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Xeno Crisis

Xeno Crisis feels like a lost classic from a bygone era of gaming – a brilliant twin-stick arena shooter which wears its influences on its blood-drenched sleeve. The stern challenge may prove to be off-putting for casual players, but it rewards dedication with some of the most intense and addictive blasting action you can find in the genre. Convince a fellow player to join in and you've got the makings of a co-op classic.
Xeno Crisis Game Cover
81%Game Brain Score
music, graphics
replayability, story
81% User Score Based on 137 reviews
Critic Score 80%Based on 1 reviews

Platforms

Nintendo SwitchPlaystation 5Playstation 4Xbox Cloud GamingDreamcastSteam DeckSega Mega DriveWindowsPlayStationPlaystation VitaLinuxXbox Series X|SPCNintendo 64Nintendo GamecubeCloudMac OSXbox OneSuper Nintendo
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Xeno Crisis Game Cover

About

Xeno Crisis is a multiplayer arcade shooter game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Bitmap Bureau and was released on October 28, 2019. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

In "Xeno Crisis," players control a squad of soldiers battling aliens in a futuristic setting. The game features top-down shooter gameplay with a retro aesthetic and supports both single-player and local co-op modes. With a variety of weapons and enemies, Xeno Crisis offers a challenging and engaging experience for fans of the genre.

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Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
Xeno Crisis screenshot
+4
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81%
Audience ScoreBased on 137 reviews
music17 positive mentions
replayability3 negative mentions
  • Xeno Crisis offers a nostalgic experience reminiscent of classic twin-stick shooters like Smash TV, with frenetic and addictive gameplay.
  • The game features beautiful pixel art and an outstanding soundtrack that enhances the overall experience.
  • Despite its brutal difficulty, the game provides a rewarding challenge that encourages players to improve their skills and master enemy patterns.
  • The controls can feel clunky and unintuitive, with issues such as limited aiming directions and a frustrating melee attack that often leads to cheap hits.
  • Enemy projectiles are sometimes difficult to see, blending into the background and resulting in unavoidable damage.
  • The game's difficulty can be punishing, with some players feeling that the challenge detracts from the enjoyment, especially with mechanics like being locked out of the good ending after using continues.
  • music
    31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game has received widespread acclaim, with many reviewers praising its outstanding quality and nostalgic Sega Genesis style. Composed by Savaged Regime, the soundtrack is described as a standout feature that enhances the overall experience, making the game feel like a classic arcade title. Despite some criticisms regarding gameplay mechanics, the music consistently shines as a highlight, inspiring players and adding to the game's appeal.

    • “The music by Savaged Regime is amazing; God bless Savaged Regime!”
    • “The soundtrack alone makes it worth the purchase.”
    • “The music is arguably some of the best tunes composed under Sega Genesis hardware.”
    • “The music, this here I got to talk about.”
    • “I had never known, and I believe I'm not alone when I say that this soundtrack is the first in a long time that had me thinking how underutilized the Sega Genesis sound chip was.”
    • “You can't change any other settings in-game like the amount of continues, lives, hearts, or adjusting sound and music volume.”
  • graphics
    24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of Xeno Crisis are widely praised for their beautiful pixel art and retro aesthetic, reminiscent of classic Sega Genesis titles. While many reviewers commend the visuals and overall presentation, some note that the low-resolution graphics can cause enemy projectiles to blend into the background, detracting from gameplay. Overall, the game's graphics are considered a standout feature, contributing to its classic arcade feel and immersive experience.

    • “As a pixel artist myself, I rate the game graphics as 10/10, and as a retro games enjoyer, I rate authenticity as 10/10.”
    • “Great presentation including graphics, sounds, music, and the cut scenes.”
    • “The graphics and animations are stylish and fit the alien theme.”
    • “The problem is that with the low-res pixelated graphics, enemy projectiles often blend into the background.”
    • “The graphics, music, and sound are all very Sega Genesis.”
    • “There are no graphics options either, but given the art style, I assume that's a choice.”
  • gameplay
    21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay is characterized by its frenetic and addictive nature, with a mix of retro aesthetics and smooth controls that enhance the experience. While many players appreciate the challenging and action-packed mechanics, some criticize the lack of polish, limited variety, and minimal impact of upgrades. Overall, the game offers a fun and engaging experience, particularly in co-op mode, but is hindered by certain gameplay flaws.

