Alien Breed: Tower Assault is the third game in the Alien Breed franchise, and is a run-and-gun, top-down shooter. This classic game was developed and published by Team 17 in 1994. Alien Breed: Tower Assault is a direct sequel to Alien Breed II: The Horror Continues. The original version of Alien Breed: Tower Assault was available across a few platforms and systems, including the Amiga 1200/Amiga 4000, Amiga CD32, and MS-DOS.
Getting ahold of the original game nowadays might be a difficult venture, but modern gamers can still play this classic sci-fi horror game. Players can find Alien Breed: Tower Assault online through various platforms. One of the most recognizable places to purchase the game is GOG.com. GOG is a great resource for gamers who are looking for any type of PC game. They have a wide selection of current games and a catalog of classic games as well. GOG isn’t the only place players can find Tower Assault, though. It’s also available on websites like Play Classic Games, where players can play it right on their browser.
Alien Breed: Tower Assault is part of a relatively well-known franchise. Alien Breed was such a popular horror game in the ’90s that it got a reboot in 2009. Even today, this game is still highly rated. GOG.com rates it a 4 out of 5 and Play Classic Games rates it a 5 out of 5. Lemon Amiga also gives it a high score of 9 out of 10.
Alien Breed: Tower Assault Premise
The Alien Breed franchise is loosely based on the iconic Alien franchise, which is known for its horror masterpiece and groundbreaking film Alien (1979). The Alien franchise also features many video games as well, but Alien Breed never tried to be a replacement for Alien. Instead, players could see where the inspiration came from and, if nothing else, Alien Breed pays homage to the beloved horror franchise.
The second game, The Horror Continues, is a continuation of the original 1991 Alien Breed, but Tower Assault is a little bit different. Tower Assault takes place in the same universe as the first two games, but it seeks to expand the alien crisis. A science facility located on an uninhabited planet sends out a distress signal. A deep space barracks picks up the signal and decides to answer the call for help. The barracks send a small team of soldiers to the planet to search for the source of the distress call. Their mission is simple: Find any survivors and exterminate any hostiles they find along the way. The soldiers have little idea what’s in store for them, but they agree that they can’t ignore the distress signal.
The soldiers depart from the barracks on a few spacecrafts headed for the uninhabited planet. The ships locate the science facility easily enough, but as they approach, a defense system attacks the ships. Security lasers manage to down every ship, killing most of the soldiers in the process. Only two soldiers survive the crash, leaving them to explore the facility and the planet while they fight for survival.
Tower Assault uses a modified version of Alien Breed II: The Horror Continues’ game engine. It plays similarly to the first two games in the series but with one major difference. Each level has multiple exits, something that Alien Breed I & II did not include. This gives the player a little more control over how they play the game and where they end up. The multiple exits also offer a less-linear experience than the previous games. According to the original packaging the game came in, there are “more than 276 ways to complete the game.” Tower Assault also introduced Retreat Mode, which would allow the player to shoot and walk backward at the same time.
Alien Breed: Tower Assault Main Characters
©Squakenet / Team 17 – License
Like The Horror Continues, Tower Assault features an easy-to-understand plot that puts the players in the perspective of the protagonist. The player controls one of two soldiers who survive the crash at the beginning of the game. Players face combat immediately. Their ship has been destroyed, their allies are dead, and they have little in the way of supplies. Most of their ammo and other essentials were destroyed in the crash, forcing players to scavenge for what little made it. Aliens swarm the player immediately and the facility’s defense laser system is still operational. Players must navigate this hostile environment with nothing but their weapons as they search for more supplies and somewhere safe.
Sadly, there isn’t much emphasis on character development for the protagonist or any other character, for that matter. The game focuses on the gameplay so heavily, that it doesn’t really give players time to worry about anything other than survival. Two soldiers survive the crash so players can play the game alone or play with a friend.
Alien Breed Titles in the Series
The Alien Breed series has two “eras”. The first era is the classic era that starts with 1991’s Alien Breed. Most of these games are run-and-gun-style shooters. The second era starts with 2009’s Alien Breed Evolution, which marks the series’ reboot. These games are first-person shooter-style games, which makes them feel more modern and fresh.
First Era:
- Alien Breed (1991)
- Alien Breed Special Edition ’92 (1992)
- Alien Breed II: The Horror Continues (1993)
- Alien Breed: Tower Assault (1994)
- Alien Breed 3D (1995)
- Alien Breed 3D II: The Killing Grounds (1996)
Second Era:
- Alien Breed Evolution (2009)
- Alien Breed: Impact (2010)
- Alien Breed 2: Assault (2010)
- Alien Breed 3: Descent (2010)
Alien Breed: Tower Assault Cheats, Cheat Codes, & Passwords
©Squakenet / Team 17 – License
Classic games that came out during this time often had cheats, codes, or other exploits that would make playing the game easier. Alien Breed’s franchise followed this trend. Alien Breed II: The Horror Continues featured many useful cheat codes for the player to take advantage of and its sequel decided to keep that vibe going. Unfortunately, the Alien Breed: Tower Assault cheats are mostly focused on jumping to the player’s desired level. The Horror Continues featured cheats for extra lives and more keys, so the level selection is cool, but the Tower Assault cheats could be better.
Level Passwords for Alien Breed: Tower Assault
- EEHBNDAASDCAAADK: Civilian level 3
- FKBDMDEAFDCAAAEB: Engineering level 1
- FKASMCEABDCAAADI: Engineering level 1
- FKSAMCEABDCAAADI: Engineering level 1255k money (A and S are switched)
- LAAPJDAISDCAAACM: Main tower level 2
- HCAPJDADSDCAAADD: Main tower level 3
- HCBPSLADSDCAAACB: Main tower level 4
- EPAEMDEBBDCAAAEA: Military level 3
- JGCJNDEAPDCAAACS: Science level 3
- FCDBMDEASDCAAADM: Security level 3
- EJDCPDAASDCAAADG: Stores level 3
Other Useful Alien Breed: Tower Assault Codes
Although most of Tower Assault’s cheat codes are level passwords, the game does contain a few more. These passwords will give the player bonus money and a better assault rifle. There are also a few codes with “unknown effects” that could give the player something extra special.
Money & Weapon Upgrade Passwords:
- EBSSSCAHAAAAACN: Starting level with 255k money
- EBSSSHACAAAAACN: Starting level with 255k money and assault rifle level 3
“Unknown Effect” Passwords:
- FKASMCEABDCAAADI: Unknown effect
- JGAFICEABDCAAAEJ: Unknown effect
- FKANLCEABDCAAADP: Unknown effect
Alien Breed: Tower Assault Cheats FAQ
When Googling “Alien Breed: Tower Assault” and “Alien Breed: Tower Assault cheats”, most of the FAQ results are unrelated to the Tower Assault game. Like with Alien Breed II: The Horror Continues’ FAQs, most of the related results refer to either the original Alien Breed game or the Alien franchise.
How many levels are there in Alien Breed?
This FAQ pops up for most search results relating to the Alien Breed franchise. The question asks about the original game’s levels, but it can be used as a jumping-off point. The original Alien Breed has six levels and the special edition that came out one year after the original doubled that for a total of 12 levels. Alien Breed II: The Horror Continues and Alien Breed: Tower Assault both feature 17 levels, likely because they were built with the same game engine.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Squakenet / Team 17.