Xenos is an action platformer/fighting game that was developed by Oddity and released on November 4, 2011. Although Flash was discontinued on January 12 2021, Xenos is still playable through the Flashpoint Archive.
It is set in a dystopian future where an incredibly powerful energy source called Xenos was discovered and used to advance technology, but an evil scientist is using it to take over the world. The game follows a mech pilot named Asterus who uses a Xenos-powered mech suit to break into the scientist's fortress and destroy all his Xenos stockpiles.
Controls[]
- Arrow Keys: Move
- 1, 2, 3, 4, 5: Toggle weapon
- Spacebar: Use special attack
Plot[]
In the year 2115, scientists discovered a new form of energy beneath the Earth's oceans, capable of powering advanced technology. They called it Xenos. One of the scientists, Dr. Crenson, seized control of the Xenos, using it to power his own private army and a gigantic flying fortress from which to command it. Soon after, a great mechanical city called Eutopia began to spread from beneath the fortress, consuming everything in its path. Dr. Crenson's army, powered by Xenos, was unstoppable. Slowly, the Earth's major conurbations began to fall under his might.
However, all was not lost...a group of people, refusing to fall to Crenson's regime, managed to steal one of the Xenos generators on the outskirts of Eutopia. They used it to forge mankind's last hope of resistance: a Xenos-powered battle mech capable of standing up to Crenson and his army. This mech was to be manned by expert pilot Asterus. With the help of Lumi, his navigator, he set off to storm Eutopia, destroy all the Xenos generators, and defeat Dr. Crenson.
As Asterus made his way to the center of Xenos, he encountered and battled Dr. Crenson a few times. Each fight ended with Dr. Crenson escaping after having his battleship destroyed, until their final showdown in Eutopia Central where Crenson was killed. However, Lumi noticed that Eutopia was still expanding and urged Asterus to break into the deceased doctor's fortress and shut down the main source of its energy - the Xenos Core. After breaching the fortress's defenses, Asterus found the Xenos Core and discovered that it had somehow come to life! So Asterus fought the Xenos Core and managed to destroy it...but upon doing so, the Xenos Core declared that it could not be destroyed and was "eternal," and then it split up into many pieces that flew all over the Earth. The Xenos Core was the only thing keeping the fortress from destabilizing, so Asterus had to evacuate, after which he watched the fortress explode from afar. On his way back to base, he thought about the Xenos Core and how it split up, and wondered if he might have to fight again someday.
Gameplay[]
The game consists of 30 levels, unlocked one at a time in linear progression, each with the same goal - to find and destroy all Xenos Generators in the level (except for boss levels, where the only goal is to defeat the boss). Xenos is technically a platformer, although the term applies loosely here since there is no platforming to be done as Asterus is able to fly, and spends the entire level flying. Levels entail destroying hordes of enemy robots in order to deactivate security barriers to access new areas and find the Xenos Generators.
Enemies usually spawn in large swarms, and typically in multiple waves. Asterus takes damage from their projectiles and attacks, but he can automatically damage enemies by running into them, which causes him to strike the enemies with his weapon. Asterus can switch between a handful of different weapons (he only has two at the start of the game, but he gets new weapons as the player progresses throughout the game); they're all melee weapons, but they have special attacks that have various effects and can be used in exchange for energy. Energy slowly builds up when Asterus attacks enemies in quick succession, but can be acquired in greater quantity by picking up Xenos capsules that occasionally drop from defeated enemies and appear sparsely throughout the levels. As Asterus gets more energy, his weapon becomes more powerful; this is indicated by the weapon's color, ranging from blue to green to yellow to red (blue being the weakest, red being the strongest). If he's not gaining energy, Asterus's energy will slowly drain over time.
Some levels also have Data Chips which are hidden in secret locations. There are 10 in total, each one in a different level, and they can be used to create powerful upgrades for Asterus's mech when they're all found.
Level Types[]
Although every level has the same end goal, some levels have different styles of gameplay. They are as follows:
- Standard Level: A straightforward level where you just fight enemies and search for Xenos Generators. Most of the game's levels are like this.
- Minefield Level: A level filled to the brim with Homing Mines. In these levels, you have to use speed, stealth, and agility to evade the Homing Mines.
- Cleanser Level: A level in which you must outrun a gigantic laser called the Cleanser that instakills you on contact.
- Boss Level: A level where you have to fight a boss.
Worlds[]
Although all the levels are laid out across one huge map, they take place in different parts of Eutopia. They are as follows:
- Suburbs (Levels 1-7): The outskirts of Eutopia. The levels in this area are relatively small, with weak enemies.
- West Gate (Level 8): The entrance to Eutopia, where Asterus faces Dr. Crenson for the first time.
- Eutopia W-Sector (Levels 9-14): An area within Eutopia that has larger levels containing somewhat stronger enemies.
- Eutopia Main Conduit (Level 15): A passageway to a network of tunnels that are connected to the center of Eutopia. Asterus fights Dr. Crenson again here.
