Alien Spidy review: spider in sheep's clothing

Alien Spidy presents players with a deceptive package. Underneath the friendly exterior is a score chase in the form of a 2D physics-based platformer, with a difficulty level that often sits on the wrong side of punishing and slippery controls. It looks innocent, but it might bite you.

Mechanically, Alien Spidy is simple. You run, jump and shoot webbing, which you use to swing from objects in the environment. There’s also a limited set of power-ups (super speed, a super jump, etc.) that come in handy in specific areas.

Your objective in each stage goes beyond traversal You collect orbs throughout each stage in quick succession for score multipliers, which provide the boost needed to hit score challenge goals and progress in the game. Levels are on the shorter side, designed as obstacle courses that are divided into several segments. Most courses offer a manic 90 seconds to three minutes or so of running, jumping, slinging, swinging and even underwater spelunking.

Momentum is king in Alien Spidy's gameplay. Everything from hitting just the right angle as you swing from web to web, to adjusting your underwater velocity depends on your ability to manipulate the game's tricky physics. Jumping is floaty, allowing you to adjust in mid-air so you can hit the next swing just so. It takes a great deal of practice, but mastering momentum is the only thing that will keep you alive, since the environment is lethal. The checkpoint system is generous, but you lose points for respawns, forcing you to restart after too many mishaps.

Alien Spidy’s structure is punishing. Finishing most stages isn’t difficult, but you need to attain a predetermined number of stars to progress to the next world. Each stage has five stars available by hitting progressively tougher point values. These are prohibitively hard to achieve on some stages; four and five-star runs are difficult even on easier levels, leading to repetition and frustration.