After visting VICKIE, I saw a large spaceship which asked me to play “Salt Shooter.” A twin-stick shooter viewed from the third-person perspective (and evidently an update of Battlezone), the game has you shooting and avoiding other ships for the highest score. While not a bad game, it’s pretty derivative and the third-person view didn’t allow me to see who was shooting me from behind — kind of annoying.
The press release also said that players can get the first five levels for free, and unlock additional levels by buying the virtual items ranging from 99 cents to five bucks in real money. And according to the Sodium One Twitter account, the $5 Sodium One “tank jacket” and outfit will get you all 50 levels of the game (note: I learned it’s not actually called a “tank jacket,” but a “Sodium Pilot Outfit,” in case you wanted to buy it).
However, Wired’s GameLife blog told me a different story: players who log in to Sodium One between December 17 and December 23, and speak with VICKIE, will unlock the full game for free. I spoke to VICKIE plenty today, and didn’t see anything about that offer. It turned out that this information, from a newsletter sent by the PlayStation Network that I didn’t personally receive, said “interact with Vickie for your chance to unlock the full game” (emphasis is mine). I guess I’m SOL there.
VICKIE also encouraged me to serve drinks at the local bar called Scorpio’s. Walking behind the bar area suddenly makes you an employee of the joint. When other players approach the bar, you can ask them if they want to order a drink. Doing so prompts a mini-game where you’re supposed to remember what their drink looks like and match the different parts (the cup, the color of the liquid, the drink umbrella, etc.) to create the order. Of course, none of this was evident right from the get-go, so I stood there confused for several seconds and then proceeded to try to match the drink. Then I think time ran out, but I was still awarded with 50 Sodium Credits for trying. Sweet.
Oh, and then there’s the game where you stomp scorpions to death…