Alien Syndrome (2007)

Alien Syndrome is a video game by Totally Games. It is an update to the franchise created by the Action Game 'Alien Syndrome' by Sega. It was released for the PlayStation Portable and Wii in 2007. The 2007 iteration introduces role-playing game (RPG) elements to the gameplay.

Story
The title is set in the far future, where interplanetary space travel is possible. Communication is lost with one of the stations on a distant planet, and Aileen Harding is sent to investigate. She quickly discovers that 'Alien Syndrome' is behind the disappearance and decides to fight the enemy.

Gameplay
Alien Syndrome is played as a top-down shooter, with players turning their characters the direction they would like to shoot. A total of 40 levels have been announced, with 5 bosses and 15 mini-bosses. Players are accompanied by a robotic drone that serves as a storage space for items as well as a backup for the main character. Players will also be able to completely customize their character to expand in-game strategy options. Alien Syndrome will allow you to use 80 different weapons and hundreds of armor types and bonus items. Rely on your loyal droid assistant to fight alongside you and exchange or improve your weapons and armor at any time. Players have both a life meter and a constantly refilling energy meter, with the latter being related to shield power.

The game also features co-op multiplayer for up to 4 people simultaneously on one TV screen for the Wii version. On the PSP version, the game features co-op multiplayer via ad-hoc Wi-Fi connection.

Differences between PSP and Wii
Perhaps the biggest difference between the PSP and Wii versions of Alien Syndrome are in the controls. On the PSP, your movement and aiming are both handled with the analog stick, and when you start firing a ranged weapon, you'll lock into the direction you're facing. On the Wii, movement is handled by the analog stick on the Nunchuk, though you'll control your aiming reticle with the Wii Remote, and wherever you point is where your character will shoot.

Reception
On the Wii, critical reception to this game has been mostly negative. Both IGN and Gamespot praised the intuitive aiming controls but complained about the lack of enemy variety and graphical difference between the Wii and PSP versions. It currently has a 53.6% at Game Rankings

The PSP version holds a 51.0 on Gamerankings.