Stupid Invaders is an adventure video game developed by Xilam and published by Ubi Soft for Microsoft Windows in 2000 and Mac OS in 2001. A 2001 Dreamcast port was handled by Titanium Studios.[2] The game is based on the animated television series, Space Goofs.
| Stupid Invaders | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Xilam Titanium Studios (DC) |
| Publisher(s) | Ubi Soft |
| Producer(s) |
|
| Programmer(s) | Frederic Sarlin Fabrice Decroix |
| Writer(s) | Nicolas Gallet Thomas Szabo Sebastien Hamon |
| Composer(s) | Hervé Lavandier Alain Ranval |
| Series | Space Goofs |
| Platform(s) | Windows, Macintosh, Dreamcast |
| Release | Windows Dreamcast Macintosh
|
| Genre(s) | Adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
The game was dedicated to Jean-Yves Raimbaud, the co-creator of the TV series, who died before the game was released. Unlike the original show, the game is also reliant on toilet humor and is slightly more adult in nature, making it the first work produced by Xilam to be for an older audience, before Kaena: The Prophecy, Mr. Baby, and then I Lost My Body, which was released decades later.
Most of the staff members that are from the original series (only for its first season) produced the game. The main cast also reprise their roles as the main cast of aliens, some of whom provide dialogue for some exclusive characters. The game also features the additional voices of Billy West, Rob Paulsen and Laraine Newman, with Danny Mann (Gorgious) voicing an evil scientist from "Zero Stuff" and West voicing the antagonist, Polok from "The Pro".
Plot edit
The plot centers around the aliens and their attempts to return to space. However, a bounty hunter, the stoic yet serious Polok, is sent by an evil scientist, to target the aliens. Thus, Etno's attempt to explain his newest idea goes awry as the aliens are frozen solid by Polok's gun – which forces Bud to retreat to the bathroom. Once he sneaks to the rooftop and sneaks around the house, the player progresses through the large, surreal world within performing very specific (and often absurd) actions, like melting Santa Claus and reducing him into green ooze.
Gameplay edit
All the main characters of the series are playable through the course of the game. The game rejects or distorts some clichéd aspects of the adventure genre, as standard adventure game tactics such as picking up, talking to, or interacting with anything encountered can often result in instant (albeit highly comical) death for the player's currently-controlled character and the need to reload, for example, often without warning. It should be noted the game does not support autosaving – players need to save manually before they progress any further.
Reception edit
| Aggregator | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Dreamcast | PC | |
| Metacritic | 64/100[3] | 65/100[4] |
| Publication | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Dreamcast | PC | |
| Adventure Gamers | N/A |   [5] |
| AllGame | N/A | [6] |
| Computer Games Strategy Plus | N/A | [7] |
| Computer Gaming World | N/A |  [8] |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | 6.5/10[9] | N/A |
| EP Daily | N/A | 7/10[10] |
| Eurogamer | N/A | 8/10[11] |
| GameSpot | 6.2/10[12] | 6.6/10[13] |
| GameSpy | 7/10[14] | 35%[15] |
| IGN | 7/10[16] | 7.2/10[17] |
| Next Generation | N/A | [18] |
| PC Gamer (US) | N/A | 52%[19] |
| RPGFan | 80%[20] | N/A |
| The Cincinnati Enquirer | N/A | [21] |
The game received "mixed" reviews on both platforms according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[3][4] Daniel Erickson of NextGen said that the PC version "would have been better as a non-interactive cartoon."[18]
References edit
- ^ "Dreamcast". EB Games. Archived from the original on July 15, 2001. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ "Titanium's Games". Titanium Studios. Archived from the original on May 6, 2007. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
- ^ a b "Stupid Invaders critic reviews (DC)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ a b "Stupid Invaders critic reviews (PC)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Fournier, Heidi (May 20, 2002). "Stupid Invaders review (PC)". Adventure Gamers. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Laramee, Francois. "Stupid Invaders (PC) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 14, 2014. Retrieved December 2, 2014.
- ^ Yans, Cindy (February 5, 2001). "Stupid Invaders". Computer Games Strategy Plus. Strategy Plus, Inc. Archived from the original on March 4, 2003. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
- ^ Wells, Audrey (May 2001). "The Dimwits From Deep Space (Stupid Invaders Review)" (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 202. Ziff Davis. p. 86. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 22, 2023. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Kim, Jeanne (June 2001). "Stupid Invaders (DC)" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 143. Ziff Davis. p. 103. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 15, 2023. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Saltzman, Marc (February 20, 2001). "Stupid Invaders (PC)". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on July 15, 2002. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Bye, John "Gestalt" (January 20, 2001). "Stupid Invaders (PC)". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on January 28, 2001. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
- ^ Satterfield, Shane (July 11, 2001). "Stupid Invaders Review (DC)". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Dulin, Ron (February 5, 2001). "Stupid Invaders Review (PC)". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Celeryface (July 12, 2001). "Stupid Invaders". PlanetDreamcast. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on January 24, 2009. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
- ^ Schembri, Tamara (February 4, 2001). "Stupid Invaders (PC)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on February 23, 2005. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
- ^ Chau, Anthony (June 29, 2001). "Stupid Invaders (DC)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Lopez, Vincent (February 27, 2001). "Stupid Invaders (PC)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 30, 2023. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ a b Erickson, Daniel (March 2001). "Stupid Invaders (PC)". NextGen. No. 75. Imagine Media. p. 94. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
- ^ "Stupid Invaders". PC Gamer. Vol. 8, no. 5. Imagine Media. May 2001.
- ^ Chandran, Neal (December 9, 2004). "Stupid Invaders (DC)". RPGFan. Emerald Shield Media LLC. Archived from the original on May 9, 2024. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Saltzman, Marc (February 20, 2001). "'Stupid Invaders' an adventure of looks and laughs". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved November 3, 2014.