Advanced Search >
Help Me Search

Games

Best of 2009 | 08 |07 | 06 | 05
Advanced Search

Sony

PS3 | PSP | PS2 | PS One

Microsoft

Xbox 360 | Xbox

Nintendo

Wii | DS | GBA | Cube | N64

Other Platforms

PC | N-Gage | Dreamcast

What is a Metascore?

Upcoming &
Recent Releases

sort by namesort by score

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed games.

Alien Syndrome

EMAILPRINTpsp

Alien Syndrome
51
5.0 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 20 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 3 votes
Read user comments
Rate this game >

Game Info

Publisher: Sega

Developer: Totally Games

Genre(s): Action, Role-Playing Game

Players: 4

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Release Date: July 24, 2007

Summary

In Alien Syndrome, players take control of the game's strong and enigmatic heroine – Earth Command Trooper Aileen Harding – and battle a variety of fearsome aliens and colossal bosses. Gamers choose from a wide selection of character specialties and skills as they progress through an engrossing campaign, protected by many different types of armor and using a variety of melee and ranged weaponry. Players can improve their heroine's statistics and discover a huge number of powerful new abilities as they fight through infested spaceships and bizarre alien planets. Alien Syndrome features two fast-paced action-RPG modes – the dramatic and engaging single-player campaign, plus an infinitely replayable co-op multiplayer mode for up to four players. Derived from the classic SEGA arcade game, Alien Syndrome's new action-RPG gameplay makes it easy to pick up and play, while its depth and wealth of features and missions keeps it challenging for all gamers. Alien Syndrome features 20 different weapons including flamethrowers, quad-barreled lasers, nanobot swarms that dissolve enemies, and incendiary grenades that shoot fire geysers from the ground. Each weapon offers advantages and disadvantages, dependent upon how it is used and the specializations players have chosen to adopt. Alien Syndrome's fast-paced combat also allows for any number of combat strategies to defeat over 100 different alien enemies at one time. [Sega]

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

83

RPG Fan

The developers clearly put a lot of love into this game, and in my opinion, it paid off. I spent 40 to 50 very enjoyable hours with Alien Syndrome, and am several hours in with a second character.

Read Full Review >
60

IGN

For fans of classic action-RPGs or multiplayer addicts Alien Syndrome would be a solid weekend rental or bargain bin purchase, but given the lack of polish throughout, the overall lackluster graphical presentation, and the $40 price tag we’ve got to put SEGA’s latest effort in the “just skip it” category. There are far better games available on PSP, and far more are on the way.

Read Full Review >
60

GamerNode

Between the PSP and Wii, the PSP is easily the superior. It offers the better controls and graphics, and just feels like a better game. It's a little harder to find three others to play with, so I guess that offsets it.

Read Full Review >
60

GameDaily

Alien Syndrome for the PSP stands out over its Wii counterpart, thanks to a less inept control scheme and a somewhat improved presentation. However, the game suffers from a host of issues.

Read Full Review >
60

Pocket Gamer UK

Resisting the action-packed role-playing adventure awaiting you in Alien Syndrome is futile. While not terribly innovative, it's a solid title with flaws that can easily be overlooked in favour of a good time.

Read Full Review >
60

Modojo

In the end, Alien Syndrome could've turned out a lot worse than it did.

Read Full Review >
55

Deeko

All in all, it's a game you'll more than likely want o pass on, even if you're a die-hard fan of the original.

Read Full Review >
53

Game Almighty

Multiplayer may have been a saving grace, but you won't find any infrastructure play on offer, meaning you'll have to find up to three other people within local WiFi range if you want to get your game on. The original Alien Syndrome was all about co-op alien killing, but the ball has been fumbled in this remake.

Read Full Review >
50

GameSpot

A sense of murky monotony sucks most of the life out of this action RPG remake of Sega's classic arcade shooter.

Read Full Review >
50

GameSpy

PSP owners will be able to gloat that their version of the game looks better than the Wii edition.

Read Full Review >
50

Games Radar (in-house)

As frantic as the action is at times, its drab visuals, control issues and lack of enemy polish brought us to the point of boredom.

Read Full Review >
50

Game Chronicles

There is a fun and compelling multiplayer game lurking beneath the mindless combat and level grinding that boasts a few subtle nods toward Diablo, but you don’t want to play this alone and you don’t want to have four people paying full price for what is arguably a budget-quality title.

Read Full Review >
50

GamePro

It's a passable single-player experience but if you can find some friends to play with, it just might help you kill an hour or two here and there.

Read Full Review >
50

PSM Magazine

A disappointment. [Nov 2007, p.87]

45

PSM3 Magazine UK

Getting from one point on the map to another uses about six brain cells, leaving the rest to bitch about the boring weapons and enemies. [Nov 2007, p.83]

40

Gaming Nexus

Alien Syndrome is an all around terrible resurrection of a fun (albeit shallow) arcade game.

Read Full Review >
40

VideoGamer

The two-player cooperative mode may keep a duo of youngsters quiet for a handful of weekends, but otherwise this mismatched game has very little to offer.

Read Full Review >
40

Eurogamer

Alien Syndrome had the potential to be a decent by-the-numbers action RPG, but it struggles to even reach those heights with insipid repetition and a total lack of challenge crippling your incentive to see it beyond the first few hours.

Read Full Review >
40

Playstation Official Magazine UK

Trouble is, whichever character you pick, the game ends up largely the same. [Nov 2007, p.112]

35

1UP

Never does Alien Syndrome become fun -- and unlike the Wii version, the PSP iteration doesn't even control well enough to become quietly engaging in its own methodical, repetitive way.

Read Full Review >

What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 5.0 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Mike gave it a5:
Only a few levels in, but there is an obvious unpolished feel. The graphics are mediocre with gameplay to match. The voiceovers are buggy and cutout halfway through sentences. I'm hoping it improves soon, but so far it has the feel of Untold Legends, right down to the rotating character in the stats window.

Popular on CBS sites: College Signing Day | Olympics | Lost | iPhone | Cell Phones | Video Game Reviews | Free Music

About CBS Interactive | Jobs | Advertise

© 2010 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy (UPDATED) | Terms of Use