I’m not sure how I missed this little gem on my first pass through the indie games of early 2010. It’s even rate 4/5 or so on the Dashboard, so there really is no good excuse. “Missile Escape” is a mix of the familiar and unfamiliar, blending the Pacifism mode of Geometry Wars 2 with the warp around screen of Asteroids to come up with the ultimate missile dodge-’em-up. The game tasks you with outflying missiles in your jet fighter for a set period of time. Succeed, and move on to the next level. What’s the game’s hook? Well, level one has you avoiding 1 missile, level 2 has you avoiding 2 missiles, and so on. By the time you get up to level 30 the screen is an insane mass of homing missiles seeking you out.
There is some strategy to it. The missiles will follow the most direct path to you, so if you warp to the other side of the screen and they’re close to the centre then they’ll head across the centre of the screen towards you; if they’re close to the edge, then the missiles may warp across to the other side in pursuit of you. It’s nice that the game treats both protagonist and antagonist equally in what they’re capable of, something not a lot of games do. It’s a fun time waster for 80 Microsoft Points that’s strangely compelling, and one you’ll likely find yourself periodically coming back to.
Here’s what the developer (Maximinus) has to say about the game:
“Missile Escape is simple : go flying, evade many missiles and unlock new fighters along the way ! Warning : Fighter pilot spirit required.”
Writings of Mass Deduction 