Zap Blastum Review – The Cover Shooter That Doesn’t Wait Its Turn

Aliens are invading! Don’t rely on democracy: grab your laser pistol, find some shelter, and take the battle to them in Zap Blastum. Talk about lucky – Zap is this alien’s actual name, and they’re desperate to push back the robotic alien invaders that have arrived uninvited.

That’s right, these big ol’ mechs have come into town, and you’re seemingly the only one who can stop them. Well, you can bring a friend with you in co-op because it’s always nice with a chum. Still, my experience was as a solo warrior, and I had a lot of fun with it.

The first thing that’s notable about the game is how epic the music is. I mean, this was really overpowering – not in a bad way like cheap perfume, but movie quality. There were sniffs of Back to the Future and even Star Wars; that’s the scale I’m speaking of, and regrettably, I thought this could be AI. It’s plausible.

That said, when I went to the Steam store page to grab the link, I saw that the soundtrack is coming soon and performed by an orchestra. There’ll be cynics saying AI can do this too. Not me. I was really impressed. However, this isn’t a rhythm game, is it?

Real-Time Cover Combat, Finally

No siree Bob, it’s a top-down cover shooter. As Zap, you will run some maze-like mini arenas abundant in structures to hide and fire from, destructible ones, as well as environmental perks and energy shields. Almost every game I have played in the past 5-10 years similar to this is turn-based, but Zap Blastum is real-time.

That real-time aspect makes this an immediate standout for me, as it’s so easy to pick up and even harder to put down. Each level is an alien planet (taking the battle to them), made up of a series of skirmishes and special events such as escort missions and expected boss battles.

The closest thing to it that comes to mind is probably the Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle. I bought that on release back in 2017 and have played it twice. Shiny Dolphin Games’ title is so much better. Granted, it’s different in many other ways, but that’s testament to the fun factor.

Guns, Grenades, And Going Up In Flames

Zap has a standard blaster with infinite ammo, though he can equip a decent selection of weapons such as a one-hit sniper, swarm guns and more. Additionally, you can lob a grenade over a wall and take out groups of enemies or reduce their shields, then drill them with elemental attacks like the excellent burn option or poison.

Considering Zap Blastum is a cover-based shooter, it’s kinda important that these mechanics work, right? Yes, they work really well and obtaining cover is excellent. Zap will stick to a wall like Velcro and there’s no issue with camera angles or inadvertently coming out of cover by accident. The actual cover fire is brilliant.

Three Things That Aim To Annoy

What I did have difficulty with were three things. The first was the aiming, as using the right stick (playing on an AYN Thor) will pick your target but is also your manual aim. Hiding behind cover and then manually trying to pull off a hit can sometimes withdraw the lock effect, and you have to do it again. A minor issue is when there are swarms of enemies.

The second issue, which is the main one, is the speed at which you move. There is a stamina-dependent sprint option and while you can upgrade the speed and your stamina, the main reason I used it was for collecting the tokens that let you level up. After defeating the last enemy, there’s a 5-second window to collect everything which isn’t enough time.

Those tokens play an important part as between stages you can choose from a selection of three perks, like Vampire Survivors, that can boost damage, increase your health and shields, elemental damage and much more. It was rare that I didn’t have a decent haul after each stage, but that window to sprint is so short.

The final thing I had difficulty with in Zap Blastum was being able to stop playing. Each level is just the right amount of time and challenge, and by the time you unlock a few more boosts, you want to try it on the next stage. Yes, the perks are better, though so to are the enemies, making the progression balance very good.

Pair that with it being a co-op option and lots of extras and difficulty levels to coax a more casual (or die-hard) player into the game, and we have ourselves a genuinely fun game. Chuck in 30 levels or so, and this should get you ready for the invasion. Let’s just hope that allocate you a gun.