CrushBorgs
Developed/Published by Xitilon
Released for Xbox One (4/19/2022)
Also on PC
INTRO
These retro-styled throwback games seem to be a dime a dozen these days, which can make it tough to pick out which ones are worth your time and money. Today we'll be delving into CrushBorgs, a run 'n gun developed by Xitilon using GameMaker Studio 2. Brought to us by Ukraine-based indie developer Xitilon, CrushBorgs pays homage and plays very similarly to the 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) ports of Contra. Let's drop in and start blasting!
PRESENTATION
CrushBorgs does a decent job emulating the 8-bit aesthetic of the games it was inspired by, both in the graphics and sound departments. The graphics are composed of pixels that look just like something you would've seen on your NES just without the sprite flicker. While the graphics look true to 8-bit, the enemy designs are rather unimaginative, consisting mostly of boring robots and turrets. Stages suffer a similar fate of just being uninspired and forgettable. The music, much like the graphics, does a good job sounding true to the time period but fails to stand out in any way other than being background noise. The game looks true to its 8-bit inspirations, but lacks too much in originality to really stand out amongst the sea of retro-styled shooters that have come out in recent years.
GAMEPLAY
CrushBorgs provides a good approximation of what it feels like to play the NES Contra games, though the jumping feels more floaty than it did in the old games. There's also no button to lock your aiming or character so you have to adjust aiming while on the move, which is quite a dated mechanic at this point. CrushBorgs differs from its inspiration in several regards, but one of the most obvious is in the difficulty department. Where in Contra you die in a single hit, in CrushBorgs you have a life meter which can be seen in the upper-left hand corner of the screen. Having a life meter basically eliminates any challenge the game would've had, meaning you'll likely just plow through the game on your first attempt. This doesn't leave much incentive for replay value, though to be fair the game is decent during that initial playthrough. The run & gun genre has always been known for its challenging gameplay, so to see an entry in the genre this easy is a strange decision.
CrushBorgs provides a good approximation of what it feels like to play the NES Contra games, though the jumping feels more floaty than it did in the old games. There's also no button to lock your aiming or character so you have to adjust aiming while on the move, which is quite a dated mechanic at this point. CrushBorgs differs from its inspiration in several regards, but one of the most obvious is in the difficulty department. Where in Contra you die in a single hit, in CrushBorgs you have a life meter which can be seen in the upper-left hand corner of the screen. Having a life meter basically eliminates any challenge the game would've had, meaning you'll likely just plow through the game on your first attempt. This doesn't leave much incentive for replay value, though to be fair the game is decent during that initial playthrough. The run & gun genre has always been known for its challenging gameplay, so to see an entry in the genre this easy is a strange decision.
CLOSING
CrushBorgs is a solid homage to the NES ports of Contra, though to be honest the Xbox marketplace is getting a bit crowded when it comes to the run & gun genre. Due to this there are probably around a dozen or so games that I would highly recommend you spend your time on first (Contra Anniversary Collection, Blazing Chrome, Hard Corps Uprising, Bleed, Mighty Goose, etc.). That's not to say CrushBorgs is bad and as a tribute to the 8-bit Contra ports it is a solid effort, but there's an undeniable sense of 'been there, done that' and the super-lax difficulty means there's not much replay value. The game is also single-player only, further hurting the potential for replayability. Those looking for some quick gamerscore will be happy to know that the full 1,000 gamerscore can be unlocked quick and without much hassle. Overall, CrushBorgs is a decent effort and while there are better run & guns out there to play first, I'd still say this one's worth a go if you find it on sale, particularly if you love the NES Contra ports.
Final Verdict: CrushBorgs captures much of what was so fun about the gameplay in the 8-bit NES Contra ports, but at the same time it removes the challenge by providing the player with a life bar and infinite retries. There are a at least a dozen or so better alternatives, but if you've always found these games too hard or want some easy gamerscore then CrushBorgs might appeal to you.
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