This is a transcript excerpt covering the score awarded to Steredenn: Binary Stars on the So Videogames podcast, Episode 436. For the original coverage of the game, please listen to Episode 435.

TRANSCRIPT: Next game on the agenda here is Steredenn: Binary Stars. I did receive a code for review, so just a heads up and thanks to PR for sending that over. This is a remake of a shooter that’s been out for a little while. I believe we covered it on Gamecritics a while back. Um, might be a video review of the original version. So this is an enhanced version. Just came out for PS5 and I believe Xbox as well.

This is a 2D pixel based shooter, like a shoot em up where you’re like in a spaceship, but there’s also a lot of, like, roguelike elements in it. Um, I think the. So okay, so I guess the, the main meat of it is like shooting, but the, the trick is like you get a bunch of different weapons. That’s where the the roguelike element comes in. Every time you start a run, you start off with your basic peashooter. You have a couple of different ships to choose from, and I think you have to progress a certain distance into the campaign to unlock each progressive ship. So like you only get the beginning one at beginning.

You have the starter ship at the beginning and then after you clear, like the second or third boss, you’ll get like the second ship. After you clear the fourth or fifth boss, you get like the third ship, so forth and so on. I believe there are 3 or 4, 3 or 4. There’s not a huge amount of ships, but each ship has its own ability, special ability that you can activate as you go to these levels. Uh, it reminds me a lot of, like, something like Gradius or, you know, something like that from back in the day, like one of the old school, like, you know, 16 bit kind of shooters, which is cool.

I dig those, um, you’ll get like, weapon choices after the end of each stage and it’ll be like, would you like a laser or would you like some missiles? Would you like, uh, little drones or would you like? You know, so forth and so on. So you choose whatever you like and whatever meshes with your playstyle. But of course it’s all randomized, so you can’t get the same thing every time. Sometimes you got to make do with something that you have not used before or that you might not like. I did not care for the shotguns, so I tried to stay away from shotgun as much as possible. I did like the drones and so I tried to get the drones as often as possible. I think the overall difficulty is pretty hard. There’s a lot going on on screen most of the time, and it can get a little bullet hell at times, especially at the bosses. Uh, so there is an easier mode which unlocks after you get a little bit of, uh, a little bit of progress under your belt. But it’s still kind of challenging. I mean, even the easy mode, I don’t think is a pushover. I mean, of course, a lot of this has to do with the fact that the stages are randomized. And like, you don’t always have the same loadout.

So it’s kind of hard to practice because you’re always trying to make do with what you’ve got. There is a lot on the screen. Like I said, uh, some of the weapons I think are pretty cool. I liked some of those a lot, like having little drones fly around a couple different flavors of drones. There’s like a bullet drone. There’s like a laser drone. You pop them out, you have a little bit of cooldown. They kind of just hang out and shoot, and if nobody takes them out, they can just like, shoot for quite a while. So I think that was pretty powerful. Flamethrower was like really good. Um, I think the only thing that I had a major well, a couple things. So my big problem with this game, I think, is that I do not like the controls and there’s no option to remap them, which is a little bit crazy because you’re not using all the buttons on the controller. So there was this thing where so number one, you just can’t remap them, right? But like when you you hold your fire button down. And in a game like this you’re always firing. So you hold the fire button down, you switch weapons. You can have up to two weapons at a time. You want to switch back and forth between your second weapon and your first weapon. You switch to the second weapon. Even though your thumb is still holding the button down.

It stops firing until you let go and then hold it back down again. That doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it is absolutely a big deal in the middle of battle. And I fucking did not like it. Like at all. I hated that you had that little, that little speed bump when you’re firing. Also, why did you have to push a button to switch weapons? You’re not using all the buttons on the controller each. You know, each weapon could have been assigned its own button. Um, there is like, I have, like, 3 or 4 different ways. I would have wanted to configure the controls, and you can’t do anything. And I really just don’t like how the controls are laid out here. If the if the developers like them themselves, that’s cool. But you got to be prepared for people to like, want to play their own way. And button remapping is so fucking ass basic these days. Like, I really don’t have any sympathy at all for any developer that doesn’t put it in. It is just like part of the basic package. I expect when I go into, like any game, you got to let me change something around. You’ve got to give me some kind of like accessibility and just the I just, I just did not like the controls. That was actually a fairly major barrier to my enjoyment. I just it really kind of irritated me.

