Project Landsword
A downloadable game for Windows
The once peaceful surface of Mars has decayed into a violent battleground between arms corporations and Earthly governments.
To join the fight would be crazy. To survive would be downright psychotic.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Landsword is a top-down mecha shooter with a heavy emphasis on destruction and gameplay that combines elements from classic shoot em' ups with contemporary action-stealth games.
Featuring fully destructible environments, players must use their wits and surroundings to outsmart and defeat enemies in combat, while still retaining an arcade feeling to its gameplay.
This early prototype demo currently includes five different missions with nine different weapons to choose from.
[ Landsword is a working title, final name subject to change. ]
----------------------
*DirectX shader / note for Linux users:
Upon starting a mission, you may encounter an error screen that says the D3D outline shader failed to compile. If this error occurs, please use Winetricks to install DirectX and then try again. This should fix any shader compile errors if you are having them.
- If you are having the same issue on a Windows PC, please see if your DirectX driver is up to date or installed at all, this will fix the issue. You can download the driver patch directly from the Microsoft website.
- A dedicated Linux build will also come eventually, currently I do not have the ability to compile one.
----------------------
This demo is 100% free and the game is a work in progress, but any donations will go to paying for a proper soundtrack and some additional programming help for things such as shaders.
Download
Click download now to get access to the following files:
Development log
- LS Update V.0.7.07 days ago
- 60 FPS hotfix for Windows 10/11 users58 days ago
- LS Update V.0.6.064 days ago
Comments
Log in with itch.io to leave a comment.
Dude holy shit!! Just checked this page wondering if there was a new update and goddamn you've been hard at work. The new menu and user interface looks fantastic, and no fucking way was I expecting the hangar. Dude this is nuts, the quality of life changes do so much for immersion. The mission screen, the hangar, even just the addition of the dropship at the start of missions are such cool touches, I really appreciate all the little bits of artistry you've implemented.
Also the new weapons and mission! Mission 5 has got to be your best yet, I had such a blast playing it. Gave the smoke grenades a try as well and they were everything I hoped, they let you be so aggressive. Just in general as well the combination of sound and visual design, all the weapons sound so powerful and clearly do so much damage, feels incredible just firing them.
I also really appreciate your design sense for all the mecha/vehicles, they'd all feel right at home in a 90s sci-fi anime. Actually mentioning the dropship again, I don't know why but its design is just fucking awesome.
I don't really have any critique honestly, game feels and looks incredible. I'm super excited to see what you come up with :) also how did you do the map/what software did you use?
There's a couple of things that I'd like to point out:
1. When replaying missions, the level select menu tracks your most recent stats instead of your highest overall stats.
I believe that the highest overall stats should be displayed instead, because I managed to achieve an A+ rank on the second mission, but when I decided to replay it, I achieved a lower rank and that's now displayed on the level select menu instead of my previous rank.
2. This is a nit-pick, but for the user-interface, the thermal projector should say fuel instead of rounds.
Sorry about that. I had hoped for it to function as you said and only replace the stats if your rank or time is faster, but I'll need to refactor how the saving works. It's technically possible for me to implement it now, but it would run through the entire save file checking every single data map which may cause some lag on older systems if you play a lot of missions. I think it would be neat to also have a place where you can view your overall playthrough stats such as total bullets fired and enemies killed — I'll see if in the next build I can add that as well when I rewrite the code.
Agreed. Will fix that too, thanks.
I just found this and I'm absolutely loving it. I love the artstyle and the atmosphere, especially in the level select and hangar. I have some points and questions -
1. From a purely visual standpoint, I think that when the mission description appears in the level select, the mission marker should centre itself in the remaining half of the screen.
Not only would this simply look better, it would also mitigate some of the perceived spin of the map, since the distance from the centre of spin would be closer to the edge of the screen, making the spin seem slower (although the spin speed could admittedly do with being a little slower).
2.When moving out of the spin in the loading screen, the camera performs the motion of the spin backwards rather than simply flicking and snapping to the North Axis. This means that if you idle for too long, you get a very jarring camera movement when moving away from a mission point.
3. When the player dies while the game is out of focus, the game will not show the "Mission Failure" screen. Instead, the screen goes grey and fuzzy as per usual, but no text appears and the game makes a consistent buzzing noise.
4.Are there any plans for missions at different times of day? A night mission would really fit the vibe of the game, plus you could ramp up the stealth aspect a whole lot.
