iPad App Breakdown: Inkvaders HD - Blasting Through An Alien Rush
Inkvaders HD ($2.99) by Chillingo Ltd is a 2D side scrolling shoot 'em up that pits you as a generic marine who's goal is to blast through every invading alien. The game shares a definite resemblance to Zombieville USA, but makes it much more action heavy. There are three main types of weapons that can be upgraded multiple times as you face more and tougher aliens.
The game itself:
There are two gameplay modes with the first being a 30 level campaign across the moon base, army fort, and a downtown city. The second is an endurance mode which is as long as you can last randomly generating the terrain for the next level. Crystal is included for online high scores and achievements to add some incentive for replayability.
The game style is enjoyable action each time through as you blast through tons of aliens that have different attributes including speed and power of attack. You will need to be quick with your trigger as aliens can beam in at any time, and really do some damage if they get too close. As you're going along blasting aliens there are moon rocks to collect, and vending machines to buy ammo or upgrade weapons in the middle of the level when you desperately need it.
You get a jet pack which allows you to collect certain moon rocks, but also change your position of attack when really in a sticky alien situation. The game isn't simply progressing through a level as each level features rush mode which gives you about five aliens at a time coming at you in both directions for around a minute. The aliens only take one shot, but the power is in their numbers, and it's one of the most hectic modes in any game.
If you only own an iPad: If you don't have an iPhone, and Inkvaders is something new to you Inkvaders HD is a great purchase. The game looks like a piece of art in motion on the iPad, and is far superior to the iphone version. It's one of the best looking games on the iPad with such an extreme amount of polish.
The aliens are finely designed, and there are various kill animations depending on the type of weapon you’re using. It's great to see the various kills from the back of the head being blasted out in chunks to being zapped into a pool of blood. The soundtrack is even more powerful with the speaker system of the iPad, and the three backgrounds look amazing, and they even have some animations.
Inkvaders HD is a should buy if you only own an iPad, it will having you blasting through aliens for a long time to come and enjoying every minute of it.
If you own the iPhone version: If you already own the iPhone there's nothing new here. The only difference is the artwork which is exquisite on the iPad, but isn't reason enough to buy the game over again. There is a slightly larger perspective to see more aliens at once, but nothing major.
Inkvaders HD is worth considering depending on how good you like your games to look, and if you want to play through the action again.
If you never bought the iPhone version: If you never bought the iPhone version be sure to check out our full review. It may even help you decide to pick up the iPad version.