And I could never like, I could never, like, get into the flow. Um, there was always something about the controls that was kind of bugging me, which I didn’t care for. Steredenn puts you through a lot of unnecessary finger juggling instead of letting you just get in the shooter zone, and there also isn’t a lot of permanent progression. Every time you start a run, you’re going back to zero. Which I guess is fine. I mean, going through one run of the game takes like 45 minutes or something like that. So it’s not like a huge ask, but it would be great to be able to start the campaign with like different weapons or like have a specified loadout or something that you kind of just like customize as you go. That would have been a really nice option. It is not there. So again, just kind of wishful thinking. So overall, I think Steredenn is fine. It’s pretty good. I mean, I can see some places where it could be improved, but if you want like a 2D shoot em up, um, we’re not really getting a ton of these these days, so it’s not like we have, um, like a million choices. We’re not spoiled for choice right now, so I think it’s pretty good. I do appreciate that Steredenn attempts the roguelike formula to keep gameplay somewhat fresh, but at the same time, getting set back to square one when you die without the option for more of a starting boost starts to wear you down after a while. Like I kind of feel like, okay, I wish something different was happening. I wish there was some more change happening after a couple runs. I’m like, okay, like I’m good. Like I feel like I’ve got the measure of this game.

So I think it’s like, I think it’s all right, but I think it could have been better. Um, and I don’t have any experience with the previous version, so all I’ve got to base my opinion on is this version in front of me. And so I think, um, to give it a full SVG review, I think I’m probably going to give it like, I don’t know, like like six and a half. There’s a lot of potential here with fun weapons and a good concept, but the solid supporting elements needed for any good roguelike just aren’t here. There are a lot of obvious holes that could be filled — better meta progression, customizable controls — that would make the overall package so much better.

I mean, I had fun with it. I think it’s pretty solid. It just seems like it’s not quite living up to the full potential. Um, especially when you compare it to other games in the genre right now where you’re seeing a lot of developers, you know, really adding some cool features and really kind of encouraging people to lean into the roguelike aspect. I feel like this one doesn’t quite go far enough, so I feel like a pretty solid 6.5 is where I’m landing on Steredenn: Binary Stars. Although I did have a pretty good time with it. So there you go. Your mileage may vary, of course.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by Pixelnest Studio and published by Red Art Games. It is currently available on (platforms). This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS5. Approximately five hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was not completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E10+ and contains Fantasy Violence and Mild Language. There is no official description, but this is just spaceships shooting other spaceships in space, done in pixel art style. Nothing to be worried about here.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available in the options.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: Subtitles cannot be resized or altered. The minimal dialogue in the game is delivered completely via text, and no audio cues are needed for gameplay. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable. One of the L shoulder buttons is to swap weapons, X is to shoot, O is special ability, and the left stick controls the ship.

The post SVG REVIEW Steredenn: Binary Stars appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Scoring just shy of a billion points on one ball.

LOW Scoring less than 10 million combined points on the other two balls.

WTF Trying to comprehend what’s going on during moments of mass chaos.

For a variety of reasons, I have generally stepped back from reviewing games this past calendar year. However, when asked to cover Xenotilt, the sequel to 2019’s superb Demon’s Tilt, I gave a very resounding, “YES!” Moments into the game, my excitement was quickly justified — Xenotilt takes the original concept and turns it up to eleven.

The 16-bit inspired pinball table in Xenotilt is once again a three-layer feast for the eyes, and each of the three main sections are filled with pixelated details that make the table come to life. Those details flourish with swarms of enemies and gigantic bosses, ranging from a bug-like demon, a skull encased in an energy field, and a half-robotic succubus. Players can keep the ball in play, so long as it doesn’t drain on the bottom most area. Seems simple enough, but Xenotilt isn’t just simple pinball.

Much like its predecessor, Xenotilt once again combines pinball with bullet-hell shmup. This might seem like an impossible merger, but the two genres are combined flawlessly. Those swarms of enemies and massive bosses launch missiles, lasers, and other ammunition at the silver ball as it zooms across the ramps and through the bumpers. These projectiles impact the ball’s movement, but are also essential for racking up huge scores.

Multiple modes await players hoping to hit the top of those leaderboards. There’s classic mode (three balls per game) and hardcore mode (a single ball), but new in Xenotilt is Ex-Mode. This option contains three bonus areas not found in the other modes of play. I don’t want to spoil too much, but accessing these secret rooms leads to unique tasks like hitting billiard balls into various pockets.

In addition to the bonus areas, players can unlock “Survivors” in Ex-Mode. Once saved, these survivors can be “hired” to add perks to the gameplay — most are very specific perks, but they boil down to increasing scores and extending time during table events. They’re not necessary for huge totals, but remain a great addition that should keep most players busy as they hunt down each survivor’s location.

Another new addition to Xenotilt are turrets — now players can fire back at the hordes of enemies with more than just the silver ball! As the ball zooms around the table it can collect bullets. Once accumulated, holding a flipper and then nudging the table activates two turrets, unleashing a firestorm of bullets across the table helping to clear paths for the silver sphere.

Even more spectacular is the laser option. While I’m still uncertain what exactly charges the laser ammo, activating the turrets, then witnessing two plasma streams whip around the playfield accentuates the screen-filling, controlled chaos in Xenotilt — it’s a thing of beauty.

The beauty is still confined to one single table (plus bonus areas), but there’s enough action in each section to help keep things fresh. While a minor issue, it would have been nice to include a practice mode for the bonus areas, as they are visited less frequently than the other zones. However, I was still able to complete one bonus after only three attempts and another on the very first try. This lack of ability to practice is a minor issue, and doesn’t detract from Xenotilt.

Xenotilt is a fantastic sequel that improves on its predecessor, and a game that begs to be played over and over again. I’m glad I paused my review hiatus to cover it!

Rating: 9 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by WIZNWAR and published by FLARB, LLC. It is currently available on PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PC. Approximately 5 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was not completed (still have a few unlockables to earn). There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated Everyone. No official description is available. Parents of the youngest gamers may want to use caution as the themes are generally on the darker side, including skulls and some demon-like creatures. There is also a table boss that has its eye swing from the socket at one point in the “battle” but beyond that, there is no blood or gore.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game does not offer subtitles. While this is primarily a pinball game, there is some small dialogue uttered by the bosses and when events happen on the table (i.e. “Jackpot!”). Menus and in-game text size, like the score and combo indicator, cannot be changed.

Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls, including controllers and keyboard. I played exclusively using a wired Xbox 360 controller.

The post Xenotilt: Hostile Pinball Action Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Taking down a massive boss in seconds with a tiny, overpowered ship

LOW No continues.

WTF Seriously, no continues.

The past few months have seen me take a break from the game review world to focus on life events that have been keeping me plenty busy, not to mention stressed out. While I wasn’t writing about videogames, they were still one of my main modes of relaxation, if even for brief moments.

Recently, two types of games became my go-to for relieving the weekly stresses of life — fighting games and shmups. So, it was a little serendipitous when Brad, my editor, emailed asking if I would like to review Mecha Ritz: Steel Rondo, an indie shmup released on PC back in 2016, now receiving a release on the Nintendo Switch. Glad I said yes, as Mecha Ritz is a solid shmup, with just one minor issue.

Set in the future, Mecha Ritz is the story of a brilliant young scientist who invents “mecha” then destroys humanity to create a more perfect, mechanized world. Players pilot one of 14 Mechas (fighter ships) that have been infused with the last drops of human will. Additional story is told between each stage, but I usually don’t play shmups for the story, I’m more concerned with the gameplay — the star of the show.

Players guide flying Mechas across 15 different stages, blasting hostile robotic enemies and destroying over 40 gigantic boss ships, all while dodging an onslaught of enemy bullets. Each Mecha is unique but has three main attacks — normal shots that tend to span the screen but are weaker, charged shots that vary from each ship but tend to be very powerful, and bombs. Players will need to get comfortable using all three, as different scenarios require different strategies.

Mecha Ritz straddles the line between simple shmup and bullet-hell — things start off relatively easy, but as players progress enemy attacks become more numerous and difficult to dodge. While I found this to be an excellent balance, players looking for more challenge can ramp up the difficulty right from the beginning — easy begins at level zero and can go all the way to the most challenging level, 360!

Mecha Ritz also excels with how it tackles the shmup life system. One hit can still destroy a player’s ship but scattered throughout each stage are shield power-ups. A shield acts as a hit bonus and each Mecha can carry up to five shields at once. This allows for extended play times, as I found myself losing and regaining shields quite frequently.

As much as I enjoy the shield system, I am perplexed by the lack of continues. Mecha Ritz explains the lack of continues is so players enjoy “making gradual progress” until finally beating the game. With later stages (and especially some of the later bosses) becoming extremely challenging, I can only see the lack of continues preventing most players from sticking with the game — and I was able to beat it twice! The year is 2022, continues should be part of all games.

Continues aside, Mecha Ritz excels in other areas. Controls are smooth and precise. Graphics are stellar and would feel right at home on the original PlayStation. And I don’t talk about soundtracks often, but the one in Mecha Ritz is top-notch — energetic, electronic beats feel right at home in a world-ending robot clash.

Hopefully I am wrong about the lack of continues scaring players away, because Mecha Ritz: Steel Rondo is a solid shmup in all other aspects. It fit right in with my small rotation of shmup games and has become a great way to relax after a stressful day of work and life commitments.

Disclosures: This game is developed by HEY and published by Hanaji Games. It is currently available on Switch and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch. Approximately 5 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode and the game was beaten twice. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E. No official description is available, but this game is safe for most younger gamers. This is typical shmup gameplay — player’s ships explode in a burst when defeated and there is no bloodshed. The story references the extinction of humanity but is not graphic in description.

Colorblind Mode: There are no colorblind modes available, however there are options in the menu to change the bullet color and explosion color.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles — the story is told completely through text. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. Another important note for the text, a few story screens have text rotate through multiple colors instead of keeping the font a consistent, single hue.

Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable. This game does not offer a controller map diagram, but movement is on the left stick or left directional pad. Tapping the A-button fires a normal shot. Holding the A-button fires each ship’s unique special shot. Pressing the B-button fires a bomb, while holding down the B-button detonates a bullet-clearing bomb. In Training Mode, the Y-button changes the ship mid-training, rather than having to exit and reselect a new craft.

The post Mecha Ritz: Steel Rondo Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Great premise, great controls, great graphics.

LOW The difficulty is brutal and inflexible.

WTF Why in the world is there no save function?!?

As a reviewer, there are few things more disappointing than a game that’s almost amazing, and out of everything I’ve played this year, nothing’s had a closer brush with greatness than Housemarque’s Returnal.

My initial impressions of this PS5 exclusive were fantastic. It’s a third-person actioner that blends many different elements such as running and gunning, bullet-hell shoot-‘em-up patterns, sci-fi storytelling, roguelike structure and the most immediately obvious thing — eye-melting visuals. However, it wasn’t long before issues started cropping up, most of them related to absolutely baffling design choices. However, let’s start with the good.

The premise of Returnal is strong. A space explorer named Selene crash-lands on a mysterious planet while tracking down a strange signal. She’s forced to explore the area on foot, and it’s not long before the alien life she encounters will get the best of her. The twist is that when she dies, she wakes up at the crash site as if nothing happened. Her only choice is to get back up and go further than she did the last time, hoping to eventually find answers. It’s intriguing stuff, and I was in.

Controlling Selene is marvelous. Her movement has the proper weight and momentum, she’s got a speedy dash to get out of trouble, and using her pistol (or any of the weapons she’ll eventually unlock, like a homing rifle or an acid spitter) is effortless after tweaking a few settings. I found that turning off the haptics, assigning the adaptive trigger’s alt-fire to its own button, enlarging the crosshairs and boosting the aim assist made the hyperfast gunplay something that I didn’t have to think about doing — my hands just did it. The physical sensation of playing Returnal is excellent.

Unfortunately, after this impressive opening I started noticing things about Returnal that slowly chipped away at the goodwill it had instantly racked up.

The gameplay loop of Returnal is that Selene always starts a run at at her ship (remember, this is a roguelike) and she’ll scour the first biome for weapons and items to increase her chances of survival. Once she’s beaten the first boss, a shortcut will open to the second biome. When she’s beaten the second boss she’ll gain a shortcut to the third, and so on. Since bosses never need to be defeated again this is a clever system, but the balance is off.

Pickups in Returnal come in two flavors — normal items that can be used immediately and harmful, “corrupted” items which require scarce currency to be cleansed and used safely. Without this currency, the player risks negative status conditions called “malfunctions” such as reduced melee damage or increased cooldowns. Players can fix these malfunctions in a few different ways, but the effect is that many items can’t be used without making the already-challenging game that much harder.

The developers lean into this difficulty with another type of pickup called a “parasite”. These creatures can offer a small boost but they all come with a negative side. It’s clever, but like corrupted items, the consequences incurred mean that most of them aren’t worth using except for a rare one that revives the player after a death.

