While this collection has about every iteration of Space Invaders that was popular back in its day, and in modern times, the concept of Space Invaders has grown old. For avid collectors out there, like yours truly, this is nice to see on a modern system and all in one game. For newbies looking to try out old video games, there may not be as much joy to be had.
It has been 43 years in the making and one of the world’s most iconic arcade games that first featured a narrative (mostly racing and shooting back in the day – it was simpler times) has made it to the Switch in nearly every form. Space Invaders Invincible Collection takes a kind tour through the many iterations of its type, and I must tell you that it may have aged a bit, but it’s still frustrating as shit to play. But in a fun frustrating sort of fashion.
Let’s get right into it.
This collection has almost everything
Taito and ININ Games put together one helluva collection for a game that most certainly deserves it. This is a game that my brothers and I had on the Atari 5200 in 1982 and one that we played relentlessly through that holiday season. It might have caused a fight or two along the way, but it was enormously competitive. I loved it.
ANYWAY! Old people memories aside, the game had a lot of versions, even in the 80s. The original which came to arcades in 1978 was black/white and didn’t have much going on in terms of color or personality. Other than having a haunting soundtrack of bumping from line to line in the game, it did what it could to entertain, and it succeeded. Then B/W shifted to color and the world started feeling the joy of this title. From that point on, there were iterations of the game that came and went, all not too far off from the original, sans Space Invaders Extreme that was released in the last few years. That was a batshit crazy adventure of nostalgia and over-the-top silliness. Beyond that game, the original has been around the block more than a few times, and the best of the best were stacked into this collection. Here’s what is included:
● Space Invaders (1978, Arcade) – b/w
● Space Invaders (1978, Arcade) – color
● Space Invaders Part II (1979, Arcade)
● Lunar Rescue (1979, Arcade)
● Space Cyclone (1980, Arcade)
● Majestic Twelve: The Space Invaders Part IV (1990, Arcade)
● Super Space Invaders ’91 (1990, Arcade)
● Space Invaders DX (1994, Arcade)
● Space Invaders Extreme (2018)
● Space Invaders Gigamax 4 SE (2018)
(Additional Download)
● Arkanoid vs Space Invaders (2016)
There is a lot in this collection and mostly darn good. I especially like the 1994 version of Super Space Invaders. I’m sad that we didn’t get the Atari 5200 version of Space Invaders, which was a crown jewel for me in the SI family, but the above is plenty. Arkanoid is a huge bonus. HUGE. While I wasn’t a fan of the most recent releases, I understand why they needed to be edgy and cool. That doesn’t make them great, but it does make them interesting.
Anyway, as collections go, this is a damn good one.
Aged well? Sorta.
The age-old question, just because it is a classic, does it mean it has longevity? Regardless of if it’s a classic or not, this is a valid question. Just because you have nearly 11 versions of the classic game, and some that are clearly trying something different in gameplay, doesn’t mean that the collection can grab the attention of the young gamers out there. Outside of nostalgia, Space Invaders can be a hard sell for folks who aren’t avid collectors of the game or who simply didn’t grow up with it. Back in the early 80s, the game was the bee’s knees because it was so driven and looked like all the other games of its time. Nowadays, it looks worn a bit. It’s simple, frustrating as hell, and there are far more interesting games out there, even older games from the 80s. That is the painful truth, but again it doesn’t make it less valuable.
This game has history, though. It introduced the first narrative to arcade gamers where the player felt some sense of urgency as aliens were descending upon the planet earth. It provided a fair amount of intensity as you destroyed aliens and the game became faster (rumor has it the memory of the game frees up more when there are fewer pixels). There is a lot of good history behind its gameplay and its execution, but still, it has old gameplay driving it all. I could understand if a younger generation just didn’t appreciate it as much as us old folks. It’s the sad truth and a strong possibility.
Regardless of age, the Space Invaders Invincible Collection is probably the best you’re going to get from Taito’s classic. It’s a beautiful timeline showing off creative minds that put together games that were limited in style and panache. The imagination was the best engine that drove it all back in the day and that was more than enough to make it a classic.
It’s okay not to love this game, but damn you should always respect it.
Conclusion
While this collection has about every iteration of Space Invaders that was popular back in its day, and in modern times, the concept of Space Invaders has grown old. For avid collectors out there, like yours truly, this is nice to see on a modern system and all in one game. For newbies looking to try out old video games, there may not be as much joy to be had.
