'Space Invaders Extreme' is not what you think

'Space Invaders' is 30+ years old. Seriously? I remember playing it when it was brand new. I also remember wasting countless quarters playing it at the skating rink arcade. The invaders' rhythmic marching thump was practically the soundtrack of every game palace in the '80's.

As iconic as the 'Space Invaders' game is in the whole history of gaming, it's not the most intriguing concept to re-hash for modern systems. Luckily, Square-Enix and Taito have really pumped fresh-blood in the aging slide and shoot title.

I picked up the DS version of the the game (for $19!) this weekend, and I was really blown away. This little game is awesome.

While the gameplay core remains the same... move back and forth and shoot down spaceships... the developers have thrown in a dash of visual and music flare obviously inspired by the likes of Sega's 'Rez' and Q3's 'Lumines.' The backgrounds are swirling kaleidoscopes of images and colors. The music is beat-heavy and is complemented by the notes created from shooting down the individual space crabs.

The bad guys are no longer single color marching bots, now the invaders come in multiple colors. Shooting combos of similar color enemies, produces power-ups which makes clearing an attack armada much easier (and more satisfying). Shooting down combos of combos opens up bonus rounds and crazy fever-jackpot/roulette sequences to earn more points and in-game goodies.

The game's chaotic gameplay is part of it's appeal. This is not your 1980's 'Space Invaders.' Oh, and the game sometimes encompasses both DS screens, so your eyes will get a workout along with your thumb (mine is still sore).

In addition to the single player arcade mode, ranked modes (which save you scores online) and level modes (complete a level and you can return to that level) there is also a fantastic multiplayer mode downloads to two DS systems from one cartridge.

This game would have been a fantastic buy for $39, but it's a steal for $19. Go get it, now!

I've added a video clip to show you this game in motion: