Assault Android Cactus – Bring on the bad guys!

From time to time I like to push myself to the limits of my ability to comprehend what’s actually happening on screen in a game. Lately, I’ve been doing that with a frenetic little game called Assault Android Cactus from indie studio Witch Beam. It’s a twin stick arena shooter that combines an array of stylized androids with their own unique weapons and more enemies than you could ever possibly want to face at once. Outside of boss encounters, this game is bullet hell chaos. The bosses, at least, have a bit more pattern to them even though they’re actually far more difficult to master than the normal stages. Either way, this game has had me glued to my couch and pushing controllers into the hands of friends whenever possible.

Assault Android Cactus is a well tuned twin stick shooter that never has a dull moment. The game starts with a couple character options that feel different enough that most players will quickly pick a favorite. Over the course of the campaign mode, additional characters are unlocked (for a total of nine) and credits are earned. New characters can be used immediately and credits can be spent from the main menu to unlock things like the ability to play in first person or to turn on ‘normal head mode’. (Why you would want a normal-sized android head, I just don’t know.) And once you’re done with campaign mode, there’s always Infinity Drive mode and leaderboards to compete on.

Each character has unique primary and secondary attacks.

Game play in Assault Android Cactus is easy to get the hang of. Each android has a primary weapon that will mostly entail holding down the right trigger and spraying pain everywhere. They also have a secondary weapon that does significantly more damage, but also requires a cooldown in between attacks. Then, should I decide to just go nuts and not worry about score, credits can be spent to enable the option of replacing secondary weapons with mega weapons. They do exactly what you’d probably imagine. The biggest tip I can give is to be mindful of when your secondary weapon has cooled down and keep using it as often as possible.

Witch Beam set the game to a pounding EDM-style playlist that perfectly sets the mood for the vibrant colors and fast pace that assaults my senses and pushes my hand-eye coordination to its limits. On top of that, the soundtrack dynamically shifts during gameplay based on performance. It turns this arena shooter into a burning laser rave of doom. Sometimes a good bass beat needs to be accented with a missile salvo.

Androids dodge constant streams of bullets while fighting a boss.

One of the biggest draws for me is that Assault Android Cactus features couch multiplayer for up to four players. Spending time with friends by zipping around an arena of death with weapons blazing is one of the simple pleasures of life. Communication around here tends to quickly devolve into a series of loud, incoherent exclamations. Luckily, the game doesn’t explicitly punish players for getting knocked down; there’s no finite number of lives. However, any time spent not blasting enemy robots to bits is time that the battery gauge is slowly running out. If it drains completely, it’s game over and I’m in the middle of a frustrated couch. Though it is cooperative, there’s a point system present to let the players know exactly who was doing all of the heavy lifting.

If you and a few of your closest friends really enjoy twin stick bullet hell games, then Assault Android Cactus could easily be the best $15 you spend this year. The controls are tight, the graphics are crisp and vibrant, and the soundtrack is fantastic. Honestly, I’m still having a little trouble with the final boss on my own. (No, I do not need my friends to help. I can do this.) But, like most bullet hell games, as soon as I can see the patterns and not just run around panicked, I’m sure I’ll get through it. In the meantime, Infinity Drive is a perfect way to spend time blowing off steam. Just give me a speed power up and maybe a little extra firepower and I’m good to go.