Awesome Saucer Review

I was a bit skeptical about Awesome Saucer at first. I mean, the title seems like kind of a boast, and there are an awful lot of apps in the App Store that talk a big game but fail to deliver. After spending a mere five minutes with this game I wasn't just impressed; now I think the whole "awesome" thing is actually a bit understated.

The short explanation: players have to blow up lots of aliens and rack-up a high score. The in-depth explanation: each level or wave is timed, with bonuses and the occasional new weapon issued if it's cleared before the clock hits zero. Power-ups will randomly give the saucer a temporary upgrade, including boosted speed, score multipliers and access to all weapons, but sometimes grabbing one can use up too much time. It's one big psychedelic love letter to the quarter-munching arcade games of the good old days.

I won't be subtle with my praise here. Awesome Saucer blends together all these crazy elements into such a well-polished package it would be easy to mistake it for a major game company release. It's almost perfect for what it is. The fantastic audio, insanely colorful visuals, wacky weapons and slightly blown-out radio voice of the pilot put me in a kind of trance. One that's incredibly hard to break out of.

Unfortunately it can be a bit hard to distinguish when I'm being attacked because the action and visuals are so flipping crazy, but there are three difficulty settings to ease the transition and even the early levels are an absolute blast. It's also a little disappointing that there aren't any achievements of any kind, or even online leaderboards, but I'm having way too much fun with it to mind.

It may sound like I'm gushing, partly because I am, but Awesome Saucer is one of those games that needs to be owned. As insane as it all is, it blends together perfectly and creates some of the most amazing and beautiful craziness I've experienced in quite some time. Lovers of all things with that distinct arcade feel absolutely have to give this one a try.