Alien Breed 35th Anniversary (Image: COMMODORE)
Despite the sad news that the NEOGEO AES+ has been delayed until 2027, things are largely looking pretty good for retro gaming fans. We’ve got the Evercade Nexus and various cartridges coming soon, as well as a boatload of physical Activision games coming to the Atari 2600+, not to mention the release of the Amiga A1200 in December.
Elsewhere, fans can expect a new Castlevania game in October, as well as a remake of Ocarina of Time in November, and various collections such as Toy Story, Jaleco and James Pond. If you’re a retro game fan itching to play something from yesteryear today, then the good news is that Commodore, Team 17 and Anstream have banded together to release Alien Breed 35th Anniversary Collection for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC.
The new Alien Breed collection contains the original series of games from the 1990s, including the top-down shooters that started it all, as well as the 3D Doom clones that aren’t talked about enough.
That’s six games in total, including Alien Breed from 1991, Alien Breed: Special Edition from the following year, the ECS and AGA versions of Alien Breed II: The Horror Continues, the Amiga and Amiga CD32 versions of Alien Breed: Tower Assault, Alien Breed 3D from 1995 and 1996’s Alien Breed 3D II: The Killing Grounds.
While it doesn’t contain the modern reboots from the 2000s, these are undoubtedly the most iconic games from a series that still holds up today.
Clearly inspired by the Alien movies, the original Alien Breed and its direct sequels are top-down shooters that task players with hunting for keys while blasting the Xenomorph-styled monsters.
It’s pretty standard stuff, but the never-ending alien assault combined with moody visuals, limited ammo and the maze-like levels results in some remarkably compelling action.
Alien Breed II: The Horror Continues is a much faster and more intense experience, almost to its detriment. Once you get past the frankly annoying first stage, it’s absolutely non-stop action. The visuals are a big step up and everything feels more refined, but you really don’t get a second to stand still and take it all in. If you bossed the first game and want a challenge, then Alien Breed II is definitely where it’s at.
Alien Breed: Tower Assault probably strikes the best balance between the two. It’s not as relentless as its predecessor, but still incredibly challenging. The level design is also superb, even if there are times when it feels impossible to avoid damage (something that’s true of all the games, especially when those holes open up in the floor).
While Alien Breed: Tower Assault is arguably the best game in the package (it’s my favourite, at least), it’s the two 3D games that I was most interested to play.
A series perfectly suited to 3D – in that it revolves around gunning down monsters and unlocking doors – the franchise embraced the first-person visuals popularised by Doom and Wolfenstein in 1995 shooter Alien Breed 3D.
The series’ first foray into 3D is certainly a mixed bag, but if you can look past the visuals – which appear basic even for the time – boomer shooter fans should enjoy playing through what is a perfectly playable release.
If you can’t look past the visuals, then the good news is that Alien Breed 3D II: The Killing Grounds is a huge step forward from a technological perspective.
The action is a little slower than its predecessor, but the inclusion of free-aim mechanics and jumping makes it feel a lot more modern and playable.
Speaking of modernisation, all of the games benefit from quality of life upgrades, particularly when it comes to controls. The top-down games can be played like twin-stick shooters, while Killing Grounds features dual-analogue support for aiming. Fans can also expect other conveniences like screen filters, save states and bezels.
The real jewel in the crown, however, are the interactive Alien Breed Archives, which are presented as a top-down stage where you visit stations to view all kinds of bonus materials like developer interviews, timelines and fascinating forgotten concept demos from the PSP, including footage of a planned fantasy version of Alien Breed.
You’ll also find the Horde mode within the archive (just find the key and use the decklift), which as the name suggests pits players against a never-ending onslaught of aliens. It’s not something I would play too often, but I did have fun getting to 100 kills.
Fortunately, while Horde mode only provides short-term fun, the other games in the package will keep you coming back for hours on end.
