IOS Review #95: Xenowerk

Title: Xenowerk
Developer: Pixelbite
Platforms:
Price: $1.99
---
Pixelbite's Space Marshal was one of the best dual stick shooters to grace mobile this year. Stealth, mechanics like flanking and cover, and a varied loadout added a layer of tactical depth you don't often find in top-down shooters. Xenowerk takes the tight controls, detailed visuals, and satisfying gameplay of Space Marshals and delivers a faster, more arcade-y experience, as you cleanse an science facility of a mutant infestation.

While Space Marshals offered larger levels and a slower pace, Xenowerks is set in claustrophobic dark corridors, where mutant creatures lurk around every corner. A vast array of weapons are available, from simple assault rifles and shotguns to powerful flamethrowers, grenade launchers, and miniguns. You can carry any two guns, and complimenting your loadout is a selection of armor, each granting special abilities that can boost your speed and damage or unleash a enemy-slowing aura,

Each of the game's 50 level is a contained lab floor, where you either hack into terminals to gather data or defeat deadly mini-bosses. As you progress, mutants grow in strength and ability, charging with incredible speed or launching projectiles; success means using your skills at the best time, getting kill streaks to fill up your power meter faster, and managing your fire so you don't overheat your weapons. The missions tend to be short, only a few minutes long, but the varied mutants add more challenge as you descend deeper.

Xenowork is available on IOS for $1,99. An Android version is coming soon.