Ahead of the Game - Outpost Stand: Alien Rush is roguelike sci-fi survival with StarCraft-inspired bugs
The Zerg (?) are back
- Defend your base and try to survive for as long as you can
- Unlock randomised buffs and upgrades as you go along
- Now in Android early access
It's all about eliminating all those nasty bugs in this week's Ahead of the Game series, where we tell you all about a new mobile endeavour that's playable in one form or another despite its unofficial launch.
One of the year-end rituals I used to do (back when I somehow had more than 24 hours in a day) was to play StarCraft as my way of greeting the new year (not that I was any good at it). But now that I haven't had the pleasure of controlling the Swarm or pledging my life for Aiur in a long time, it feels incredibly refreshing to be facing off against the Zerg again - although I suppose it's in a way I never thought possible.
That's because Outpost Stand: Alien Rush is blatantly calling its hostile alien creatures the Zerg - much like in Blizzard's epic RTS franchise - but while my beloved Kerrigan is nowhere to be found here, that doesn't mean it's not fun.
This 3D tower defence-slash-Survivors-like will have you trying to outlast endless waves of the aforementioned alien forces, with randomised perks you can unlock the more enemies you eliminate along the way.
You can move around to pinpoint your target should you so wish, and it's just exhilarating to survive hordes of creepy crawlies with powerful new upgrades you obtain over time.
And it's not just about standing idly by and watching your hero do all the work for you, either (although you can certainly do that with the conveniently toggle-able viewing mode on screen). I found that you'll really need to strategise which enemy hordes to handle first if you don't want your base to be overrun. I mean, I definitely got too complacent once or twice and ended up getting totally annihilated - not exactly fun.
For an added challenge, you can aim to kill so-and-so number of enemies with every stage, or try your hardest to keep your base's HP up to 70% at all times. After surviving long enough to clear your mission objectives, a big ol' boss will come stomping around in a last-ditch effort to destroy your base. It somehow reminds me a bit of Blast Survivor, in a way, but with a StarCraft-inspired coat of paint.
So, how do you play Outpost Stand: Alien Rush?
The Zerg - er, the aliens - are out there just waiting for you to take 'em down, so if you happen to be on Android, you'll be happy to know that Outpost Stand: Alien Rush is currently in early access.Now, it might not be the most peaceful way to end the year, but if you're on the hunt for ways you can mow down alien hordes with big guns and even bigger guts, this might just be the perfect pick-up-and-play way to do it!