- Eutopia Subway (Levels 16-21): A network of tunnels that lead to the center of Eutopia. This area has levels that are mazelike and have powerful enemies.
- Eutopia C-Sector (Levels 22-23): The central area within Eutopia, featuring levels with a mixed assortment of enemies.
- Eutopia Central (Level 24): The exact center of Eutopia, located just beneath Dr. Crenson's fortress. Dr. Crenson is fought and finally defeated in this level.
- Fortress Exterior (Levels 25-27): The perimeter of Dr. Crenson's fortress, with huge levels and more powerful enemies.
- Fortress Interior (Levels 28-29): The inside of Dr. Crenson's fortress, with gigantic levels and lots of powerful enemies.
- Fortress Core (Level 30): The heart of Crenson's fortress, where Asterus fights and destroys the Xenos Core.
- Secret Area (Level X): A bonus level that is unlocked by defeating the Xenos Core. It's a massive, grueling level that takes place within the fortress's bowels, and it has a ton of strong enemies and even a few miniature minefields!
Weapons & Powers[]
- X-Blade: A small sword that does quick slash attacks. Its special attack is a dash attack that speeds through enemies. Can be toggled with the hotkey 1. Available from the start of the game.
- S-Hurricane: A double-bladed sword that has a slower attack rate but does more damage and has a bigger range. For its special attack, Asterus throws the S-Hurricane straight ahead, and then it boomerangs back to him. Can be toggled with the hotkey 2. Available from the start of the game.
- E-Crusher: A huge ax with decent attack speed and damage. Its special attack launches a devastating energy wave that quickly grows, but has a slight delay before launching. Can be toggled with the hotkey 3. Unlocked after defeating Dr. Crenson in level 8.
- G-Slicer: An experimental weapon, it's a scythe with great range and attack speed. Its special atttack creates a gravity well that sucks enemies in, constantly damaging them while holding them in place for you to attack them, and also disintegrates all enemy projetiles. Can be toggled with the hotkey 4. Unlocked after defeating Dr. Crenson in level 15.
- Megatron: A huge broadsword with really great attack speed and damage. Its special attack is a devastating spinning attack. Can be toggled with the hotkey 5. The Data Chips needed to unlock this are in levels 7, 12, 17, 21, and 25.
- Barrier Wing: An armor upgrade that reduces all damage taken by 33%. The Data Chips needed to unlock this are in levels 5, 10, 14, 19, and 23.
Enemies[]
- Micro Drone: A small, weak security robot that chases after Asterus and shoots small lasers.
- Boomerbot: A slightly larger robot with more health that shoots boomerangs at Asterus.
- Robo Ranger: A humanoid robot that shoots lasers and does dash attacks.
- Homing Mine: A floating mine that is stationary at first, but when Asterus gets too close it starts chasing after him very quickly. Mines can be killed by making them fly into a wall or using E-Crusher's or G-Slicer's special attacks.
- Bee Sentry: A bee-themed robot that has low health but aggressively chases Asterus and shoots rapid-fire lasers.
- Robo Guardian: A gigantic Robo Ranger that shoots a ton of lasers that spiral outward, and does dash attacks.
- Turtloid: A giant turtle-themed robot that moves really slowly but has high health, and it can shoot lasers and homing missiles.
Bosses[]
- Mega Turtloid: Dr. Crenson shows up at the city's West Gate (Level 8) to try and stop Asterus from getting into Eutopia. He pilots a Mega Turtloid which is stationary during the entire battle and uses simple attacks. The Mega Turtloid attacks by occasionally shooting homing missiles and bullet sprays. When it's low on health, it summons Boomerbots and switches to shooting out spiraling bullets. Upon its destruction, Crenson escapes and retreats back to Eutopia...
- Crenson Craft: Dr. Crenson returns in Eutopia's Main Conduit (Level 15) in an all-new battleship to prevent Asterus from getting to the center of the city. The Crenson Craft attacks similarly to the Mega Turtloid, but its bullet sprays are more accurate and it launches more homing missiles at a time. Plus, it's constantly moving around the room. When it's low on health, it summons Robo Rangers and aggressively pursues Asterus while shooting spiraling bullets. Once it's destroyed, Dr. Crenson escapes once more...
- Crenson Craft 2.0: Dr. Crenson tries one last time to defeat Asterus in Eutopia Central (Level 24), having made some upgrades to his Crenson Craft. It now chases after Asterus throughout the entire battle, shoots bullet sprays more often, and shoots even more missiles at a time. On low health, it summons a few Robo Guardians and switches to spiraling bullets. Once it's destroyed, Dr. Crenson is finally killed, but not before proclaiming that his legacy will live on...
- Xenos Core: The sentient Xenos generator powering Dr. Crenson's fortress, encountered in the facility's Inner Core (Level 30). It constantly teleports around the room while shooting lots of bullet sprays and tons of missiles. On low health, it summons several Turtloids and switches to spiraling bullets and missiles.
Trivia[]
- Xenos's boss theme is similar to the Intro Stage boss theme from Mega Man X6.