5. What kind of general environments are you planning? So far we have had cities and beach towns, but will there be more rural areas or water-based areas?
Thanks for playing!
I had considered this, but I felt that the camera panning to the side every time you approach a map point might make it even more disorienting. I'll try it though and see how it feels. The speed will be lowered as well.
There's a system meant to handle that axis snapping which was turned off for debugging. It appears I never turned it back on, oops!
Saw this happen a few times when people were playing. I'm still not quite sure how to fix it, honestly. Will see what I can do though.
Definitely!
I don't want to give away too much (I like to surprise people), but I plan on having underground areas like tunnel complexes and maybe some abandoned/overgrown locations with more vegetation to contrast all the sand and desert.
I just found this game recently and loved it, it is so unique and genuinely gives me bullet hell vibes. The art is immaculate and the environment of most missions (excluding two but that is in development) are unique and beautiful. I agree with other comments that a key rebinding would be really useful, as I didn't even realize until I had beaten other levels that there were grenades and a boost mechanic. Overall I can't wait to see this game further developed and fully fleshed out, I will definitely be playing future versions!!
Just realized there's already a new version out from a few days ago!! Will be playing as soon as possible. :33
I've once again beaten the game on the latest update today and I've got to say it was so much fun. There are so many new shiny things to play around with but I also have some negative notes.
Really cool mission select screen showing results for beaten missions. Enemies on the second mission actually pose a threat now. I love how an aircraft deploys player's mech at the beginning of some missions. The new map is visually a level above the previous ones. The deployment of enemy mechs is a sight to behold. It's thrilling and feels like an event. All of the new equipment feels like it belongs in the game and is fun to play around with.
The font used to describe equipment in hangar can be hard to read. I personally can't make out some characters. Map rotation that plays once the player arrow is situated on a mission point/location.somewhat irritates me at best and makes me kind of sick at worst (I would really like it to be slowed down or to be able to stop it on command). "X" is a weird place ona keyboard to use to throw grenades with. I got used to it by the end but would like to be able to remap it if I wanted to (I would 100% put it on one of the side mouse buttons). And last but certainly not least: It's very useful to see mechs in smoke (both the player's and the enemy ones) but I can't see terrain which made me get stuck between some buildings more than once. I know I should carefuly consider where I'm throwing smoke grenades and memorize the terrain before doing so but this is just something to keep in mind. I would suggest making taller buildings stick out of the smoke making their roofs visible (that would even make smoke look more realistic).
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this update and the game never looked so sleek before. It's shaping up to be a really special arcady game and I love it.
Thanks for playing once again! I'm glad you like the new additions.
Apologies, it really should be the larger one. I'll see about changing it in the next build.
Understood. I'll have a button to stop it from rotating at all and slow down the speed. Right now it might feel somewhat useless, but I hope it'll look interesting once there's 3D objects like little cities and icons on the map that rotate.
Adding key rebinding is also a high priority on my to-do list, a few other people asked to be able to rebind controls too. The settings menu in the options will be redone from scratch with separated tabs for different things, but I didn't get around to doing it for this build. Hopefully in the next one it will have it.
I agree that buildings should be visible in smoke too. This was a problem I attempted to solve, but unfortunately couldn't crack before release. The buildings are drawn in a completely different way than the enemies in order to be optimized with dozens on screen, so I need to figure out a way to keep both the FPS high and draw them in the smoke without the game chugging. I have a few ideas on how to do this, hopefully one will work...
Thanks for the feedback and playing again! Still much to be developed and added, but I'm glad this new update seems to have been worth the effort.
This game is quite promising so far! I don't have a functioning mouse at the moment, but I still enjoyed completing the first mission with a touchpad. <3
Nicely done finishing it using your touchpad! That's dedication.
Thank you! I just went back and completed the rest of the missions. I now have an irritated index finger, but it was worth it for the experience. <3
Thanks for playing all the way through! <3
You're welcome! I'll definitely be following this game's development. <3
Very hyped for this update! Will give it a spin and come back with a video ASAP!
Awesome, thanks! It's not too big of an update, but hopefully there's some fun new stuff to play with.
The way the game develops from one release to another amazes me every single time. Just WOW! I'm sure this will be hit.
Also the link to twitter seems to be broken (opens "https//x.com/sysmainframe) for two releases in a row already, so I wanted to mention this just in case :D
Thanks for playing again!
