Pros: A clever traversal puzzle game that generates a balance between the cries of frustration with screams of accomplishment. The title speaks...

Cons: Planning out your run for minutes before every level. Though the game does not necessarily have to be played this way, this becomes the...

Pros: A clever traversal puzzle game that generates a balance
between the cries of frustration with screams of accomplishment.

The title speaks for itself as the main objective is as clear as Pac-Man but with the challenge and consequences found in games such as Snake and Pole Position.

Fluid is no mere mashup of several gaming staples, it does everything to make players feel as though every interconnecting movement has a sense of flow guiding along the fast reflexes and proper navigation required for the former games.

Unlike those gaming classics, there is no track to speak of, the player designs the track in their mind. Players are free to move anywhere within the level but planning the proper run is what makes the difference between failure and success.

If the player spends too much time without considering efficient traversal, it could mean precious seconds added on to the total or losing a life and starting right over. The fixed obstacles are unforgiving and masterfully placed.

Levels are designed in such ways that these often symmetrical layouts can accommodate multiple forms of execution which will ultimately reward those with the most cunning with a higher ranking.

After mastering thirty levels, five extreme levels are unlocked and act more so like a celebration to the player's understanding of the game's fundamentals.

Dodging enemies that you produce and trying to swiftly connect from one chevron to the next truly adds to the game's sense of urgency.

Simple stick maneuvering is spot on and there's even a button to change the background music to get into the right mindset. Reset and the level selection are accessible from a button press and also the hold of a button for zoom in/out helping players who are either far or near sighted.

There is quite no other game that can make such an abstract concept such as fluidity feel like a natural understanding without the need for killstreaks and powerslides. Another dollar game from one-man-dev team Luke Schneider. Give this man the credit that he deserves!

Cons: Planning out your run for minutes before every level. Though the game does not necessarily have to be played this way, this becomes the ideal strategy once you realize patience is the ultimate virtue in figuring out exactly how to embody the meaning of Fluid.

Players can easily become impatient and end up repeating the same routine which only adds further to their frustration and can easily make or break one's judgment of this game.

An option to show a player's last best run could have helped remove the headache of repeat offending the same mistaken run and help with incremental improvements.

Space limitations prevented this game from having a recording or ghosting feature to compete against the best runs.

Pros: From beginning to end, radiangames has again brought a new twist to the classic horizontal shmup ala Space Invaders while implementing...

Cons: Removing the score and the multiplier system from both Conquest modes leaves the experience to just being about completing waves. Score...

Pros: From beginning to end, radiangames has again brought a new twist to the classic horizontal shmup ala Space Invaders while implementing fresh ideas that mechanically seperates itself entirely from its predecessor.

The most welcome addition to the shoot/dodge/warp* formula is its robust upgrade system. After two waves of enemies, points are rewarded to the player to either
increase the ship's health, shoot at a faster rate, widen the range of the ship's stream of bullets, just to name a few of the possible upgrades to create the most dangerous ship on screen. This upgrade system replaces the original Crossfire's power and speed pickups that were placed in the middle of enemy formations.

Accompanied by the game's gorgeous neon retro-futuristic arcade aesthetic are the the sound effects (listen to how the slowdown upgrade slows down the soundtrack). The sound effects are a much more notable than the game's sound track due to its dependability whether indicating different enemy types, shields, or when the ship picks up ammo.

Players will find themselves attacking Crossfire 2's (much more sophisticated) enemy formations with varying strategic approaches on single waves, while economizing the ship's ammo supply for the new Supershot ability to get out of hairy situations, especially if you're conserving points for the more expensive upgrades.

Other than Conquest Mode is Conquest Mode Plus (both with their own adjustable difficulty settings) that plays exactly like Conquest mode but with a much more
intense difficulty and the amount of upgrade points after two waves is less generous.

There is also a Score Attack mode that lets the player face nonstop waves of enemies with a scoring system similar to the original Crossfire point scheme which of course means the ability to boast your skills via Local Scoreboard. In this mode, the player gets to upgrade their ship once before entering the fray.

Crossfire 2 is a beautiful and immersive pick-up-and-play experience that is well worth its $1(aka 80ms) price point. Check it out and check out other games on the Winter Indie Games Uprising.






*for those who have never played either Crossfire 1 or 2, Warp is the ability to teleport your ship from the horizontal rail on bottom of the screen to the one on top of the screen with the touch of a button. Other than using the warp for collecting ammo and powerups from occasional scrolling UFOs, this ability is ideal for dodging complicated bullet patterns and getting behind enemies while aiming at the wrong direction. This is what gives Crossfire 1 & 2 its identity.

Cons: Removing the score and the multiplier system from both Conquest modes leaves the experience to just being about completing waves. Score Attack Mode had only one upgrade screen before the game begins and is never seen after defeating subsequent waves of enemies. Seeing the limits of player's talent when their ships are fully upgraded facing bullet hell scenarios seemed like what should've beenjust the beginning for die hard players.

The music is a techno score which does its job of appropriating the level of pacing for the game but it's nothing memorable.

The whole co-op experience can have two players wipe out the entire screen without any semblance of helping or cooperation with your partner. Without any changes in difficulty this feature just makes an already accesible game feel easier.