UFO 50 Review: 50 Retro Games That Never Existed

UFO 50 is a crazy idea, executed all the way. The collection contains 50 games from a fictional company called UFOSoft, which supposedly developed for its own console in the '80s. Behind it is Mossmouth, the studio of Spelunky creator Derek Yu, together with Jon Perry, Eirik Suhrke and other developers. UFO 50 launched on September 18, 2024.

We played our way through the collection and reveal how many gems are hidden inside. On Steam, around 95 percent of reviews are positive.

UFO 50: How the collection plays

Each of the 50 games stands on its own, with its own controls, genre and learning curve. You'll find platformers, shoot 'em ups, RPGs, strategy games, sports games, golf, racing games and puzzle games. Some can be explained in fifteen minutes, others will keep you busy for many hours.

All the games stick to the technical limits of an 8-bit console, but are designed with modern sensibilities. Each game has goals: a gift achievement, a gold trophy for beating it and a cherry for special challenges. That's a great incentive to check out games outside your favorite genres.

Not every game is a home run. Some titles are very hard, others rather short. But the density of really good games is impressive; favorites like Barbuta, Mortol, Party House or Grimstone could easily pass as standalone indie games.

Scope and backstory

Hanging over everything is the fictional history of the company UFOSoft, told through the game descriptions and hidden clues. If you look closely, you'll discover connections between the titles and secrets that only reveal themselves late.

The scope is enormous. If you seriously play every game, you'll be busy for well over 50 hours, and many times that for all the cherries. The flip side: the collection can be overwhelming at first, and there's hardly any help getting started.

Graphics, sound and tech

Visually, UFO 50 stays true to the specs of its fictional console: a limited color palette, small sprites and clean shapes. That's exactly why the variety the team squeezes out of these tools is so impressive. Eirik Suhrke's chiptune music is excellent.

UFO 50 was developed with GameMaker and runs on practically any PC. You'll find the minimum requirements in the table below this article. On Steam Deck, the collection is Verified and ideal for short sessions.

You can read more about the studio on our Mossmouth page.

Scores at a glance