Good roguelikes know that items are key — finding the right pickup and using it effectively can mean the difference between a failed run and a successful one, but the vast majority in Returnal offer only minimal gains and extra problems to deal with. Players who have trouble coming to grips with the first three worlds will find that there isn’t much help available in this regard.

However, those that manage to tough it out and get to biomes 4, 5 and 6 will find that the balance swings wildly in the opposite direction. Harm-free pickups become notably more common, the currency needed to cleanse items is laying around in surprising amounts, and Selene gets a huge boost in attack power. It’s such a wild shift, it almost feels like a different game — it took me two weeks to get through the first three biomes, and I got through the last three in a single day.

Apart from this reverse difficulty curve, I found many of Returnal’s other decisions to be equally strange.

The first roguelikes in the genre were brutal affairs, resetting a player’s progress back to zero if they died. As such, this style of game didn’t gain popularity until developers started softening the sadism with things like unlockables to work towards, and persistent gains kept from run to run. Thanks to these shifts, roguelikes are bigger than they’ve ever been, but Returnal turns its nose up at these proven advancements and delivers something closer to the original, harsher style.

Between runs players will keep lore they find, the currency needed to cleanse items, new abilities (generally related to shortcuts), and guns (randomly found) will earn extra attributes with repeated use, but that’s about it. This meager amount of persistence emphasizes a player’s raw skill at running, gunning and dodging over all else, and there’s nothing to support those who might need it — no permanently-increased health, no ability to start with a preferred gun, or anything of the kind.   

Players can boost their chances of success by consistently combing the first biome for useful items before moving on, but this makes every run longer and Returnal has no save function — a ridiculous omission that makes absolutely no sense.

Nearly every roguelike has a save function, and this basic amenity has no effect on gameplay other than quality-of-life convenience. There were many times when I needed to step away from my PS5 in the middle of play, and my choice was to either abandon the run or put the console in sleep mode. The developers specifically call sleep mode out in a tooltip, but if the game hiccups or the PS5 updates (both of which happened to me) then the run is lost. This absence of a save is absurd and I don’t see the point, other than perhaps to separate the ‘serious’ players from the casuals who let real-life concerns interfere with their gaming.

Whether the story pays off is up to personal interpretation (for me, it did not) but putting that aside, Returnal’s general lack of persistence, enthusiasm for negative items, and heavy focus on twitch skill without options for self-regulating difficulty results in an experience that caters to a very, very specific type of player and coldly shrugs off the rest. With some rebalancing and a few tweaks, it’s not hard to imagine Returnal as one of the year’s best thanks to its fantastic controls, intuitive physics and beautiful graphics. But as it stands? My guess is that most people will abandon Selene to her inhospitable time loop long before the credits roll.   

Disclosures: This game is developed by Housemarque and published by PlayStation Studios.It is currently available on PS5. This copy of the game was obtained via retail purchase and reviewed on the PS5. Approximately 30 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Blood, Mild Language and Violence. The official ESRB description reads as follows: This is a third-person shooter in which players assume the role of an astronaut reliving the same day after crash landing on an alien planet. As players traverse the alien landscape, they battle native creatures and mechanized sentries. Players use futuristic pistols, machine guns, and rocket launchers against enemies. Combat is frenetic, with realistic gunfire, explosions, and cries of pain. Some alien creatures emit splashes of blood when shot and killed. In one sequence, blood stains appear on an altar that players interact with. The word “bastard” appears in the game.

Colorblind Modes: There are colorblind modes available in the options.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: I played several hours of the game on mute and found that the audio cues given by enemies were helpful. They’re not necessary since the game does offer a comprehensive minimap that gives all the info a player needs, but you’ll have to get in the habit of watching the minimap almost as often as the screen itself in order to avoid being ambushed. Once I started keeping a much closer eye on the info there, I found that the game became fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls and a wealth of other accessibility options.

The post Returnal Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Striking visuals and a great sense of humor. 

LOW Once again, I am asking why every game I play now is so hard. 

WTF Yeah, there’s too much going on. 

I’ve written about countless indie games that take oldschool genres and fuse them with others. Whether it’s racing games that also play like endless runners, or even 3D platformers that have soulslike elements, it’s always interesting to see what devs can come up with. These kinds of combinations make for some interesting and often surprising experiences.

Project Starship X is a sendup of old school shoot-’em-up games (or shmups as they are affectionately known). Reminiscent of games like Raiden, Galaga, or Ikaruga, players pilot a ship on a vertical plane, firing at enemies and acquiring power-ups on the way. 