It's a strange bug. On my end it seems to open, and the code is all formatted and typed in correctly. But for other people it just refuses to print the colon and adds a quotation mark at the start for some reason. I think it might just be something to do with this old version of Game Maker, so next update I'll probably just turn off the link opening.
If Valerie has one million fans I am one of them.
If Valerie has one fan, that means I am that fan.
If Valerie has zero fans, then I am dead.
If the world is against Valerie, then I am against the world.
The new mission select screen is verry good and the hangar select screen? Oh man its really good also i see that you will be able to select types of armors and engines? So cool also its giving a bit of gen 1 armored core vibe
This is amazing. I would 100% buy this day one. I hope you'll consider launching on Steam, with controller support - I would love to play this on Steam Deck!
Thank you for playing. Controller support and an eventual Steam release are both planned. A few people have already managed to get the game working on the Steam Deck too, so dedicated support for that as well will hopefully come.
The game is worth money!!!
<3
IT'S HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERE
fantastic demo! i had the most fun playing the first stage- the enemies in the others didn't seem as threatening/aggressive to me.
would love to be able to remap controls.
beautiful artstyle. missiles are *very* fun. i like the click-and-drag to target multiple hostiles!
Thank you for playing! I've released an update now with a fifth mission which should hopefully be a bit more challenging depending on the weapon you're using. There will definitely be more stages like the first as well.
I also plan on having a full redux of the settings menu with key rebinding and hopefully at some point gamepad support too, so no worries. Which controls did you want to rebind by the way?
the grenade button seemed the most out of place. the grenades are neat but trying to press X with my thumb was too clunky for them to be useful.
excited to try that 5th mission!
The hype is real.
This is goated
<3
Fantastic game! I took it a for a spin, I really dig the presentation and small bits of lore here and there. Looking forward to how it shapes up!
Thanks for playing and recording a video! You did a wonderful job!
Sorry about the ranks always returning A+ at the end. The next update should have a functioning grading system as well as (hopefully) a working overworld to view your stats and info. It's still quite early, so I apologize for some of the jank here and there haha.
Also loved seeing you in the end figure out you can distract the C-RAM turrets with grenades, you can do the same with missiles as well!
You're welcome! Truth be told this was my fourth time playing, but the controls are pretty easy to figure out. :)
I didn't really find any jank aside from the occasional enemy boxing itself between buildings, so my feedback is mostly "this game is really neat and I wish there was more of it". :P
The ranks had me puzzled for a bit, but hey, it's still early as you said. Hope to see more from this game in the future, I can't get enough of the aesthetic and gameplay!
There's one Goddess and her name is Valerie.
Very good game. The art style fit the game perfectly.It will be better if we can add some characters and story in it. And most of all, I really like to play it with a gamepad^_^
Btw,I'm game developer too, tell me if you need extra hand. I really like to see this game come to shape.
Thank you for playing. A story and characters is planned, but I still need to get more of the gameplay systems working first. Gamepad support would also be great, but I'll need to overhaul the settings before I can do that.
10/10 Pilot, would commit warcrimes again. Are there any plans for napalm grenades/rockets in the game?
There will be different kinds of grenades in the next update, including both incendiary and smoke. Thanks for playing!
The Martian Terraforming Corporation would like to remind all pilots that destroying atmospheric scrubbers will be met by extensive civil litigation.
Hi, i just got a suggestion! My english is not the best, so you could encounter typos or smt wrong, sorry.
Anyway, since the game is named "LandSword" thought of adding some kind true melle weapon, like a sword. It could be insanely powerful, 1-shoting everything or taking some swings, but being very fast, but it would have a VERY short range, like 2 legths of a player. Also it could have infinite ammo, or not? Idk.
Thank you for the game and for the update you done recently. I wish you luck in development. Goodbye!
Hello,
Thank you for your suggestion. I definitely plan on having a melee weapon for stealth takedowns, will be a 1-hit kill/disable weapon that requires you to get super close.
Much obliged again for playing and the idea!
Thank you again for replying to all my posts! I really appreciate your work, i wish i could help you.
I found a fun detail :). If you don't hold the railgun for long enough, the bullet will just pop out insted of being shot.
Yes!
Is it okay that always det A+ grade?
For now, it always says A+ no matter what. Next build should hopefully have different ranks working.
