Capsized Review - Crazy Alien Puma Thingies!

Capsized is a 2D platformer by indie outfit, Alientrap Games. It doesn’t alter the formula of 2D platformer much, but does some amazingly neat things as an action platformer. Tight combat punctuated with some puzzle elements that change the pace a little make this in my opinion a good first commercial entry for Alientrap. It also has crazy alien puma thingies!

Story Telling With Imagery

In Capsized, you start off watching the intro cinematic(which is just a slideshow of images) describing the story and the situation you, the protagonist, is put into. Your spaceship has crashed on an Alien world, your crew members lost and you need to find a way to get your crew men back and escape this hostile planet. There is a lack of narrative text in any part of the game. Every single story thread is communicated with images(there is a very short description of the objective in the loading screen).

Capsize uses hand drawn art as a story telling tool during loading screens

In the loading screen, pictures pop up showing you that your Space ship has crashed on this alien world with only the words, ‘explore alien planet’ as the only indicator of an objective. Capsized never tries to over explain itself in words, always using its beautiful art to do the talking.

It’s obvious the developers wanted to tell the story with the use of art and visuals, which looks very pretty. Capsized compels you to be enraptured by the mysteries of this alien planet and whatever the unknown. The art style gives off the hint that this game is about exploration of this weird planet. But it quickly demonstrates that the emphasis is squarely on the action.

This is a pretty game. The art style is very distinct

Gameplay

Capsized has some elements of a 2D puzzle game with stuff like using blocks or stones to weigh down pressure plates(but this is not really the core of the game). I think it’s semi decent in this aspect. The issue I have with XNA games is the wonky physics. The collision detection between surfaces and your character is a bit iffy. This isn’t an just issue with Capsized but generally an issue for all 2D platformers I have seen using XNA.


“Reminds me of the frantic shooting action of the classic 2D action game ‘Abuse’. Especially with those alien creatures the swarm and leap at you. At times I screamed out loud ‘OMG crazy alien puma thingie!’”


To be fair, Alientrap has done well to make the physics not be totally wonky and broken. It at least works, but seeing your character hover slightly above a physical object is kind of odd. Jumping also feels a little floaty at times. Sometimes you jump higher than usual and you have no idea how you are able to do that. I suppose they can get away with it since the game is after all, set on an alien planet(smart move). In later levels, it get more floaty by design, so I’m not too bothered about this. The physics regarding projectiles and particles are pretty spot on though.

What's going on here? They killed him!

The brilliant bit in Capsized however, is the combat. In some awesome moments, it reminds me of the frantic shooting action of the classic 2D action game ‘Abuse’. Especially with those alien creatures the swarm and leap at you. At times I screamed out loud “OMG crazy alien puma thingie!” as I frantically move my mouse about trying to put it down. Capsized is not Abuse though(would have been awesome if it was, but still a good game on its own merits), as it has… spoilers… humanoid like alien enemies.

In the beginning, I wasn’t a huge fan of these humanoid tribal aliens as they do the predictable thing of shooting at your from a distance with some form or weapon(sometimes a harpoon of sorts)… boring! The game lost its Abuse vibe in the tribal Alien bits. You know the ‘oh shit that thing is jumping at me’ moments. But this only lasted momentarily as they introduce new objectives and new alien units that bring back the realisation that you’re not really a walking tank of a space man(you ain’t no Ripley that’s for sure).

These crazy alien puma things are a real menace. But fun to take on.

In one level, I came across an alien shaman dude who had an ability to block all your projectile attacks and deflect them back at you. I ran away in fear of death looking for health packs strewn across the level to replenish my health(no regenerating health rubbish in this game). It almost became like a Quake death match as I remembered the placements of health packs in the level so I could get back to them in a pinch. At this point, Capsized also became a game about managing your health levels, ammo and other resources(jet pack fuel being one).

Capsized is not just a simple ‘point cursor at enemy and kill it’ type of game as you’ll need to learn to use your weapons effectively and figure out the best moment to use your weapons alternate fire(yes all weapons had alt fire except the first pea shooter weapon). For instance, using the highly inaccurate pulsar(automatic assault rifle type weapon) for ranged combat is not the smartest idea, especially on those obnoxious flying insect things. Wait for them to fly closer and use the shotgun blast alt fire to take them down without wasting too much ammo. Very satisfying.

That giant insect thing doesn't look too friendly

Adding to that are your jetpack and hook abilities that allow you to traverse across the terrain of this dangerous alien planet. Your jetpack fuel is rather limited, so you’ll need to use it wisely but your hook is often times more than enough to get you to hard to reach heights. Once you get used to using it, you’ll be vaulting across the levels like a reverse pole vaulter.


Conclusion

Capsized is a really good 2D platformer with amazing combat that is frantic, intense, and ultimately satisfying. I have never felt such a great sense of satisfaction of using the arsenal of weapons available and its alternate fire modes to take down bad guys in a 2D game since maybe Abuse(yes I’m going to reference that again).

It’s disappointingly missing an online coop option(only has local coop) but for the price of USD$9.99, it’s still a very good deal for those looking for a fun an intense action oriented 2D platformer. You can try the demo here in the Steam product page.


Pros:

• Gorgeous art style
  
• Mix of puzzle solving and combat
  
• It’s affordable
  
• It’s quite challenging. I thought this was going to be a simple and short playthrough of an indie game. The game gave me a good beat down.
  
• Some section reminds me of Abuse(but the game isn’t exactly like it that much)
  
• The combat is quite good. You’ll need to learn to use your weapons smartly.
  
• Good variety of enemy types that require different strategy to take them down
  
• Lots of fun weapons
  
• Each level introduces new objectives. It’s not always the standard find the exit of a 2D platformer.

Cons:

• No saving mid level
  
• Collision detection between your characters and other objects not quite perfect
  
• Has survival mode(where you take on waves of enemy) but no online coop(only local coop). Wasted opportunity.

Verdict: It’s official! Crazy alien puma thingies are my new favourite alien beasts in a video game