Chicken Invaders
Encyclopedia
Chicken Invaders is a series of shoot 'em up
video games, developed by InterAction Studios and released for Microsoft Windows
, Mac OS X
and Linux
systems. Currently, there are four video games in the series, along with three special editions.
The main theme of the game is a battle between a lone combat spacecraft and a technologically-advanced race of space-faring chicken
s intent on subjugating (and later destroying) Earth. The games vastly employ humor, especially in form of parodies
of Galaxian
, Starwars and Startrek.
Player may collect different items that helps him in the game. Primary weapons may be changed by collecting parcels. Power-ups may also be collected to upgrade the primary weapon. Weapons may be upgraded up to eleven levels. The eleventh level however, is only acquired by collecting ten power-ups. Player may collect and accumulate drumsticks to get missiles, powerful weapons that can wipe out an entire wave.
In all levels, except in the asteroid belt
level, the ninth wave has a bonus usually a new weapon, or extra firepower) awarded for not using missiles throughout the level, while the last wave features a boss
.
InterAction Studio has also released Chicken Invaders 2: Christmas Edition in which eggs are replaced with Christmas balls
and drumsticks are replaced with holly
leaves.
The plot has the hero heading to Space Burger, famished as usual, when a twinkling behind the sun was spotted. When the hero arrives at that twinkling, he comes upon a giant egg that may or may not my built out of the Mother Hen ship. This egg, known as the Yolk Star, pushed the player into a black hole after the player gets him angry. The player arrives at the other end of the galaxy and must battle his way back and destroy the Yolk Star before it destroys earth.
The plot begins with the player/hero at Space Burger. A portal suddenly opens and a ship comes out. The ship says its name is Hen Solo and urges the hero to follow him to his galaxy to see the Chickens' latest creation, the Egg Cannon. The player heads through his galaxy and other strange places to confront the Egg Cannon.
On 24 June 2011 the UO was updated to version 4.05, which added support to German, Spanish, and for the first time Russian. The Russian translation was performed with poetry forms and multiple allusions to classic literature (e.g. J.Steinbeck, H.Miller and many others), Russian music (Nautilus Pompilius, Kino, Zemlyane and others) and Russian reality.
gave 4 out of 5 stars to the first Chicken Invaders, highlighting the humour, graphics and sound but criticising the lack of any features for customizing the gameplay. CNET also awarded The Next Wave 4 stars, again commending the graphics but criticising the lack of a windowed mode. The Next Wave was rated "mediocre" by Gamespot, criticising the repetitive gameplay and indistinct enemy bullets. However, the colorful, cartoony graphics where highlighted, as were "flashes of understanding of what makes a good shooter".
Shortly after its release, Ultimate Omelette was included in Adrenaline Vault
's "Top Casual PC Games of 2010" list. The reviewer described it as "the most fun arcade space shooter [...] in a very, very long time". The original orchestral soundtrack was also praised as rousing, invigorating, and "simply the absolute best".
Shoot 'em up
Shoot 'em up is a subgenre of shooter video games. In a shoot 'em up, the player controls a lone character, often in a spacecraft or aircraft, shooting large numbers of enemies while dodging their attacks. The genre in turn encompasses various types or subgenres and critics differ on exactly what...
video games, developed by InterAction Studios and released for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
and Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
systems. Currently, there are four video games in the series, along with three special editions.
The main theme of the game is a battle between a lone combat spacecraft and a technologically-advanced race of space-faring chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
s intent on subjugating (and later destroying) Earth. The games vastly employ humor, especially in form of parodies
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of Galaxian
Galaxian
is an arcade game developed by Namco in 1979. It was published by Namco in Japan and was imported to North America by Midway in 1980. A fixed shooter-style game in which the player controls a spaceship at the bottom of the screen and shoots enemies descending in various directions, it was designed...
, Starwars and Startrek.
Chicken Invaders
Chicken Invaders, the first video game in the series is a very simple game: The levels consist of ten waves of attacking space chickens. The waves never differ, keeping in the same order wave after wave, but they do increase in difficulty. In all the waves, the enemy (chickens) drops eggs from the top, which have to be dodged. Player needs to collect gifts (parcels) to receive points and to upgrade the primary weapon. Primary weapon can be upgraded up to 8 levels. One or two players can play the game. The player may also collect and use Missiles. A missile is hard to acquire but can wipe out an entire wave of chickens. The game does not have a storyline beyond one sentence description given by the producer.Chicken Invaders 2: The Next Wave
Chicken Invaders 2: The Next Wave is the second game in the series. It can be played by one or two players. The player takes command of the same lone spacecraft of the previous and must eliminate the chicken infestation of the solar system. The game features eleven levels, each of which consists of 10 waves of attacking hostiles. In all the waves, chickens attack by dropping eggs which have to be dodged.Player may collect different items that helps him in the game. Primary weapons may be changed by collecting parcels. Power-ups may also be collected to upgrade the primary weapon. Weapons may be upgraded up to eleven levels. The eleventh level however, is only acquired by collecting ten power-ups. Player may collect and accumulate drumsticks to get missiles, powerful weapons that can wipe out an entire wave.
