Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. (GBC) Review (no fat)

by Acclaim Platform: Gameboy Genre: Arcade	ESRB Rating: Everyone Release: 1999-12-30	Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. (GBC) Features: Master a handful of weapons Six levels to explore Password save feature Good background graphics...lousy character models
	Egamer's Rating: 7 / 10. Reviewed on: 2006-02-02

Game Description

Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. is a rather deceptive title since you are the sole Armorine found throughout the game. After having crashed on Venus, you find that the planet is now home to a huge legion of voracious alien bugs. The latter are apparently intent on eliminating the entire population on Venus, and are about to launch a massive attack on the unaware humans. Although you’ve just landed on the planet and are not yet ready for serious action, it is your duty as an Armorine to put an end to the bugs’ vile plans.

Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. Gameplay

Project S.W.A.R.M. is an overhead title where your main task is to dispose of the disgusting bugs that threaten to take over Venus. You simply walk forward and shoot all the bugs that continuously swarm towards you. Although this is an action game, it does incorporate some puzzle elements. These parts are always simplistic and involve basic tasks such as finding specific checkpoints that will allow you to progress through the game and unveil more about the bugs’ plan. They nevertheless add some variety to the game.

Even though you begin with only one weapon, which may prove insufficient in eradicating the bugs, you can thankfully grab more powerful guns throughout the game’s six stages. Your weapons include a flamethrower, which will easily burn the bugs, and a destructive plasma rifle. You however cannot switch between weapons, but can only wield one at a time. It is thus up to you whether you want to change to another gun whenever you see one of them lying around.

The inability to carry all the weapons you’ve grabbed is rather annoying because you’re always stuck with a single one in spite of the several guns the game offers. You may eventually find yourself with an inadequate weapon at a certain stage, as another one would have been more efficient in dealing with the bugs. Your enemies are not to be estimated either, as they combine both quantity and intelligence. They’ll come at you in groups so a couple of them can pull nasty surprise attacks on you while you’re busy shooting in another direction. In any case, the bugs’ continuous assault makes Project S.W.A.R.M. a very challenging game in spite of its brevity.

Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. features only six levels, most of which are rather short. They are nonetheless diverse, and you need to achieve a certain objective to complete each stage. One locale, which features a huge prison facility, will thus require you to destroy a lab before you can move on. The level requirements are again simplistic, but add some depth to the game. Although Project S.W.A.R.M. has a short lifespan, it nevertheless uses a password system so you can resume your progress instead of restarting from scratch each time. Moreover, the passwords are obtained by merely pausing the game.

Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. Controls

Project S.W.A.R.M. benefits from a unique control scheme that suffices to make the game different from the numerous action titles available on the Game Boy Color. You move your character around using the directional buttons. In addition to your regular shooting, which is done by pressing the A button, you can rely on an alternate shot that allows your Armorine to rotate in any direction. This gives you the ability to continuously shoot while walking, and given the abundance of bugs throughout the game, you’ll have to use the second firing system a lot during the later stages. While this scheme may seem complex at first, it is actually very intuitive and is further enhanced by the good response times.

Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. Visuals

Armorine: Project S.W.A.R.M has impressive backgrounds that boast an effective color palette and nice details. Unfortunately, the game is let down by the horrible character models. Your on-screen alter ego has no distinctive traits and suffers from a crappy animation. In addition, the bugs are poorly designed and look more like scurrying blobs.

Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. Sound

There’s nothing remarkable about the music, but it nevertheless fits the game in spite of its monotony. The sound effects are equally average. There’s a nice sharpness to them, especially your weapons firing, but otherwise, they are all decent at best.

Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. 2cent

Although it suffers from its limited concept, the control scheme is unique and intuitive. The action game manages to be an interesting, in spite of its frustrating brevity and lack of replay value. All in all, Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. is quite a fun to beat title, especially if you just want to take out some frustration through blasting bugs to smithereens… just don’t stop to make sense of things.

Armorines: Project S.W.A.R.M. Cost

The game currently retails for $4.49.