Eschatos (2011)
Genres:Shooter, Arcade
Themes:Action
Game modes:Single player
Story:An alien menace has descended on Earth! Defend the world from UFO invasion in this superb arcade shooter from Qute. Use your weapons effectively, deflect enemy bullets with your shield, and recapture the Moon from alien infestation!
Vote to bring this game to GOG and help preserve it.12
A phenomenal game by M-KAI! ESCHATOS is a wonderful homage to classic 80's shoot 'em ups with deceptively simple gameplay but surprisingly deep scoring hooks. The game features three modes of play: Original, Advance, and Time Attack, each with their own unique set of rules and mechanics, along with various difficulty levels. Original mode is straightforward where the goal is to quickly take out enemies without letting them leave the screen. Advance mode mixes things up by now giving your ship power levels that can boost your ships firepower but trades off your shield energy with other scoring mechanics at play. Time Attack mode is also pretty straightforward but you're racing against the clock as you must make sure you defeat as many enemies as possible before time runs out and while it lacks lives, taking a hit will cut down your time instead. Regardless of which mode you play, it's a fun adrenaline-filled ride throughout thanks to its tight controls, great set-pieces, and rewards that encourages the player to strive to aim for higher scores with each play session.
The game's presentation is simply stellar. The visuals are evocative of a Sega NAOMI arcade game with colorful graphics, wonderfully abstract enemy designs, gorgeous scenery, and dynamically panning camera angles that creates a cinematic experience through environmental storytelling, all without breaking immersion or speaking a single word of dialogue. The sound design is equally amazing thanks to nostalgic sound effects and complemented with a God-tier FM synth soundtrack that beautifully conveys the feelings of excitement, awe, tension, and wonder.
ESCHATOS is a must-play shoot 'em up game. It's more than just an amazing game in its own right, it is a lovingly crafted tribute to the bygone era of arcade games. It deserves to be preserved in a DRM-free fashion. Also can we please get the remastered Switch/PS4 version on PC too while we're at it? It has new improvements over the current Steam version.
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