Alienation

I’d highly suggest Alienation to just about any fan of action games, even more so if you enjoy the Diablo franchise or other, similar top-down shooters.

Throw in Dark Souls-like player invasions, and the best co-op this side of Diablo III, and Alienation is a loot-tastic, bughunt safari that should not be missed. [July 2016, p72]

Alienation is a great game for any PS4 owner and is a blast either solo or with a group of friends.

This dual-stick shooter RPG hits like a mammoth and secures a notch on the “must-play” board.

Alienation may lack the tactical nuance of Helldivers, but it makes up for it with tight shooting and a tonne of pretty-pretty explosions.

Housemarque knows how to make a great cooperative, shooting experience, and Alienation is probably the best you can find on PS4.

Alienation is Housemarque's masterpiece. A fast-paced heir of Dead Nation, deeply integrated with RPG mechanics and loot system. Alienation is the Diablo of the Twin Stick Shooter genre, with a short campaign but an enormous endgame.

With a frenetic gameplay experience, a vast array of customization features, engaging online multiplayer, a good amount of content and very solid performance, Alienation is one of the best shooter games released this year on all formats.

Alienation is a furious, fast-paced, ruthless and extremely entertaining twin-stick shooter from the masters of the genre. It'll get your juices flowing in both directions: At times you feel yourself euphoric, at times you want to rip the controller in half. These are signs of a good game. [June/July 2016]

Housemarque’s previous games have always kept me coming back through the strength of their gameplay alone. Alienation adds a straightforward, but enjoyable power chase on top, making its finely tuned arcade action all the more alluring. Its action-RPG elements won’t make it a replacement for something like Diablo 3 or Grim Dawn, but they successfully provide a structure for unending, enjoyable alien slaughter.

Probably the best twin stick shooter out there, Alienation delivers a solid, compelling experience for both solo and cooperative play.

Addictive, deep, funny... Housemarque continues showing that are the finnish kings of the digital titles at good quality-price ratio.

Best twin-stick shooter I have played – fast, varied and enriched with hack’n’slash elements deep enough to make looting and upgrading weapons highly addictive. [07/2016, p.66]

Housemarque once more delivers an excellent game, with simple yet addictive twin-stick action for the ages. The ability to play co-op puts the icing on an already delicious cake.

Alienation is in fact a spiritual sequel to Dead Nation taking all the good action elements of the original title, but as a completely new game it makes an interesting twist as an Action RPG with a loot system and character progression that takes the best of genres like modern social shooters and classic dungeon crawlers.

Alienation is another extremely polished game from Housemarque that takes well known game mechanics and combines them in unconventional ways for an experience that is not only satisfying to play on the surface, but has a layer of depth that most other twin-stick shooters cannot claim.

Alienation is one of the best-feeling twin-stick shooters I've played, so I can't be too bummed. It wasn't long before I had that realization, and now that I'm 20 hours and several character save files in, I'm even more convinced. Housemarque could stand to flesh out the endgame content and also add support for local co-op, but even if it doesn't, I love what's here.

Alienation is an ambitious twin-stick shooter that goes beyond Housemarque doing what they do best. It's gorgeous it's addictive, and its's some of the best fun you'll have on your PlayStation this year - especially if you're the get caught up in the grind for better loot.

Why the loot and upgrade system, Housemarque? At its core Alienation is a glorious twinstick shooter with interesting classes, beautiful visuals, top notch pacing and a challenging coop mode. It didn’t need the Diablo-ish influences that pull me right out of the flow.

Gameplay is king and Housemarque proves it. Alienation does nothing new, but it does everything to perfection. The gameplay is addictive: a great mix of collecting, action, fighting, role playing and the upgrading of weapons.

Housemarque placed their bet: all-in for an action loaded, restless game, with enjoyable and interesting co-op options that would make it impossible to not enjoy many hours in this shootout frenzy with very bad aliens. It may not look original, but that feeling of playing an arcade in your living room and its visuals will make you forget about it really quickly.

With beautiful graphics, simple and concise controls, and a decent array of weapons to choose from, Alienation only really falters from a tired plot and lack of character customization.

Alienation is a great game that people who love Housemarque games will enjoy. It may lack a local coop mode, but the online is pretty solid and the best way to play the game. Arcade shooter enthusiast will embrace the challenge for many hours.

A short but uniquely brilliant strategy shooter. [Issue#175, p.70]

Alienation is a must-buy for any fans of twin stick shooters. Featuring fun gameplay, a deep weapons system (for the genre), smooth visuals and plenty of reason to repeat missions it’s certainly worth your $30.00 AUD.

With Alienation Housemarque rises to the big leagues thanks to deep and diverse loot and upgrade systems that benefit an already utterly enjoyable action game.

Ultimately, the objectives in Alienation aren't anything special, but the good shooting mechanics and abundance of things to do make up for that.

Housemarque did it again! Alienation is another great twin-stick shooter coming from this renowned studio, an exhilarating co-op experience that is both as fun as it is rewarding.

Has all the qualities of a full price action game, but at a fraction of the price. Considering this creative shooter is a no-brainer.

For those looking for that supplement to Diablo, Alienation should be right up your alley.

