Colonization of the Moon

Colonization of the Moon is a side-scrolling arcade shooter where players defend their alien homeland on the moon against invading humans. As an alien armed with a gun and a flamethrower, players must fend off waves of enemies from the right side of the screen in this fast-paced, retro-style action game. Featuring vibrant graphics, engaging levels, and atmospheric music, it offers a challenging yet accessible experience suitable for all ages.

Colonization of the Moon: Review

Introduction

The moon, that silent celestial body orbiting Earth, has long served as a canvas for humanity’s most ambitious dreams and darkest fears in science fiction. In Colonization of the Moon, developer ImperiumGame attempts to tap into this cosmic imagination, offering a humble but earnest take on the genre. Released on November 14, 2018, as a budget-priced ($0.99) indie title on Steam, this side-scrolling shooter positions players as an alien defending its lunar home from invading “PEOPLE.” Yet, despite its intriguing premise and retro aspirations, the game emerges as a curiously unpolished artifact of indie development—a title that promises cosmic grandeur but delivers repetitive, minimalist gameplay. This review dissects Colonization of the Moon‘s legacy through the lenses of its technical constraints, thematic execution, and cultural impact, arguing that while it fails as a satisfying experience, it stands as a fascinating footnote in the history of low-budget space shooters.

Development History & Context

Colonization of the Moon emerged from ImperiumGame, a virtually unknown studio with no prior notable titles, and was published under the obscure Conglomerate 5 label. Released during a period saturated with indie darlings and AAA blockbusters, the game’s development was likely constrained by both budget and ambition. Its technical requirements—Windows XP/7/8/8.1/10 support, Intel Pentium CPU, 512MB RAM, and Intel HD 400 graphics—reveal a deliberate targeting of low-end hardware, positioning the title as accessible to casual or retro-minded players. This aligns with the late-2010s indie scene, where simplified mechanics and pixel art aesthetics were often used to offset limited resources. The absence of post-release updates or community engagement suggests a “fire-and-forget” development cycle, common among inexpensive Steam titles. Contextually, it arrived alongside other moon-themed projects like Moon Colonization Project (2018), a strategy game by Belarus Games, highlighting a niche but fleeting trend in lunar-set gaming.

Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

The narrative is a masterclass in minimalism: players are an alien living in “peace and harmony” on the moon until humans invade. This setup flips typical colonial tropes by casting humans as the aggressors, but the game never explores this premise beyond its surface-level premise. There are no named characters, dialogue, or lore—no context for why humans invade or what the alien’s backstory might be. The term “PEOPLE” is rendered in all caps in the Steam description, implying a dehumanizing perspective, yet the game itself lacks thematic nuance. The conflict is reduced to simplistic gunplay against faceless enemies, stripping away any potential commentary on imperialism, xenophobia, or environmentalism. The “defend your homeland” motif feels hollow without emotional stakes, making the narrative feel less like a story and more like a justification for relentless combat. Ultimately, the game’s thematic ambition collapses under its own brevity, leaving players with no narrative reward for their efforts.

Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

At its core, Colonization of the Moon is a side-scrolling shooter with a fixed/flip-screen view. Players control an alien stationary on the left side of the screen, equipped with a gun (left mouse button) and flamethrower (right mouse button) while manning a “fence” barrier. Enemies—humanoid figures—spawn from the right, advancing toward the player’s position. This creates a defensive loop akin to tower defense mechanics, though without towers. Combat is monotonous: the gun is “extremely problematic” at higher difficulties, forcing reliance on the flamethrower for crowd control. There is no character progression, no upgrades, and no variation beyond enemy waves. Levels are described as “exciting,” but in reality, they are repetitive gauntlets indistinguishable from one another. The UI is barebones, likely displaying only health and ammunition, with no menus or pause options. While the dual-weapon system hints at tactical depth, the game’s poor enemy AI and lack of environmental variety render it shallow. Its “flawed” systems, particularly the gun’s ineffectiveness, frustrate rather than challenge, highlighting a fundamental imbalance in design.

World-Building, Art & Sound

The game’s world-building is nonexistent beyond the lunar setting. There are no unique environments, lore texts, or visual storytelling—just a generic backdrop of craters and voids. The art style aligns with its “Pixel Graphics,” “Retro,” and “1990’s” tags, featuring blocky, low-resolution sprites reminiscent of early DOS shooters. Described as “high quality and beautiful” in the promotional material, the visuals actually appear rudimentary, with stiff animations and a muted color palette. The “fence” barrier is a static, untextured line, and the alien protagonist lacks personality. Sound design follows suit: “Great background music” is claimed, but no specifics are provided. The audio likely consists of basic looping tracks and generic pew-pew sound effects, failing to evoke a sense of lunar isolation or tension. Despite tags like “Atmospheric,” the game creates no memorable ambiance. The result is a sterile, impersonal experience that wastes its sci-fi potential.

Reception & Legacy

Colonization of the Moon’s reception at launch was muted and largely negative. On Steam, it garnered only 3 user reviews with a 25/100 player score on Steambase (based on 12 total reviews), with complaints citing repetitive gameplay and technical flaws. Metacritic lists no critic reviews, reflecting its obscurity. Commercially, its $0.99 price point and placement in the “Conglomerate 5 Franchise” (a label with no other entries) suggest minimal impact. Over time, the game has gained notoriety as a “curiosity”—a bargain-bin title purchased for ironic amusement. Its legacy is one of insignificance: it has not influenced subsequent titles, nor does it stand alongside better-known shooters like Defender of the Moon (1994). However, it serves as a case study in the accessibility of Steam’s publishing ecosystem, where low-effort products can reach a global audience. Compared to contemporaries like Moon Colonization Project, it pales in ambition, cementing its status as a failed experiment rather than a forgotten gem.

Conclusion

Colonization of the Moon is an earnest but deeply flawed experience that epitomizes the pitfalls of low-budget indie development. Its alien-invasion premise offers a fleeting novelty, while its retro aesthetic and minimalist mechanics appeal only to the most forgiving players. Yet, the game’s greatest legacy is its ordinariness—an unpolished artifact of the Steam era that fails to deliver on its cosmic promise. For historians, it represents a snapshot of a time when the market was flooded with ambitious but undercooked titles. For gamers, it remains a trivial diversion best avoided. In the annals of video game history, Colonization of the Moon is not a landmark, but a footnote—a reminder that ambition alone cannot compensate for execution. Ultimately, it is a title best left to the archives, remembered for its oddity, not its quality.