Rise of the indies was one of the best things which could have happened to the gaming market. Simply because just like punk rock, indie games have revitalised the industry that they have ultimately become a part of. Slowly but surely titles such as Super Meat Boy, Fez, and Braid, have pried open the gate of the gaming oligopoly which for a long time has been held hostile by companies such as EA, 2K, and Ubisoft.
The big three have been swiftly followed by many other great games such as Hotline Miami, original Trine, and Death Spank. Every single game which came thereafter expanded on the notion of a video game, and gave consumers around the world a chance to try something new, something that big publishers simply couldn’t provide. However, complacency has quickly become a ”thing” within the indie scene, and this is where things started going downhill.
Sure, we still get great indie games such as Hyper Light Drifter, or Klaus, but ultimately gems such as these two are simply swarmed with relentless, half baked, simplistic cash grabs such as Super Toy Cars, Honor_And_Duty_Arcade_Edition, Joe’s Diner, and Laser Disco Defenders, which as the luck would have it, is the subject of this review.
Imagine that you are back in 2006, you’re sitting in front of a computer playing a random, free online game, which you are most likely going to forget about as soon as you close the tab, but for that single 20 minute session, this little game is all you are concerned about. And that’s fine because, A – It’s free, and B – The progression is so meaningless, that you are not concerned with any loss of unlocks. However, it’s not fine, when it’s 2016, and you are feeling exactly the same about Laser Disco Defenders for which you have paid $9.99, for which the only difference to the ‘small online games’ is the progression save system.
Laser Disco Defenders is an overly simplistic shoot em up, which on a 47” screen looks like a raw gingerbread man, who has been rolled out with a steamroller, over and over again. It is simply a game which should have never made the transition from the minute screen of PS Vita, on which it initially debuted. However, despite its poor visual facade, Laser Disco Defenders, is still a game which can be enjoyed, as it features a very neat gameplay mechanic, which should keep certain players occupied for hours.
Shoot ’em ups, for the most part, require players to fire as many projectiles as possible, within a short period of time, in order to ensure that all on-screen enemies have perished. However, in Laser Disco Defenders, each and every projectile the player fires remains on the screen until he/she makes the transition from one level to another. And this mechanic helps Laser Disco Defenders to stand out from the crowd, as ultimately the gameplay of the title centres on precision, rather than mindless firing. Longevity of this mechanic is further extended by the rogue-like nature of the title, which poses a countless amount of puzzles in front of the player, as every level will serve one with a new and exciting challenge.
Laser Disco Defender‘s core mechanic is enjoyable to say the least. However, the enjoyment itself disappears after a while, as the painfully slow and lacklustre unlocks system exposes itself within mere minutes of starting the title. And after 20 minutes or so, after the player has unlocked a handful of items, the unlock system becomes partially extinct as the 9 or so unlocks are by then at player’s disposal. And unless one is driven by high scores, and/or narrative, which can be unlocked through completion of stages and chapters, then he/she will most likely stop playing Laser Disco Defenders after the 20 minute mark.
Ultimately, Laser Disco Defenders, is nothing more than a MINI game, a title which back in 2010 would cost no more than $4 on the PS Store, as it would only be big enough to classify as a MINI title. And it is difficult to imagine that many will go out and spend $9.99 on it, as it simply isn’t long enough, nor does it hold enough content to justify its pricing. And even when the shooting mechanic is taken into consideration, then Laser Disco Defenders is nothing more than an average title, with the above average price tag.