Geek Review: Remote Life

Making a game is already a hard enough affair, but to do so as a solo developer is taking things to the limit. For developer Next Game Level and publisher Ratalaika Games, the result is a 2D sidescrolling shoot ’em up that mixes fast-paced action and sci-fi horror, with Remote Life delivering an experience worth trying for the most part.

With the impending arrival of an alien mothership, it is up to the players to save the day by eliminating hordes of enemy ships, utilising powerups, and making sure you will survive to see another day as John Leone. A simple enough premise, and it is the gameplay that will make or break Remote Life.

Thankfully, it usually works well, with the core essence of shmups maintained throughout most of the game. Armed with three weapons that can be switched at will, players can further enhance the Gatling gun, lasers, and missiles by grabbing powerups, adding variations to these mainstays at the cost of limited ammo.

And you are going to need all that added firepower if you hope to overcome the enemies that lie in wait. The screen tends to fill up with obstacles and things that want you dead, so being generous with your weapons is a great way to even the odds. Being able to shoot in all directions means that danger is all around you, and Remote Life is not shy about providing players with powerups. With the difficulty, it can be easy to see why.

After all, it will only take one hit for players to lose a life, and ensuring you have the space to navigate the tight corridors and ships is paramount to survival. The game also spices things up occasionally with timed obstacles and even bombs that can wipe the screen, keeping players on their toes whenever things get a little too quiet.

Bump up the difficulty, and Remote Life becomes even more intense, requiring a mastery of its weapons and enemy patterns for success. The game is quite fair in that regard, although certain powerups are definitely not as useful, and there are still cheap deaths that can frustrate anyone looking to keep a clean run.

Survive long enough, and a battle against the various bosses will commence. Once more, there is a nice variety to these dangerous foes both in mechanics and design, and all of them need a good helping of explosives in their faces. Even if you perish, the lessons learned will hold you in good stead the next time around.

All of the action is wrapped in quite a stylish package with a healthy amount of enemy designs and environments, keeping up that atmospheric nature of alien horror. Remote Life even features some short cutscenes, although the synthesised voice acting could have been removed due to its jarring nature.

As a shmup, Remote Life is competent in all the core areas that make up this particular genre, with exciting fights, demanding navigation, and gameplay that forces players to constantly keep up. Its aesthetics are pleasing as well, and for anyone searching for an old-school experience in a modern form, this might just be the spacefaring journey for you.

Remote Life is available on the PSN Store for US$18.99.