The 1001 list is a mostly chronological trip through video gaming. While it appears here and there to lump together similar games, more often than not it's a case of highlighting notable titles as and when they get released, allowing us to follow along with the developments and look back at where we've come from.
That basically means that we're not going to end on a carefully selected bang - not unless you're the type of person who loves the PlayStation Portable and the teeny tiny downloadable titles you could find for it, titles like Alien Zombie Death.
The controls are simple. The graphics are appropriate for the file size. The gameplay evokes titles from a long time ago. But I've come so far in this 1001 list that it'd be silly to end it like that. Let's fire it up and see what it's made of. Maybe we'll end with a bang after all.
Fun Times
I'm emulating Alien Zombie Death, a PlayStation minis game, which means a tiny download of a simple game that probably needs to have addicting, easy to grasp gameplay to keep your attention.
In some sense, it ticks the boxes. It's not the prettiest of titles to look at, but the gameplay on show is slick and simple. You run around the platforms shooting either left or right, and where necessary jump up or hop down to another platform level to keep going.
The D-pad or the analogue nub control your movement, and the Square and Circle buttons shoot left or right, and it really is as simple as that. Collect powerups for points and better weapons, avoid taking damage by getting eaten by aliens, stay alive for as long as you can to get as many points as you can.
Sorry, I should probably include some images where you can actually see what I'm shooting at.
Icons fill the screen edges to inform you where a bunch of aliens are about to spawn in from, and it won't be long before there are a great many aliens for you to deal with.
Your weapon has infinite ammo, and you've got three lives before you finally fall for good, so keep your opposition at bay by continually shooting and moving around the various obstacles you'll come across, like electrical charges and, well, a bucket load of aliens.
Most of my lives were lost to silly mistakes where I thought I had more time than I actually did, and either moved too late or, in some cases, simply jumped onto an enemy, which is a no-no in Alien Zombie Death.
To give you some options, various powerups pop into view giving you different weapons, though you can only use them for a short length of time. Your classics are all here - angled shots, homing missiles, you get the idea.
Eventually, you'll run into too much trouble to deal with and that's your game done. Your score will hopefully be high enough to unlock either a moon, which will offer a similar challenge to the one you've just faced, or a new planet, which will give you new enemy types to deal with.
You might think "How can you have different enemies if everyone is moving along platforms", and the answer is simple: flying buggers that can be more easily shot when you're switching between platform levels.
Combine waves of flying enemies with waves of shambling enemies, sprinkle in some stage hazards that come and go to spice things up, and what you have in Alien Zombie Death is a simple little challenge that will keep you on your toes.
Final Word
Unless, of course, you don't really have much of an interest in that challenge to begin with, and I can't say I have much of an interest.
To its credit, Alien Zombie Death is easy to pick up and play and plays rather well. That it looks cheap and basic will probably put some people off ever trying it, myself included if I'm honest, but those that do give it a shot will find a small package with plenty of gameplay to occupy the time with.
For ten or twenty minutes, it's fine. For anything longer than that, you've got to really want to play it. Maybe you're trying to unlock something, but I don't think there's anything that could possibly be hidden in a locked level that would convince me to keep going here.
It's a neat little game, but rather average overall. Forgettable, really. I wonder what else that could be said about?
Fun Facts
If you want a bump up in graphical quality, Alien Zombie Megadeath might be for you, released a year later on the PlayStation 3.
Alien Zombie Death, developed by PomPom Games, first released in 2010.
Version played: PlayStation Portable, 2010, via emulation.