I LOVE THIS GAME. I have so much to say and I can't even share all of it or my review will become even longer than it already is. Anyway, on to the review:
[u]Characters: [/u] Okay, so my favorite characters here are the playable characters Ares and Tarus. (I love their character designs; I want to draw fan art of them someday.) There wasn't much official artwork for the original version of this game, so in regard to the re-design for both Ares and Tarus for [i]A.R.E.S. Extinction Agenda EX[/i], I think they both look more awesome here in the dialogue scenes. Both are combat androids but have very different personalities, which makes things interesting when playing through either campaign. Ares really behaves like a robot in dialogue scenes, like saying the word "Query" before asking a question, and making precise calculations of probabilities to the hundredth of a percentage. I think it's cute; I love that robot-y stuff! I wasn't sure about Tarus at first, but one third through Ares' story, I grew fond of Tarus after observing how mysterious and stoic he can be. He's so cool. I had to start playing his campaign immediately after finishing Ares' story. And I ship them, but that's just me. (Yes I know they are androids, but still, I just do.) And I can really see this as an anime. Oh, if only! But for now, that is what fan fiction is for…
In my opinion, Valkyl and Dr. Carson's re-designs are not bad and I won't complain. A remake is a remake. Both these characters have more personality in this game than the original version, so I thought that was an improvement. No word on what happened with the United Earth Chairman, who was mentioned only in the original game.
[b]Characters[/b] I give 10/10, mainly because I love the playable android characters Ares and Tarus.
[u]Story:[/u] The story is on the About This Game section of this game's Store Page, so I won't go into that here, but personally I thought the story was interesting enough to play to the end… I mean, it was the playable characters, the music, and the gameplay that made me buy the game. For me, the story is more of a bonus here, the context for which Ares and Tarus have the motivation to go through each stage. I wanted to know more about this zytron gas, and you'll find out more how zytron affects robots and machines as you play more of the game.
[b]Story[/b] I give 7/10. It's not perfect, or completely original, but for me it was certainly memorable.
[u]Gameplay:[/u] The gameplay is much easier in this remake than it was in [i]A.R.E.S.: Extinction Agenda[/i]. Some abilities are less complicated to execute, such as a particular air boost ability that Ares later acquires. Also, the gameplay is faster because instead of pausing to create repair kits, you use 100 Material credits to heal your robot. Materials come from the robot enemies you destroy, and you can use these to either heal your robot or upgrade a weapon or skill/ability. The repair ability does take time to recharge, so use it wisely, but that shouldn't be hard. Just make sure that you plan ahead before whichever weapon or ability you upgrade, because for boss fights you might want to keep at least 1,000-2,000 credits in your collection at all times for healing during those boss fights. Also each time you upgrade a weapon or ability, the next level of upgrade will cost more than the previous version of that weapon or ability. Some grinding/mining will be necessary, I will admit. The best stages to grind for Materials will depend on your preference to stage layout and foes. But in later stages the zytron-infected robots drop more quantities of materials, so that is something to consider.
There are 7 Chapters for both Ares and Tarus. They go through the same stages but they have different stories, different personalities, and yes, even different [i]endings[/i], which you'll have to play the game to find out. So if you want to learn more of the story (or learn more about the mysterious and stoic Tarus) then I recommend playing as Tarus too. After you play as Ares you will notice how different each campaign is, if not the stages.
Ares's combat involves more precision (not precise necessarily, just generally aiming at the enemy robots) whereas Tarus' combat style emphasizes destructive power rather than precision. They both have ways of increasing their defense, and you'll see that the more you level up either robot's abilities. Both combat androids share the same type of weapons but the weapons behave differently depending on if it's Ares or Tarus (you can see a sneak-peak of this in the trailer on the Store Page). Just try it! Try the game… you'll see. I recommend playing this game with a controller rather than a keyboard, but use whatever you're most comfortable with playing.
[b]Gameplay[/b] I give 9/10.
[u]Navigation/UI:[/u] Much better here! An improvement from [i]A.R.E.S.: Extinction Agenda[/i]. All the upgrading + viewing of abilities is on one screen. You can learn which button you press to do each attack or ability on this page at the bottom of its description when highlighted. For controllers, the Select/Back button is for the upgrades, using the front buttons to switch to viewing Data Cubes (brief, informative reading materials regarding characters and foes ) and Chapter Select. Chapter Select is handy when you want to grind/mine for Materials at your favorite stage. The Start Button is the main menu for the game itself with help and options, achievements and so on.
[b]Navigation[/b] I give 9/10.
[u]Music/Soundtrack:[/u] Most of the tracks from [i]A.R.E.S.: Extinction Agenda[/i], with music by Hyperduck Soundworks, are used in their respective stages for Ares. For the new stages and Tarus campaign, the music used was composed by Charlie Parra del Riego. I think his music fits very well with Tarus' character and style. My favorite Tarus track was in his Chapter 1, and I think of that one as his theme music. There are some catchy tunes in this game that may get stuck playing in your head and become a favorite. (That's what happened to me, and it [i]still[/i] happens!) I was however disappointed that the Hyperduck Soundworks track "The Subtle Knife" wasn't used in this game as it was in the original version, but maybe the mood and timing wasn’t right for the re-worked ending.
[b]Music/Soundtrack[/b] I give 21/10. (Yes I just did that.) Thank you Hyperduck Soundworks and Charlie Parra del Riego, you guys are awesome musicians!
[u]Overall Score out of 10:[/u] I might be biased because it's my favorite game now but it's an 11/10 from me. This score is based on my own experience with the game. But you have to try [i]A.R.E.S. EA EX[/i] out to judge it for yourself. I got this game on sale, so I suggest that you put it on your Wishlist and then look out for when it goes on sale, especially during the Winter or Summer sales. [i]A.R.E.S. Extinction Agenda EX[/i] is a gem that should NOT be overlooked.
[u]Do I Want a Sequel?[/u] I am waiting for a proper sequel. I won't hold my breath however, because sadly there is not enough demand for a sequel at the moment. I wouldn't mind being an Early Access tester of the sequel to help make it possible. This has the potential to become a series like [i]Mega Man X[/i], of which I am also a fan. After 7 years (10 years if you count the original game), A.R.E.S. has only 1.5 games in its title. Sadly yet again, there may be plenty of fans of this game who have moved on and forgot that they [b]wanted[/b] a sequel, so they are not verbal about wanting one.
[b][u]TL:DR[/u][/b] I recommend this game if you're a fan of sci-fi video games or series like [i]Mega Man X[/i] and [i]Mega Man Zero[/i], or anything like side-scrolling platformers that feature androids as main characters and getting awesome power-ups along the way. Oh, and cool music. Awesome robots and cool music.
