Xenomare
Survive
Everyone is dead. Your only chance is the escape shuttle… but you need fuel and oxygen. And find the codes for the self-destruct… just hope IT does not find you first.
What is it about?
The basic idea was a 2D survival horror game, loosely base on the old ZX81 game “Alien”. You are alone on a spaceship and have to survive long enough to get the lifeboat up and running and escape from the horror. There are some Rogue-like elements, since your objectives and the items you find in a level are randomized.
The initial release contains a three part tutorial to get you familiar with the game concepts and three different levels for the main game. Replay value is achieved by combining the rogue-like elements with several difficulty levels.
Initial Features
- 2D stealthy survival horror gameplay
- 3 tutorial levels
- 3 different levels for the single player “Last Survivor” mode.
- Rogue-like randomized objectives and item placements
- 3 difficulty levels
Early access?
Once the basic gameplay works (“Last Survivor” mode), there are several directions I could take the game:
“Fire Team (single player)”: Survive with a team of four characters to add tactical depth to the game and allow more complex game play?
“Fire Team (couch co-op)”: This would also make couch co-op possible – why control all heroes when you can survive together with some friends?
“Escape from Hallas Prime”: Or maybe focus on single player and add a story campaign with NPCs, in-engine cutscenes and more complex gameplay?
This is where your opinion comes in – if you like the gameplay and would like to see the game grow, which direction should I take?
Game Discussion
Steam User 2
Xenomare is a fun little Survival Horror Roguelike. It was tough, and I died a lot. In this game, you must search for items, do the task, and leave. This is all done well, avoiding and hiding from the enemy. There are a few maps and difficulties. I was mostly playing on easy and was still dying a lot. I recommend trying this if you like Survival Horror games and can afford to spend $8. If not, you can wait for a sale. Just know this game is still an Early Access Game, so the developer is still working on it.
Find more reviews from me on my Steam curator page:
Here is the YouTube video of my first impressions of the game:
Steam User 10
Curator page here--> DaRevieweD #143 <-- New review every Weekend
"Xe-No-More…!!"
Here's The Thing:
You are the final surviving crew member… maybe not for long, who can say! And you owe it to your mates to live a long, productive life in their stead. Choose your map and try to escape an alien life form several times just because you can~
PROS;
:) A RIPPLY ENDEAVOR~
The gameplay is- at the end of it, objective-based and if you recall the end of Alien (1979), it is exactly that. Trying to outrun, escape a dangerously swift being while making sure you have stuff such as fuel to live on in cryosleep and securing the codes to jettison the vessel to adios! It’s also a caricature of I would say Alien Isolation in terms of stealth!
You can manage and predict what you’ll be facing in the difficulty/map select screen such as how many xenomorfs you’re up against, the layout of the map and loadout to start out with… BUT nothing is fixed, in that as soon as you spawn, most will be randomized! Short of finding the mainframe with the “cargo scan” option that reveals all key items; you will have to ransack the whole area with each search action taking up a short slice of your already precious time!
My playtime of 1.5 hours doesn’t seem much but I played like 15+ rounds so you can estimate each match lasts 9 minutes each, give or take a few instant deaths! As such, there isn’t much to the replay value when you really think about it. Since there are only the tutorial and “last survivor” modes~
TIPS:
1) If you get spotted from afar; in the red zone of detection. Just break eye contact!
2) Not all objectives need to be completed to “win”!
:) A CREWED-RECOLLECTION OF THE SETTING…
I’m very much in awe of the aesthetic which is faithful to the Alien universe but at the same time serves just as much as a spin-off title! Here, xenomorf is a bit version with dark greenish tone, the motion tracker is a radar but the radiating blips and ensuing panic seem straight out of Aliens (1986). The three maps thus far also pay homage to the Alien trilogy with the first being a stand-in for the Nostromo and so on, so forth!
Sound design also gave me goosebumps and a wriggling feeling in my heart. Again, because of its remarkably similar yet different take on them… Growls of the xenomorf is more distorted, but otherwise uncannily breathy! The grating footsteps on the metal surface from both you and the xenomorf really travel and settle on your spine. The spewing of the flamethrower and when it is about to run out, is a frightening mood in itself~
:) A XENOPHOBIC HORROR IS ONBOARD!
