike grew up and lives near Philadelphia and has been intrigued with games ever since his parents preached that they rotted his brain. He studied journalism at Penn State and got his master's degree in secondary education before realizing that not even summers off would make that job palatable. He now works in marketing and is trying to find time to continue writing a book about zombies, aliens, vampires, the end of the world, and a talking cat.