Laser Invasion
System: NES
Release Date: June 1991
Developer: Konami
Publisher: Konami
Genre: Action
Konami wants you to buy a new peripheral to play Laser Invasion! Back once again is the super weird backstory in the manual that sounds like what we get from AI today. Sheik Toxic Moron wants to destroy the world. To do this, he has had his scientists create a doomsday missile called the TechnoScorch. We’re talking 37,000 miles in 13.8 minutes. This thing could take any target out without a second to counter it. So it’s up to you to take on 4 missions to destroy the thing and save us all.
Laser Invasion can be played with a normal controller the whole way through, but there are portions that you can use the Zapper or Konami’s LaserScope, which is a headset peripheral that uses voice activation. I’d like to try the LaserScope, but I refuse to spend the amount of money necessary to get one. There are three modes of play as you go through your missions. Beginning with an Air Combat Mode portion in your helicopter. Then a scrolling shooting gallery in Ground Warfare Mode. Followed by the 3D Confusion Maze Mode to complete your objective.
When starting in Air Combat Mode, you choose which missiles you want to be outfitted with. You trade power for quantity here. Then a secondary option system, where you can choose among an extra fuel tank, ground bombs, or chaff grenades. Flying happens automatically, but you can brake with the A Button, which you’ll need to do to land at objectives. Enemies come on screen and you can shoot at them or try to avoid them, which is the smarter move. If enemy fire or a missile hits your windshield, you’ll take damage or die, respectively. There are also occasional obstacles that you have to maneuver around or it’s an instant death. There are bosses that need to be killed in some levels. In order to land at your objective, you automatically descend and have to center your copter with the landing pad. Pressing A slows your descent and gives you more time to get it right.
As you move into Ground Warfare Mode, you have a limited amount of health and bullets shown on screen. As the scene scrolls, enemies pop up on screen and you want to shoot them as quickly as possible so they don’t hurt you. There are gun toting guys, bottle throwing guys, foreground knife slashers, gun turrets, tanks, and more! At set points in the stage, there are crates that you can shoot to unveil hearts to replenish your health. When you run low on bullets, a crate with more will appear, as well. If you see a red barrel, you can shoot it for a screen clearing explosion. Once you reach the end, there is a building you enter to start the next phase.
The 3D Confusion Maze Mode is a fairly simple mission. You walk by pressing up and turn with left and right. When you come to a door, the A Button will open it. You’ll take a step forward and suddenly be beset upon by enemies. They randomly pop up and I found it difficult to not take damage from some of them. It may be easier to pick them off with the Zapper, but I didn’t try. Some mazes are quick in and out affairs, while others require you to find your way to an objective and then out before the whole place blows down. It’s best to be fast in this situation, otherwise you’ll lose a life. You even lose your gun at one point, so stumbling into a battle is not your best bet.
The final scene has you going through corridors that will murder you if you don’t slow down far enough back to destroy missiles and a wall. Then open areas of obstacles that you have to fly around. Next, you have to launch 10 special missiles into the TechnoScorch before it can get too far off the ground. If you succeed there, the final boss stands in your way of victory, but is pretty easily taken down if you’re careful to avoid the death shots. Congratulations, you saved the world from Sheik Toxic Moron!
Graphics: 3.0
The Air Combat graphics are actually pretty good with the sprite scaling. The Ground Warfare stages look fine, but not amazing. The 3D Maze scenes are the best any maze levels have looked.
Sound: 2.0
The music and sound effects are definitely Konami, but I don’t find them iconic like some other titles out there.
Gameplay: 2.5
The Air Combat isn’t designed particularly well, but the other two modes work just fine.
Difficulty: 2.0
Though you get up to five lives and 5 continues, it’s far too easy to die because enemy missiles are incredibly difficult to target.
Fun Factor: 2.0
I’m hemming and hawing about this one. This isn’t an incredibly fun game, but it may scratch an itch that you have, so I’ll say your mileage may vary.
Overall Rating: 2.3
Laser Invasion earns a C+. Look, it’s a better game than I had expected, but it’s not great. I’ll have to try it with the Zapper some time to see how it plays.