This demo got me feeling like I am an Eighty Six
feeling lucky being here for such an awesome game
Appreciate it, thanks for playing!
np i made my first editing project with this, hope this'll get more people in lol
Nice combat montage! Thanks for making it.
i'm really liking the game in the future could custom keybinding be added also i really like the idea of action-stealth with mechs i don't know how it would work but it'd be cool to see mission were you have to set up ambushes like in a forest for example,cameo/invisible enemies and night missions in the rain like that one scene in ghost in the shell but its really good keep it up and lmk what you think of the suggestions :)
Key rebinding is planned along with an overhaul of all menus, for now everything is a placeholder. I plan on having more stealth-focused missions and different conditions as well, thanks for the suggestions!
Do you have a roadmap for that?
That game is so awesome!
Thank you! No public roadmap at the moment, but a lot is planned. Hopefully the next update will flesh out the game's key systems more.
The quad-tank has eaten.
Holy shit the railgun is awesome. The sound, the camera shake, the destruction, it feels as powerful as it is, such an awesome addition.
Nice work with the new map, and the gunship in the first is a nice touch also. I did notice that the gunship soaked up like... 5-6 missles before I gave up and used the railgun lol, not sure if that's intended but I wondered if there was a bug preventing them from doing damage or something. Otherwise, seriously awesome update, especially the game starting fullscreen that's a wonderful QoL improvement :)
Thanks for playing again! Glad you liked the railgun weapon, it's a favorite.
The gunships have more health than tanks actually, but you can hit them from anywhere as long as your crosshairs are directly over them. I figured it was a fair tradeoff. I think using only missiles it takes around 6-7 to take one down. Also happy to hear the automatic fullscreen is working, a lot of people asked for that!
This post sponsored by SafeChem and the Martian Terraforming Corporation.
Great update.
Couple of qualms I have;
Its difficult to see where my crosshair is sometimes. The color of the crosshair blends too well with the background which make it hard to make out, so I tend to lose it, which becomes a bit annoying especially when I need to quickly snap to a different target. So in the, end, im using my tracers to figure out where my crosshair is (which is not really viable when i need to switch to missiles).
I suggest making the crosshair bigger or a different color that contrasts well against the background (like black or green with a color accent), or having a simple thin line extending from the player mech to the crosshair (maybe we could customize how we want the crosshair to look like in settings, with different crosshair styles).
The shotgun is also kinda busted. Its easy to intercept missiles with it (or maybe that could remain a feature?) and I feel like it shouldn't destroy/go through buildings as easily as any other gun.
There should also probably be a limit to how many buildings the railgun can go through, unless its supposed to be an OP endgame weapon (although it is so much fun to use).
But the new scenario is great. Its a nice break from the claustrophobic (in a good way) urban maps.
Thank you for playing.
I'll have an option to show an extra outline over the cursor and also draw a laser from the player to where it is, a few other people seem to be having similar issues.
It's supposed to be much more powerful than the other weapons at the cost of lower ammo. I think for the slower firing rate it also makes up for it by punching through buildings more.
Indeed, it'll probably be an endgame weapon since it's sort of broken with how OP it is. I might have a weaker gun that goes through buildings with a single shot, but does far less damage.
Glad to hear it, there'll be more variety to come!
Rumors that Val has an arson charge floating around.
Loved every second of this.
The only thing that annoyed me was hitting cars with rockets and hurting my mech. It's definitely a mistake on my end but it kind of feels weird that the mech can't shoot over them.
Other than that, I can't wait to see and play more. I more than trust your creative vision so I won't make any suggestions.
Thanks for playing!
I can understand that being frustrating. I'll update it so the missiles check a minimum distance before activating collisions like they do with the trees.
I'm still interested in hearing any and all feedback you have since it's in an early state. Any others reasons for the 4 out of 5 stars? Always happy to hear what needs to be improved!
I gave the game 4/5 because it's apparent the game is incomplete but has a fun core gameplay. I love the movement, visuals, sounds, main character quotes and so much more. However, due to its development stage, the game still lacks in worldbuilding (which is currently contained in mission briefings), soundtrack (which makes maps feel empty in a weird bad way that's hard for me to desrcibe), and leaves a lot to be desired outside of play (main menu ui, different gamemodes etc.) but those don't affect the core gameplay so they don't bother me as much right now. Another thing I noticed is how cluttered and/or unorganized maps can feel from time to time leading to weird and claustrophobic encounters (maps might be well designed gameplaywise but the bots pursuing the player might find themselves in tricky or unfun spots to fight). There is also so much space for various setpieces which are nowhere to be seen.
