It seems like most of the Xbox Live Indie Games (most notably shooters) are remakes of old PC games. Unfortunately, most of these lack innovation and do not really possess anything that sets them apart from the numerous “shoot-’em-up” styled spaceship shooters. Enter Infinity Danger, which is no exception to this exhausted set of ideas. Based on a 2003 PC game by the name of Warning Forever, it is nothing special compared to the many games styled similarly on the Xbox Live Arcade.
There is not really a story at all, but you are basically a tiny space ship trying to blow up a giant space ship. The game controls with the two analog sticks similar to Geometry Wars and many other arcade shooters on the system. The aiming and shooting portion (controlled by the right stick) felt like it did not always rotate smoothly which often made hitting the target more difficult than it had to be. This is problematic when in the heat of battle.
Visually, a lot has changed from the PC game that it was based on. There is definitely a graphical update although nothing feels too inspired. Enemy ships, with the exception of size and shape differences, basically look the same. The background seemed to cycle endlessly with the same backdrop. Sound wise, the music was really generic and did not really change from level to level. It could be dealt with, but the robotic voiced “danger, danger, danger” made me want to turn it off. It does that between every wave and I had to mute it for a little bit while playing in order to be able to keep playing.
The object of the game is to achieve the highest score amongst your friends, and even the world. The high scores leader board can display either of these views. While playing, there is no life bar and it does not keep track of how many times you die in the traditional sense. The time “exchange” within the game is what I would say to be the most original idea in the game. The timer starts off at roughly 170 seconds with time counting down constantly and dropping drastically when you die. There is no scale or bar for damage so it is basically a one hit kill deal. Dying frequently will lower your time, and defeating the enemy will give you more time. It is definitely a tricky challenge to get far into the game.
Infinity Danger is not the most innovative shoot ’em up game on the marketplace, but it is what I would call a successful rendition of the game it was based on. Although at times challenging, the beginning of the game starts out being painfully easy before quickly becoming hard. There is no ease into difficulty. I would definitely check out the demo before purchasing.