In all levels, except in the asteroid belt
Asteroid belt
The asteroid belt is the region of the Solar System located roughly between the orbits of the planets Mars and Jupiter. It is occupied by numerous irregularly shaped bodies called asteroids or minor planets...
level, the ninth wave has a bonus usually a new weapon, or extra firepower) awarded for not using missiles throughout the level, while the last wave features a boss
Boss (video games)
A boss is an enemy-based challenge which is found in video games. A fight with a boss character is commonly referred to as a boss battle or boss fight...
.
InterAction Studio has also released Chicken Invaders 2: Christmas Edition in which eggs are replaced with Christmas balls
Christmas ornament
Christmas ornaments are decorations that are used to festoon a Christmas tree.Ornaments take many different forms, from a simple round ball to highly artistic designs...
and drumsticks are replaced with holly
Holly
Ilex) is a genus of 400 to 600 species of flowering plants in the family Aquifoliaceae, and the only living genus in that family. The species are evergreen and deciduous trees, shrubs, and climbers from tropics to temperate zones world wide....
leaves.
Chicken Invaders 3: Revenge of the Yolk
Chicken Invaders 3: Revenge of the Yolk comprises the main game together with Easter and Christmas editions. It is similar to the second version (with up to 4 player cooperative play). It has 120 waves, in 10 levels across 12 systems in the galaxy. There are 30 bonuses. Weapons have 11 power levels, and a secret 12th level, which can only be reached by acquiring an additional 10 powerups after the 10th level powerup (the 20th). There are also eight which are unlocked after repeatedly completing the game.The plot has the hero heading to Space Burger, famished as usual, when a twinkling behind the sun was spotted. When the hero arrives at that twinkling, he comes upon a giant egg that may or may not my built out of the Mother Hen ship. This egg, known as the Yolk Star, pushed the player into a black hole after the player gets him angry. The player arrives at the other end of the galaxy and must battle his way back and destroy the Yolk Star before it destroys earth.
Chicken Invaders 4: Ultimate Omelette
The fourth game (UO) is similar to Revenge of the Yolk. It has 120 waves across 12 levels. It includes weapons which can be upgraded through 11 power levels, with a supercharged 12th level. The weapons from Revenge of the Yolk are available as 'unlockables'. Ultimate Omelette unlockables can be purchased individually by collecting keys, which are dropped from destroyed enemies during the course of the game. A new feature in this game is the capability of the player's spaceship to face in any direction depending on the level (it was always facing up in previous games), and the camera can also zoom in or out depending on the wave (boss fights typically have the camera zoomed out to contain all the action).The plot begins with the player/hero at Space Burger. A portal suddenly opens and a ship comes out. The ship says its name is Hen Solo and urges the hero to follow him to his galaxy to see the Chickens' latest creation, the Egg Cannon. The player heads through his galaxy and other strange places to confront the Egg Cannon.
On 24 June 2011 the UO was updated to version 4.05, which added support to German, Spanish, and for the first time Russian. The Russian translation was performed with poetry forms and multiple allusions to classic literature (e.g. J.Steinbeck, H.Miller and many others), Russian music (Nautilus Pompilius, Kino, Zemlyane and others) and Russian reality.
Reception
CNETCNET
CNET is a tech media website that publishes news articles, blogs, and podcasts on technology and consumer electronics. Originally founded in 1994 by Halsey Minor and Shelby Bonnie, it was the flagship brand of CNET Networks and became a brand of CBS Interactive through CNET Networks' acquisition...
gave 4 out of 5 stars to the first Chicken Invaders, highlighting the humour, graphics and sound but criticising the lack of any features for customizing the gameplay. CNET also awarded The Next Wave 4 stars, again commending the graphics but criticising the lack of a windowed mode. The Next Wave was rated "mediocre" by Gamespot, criticising the repetitive gameplay and indistinct enemy bullets. However, the colorful, cartoony graphics where highlighted, as were "flashes of understanding of what makes a good shooter".
Shortly after its release, Ultimate Omelette was included in Adrenaline Vault
Adrenaline Vault
The Adrenaline Vault was launched November 1, 1995 by gaming entrepreneur Angel Munoz. The site provides PC, console game and hardware news, previews and reviews. Once a large commercial website, Avault is now published primarily by a team of volunteers....
's "Top Casual PC Games of 2010" list. The reviewer described it as "the most fun arcade space shooter [...] in a very, very long time". The original orchestral soundtrack was also praised as rousing, invigorating, and "simply the absolute best".