I don't want any of this criticism to come of as rude. I've played the game twice -once before and once after the last update. I've beaten all the levels using all the weapons. I loved the inclusion of flying enemies which interact with environment in a completely different way and it makes me wonder if there could be any water only enemies. I also loved the plasma gun (the one which charges up and shoots a straight line obliterating both buildings and mechs). All of the weapons are very satisfying to kill enemies with (which is always the main objective).
All in all I want to see more and I think you are steering the game in the right direction. I've shared the game to my friends and can't wait for the next update.
Appreciate the in depth explanation and each point of feedback, that's exactly what I'm looking for! I know some of the levels at the moment leave much to be desired — they're pretty much all placeholders for now since I haven't implemented the main overworld map which will eventually help coordinate locations and missions more. Soundtrack is also being thrown together slowly, but nothing good enough to include in the game yet.
I'll try to make sure there's more to see in each level. I can't promise a Valve level minute to minute gameplay maximization, but I understand some more variety would be nice, even for ~3 minute levels.
As for worldbuilding and a proper story — I've been putting most of my work into making the actual game fun before I spend months drawing cutscenes and developing a plot as I'd hate for it all to be wasted on something that ultimately turns out to be an annoyance to play. But I agree that without those elements the actual combat sort of feels pointless.
I had enemy gunboats planned for the fourth level, but I simply ran out of time to make them. Some water turrets that pop in and out are also planned.
Much appreciated, thank you once again for playing and the feedback! I always take note of critical comments and try to improve the game using what was said.
Just tried the latest update.
Fan-freaking-tastic! Little note though: Stage 3 is hands-down harder than stage 4. Easy fix might just be to swap them in mission order.
Very very happy, looking forward to seeing more! Do you want money? You deserve money for working on this.
Thank you for playing. Most of the stages for now are placeholders, but I'll consider that!
Eventually. I think it's unfair to charge for a prototype demo, but maybe in the future I'll put something up in if it needs funding to be finished.
I'm gonna be short: its a great game very nice sprites guns sounds are sastifying
but quick question: Why sometimes when i shot the helicopter while it was parked its propellor fell off why did that happen?
Helicopter blades don't tend to stay on when they strike solid objects.
So I checked the new demo at last. It seems like AI improved and became more challenging. I like minigun changes but there should probably be more start ammo for it or more ammo in pickups (or both). Railgun fun and OP but as you've said - if it will be a final weapon then it's fine. Probably you'll implement some point system where you should unlock new weapons and systems depending on your sum highscore on all levels (you can find an example of such system in Jets and Guns 2 and Bot Vice - although here it is a timer for all missions but idea is the same). In this case there will be a reason to play more accurate to decrease damage to property. I like new helicopter enemy very much since I'm a fan of Strike series (I was wondering how the game would look like if you had a helicopter instead of a mecha... probably an idea for some mission or couple of them?). Remarks from the heroine looks cool but I'd increase the time before they vanishes at least twice since it's not always possible to pay an attention to them immediately in battle. Also I'd change default grenade button to F, Q or E but I guess you'll implement key bindings at some point so it's fine for now. Funny thing BTW - the only mission that I couldn't complete is... the first one. Others feel a bit easier with grenades, especially the second one. New mission looks very nice BTW. It has that Duke Caribbean: Life's a Beach vibe in it. ^_^
Completed the first mission with auto-cannon today from the first try. Little sneaky bastard tactics also helped. I guess you should really take more appropriate weapons for each mission and change your tactics depending on the situation. Also helicopter felt near me and and damaged my armor. That is a really nice touch here. And I noticed at last that buildings are not just sprites - the perspective changes a little when the camera moves so you can see they have a volume. Really cool.
P.S. BTW - tested the game both on my pretty powerful gaming PC with Windows 10 and on my old laptop (ASUS N53TK). Runs fine on both of them.
Thank you for playing once again!
Indeed, I have updated them to be more responsive to things like explosions and getting stuck less on terrain.
I actually hadn't thought of using the score to give the player new weapons. That's an interesting idea and I'll consider trying to implement it.