The top-down perspective not only makes your cute, itty-bitty sprites even more adorable but it also makes them much smaller, vulnerable than they already were! The way your field of vision is often restricted to either one room at a time and suffocating, confined corridors. Despite knowing the number and frequency of patrol of the threat, it doesn’t change the fact you’re alone… and all it takes is one mistake to have you into a pile of bones!
Over time I couldn’t trust the tracker, because it didn’t seem reliable. Maybe the cabin fever just got to me… I mean I still leave it on and I never start a match without rerolling for it beforehand! There is no other presence around you besides the obvious and that terrifies me- at least in other Alien games, there were non-friendly NPCs, cadavers~
CONS;
:( FEELS A LITTLE… ALIEN.
In all honesty I felt it severely lacked content at least for a player like myself, where I have to HAVE a story to go along with things. So right now, it comes off as just a working prototype with endless do-overs of the same objectives which made things dry and predictable!
The developer himself is well aware of this, what with it being branded as early access and has been receptive to the possibility of expanding it with new campaign and co-op modes! Maybe the purpose is to get real pro at the game so that when those new, succulent and ripe for the plucking goodies drop, you’d be ready? Thus, we will just have to wait and see.
:( SOME BURDENING CARGO!
There are a couple of gameplay elements that didn’t sit well with me either! Firstly, there are no consequences for failing to fulfill the goals and you could even skip them since they lead to identical outcomes! Bringing me to my 2nd point, in that it’s missing out on rewards as well. Apart from a shot of epinephrine to your ego, you will find there is no strong incentive to keep you going.
Lugging around the fuel canisters are the worst, being a time-consuming and arduous process that I just skip out on this altogether. Of course, realistically that would imply my game counterpart would be stuck in the void of space sometime soon but I couldn’t care less. Furthermore, the mainframe that gives you the omniscient sense is so close to the starting area, with the exception of the 3rd map that it cuts out, not to mention renders most of the aimless searching of crates and barrels pointless!
BUGS:
x Xenomorf’s AI glitches out after being roasted by flamethrower. Running endlessly into the wall and lasts for the whole mission; allowing me to finish it!
x Xenomorf’s AI has trouble navigating door frames, usually it will awkwardly hug it before turning.
NITPICKS:
~ A tad too unbalanced, one time the xenomorf spawned close-proximity right by the room I was in, after coming out of hiding.
~ Aiming the flamethrower, especially diagonal direction feels awkward when you can only do so with the movement keys. Freeing up the mouse for nothing!
~ The 3 maps are samey-looking. With each succeeding one being simply bigger. Which are harder to navigate and becomes a chore.
~ Xenomorf is impossible to outrun nine out of ten times thanks to both the speed of xenomorf and the stunted stamina bar that replenishes by taking its sweet time.
~ Minor grammatical errors.
"I Was Partly Kidding- It’s Xeno-MERDE & Even Xeno-ma-mere~"
Last Words?
Functional Alien-inspired stealth simulator more like a proof-of-concept; lacking plot, modes & incentive! Developer has future plans and you can’t deny what’s present is intriguingly nerve-wracking~
If you like the nail-biting, teeth-chattering and oxygen out the room Alien Isolation but can’t quite afford it. If you love games that are smitten by the Alien franchise like the yet to be released Starless! Then you’d also be open to this miniature version! What it misses out in content, it hammers down in atmosphere and style that’s on a level all its own~
B- for...
bold production and idea. It’s… certainly bearable but it has the potential to be even better!
Deeply grateful to Indie Game Collective (IGC) for the key and opportunity. Here’s to more spaces to showcase~
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Steam User 0
fun game was a bit difficult for me maybe change the speed of the enemy a tad for fairness :pc other than that was fun
Steam User 0
The game is really tense. It has a really good atmosphere, good lighting, and simple to understand controls. It sort of reminds of a scarier Jupiter hell which is a good thing.