Space Invaders (Activision)

at January 17, 2022

 

 The 1999 edition of Space Invaders rebuilt the game from the ground up. It was fully colored and modeled in 3D with a new feature involving special attacks, based on a variety of aliens with different abilities. Hitting four of the same type of alien would grant one special missile to the player, fired with an alternative fire button which can be changed in the game's settings.
The game boasts an original soundtrack (Never officially released) and bank of sound effects, unlockable game modes and Easter eggs, as well as several references to the original Space Invaders. There is also a 2-player mode, which adds a second, yellow tank (Player 1's being blue) to the action.
Players can save their progress at any point.
The game also had something of a storyline. An opening cinematic shows a pilot of a new style of tank, driving it around a desert base, presumably on Earth. The pilot drives to the fence around a 'Tank Graveyard', containing 3D versions of the original Space Invaders tank, dilapidated and falling apart. A sign notes that the graveyard honors "Those who fell in 1978". As the pilot nods approvingly, a siren begins blaring in his cockpit.
The monitor inside the tank informs the startled pilot that aliens are attacking. The pilot spots them in the sky with his highly technical helmet, and identifies four aliens; one each red, blue, yellow and green. These four aliens are quickly joined by a large force of the same types.
The pilot wastes no time opening fire on the aliens. He destroys them all by striking one and causing a chain reaction explosion, at which point the cinematic ends.
After completing the game, another cinematic is shown. The pilot faces one quick-moving yellow alien, which he eventually manages to shoot down. The pilot is then shown being awarded a medal outside The White House, and salutes the camera.
Meanwhile in space, a disgruntled alien inside a large mothership strikes his monitor when it reveals that all his alien fighters have been destroyed. He warps his ship to a huge grey spacecraft, lands it in the hangar and projects the Earth into the centre of the room. The large craft then warps back to Earth and unleashes a great number of the large motherships onto the planet.