ION Shift Demo Impressions
Be the xenomorph in this snappy 2D action game.
ION Shift. Credit: Electro Soul Games.
ION Shift is a 2D side-scrolling action game that puts you in the shoes of an alien creature trying to survive in a massive spaceship. I had a blast playing the demo.
You can crawl through air ducts and cling to any surface. Rather than a normal jump, you aim in a direction and can then leap that way with precision. Hitting a wall or ceiling means you’ll cling to it. Jump into a soldier, and you’ll kill it. It took me a little while to get used to the controls and movement, but once I did, it became very fun to sneak through levels and wreak havoc. Tossing objects at turrets and tricking them into shooting enemies feels especially gratifying.
ION Shift. Credit: Electro Soul Games.
While you can kill enemies in a single hit, you’re equally fragile. Soldiers’ gunfire, turrets, buzzsaws, drones, and more will instantly end you. You’ll start over at the start of the current section, but each level segment is short and self-contained, making the checkpoint system forgiving. Still, some parts of the game can be infuriating, with difficulty far more significant than its surrounding sections. I hope that the full game feels more balanced overall.
ION Shift. Credit: Electro Soul Games.
The game’s 2D levels are given some depth by being modeled in 3D. Combining the 3D spaces with pixel art textures and modern lighting gives the game a feel similar to Square Enix’s HD-2D games. The style is pretty, and it’s cool to see it used in a different context—a 2D action game rather than a top-down RPG.
ION Shift was released today on Steam for PC. Now that I've finished the demo, I'm looking forward to playing the full game.
