Free arcade shooter game
Mechanical Star Astra by boghog is an indie shoot ‘em up game demo with a striking retro design. It resembles arcade titles in design but incorporates modern weapon systems, making the gameplay quite dynamic. You’ll play this chaotic shooter in five rounds, defending New Humanity on what was once Earth.
Shmup for all
Shoot-em-ups—or “shmups”—are games that have you take control of a craft, waging war against enemy forces. This genre is massively popular, with titles such as Deathsmiles and Mars Matrix showing how much they can differ in complexity and difficulty.
Mechanical Star Astra seeks to offer something to both ends of the spectrum. There’s a Novice Mode, providing a seamless entry to new players and multiple more complicated routes for experienced players. You’ll also find many bite-sized challenges, tutorials, strategies, and a training mode. In essence, you can make the game as easy or difficult as you want it to be.
A sci-fi apocalyptic setting
Mechanical Star Astra makes you a member of the New Humanity, living in a shell of what once was our Earth. It’s full of berserk machines looking to wipe your species off the planet. Thus, it’s up to you to choose a Machina Striker ship and go off to dismantle these monsters. It’s time to stop another apocalypse from happening.
Chaotic gameplay
The game takes place across five stages, each around 30 minutes long. You pick your ship among the massive selection and fight. Each choice requires a unique playstyle and comes with a different set of mechanics, making it a learning experience every time you play. You can go at it alone or in co-op mode, which lets you take a friend to the battle with you. Tactical operation is a must in this case.
Retro design
The gameplay combines well with the design. It’s vivid and animated, with a lot of care while retaining the arcade pixel-art style. The massive explosions look impressive, and the bullets littering your screen make you feel like you’re truly at the heart of the action.
An exciting experience
Mechanical Star Astra plays like a classic arcade, making older players nostalgic as they lose themselves in this frantic bullet hell. Still, the modern highly-customizable ships and weapons and the co-op mode have something for new-age gamers, too. Overall, this demo has the potential of developing into a highly-popular title.