    • “It raises a valiant salute to its influences, and its gameplay loop, while simple, is frenetic and addictive.”
    • “Damn, this one is a tough one for sure, but it's so juicy and the gameplay is absolute fire for its genre!!”
    • “Gameplay is quick, smooth, action-packed, and unforgiving as you shoot, dodge, and melee your way through hordes of enemies that come out of the god-damned walls while navigating a maze-like stage that's randomized every time you play it to keep each play-through fresh and new.”
    • “Variety is limited, enemies get increasingly unfair, and the upgrades you unlock after each level barely make a difference during gameplay.”
    • “Upgrades are non-existent, so there is very little point in talking about them, since the game doesn't want you to use neither of these mechanics, and only reserves shooting and grenades for bosses and such.”
    • “- inconsistent enemy spawn mechanics.”
  • replayability
    9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Overall, the game's replayability is mixed; while some players find the addictive gameplay and random generation of room layouts enhance replay value, others feel that the lack of captivating bosses and limited modes diminish it. The inclusion of an infinity mode and a boss rush offers some additional replay incentives, but opinions vary on their effectiveness.

    • “There is an infinity mode after clearing the game which adds a nice touch of replayability.”
    • “Highly addictive gameplay and replay value.”
    • “The boss rush is okay, but the bosses are not particularly captivating enough to make much difference in replayability.”
    • “From what I can see, the level arrangement is semi-fixed, but it does appear that the game has some variables in terms of what spawns in any given room, adding to replayability, and I've certainly had a range of surprises in successive runs.”
    • “The gameplay is very addictive and the random room generator for each level adds to the replayability.”
  • story
    5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story in Xeno Crisis is minimal and primarily serves as a backdrop for gameplay, relying heavily on familiar sci-fi tropes like space marines and iconic weapons. While the pixel art is praised, many players feel that the lack of a deeper narrative and a story mode difficulty limits the game's accessibility and enjoyment. Overall, the plot is considered superficial, providing just enough context to facilitate the arcade-style action.

    • “As Xeno Crisis has an arcade feel, the plot is only surface level with reliance on some favored tropes of the sci-fi action genre it is paying homage to; space marines, BFG weapons, xenomorph-lite monsters, and other pop-culture tropes dot the levels.”
    • “There isn't much to write home about with the story, so it's just there as a good excuse to play the game.”
    • “As Xeno Crisis has an arcade feel, the plot is only surface level, relying on some favored tropes of the sci-fi action genre it is paying homage to: space marines, big f***ing guns, xenomorph-lite monsters, and other pop-culture tropes that dot the levels.”
    • “There is no score counter during the mission, only a summary at the end.”
    • “Pixel art is great, but this badly needs a story mode difficulty.”
  • grinding
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, with levels that feel overly long and enemies that act as "HP sponges." While character upgrades are accessible, the overall experience can become frustrating and boring, particularly in later levels where the gameplay drags on.

    • “The levels go on a bit too long, which gets repetitive and grindy, feeling like it's not what you want in a game like this.”
    • “While Xeno Crisis can be very grindy with enemies that feel like HP sponges, making your thumbs numb, you can easily upgrade your character within a couple of levels, depending on how you want to go about it.”
    • “You get an easy mode that locks you out of the good ending (just the same as using one of the three continues provided), but my patience ran dry on the fifth level; it's just all incredibly tedious and boring, with some levels featuring teleporting enemies that feel like they drag on forever.”
  • stability
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users report that the game exhibits excellent stability, running smoothly without any significant issues.

    • “The game runs great.”
    • “I haven't experienced any crashes or bugs, which is impressive.”
    • “The performance is smooth, and I can play for hours without any issues.”
  • humor
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find humor in the game's mechanics, particularly the amusing automatic melee attacks that characters perform when not actively shooting, leading to unexpected and comical moments.

    • “The funny thing is, if you are not shooting at the moment it happens, the character will automatically one-shot it with a melee attack.”
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80%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews
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76h Median play time
76h Average play time
76-76h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Xeno Crisis is a arcade shooter game with science fiction theme.

Xeno Crisis is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Steam Deck and others.

On average players spend around 76 hours playing Xeno Crisis.

Xeno Crisis was released on October 28, 2019.

Xeno Crisis was developed by Bitmap Bureau.

Xeno Crisis has received mostly positive reviews from players and mostly positive reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its music but disliked it for its replayability.

Xeno Crisis is a multiplayer game with local co-op support.

Similar games include Meltdown, Blazing Chrome, Assault Android Cactus, Riddled Corpses, 20 Minutes Till Dawn and others.