Upgrade Complete

This review is made of win.

Next: Upgrade Complete 2 with Chicken-Ship cheat code!

Great review of a great game, just wanted to point out that the images link to the mincraft site.

The funny thing is that though it's meant to be a parody first and a game second, but the fact is that I actually enjoy it as a game on its own merits. It's short and easy to finish, it's true, but there's something calming about it for that. The increasing quality of the music and graphics is an enjoyable incentive. I've actually played it through about four times for no particular reason other than that I just wanted to.

My only complaint is that the different selections of music that accompany each graphics upgrade is really quite decent in its own right. This is a complaint because, whereas these music tracks are a few minutes long, each attack wave only lasts about 30 seconds. So we never actually hear most of the music. If you actually want to listen to it, you have to just sit there at the end of the wave, intentionally not clicking "return to menu" for a while. I hope the music wasn't composed especially for the game; if so, sucks for the composer!

Quin, I had the exact same reaction in my review of the game. (Which I won't pimp here)

Achievement unlocked is also fun, even though it's supposed to be showing us that achievements are pointless.

I can't figure out how to get the "Super Ship!" achievement... help.

@JNinja-

are ALL of your upgrades complete???

That was an incredible piece of work. And by that I mean the game AND the review. Nicely done!

Absolutely brilliant! I spent more time laughing than I did actually playing.

Silly question - I've managed to put guns on the play and back buttons and now I can't move them - Any idea how I can reload the game?

I second all those who say the game has it's play value. I had lots of fun playing it - i mean fun playing it as a game :)

bio

OMG, I got an honorable mention!
:D :D :D :D
I'm SOOOO happy now!

Wow, I'm very surprised at the results. Nice work everyone! All of the reviews were enjoyable reads. ;)

Games that are essentially upgrade systems are actually fun to some people. For example, WoW, which is undoubtedly the most-played game in the world right now, is just one big upgrade system. The reason it is so popular is that advancing is based on time, not skill, and so it is accessible to everyone.

A great review for a great game. The only thing that really bothered me in the game was the ending. It's as if they were insulting the player for having fun. Very disapointing.

Ummm... Did anyone figure how to change the angle of the guns as seen in the screenshot above? Finished the game, got to 110% process (wohoo!) and gonna start over. :)

To JNinjaz: You must have 12/12 ship parts at upgrade level 5/5, I suppose. At least that's what got me the Super Ship Medal (which I copied, pasted into Paint, enlarged, printed out and pinned to my wall right above my bed so I can sleep well again).

scathopius: The main guns only fire forward. The weapons that are firing at angles in the screenshot are a lightning emitter and a missile launcher.

It's possible to "win" without purchasing the final graphics/music upgrade, which makes me very happy as the third set is much better than the fourth.

Regarding the question if any games featuring upgrades are truly "hard", here's my oppinion. These games are just as hard as you make them. Just like games that have you level up, the more you grind the easier it gets, but it can be a true challenge if you don't grind at all (or in the case of upgrades; don't purchase the 0-cooldown-kill-everything-on-screen weapon upgrade).

Interesting gimmick, gameplay is interesting enough. I'd have liked to introduce some more upgrades and options in the "ship design" area, but I have never been *satisfied* with the degree of customisation available in any game I've ever played (not in Spore, not in GURPS, nothing).

I spent a long time sitting on level 7, refitting my entire arsenal - getting rid of the guns and speed panel, trading up for missiles and multiple magnets. My motto: moving is for suckers!

I tried replaying the game, this time using ONLY the Lightning weapon. My conclusion is that it's simply underpowered. Even with 12 Lightnings, all at level 5, I was simply unable to overcome Wave 20 no matter how I arranged them - in a semicircle, in three clusters, in four perfectly-stacked clusters, finally as a single all-stacked-on-one-point setup - all failed.
Tomorrow, I'll try beating the game with Cannons only (with agility upgrades, of course).

^ Actually, I found the pew pew cannons to be the best investment in the game -- I wouldn't have bothered getting the last achievement if I'd been loading up on the much more expensive seeker guns. One magnet, one speed, 10 cannons in a line, then just rock back and forth a little to spread the damage.

I'm waiting to see someone troll the maker. Someone ought to post a meticulously-tweaked speedrun of the game, complete with a voice-over droning on unironically about strategic decisions made and the merits of various alternative approaches.

To Peter Horsey: Thanks for telling me, I guess I was still focused on the old view. Finishing wave 20 without having bought any other upgrade than weapons ftw! :D

To JonMW: Wow, that's a nice strategy, even though it's kinda lazy. But it works! I farmed like toooons of money to see how high you can go, but I'm gonna stop now. Here's my stats:

Two Lightning weapons, 5/5.
Six Missile launchers, 5/5.
Four Magnets, 5/5.
Process: 110%.
Money: $1,004,848.

Very nice review! I considered writing one for this game, not because I loved it necessarily, but because it felt like a fun parody of a gaming trend that I love. I'm happy that DanTheArcher got chosen for this one - well done!

I liked the ending!

Yeah, the ending was the best part! Whole game was awesome though, especially the music! There's something weirdly addictive about upgrading, isn't there?

4.5/5
The idea behind this game is brilliant. It made me want to keep playing. Every time I upgraded something, I felt rewarded and eager to see what I could find next. Tony thought outside of the box for this game, and I applaud him.
My only problems with this game were the graphics and difficulty. Some of the 'graphics upgrades' actually felt like downgrades, which was a disappointment. The whole thing was also very easy to beat, and in the end it felt unfinished and a bit rushed. I really wish there had been more upgrades and maybe some more complexity to the shooter game to make the whole thing harder. But because I liked the idea so much, I looked past those flaws and rated it higher.
I hope the creator realizes the gold he has in his hands with this game idea and expands upon it much further.

-SB

This game rocks!
But why stop at a shooter?
imagine an upgradeable platformer, or a racer, made upgradeable in this style. It's gold!

How do you complete the mystery upgrade AAAH!?!?!?

Actually, the angle of the guns CAN be changed. You need the Flash Player for it though. Save the webpage it's on, and then open the .swf file with FP. In the ship building screen, if the game window is maximized, you'll see two almost invisible buttons on the right side of the screen. One of the buttons is part rotation, but I forget which one. Happy upgrading!

heh heh I bought thee mute before sound

Does the

cost different amounts of money for different People. Mine was

dollars.

To Riley: Looks like the Super Ending costs exactly as much $$ as you have left in your bank. Mine cost $4795.

--Congratulations Forever!

Only thing I really hated was the jump scare when you buy Heart Rate. Yes. I get the joke, but I hate jump scares. Now I can't go back to finish, because i don't know if it will keep it up. =(
sorry if you argue that was a spoiler but I would have liked to known about it before it happened.

@Lita88 That EXACT same thing is going on in my head now:(Im scared it will happen again randomly if i try to go back on!

Has anyone figured out a build that uses every square on the ship builder?