In a world of game that take themselves too seriously, Alienation is simply fun, and it’s a game that I can see myself coming back to when I need just that.

While the game sometimes feels a little too eager to kill players and lacks local play, with a full troop online, it’s easily one of the best all-out action multiplayer games in recent memory.

Alienation is a highly recommended game for those who want to enjoy a good co-op game, tons of action, tension inflicted by hoards of aliens and a great graphic design.

Housemarque proves how good it is at twin-stick shooters. All puzzle pieces fall into place: shooting, walking around, enemies and challenging gameplay. The story based setup makes Alienation a bit clinical, which makes this game less epic than Resogun and Super Stardust.

Another reminder that shameful, when done well, isn’t that shameful at all.

Alienation looks great and is a very entertaining game if you are playing with friends. There are a few hiccups in the online multiplayer and there is no offline multiplayer. If you want to play a classic arcade shooter with friends this is your game.

Housemarque has done it again. Alienation is a great action game to play with company (without local options). Play it and you will enjoy frantic battles with laser weapons. If you liked Dead Nation, you will love Alienation.

Quotation forthcoming.

Alienation is a beautiful and deadly spectacle. Gameplay is immensely fun, making it hard to stop exterminating more and more aliens. It is a pity that the developers could not achieve 60 frames per second or add a local co-op option, but the game is great nonetheless.

Alienation's plot and gameplay might lack originality, but that's soon forgotten as you get your teeth into its slick, addictive, over-the-top action. Along with gorgeous environments and absolutely spectacular pyrotechnics, the game features surprising depth thanks to its upgradable characters and loot system. It all adds up to a really enjoyable multiplayer shooter that's highly recommended.

Quotation forthcoming.

You'll fall for Alienation's great twitch gameplay, but it's with its RPG-like elements that the hooks really sink in. Alienation has created something that's part twin-stick blaster, part sci-fi dungeon crawler, with all the looting, levelling and upgrading that implies. Limited locations and the repetitive shoot 'em up gameplay might make it a less enticing prospect a few weeks in, but right now it's impossible to resist.

One of the best Housemarque titles for this generation of consoles and maybe one of the best Diablo-like games ever made.

If you're looking for some high-octane, arcadey action with a fiendishly gripping gameplay loop, then this comes highly recommended.

Alienation is a slick and polished twin stick shooter, filled with huge explosions and seemingly endless enemies to kill, but it’s let down in a lot of little ways. It’s still a great game, but I didn’t fall as madly in love with it as I did with its predecessor.

Alienation is a entertaining experience, with lots of action, beautiful effects and lots of polish. But Housemarque should have included couch co-op at the launch of the game.

Alienation is good at what it does and what it does is shooting endless waves of filthy aliens. Even though the game lacks some content as bosses and some variety in missions, the experience is still fun as a solo players or with up to 3 friends.

Play with a well-balanced cooperative team, stay in parity with your levels, and conserve ammo. Do so, and Alienation offers one of the best twin-stick experiences on the market. Add in a deep progression system and lots of ways to enjoy replaying, and it’s only balance issues that hold me back from the same fervent recommendation I apply to most Housemarque releases.

Although poorly explained in places, there are plenty of thrills in this top-down loot shooter. [June 2016, p.78]

On the one hand, Alienation is a joyous, punchy co-op romp of a twin-stick shooter, with every on-screen detail a veritable celebration of beautiful chaos. On the other, it’s a step backwards in terms of what Housemarque could do. What is undeniable though, is that Alienation is a rather good time.

To be sure, Alienation could have done with a little more polish in its RPG systems and the inclusion of an extra mode or two.

Another addictive twin-stick blaster enhanced by chasing XP and loot. But a gang of mates is a necessity, as difficulty spikes quickly and brutally. [July 2016, p.87]

There's not really anything complex about Alienation, but Finnish developer Housemarque still manages to create a compelling and fun twin-stick shooter. The lack of local co-op does the game a huge disservice, but nevertheless doesn't ruin the experience completely.

Ultimately I don’t think this will be remembered as a classic, and it doesn’t need to be; what Housemarque has created is a bit of fun with friends around, no more, and no less.

While the game does not revolutionize the genre and it is not free of defects (repetitive, lack of clarity at times), it brings a little more subtlety than its predecessor in terms of gameplay.

The world won’t stick with you, but beautiful visuals and excellent twin-stick looting make this a co-op blast…once you figure out what you’re doing. You could get lost for weeks in its end-game content, but only the most obsessive will care about climbing Alienation’s leaderboards.

It’s okay, but it just doesn’t do anything anywhere near special enough to make it little more than an aping of games and sci-fi media that have come before.

It’s not bad per se, but so totally unremarkable that no matter how many hours you spend playing it, you won’t have a memorable moment. [Issue#209, p.82]

Alienation sort of stops when it really should be getting going, routes closing off as they should be opening up. [July 2016, p.118]

A common top-down action lost its a charm because of lack of any innovation. Although it stands on the solid pillars of gameplay, it doesn´t attract the players. Although the game plays well, it gets boring very soon.

A disappointingly bland top-down shooter, that while entertaining enough with friends lacks the finely tuned splendour of Stardust and Resogun.