What Alien Hominid HD is
Alien Hominid HD is a 2D side-scrolling shooter from The Behemoth with hand-drawn graphics and fast, old-school arcade action. You play as an alien whose spaceship has been taken, and your goal is to destroy the agency and get it back. Movement is built around jumping, dodging incoming attacks, grabbing agents, and digging underground, while your blaster handles most of the shooting. Grenades cover groups of enemies, a knife works in close combat, and if you would rather not fight fairly, you can chomp agents' heads off instead. The humor that defined the original is intact, and the visuals have been cleaned up while the difficulty stays hardcore.
Playing it with friends
The campaign supports 2-player local co-op, so two of you can run through the stages side by side, covering each other with blaster fire and splitting the agents between you. If your group is not in the same room, Steam's Remote Play Together lets a friend join in over the internet as though they were sitting next to you. The rest of the group can watch along and take turns, which suits a game where runs are short, deaths are frequent, and swapping the controller keeps everyone involved.
Difficulties and what to expect
Three difficulty options change the run substantially. Easy gives 7 lives and continues, with two shields from weapon pickups. Normal gives 5 lives and continues, with one shield from weapon pickups. INSANE gives 3 lives and continues and every hit kills you outright. Pick based on how much punishment your group wants; the harder settings demand memorizing enemy placement and boss patterns rather than reacting on the fly.
Mini games and extras
When the campaign gets tiring, the original mini games are included: PDA Games with over 500 levels, Super Soviet Missile Mastar, All You Can Eat, Neutron Ball, Pinata Fiesta, and Challenge Mode. Steam achievements sit alongside weekly and monthly leaderboards for all three difficulties, so there is something to chase after the story is done. Expect a steep challenge, a lot of restarts, and a soundtrack worth hearing.