I enjoy dual-stick shooters. I like to play a new one every once in a while. When I do, I like to look for one that has something new to offer. “Space Crüesader” is just such a game.
What I like about it is that there’s more to it than just shooting enemies and dodging shots. You have damaged ships to rescue, which is cool. Getting shown down is a mere setback thanks to unlimited lives; your real enemy is the timer that never stops ticking down, with you having to rescue enough ships before it does in order to progress to the next level. There are new enemy types as you go through the game, and power-ups to help you deal with new and ever deadlier enemies. The final level mixes things up entirely, feeling a bit like that first time you discover that the final level of Halo is a Warthog speed run and is totally different than the rest of the game.
Online leaderboards round out the “Space Crüesader” package, and it’s an enjoyable game for 80 Microsoft Points.
Here’s what the developer (Unfinity Games) has to say about the game:
“Space Cruesader takes the classic bedlam of dual-stick Robotron-style shooting action into space and adds nail-biting, scream-at-the-screen twists to challenge you. Fight through six increasingly hectic levels, each with custom music and new enemies, then brace yourself for the 7th circle of bullet hell on the final level as you blast your way to the alien mothership for a showdown to save Earth.”
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