Every week I anxiously await the release of new titles to the Xbox Live Arcade with the hopes of finding something to fill that bit of nostalgia of a gaming era past. This gaming fix may border on the line of addiction, but who can be held accountable with some of the gems that have been released for digital pleasure. This weeks download brought Aces of the Galaxy, a retro 3-D shooter to the games library. The game starts as you steal the Omega Prototype space ship from the evil Skurgian and their space fleet. The mission is simple: Deliver the stolen goods to the awaiting human fleet while blasting waves of Skurgian ships intent on stopping you and erasing the carbon-based life forms that dared to defy them.

Gameplay:

After choosing one of three Omega Prototype ships (the only thing that differs is the appearance) the great escape begins. The ship is equipped with 3 weapons which have unlimited ammo and will make blasting the baddies as easy as making a PB&J sandwich. The first is the main staple of your arsenal called the chain gun. It is the straight forward shooter which uses the button mashing from yesteryear to destroy your enemy....the faster you tap the faster you shoot. Next are the cluster missiles, a handy weapon for taking out a multitude of enemies or concentrating your fire on one of the heavier armored Skurgian space cruisers. The final weapon on board the Omega Prototype are the torpedoes. These are the most powerful weapon on board and they have a small amount of recharge time to refire. The Skurgian have also placed a secret weapon aboard, the temporal shift, which allows you to slow time down to a crawl. From the get-go of Aces of the Galaxy the retro space shooter feeling is entwined in the GAME PLAY, especially if you have played games like Star Fox. The space ship is “on rails” so to speak, meaning there is no speeding up or slowing down your escape as you follow along the predestined route to the next level. The ship can move side to side and up and down to dodge attacks and the barrel roll allows for quick movements across the screen The enemies come in waves at a time and their patterns and speeds vary constantly making it challenging to destroy them while dodging incoming fire and asteroids. Each level offers up a Skurgian Officer ship which is as pesky as swatting a mosquito as it zips on and off screen. During each level there is a chance to power-up one of your weapons in the ship’s arsenal, ship repair packs, and level warp. The level warp allows you to choose one of three planet atmospheres to proceed to after the current level. The game is keyed towards the hardcore gamer since there is no level select or continues, but playing on easy makes it fun for anyone to play. The essence of the game is to create combos to rack up the points without dying so that your top scores can be posted via the leader boards. . The local or xbox live co-op feature is a wonderful addition as it is in any game and only helps to enhance the experience. Be warned that the difficulty becomes amped up when playing with a partner to offer that extra challenge. At the end of each level most games provide a big battle or a boss battle, but Aces offers none of these making it the only major flaw in the game.

Graphics:

Aces of the Galaxy looks extremely sharp and on par as being one of the better looking games offered for Xbox Live Arcade. The environments are beautifully created and offer the perfect back drop as the ship speeds through asteroid fields, battles between large fleets, and warp fields. While the ships are extremely detailed they are sleek and simplistically well done bringing back memories of F-Zero.

Sound:

The sound fits perfectly into all parts of Aces. While some games electronic music can grate on the nerves this is not the case in Aces of the Galaxy. One of the best features is the music seems to morph to fit the current situation. Whether it changes to fit the speed of the ship as it races through warp rings, intense battle sequences, or warns of the dwindling integrity of the ship the music helps immerse the gamer into the situations. The sound effects are solid and lend to the atmosphere when kamikaze space ships fly head on screeching or that large frigate roars past.

Longevity:

Aces only takes nine levels to finish, but has 25 total levels. This adds to the replay value to an extent, but the biggest downfall of the game is it’s repetitive nature. The only thing vastly different about any of the levels is the background hues and environments which gives it that been here, done that feeling after 5 levels. The co-op feature would be the only thing that would keep an average gamer coming back for more of the same. Some of the more hardcore space shooter fans can play through all the difficulty levels or compete against others for the #1 ranking on the online leader boards.

Overall:

Aces of the Galaxy shines in the graphics and sound departments with solid game play that infuses the essence of classic space shooters. The game lacks any memorable moments, but is a fun game to pick up and play at any time. Some minor tweaks would have made this game a must have for anyone with the ability to download over the Xbox live marketplace and even with the way it was presented makes this a quality arcade purchase.