A big thanks to Atari for letting me talk/learn about this game.

Centipede: Infestation is based on one of Atari’s classic franchises. According to Atari there was some worry about rebooting such a classic franchise for the modern age. Atari decided they wanted to make a game that felt 2012 but still had the nostalgia of the older Centipede. Atari asked people around the industry for different idea pitches for the reboot. After hearing many different great ideas, Atari decided to go with the idea Wayforward’s studios brought to them.

Story

Centipede: Infestation has a pretty in-depth story, probably a lot more than you would think. The story occurs after a nuclear holocaust where the world becomes a giant wasteland, with survivors living in bunkers. The main character, Mat, decides he has bigger dreams than living in bunkers his whole life, so he ventures out into the wasteland to see what he can get into. On his adventure he meets Maisy, who has a skill of growing plants that was passed to her from her grandmother. She uses this skill to start a little farm growing business. Seeing that the world is a wasteland, Maisy’s skill is something of a commodity. Maisy can grow air-producing plants that makes the area around it habitable. Mat is interested in Maisy and her skills and finds every excuse to stay and protect her and her farm from the world around them. Atari pointed out that there really is not a love story between Maisy and Mat. It’s like a high school where Mat thinks Maisy is interesting and wants to get to know her more. The story is told by fully animated, voice over, cut scenes that are in-between the levels.

Gameplay

Infestation comes out on the 3DS and Wii, which offers a little different way to play both games. On both platforms the game keeps true to the original with its fast pace shooting style. The Wii version is controlled by using the nunchuck to move Mat around while aiming by pointing at the screen. The 3DS is controlled with the circle pad moving Mat around, and the X,Y,A,B buttons to aim. Adding a duel joystick feel.

Atari wanted to offer players a huge selection of bugs and ways to squash them. There were too many weapons to even go over, Rocket launcher, Flame Thrower, Freeze Gun, and a variety of Shotguns and different machineguns. There is also a plethora of bugs to use those weapons on, wasps, spiders that drop ammo, flies, different types of beetles and of course giant centipedes. Also Maisy’s plants come into play when defending against bugs. Using Maisy’s plants gives the game a slight ‘defend the castle’ feel. Different plants do different things. Some plants fire projectiles, or other things, at the bugs while others can be used as a barrier to help direct the bugs or keep Mat or Maisy safe. The game has three difficulty levels with waves that become harder as they go on. There are more than just the pure survive the level modes. The game also provides opportunities to protect Maisy as she unlocks doors for Mat or levels where you have to make your way to different areas to perform actions like turning on a switch.

Both versions of the game have a co-op mode. The Wii offers local play co-op while the 3DS offers local connection co-op. The only difference between the single and co-op play is the ability to compete for the most points.