UFO was provided by Gearbox Publishing for review. Thank you!
Few games have completely captivated me to the point I have forgotten to take screenshots for the review. Games like these are very rare and not even big releases like Remnant 2 or Baldur’s Gate 3 have had that effect on me. Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons was one where I just got so sucked into the game that I just kept on playing and didn’t think about anything else. I am pleased to say that UFO: Unidentified Falling Objects is another one of those.
The concept is simple. You control a little robot while blocks fall down from the sky and, kinda like Tetris, you are supposed match the colors and then destroy them. The more that are linked up, the higher your score will go and the more stars you will get, which level you up, restore your armor, and make it so you can get more points per block. You destroy blocks by shooting them and you can kick the blocks into each other. As you complete challenges, you will get gems that will unlock new worlds and currency to buy new guns, armor (which carry abilities), new ways to kick, and even get new power-ups to use.
With the simple visuals and tight, addicting gameplay loop of trying to group together and destroy blocks to get the highest score. Every time I told myself I was going to stop and write, I payed another 5-6 rounds of the game before finally going to write…for 5 minutes…and then I played another 5-6 rounds. I also love the small strategic element to it as you can actually choose which power-up you get before you break the box, so choosing between double stars or fast shooting could impact how you play the round. Do you want to rush to high levels so you can get the largest score quickly? Or do you want to get a shield and play the slow and steady game? Either or work and you can choose when in-game. There is also online and local multiplayer for head-to-head competitions.
I love UFO: Unidentified Falling Objects. It is small, but addicting and has a decent amount of replayability with what you can unlock, the local and online multiplayer, and the challenges. I just found myself sometimes choosing a world and playing to see if I could get a higher score with a new strategy and focusing on different power-ups and I loved it. And of course, the game can run really well on the Steam Deck without any changes, but one does make it last a bit longer!
UFO: Unidentified Falling Objects – Steam Deck Performance
Without any changes, UFO: Unidentified Falling Objects runs at a solid 60 FPS on the Steam Deck. There really isn’t any changes to make in-game, it just works really well, but I have noticed a couple times where the game can drain a little bit more battery than it should.
During matches, I have noticed the game shooting from 8W all the way to 12W – 13W drain. I found this to be a bit odd with how simple the game is, so after a little testing, I learned the game does drain a little more than it should. To fix this, bring in a TDP limit of 4 within SteamOS and bam, there will be no more excessive drain.
The game doesn’t support 16:10 resolutions, so you will see the black bars above and below the screen and it doesn’t have cloud saves, but it does have full controller support!
Conclusion
UFO is another one of those smaller titles that I would have never played, but I am so glad I did. The game has an addicting gameplay loop mixed with vibrant, satisfying visuals that will work together to keep you hooked. On top of that, with the progression and content you can unlock. as well as multiplayer, this is a great game to take on-the-go with you. Thankfully, this runs perfectly on the Steam Deck without changes and can only be enhanced with battery life from the TDP limit. If you are a puzzle fan or looking for a new head-to-head game to duke it out with friends, this is one you won’t want to miss.
Our review is based on the PC version of this game.
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