Rogue Invader trailer marks final week of Kickstarter campaign

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We got our first look at Rogue Invader, billed as a 1-bit side-scrolling roguelike shooter, a couple months ago in the form of a fun little trailer that told the tale of humanity's war against brutal alien invaders, and the slight supply line problem that came up on the cusp of the final invasion of their homeworld. Now, to mark the final full week of the game's Kickstarter campaign, there's another one to watch.

That crowd funding isn't going particularly well—having pulled in just $3400 of its $20,000 goal. Fortunately for those who still want to see it happen, Rogue Invader already has the green light on Steam and will be completed and released with or without Kickstarter funding, as the campaign is aimed primarily at covering the cost of better audio effects and a proper soundtrack composed by Caleb Blood.

"The code is already written. The remaining work is in music and art creation," developer Squishy Games wrote in the Kickstarter pitch. "The biggest risk to you as a potential player is not funding our project and leaving us to create music on our own. We would make terrible sounds. The Wilhelm scream for all deaths is not good enough. (See first demo.)"

And yes, there is a demo, available from IndieDB. It's alpha, and the developers warned that there will be bugs, but it's "fully playable" if you want to give it a rip. The latest Kickstarter update provides a bit more background into the game's story and some of its systems, which will support a sneakier approach to problem-solving as well as a straight-up run-and-gun violence.

The Rogue Invader Kickstarter runs until September 17. It's expected to be ready for release later in the fall.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.