Those are classic games, I used to play some spinoffs called Air Strike 3D way back in the day. I'm sure it'd be cool to play as an attack helicopter for a mission or two, but it would probably change the gameplay dynamics too much. Who knows though, maybe I'll try it.
I may put an adjustable timer in the settings menu for it. I don't want the quips and comments to be too distracting when tons of stuff is happening, so I try to keep them mostly infrequent and fast when they happen.
Indeed, a reworked settings menu with full key rebinding is planned, it may be a while though.
Interesting. The first mission has randomized enemy spawners and timers so it plays differently almost every time. Sometimes it can be really hard and everything comes at the player at once, so I understand. Glad you like the new level! I thought it was a nice change of pace too.
Nice job! Enemies do have directional armor now, so sneaking around is encouraged.
Got to watch where they fall! If you're low on health, those helicopters can kill you if they fall on top of you. Glad you noticed the buildings shift their perspective too, I'm thinking of adding additional perspective effects so it's more noticeable.
Glad to hear that. If you still have any of the old builds - when you play it, does the newest one seem noticeably faster now that it has the FPS fixing .dll?
Yay, A new demo! new mission, more guns & Enemies!
Thanks for the hard work you've done. I've enjoyed your game since version 0.5.1.
As a fan of Mech-shooting game, I'm very excited to see someone like you make this awesome stuff. (especially on your own, with no help!)
and I have a suggestions about Soft-kill APS(Like someone said it below). If I can choose the type of grenades like HE / Smoke / Napalm, Smoke grenade could be used as a Countermeasure against enemy missile and detection. I can't imagine how this can be tricky in game development, but I hope this idea might could help save your time and resources, as this is using a current weapon system.
Now I'm gonna test that Alternative V-sync part. I didn't realize Until I saw a comment below. Keep up the great work!
Thanks for playing again!
There will be different types of grenades as well as different APS systems to act as a shield.
I'm about to release a hotfix for the FPS. I've just identified the issue yesterday and sent it to two testers who've confirmed the fix. Really sorry that people on Windows 10/11 have been experiencing it at about 80% speed, it's an OS issue not a game/hardware one.
I tried the alternate V-Sync and holy shit the FPS skyrocketed? I'll record next time.
Nice! I knew something felt off in the recordings. I guess it's just an OS compatibility thing since on my end I don't see an FPS boost, instead the cursor movement just becomes smoothed out a lot.
Hope it's not playing at twice the speed it should be though, seen a few people early on have the game seemingly running at 2x speed on certain setups.
Excellent piloting, very skillful. From what I can tell it simply untethers an FPS limit with the engine and the game starts running at twice the speed. I've read on different forums the v-sync in Game Maker isn't "true" v-sync, and is just the engine slowing the game down by a few milliseconds to stitch together inbetween frames.
It's a shame since from what I can tell looking at different videos, the autocannon shoots much slower than it should. It should fire at just below the firing rate of the minigun. Not much I can do on my end to fix it sadly. I might end up porting the game to GMS2 if there's more compatibility options from there, but it'll be awhile until it's finished.
I'll record a round without V-Sync entirely and one with V-Sync for reference. Also thank you in regards to the skill.
I got this game for Christmas 1999.
Updating mine review since we got some updates! The first level enemy addition took me by surprise the first time.
Looks are still good, I don't know if it's the bigger window or design change but I think stuff is more visible. We can see our pilot now! Only need to receive some potshots beforehand, I'm sure the maintance team won't care much about some scratched paint.
New guns are chunky, railgun is fun but I keep shooting at point blank range and killing myself, scatter gun is okay same for the flamer but mine heart still belong to the ammo hog that is the BRRRRT minigun. Grenades seem superfluous until I noticed I can lob stuff over building without wasting rockets and it distracts the enemies like the AA tower.
Wonder why the team on level 3 went rogue.Boster speed could maybe be increased a bit more, same with it's costs
Thanks for playing again!
If you only played since V.0.1, I've since added a lot to help increase visibility by changing the sprites, adding outlines, and indicators to show the player where they are.
The minigun is definitely my favorite as well. The grenades can be quite useful too - I'm glad to see you noticed it distracts the CIWS turrets. You can also do the same with missiles as well.
Upgrades for the boost will come eventually. As for the unit on level 3 going rogue - hopefully I'll be able to add a proper plot eventually and have things make more sense.
Are you still running this game on a 32-bit machine by the way?