Juicy Variety Landing in 3… 2.. 1!

Us chicken aliens (chickaliens?) have been hard at work flapping our wings and finishing up Alien Hominid Invasion’s Update Part 2 (JUICY VARIETY edition!), and today we’re excited to announce that this FREE update is arriving next week!

Yep, you heard that right – the JUICY VARIETY Update lands Monday, April 29th, around 10:00 AM PDT on Steam, with consoles to follow at a later date. To celebrate, let’s touch upon some of the chaotic new features soon landing on planet Earth!

WARNING: This post contains intel about new content soon being added to Invasion! If you’d like to experience all the new stuff on your own, please ignore this post for now.

A Chaotic Juicy Variety Stream Recap

The stream recap above shows a firsthand look at our team sharing the update for the first time! Please note that the content was still a WIP at the time, so things may look a little different on release.

New changes shown in the video include:

  • Modifiers: Roll Bomb, Double Jump Reflect
  • Hazards: Pinball Bumpers, Grind Lines, Mine Layers
  • MECHA F.R.O.G. mini-boss and vehicle
  • “A Lot of Parking Lot” area
  • Updates to Chomper Wall/Keybot levels
  • More balance and quality of life tweaks
  • ICE CREAM!!!!!!!

Owley’s Art Journey

Oh, and about the new area, “A Lot of Parking Lot” – we have some updated art to share with you today! Check out how the art of Invasion is first conceptualized in the game and updated to completion below:

The Behemoth chickalien visits Squawky’s Cameras for the first time.
The chickalien is back, happy to be in a world of colorful destruction once more. Wait, didn’t Squawky own this place?
THE CHICKALIEN REJOICES, AS OWLEY’S REACHES ITS FINAL FORM! Wait, does this place belong to that one owl we know from that one game? How curious…

On top of three new areas, some of the game’s older art is also getting a facelift on Monday! Be sure to keep an eye out for the updated buildings, especially the new Meow Motors. Meeeow!

The ORBITER

Something we didn’t get a chance to show off in the prior stream is our new Orbiter mutation, so here’s a sneak peek in GIF form:

With every use, the Orbiter mutation spawns a projectile that circles you, knocking enemies out of your path and making you a close-range DESTROYER! Using it a second time will create a temporary platform at its current location, making the mutation a good choice for swarm and bonus levels.

The MECHA F.R.O.G. Arrives!

The last thing we wanted to touch on today is the new MECHA F.R.O.G., SPINDOCTOR OF FATE!

Invaders can soon encounter the MECHA F.R.O.G. as a mini-boss while traversing through city blocks! If you defeat the MECHA F.R.O.G., some say you can use it as a vehicle… Will you be going on a MECH RAMPAGE?

That’s all for now! We’ll be live on YouTube and Twitch this Thursday, April 25th at 3:00 PM PDT for one last Invasion stream before the update goes live!

Which part of the JUICY VARIETY Update are you most excited for? Let us know on Discord, or any of the other various corners of the internet us chickaliens inhabit.

PAX East 2024 Recap and Photo Album

Months of extreme chicken planning and coordination go in to each PAX, and just like that — WAIT, DON’T BLINK TOO FAST — it’s over!

Don’t be sad it’s over. Be happy we have photos, so that we never forget! That’s right, it’s time to share our PAX East 2024 photo album, in addition to a quick little recap of the show-nanigans.

We had such a great time celebrating all things aliens, Cat Guards, and co-op video games with you all weekend long! From all of us chickens, thanks so much for always making the show so memorable.

Check out this BOOTH

WE ARE SO BACK! Enjoy some snaps of this lovely booth, complete with our Cat Guard photo op, merch store, and arcade cabinets for Alien Hominid HD, Castle Crashers, BattleBlock Theater, Back Off Barbarian, and the NEWLY RELEASED AND SOON TO BE UPDATED Alien Hominid Invasion!

Cat Guard cosplay photo shoot!

From different Persona protagonists to an entire group of Spidermen, we were visited by so many awesome cosplayers this year. Even MEGA MAN showed up to play some BattleBlock Theater!

But there was one cosplay a little different than the rest. Yes, I believe I can speak for most of us chickens when I say this is the cosplay we won’t soon forget!

My brush is mightier than your sword!!!!! But IRL.

Here’s some bonus pics of the Painter playing Castle Crashers with Tom! 🙂

And YOU get a scarf!

If you were around the booth at 11am any day of the show, you likely walked away with a fancy new chicken scarf! We hope it helped against that wicked Boston wind, even if just a little bit.

THE CHICKEN!!!!!

On the final day of PAX, we hosted our first ever “Can YOU Beat THE Behemoth Chicken?” competition, where all of the great fans pictured above took turns competing head-to-head against chicken-suited-up Mike in Alien Hominid HD. Did anyone actually beat THE Behemoth chicken at their own game? The world may never know, but everyone earned a YouTooz and chicken keychain for trying! Amazing job, everyone!

That’s all for this year’s PAX East recap! Where is the big chicken headed next, you ask? WASD in London this April 25-27… see you there!

🐔