Tuesday, July 09, 2024

FatalZone (plus two things I forgot in the original post)

I found a bit of an escape from the grim political reality of the last few weeks.

It's called FatalZone, and it's an auto shooter, but different, with much more strategy (to me) than something like Vampire Survivors (which I also liked). In FatalZone, your characters die permanently, and you don't have to complete runs. Instead, as you run around shooting zombies and finding supplies, a helicopter intermittently offers you an evacuation route.

Since you've invested time and funds into characters, you don't want to lose them. The helicopters aren't available all the time, though, so you have to make decisions on how long to stay and fight while still being able to get out alive. Missions are offered inside runs (without much variety, sadly) which can give you additional rewards for additional risk.

There's also a home base with multiple areas you can upgrade through the supplies you collect on runs. 

The visuals are quite an upgrade from the usual pixel graphics of this genre. Very painterly and attractive, with excellent animation.

It's in Early Access, but there's a ton of content and it seems to be stable, although people are complaining constantly in the discussion forums because it's what people do nowadays.

During the Summer Sale, it's only $3.99, and well worth it at that price.

EDIT: I forgot to mention two of the best moments in the game. 
The first is when you hear the helicopter, because the sound effect is perfect. Also, you hear it take off, in case you decided to stay through one more cycle. 

The second is when bikers on motorcycles come roaring through a level at intervals. It reminds me so much of the UFO in the original Space Invaders and is such a great touch. 

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