I didn't own a TurboGrafx-16 when I was a kid, but I had a friend that did and Alien Crush was far and away my favorite game to play when I went to his house. It was such a cool and original take on pinball with fast gameplay, gorgeous graphics, Alien / H.R. Giger-esque artwork, and a rockin' soundtrack. It was a well-received title and would form the foundation of the Crush Pinball series that would see a few different releases throughout the '90s.

After laying dormant for 15-ish years, a new entry was released in 2008 as a digital-only title for the Nintendo Wii. At a glance, Alien Crush Returns seems to be exactly what you would expect: Alien Crush in 3D. The organic alien style artwork is here along with boss fights and non-traditional table layouts / mechanics. But what's not present is the certain something special that Alien Crush had way back on the TurboGrafx-16. I know it could just be nostalgia talking, but this game just seemed so generic compared to the original.

Now don't get me wrong, this isn't a awful game or anything...it's merely an average pinball game based upon a game that was released nearly 20 years prior. If you've never played Alien Crush or are willing to ignore the connection, then the general pinball gameplay here is mostly fine and it certainly has its moments of real fun. But if you're like me and hoping for an amped up version of the classic TurboGrafx-16 game, well, you're probably going to be disappointed.

The game offers a Story Mode where you go through a few different levels (i.e. tables) in a linear order. There's also an Arcade Mode for a more traditional high score affair. From what I understand, the game also had some online options back in the day and even had some DLC available. It was originally an 800 point purchase, so all told, it wasn't a bad release for $8.

One thing I disliked about this game that I can't blame on nostalgia is the controls. Like many Wii games from this era, it relies on a Wii / Nunchuk configuration and it's just not ideal for pinball. I mean, the Wii Classic Controller seems like it would've been pretty darn good for this game, but nope...not an option. At least, not that I could find. Luckily, motion controls are kept to a minimum and as far as I could tell, the only thing you use them for is to nudge the table.

I know I've been pretty harsh to this game, but it just shows how much I fondly remember the original Alien Crush. This is a perfectly acceptable game of (bizarre) pinball and is worth a look for fans of the genre. Unfortunately, since it was a digital-only release on a long since defunct storefront, it appears to have been lost to the sands of time...for now.

Played On: Nintendo Wii
Completion Date: 2/8/23
Time: 59 minutes
Rating: 6/10