While it looks like a standard arcade shooter on the surface (complete with gorgeous pixel art that reminds me of the Namco’s own space-themed titles) the twist comes from its roguelike elements. No, there isn’t any progression that carries over after each death, but the playing field randomizes before each run. Elements like enemy and power-up placement, minibosses and hazards change for every playthrough. Those minibosses, called “Mad Events,” come up at random spots and offer up significant challenges. 

That challenge is present throughout the entire experience, as the difficulty feels ripped directly from the old arcade games it draws inspiration from. Enemies and hazards flood the playing field with countless shots coming from all different directions, and there’s even a slight amount of sensory overload thanks to all of the different elements flashing onscreen. The thrill of high-intensity gameplay never lets up. 

During each run, players can earn different weapons and abilities, like bombs or turrets. Players also have a dash that allows them to dodge enemy attacks, though it’s on a cooldown. This added further variety to each enemy encounter, as I wasn’t just firing mindlessly, but also timing my dodges perfectly. It’s a cool loop that had me wanting to beat my high scores, and the scores of those on the leaderboards.

While the gameplay is tight, my favorite part of PSX is its presentation — namely its visuals and writing. Players can select different pilots, each reminding me of old-school sci-fi anime characters from things like Neon Genesis Evangelion or Mobile Suit Gundam. Their portraits are displayed onscreen reacting to things like dashing, getting shot at, and even dying. A lot of meta-humor creeps its way in as well, including references to previous runs. The script will do things like actively poke fun at the players after they die, as well as reference the number of times a level has been attempted.  

Project Starship X is an enjoyable, stylish, and tough-as-nails shooter that tested my skills. While I have yet to get through all of its levels and master its gameplay, it’s a solid addition to the shmup genre that any fan should check into.

Disclosures: This game is published by Eastasiasoft and developed by Panda Indie Studio. It is currently available on PS4, XBO, Switch, and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS4. Approximately 5 hours of play were devoted to the singleplayer mode, and the game was not completed. No time was spent in multiplayer mode.

Parents: According to the ESRB this game is rated T for Fantasy Violence, Language, and Mild Blood. The game is fairly safe for younger children, as most of the action on screen is all pixel art and is not gory or graphic.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available. Players who have seizures should be careful, this game features large amounts of flashing lights.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers:  All the dialogue here is subtitled, with various visual cues alerting players of danger. While none of these things can be resized, the game is still fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: No, the controls are not remappable and there are no control diagrams. The face buttons/triggers are used to attack as well as dash, while the d-pad/control sticks are used to move. 

The post Project Starship X Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Flashes of brilliant design. Solid arcade-style training modes.

LOW Weapons are frustratingly underpowered. Progression is too grindy.

WTF Why can’t I preview the items I’m buying for my ship?

Sometimes, a game developer just can’t outrun their own history, no matter how hard they try. In the case of the Qute Corporation and its long-time design partnership with M-KAI and Mach, it’s the echoes of their earliest works that linger in the memories of space shooter fans.

With 2004’s Judgement Silversword, they shredded through the notes of single-screen classics like Galaga at a speed metal pace. With 2011’s Eschatos, they broke out into a wild ride of scrolling shooter setpieces, expertly weaving through one barrage of bullets after another with sweeping, cinematic 3D camera transitions. Even if Qute had walked away from the industry at that point, they still would have left an indelible mark on the genre with those masterworks.

Enter Ginga Force, an older Xbox 360 scrolling shooter that had previously been limited to Japanese release until Rising Star Games stepped up last year to secure North American distribution.

Unlike those earlier titles, Ginga Force pushes story to the forefront with a constant stream of narration from its titular police force to accompany the on-screen action. It’s an interesting choice that’s incredibly difficult to pull off in practice — with scrolling shooters, the endless torrent of enemies and bullets rarely affords players the opportunity to look away from their ship. As a result, even skillful players will likely require a couple of passes over the English subtitles to read what’s being said by the Japanese voice acting.

The writing itself is decent enough thanks to clever stage designs that provide characters with opportunities to incorporate hints and strategies for important setpieces. These moments might feel somewhat gimmicky in another context, but Qute goes the extra mile to make them resonate with the ongoing chatter — a nice change of pace from the genre’s usual one-note directive to shoot everything and ask questions later, if at all.

Unfortunately, it’s when Ginga Force steps away from those carefully constructed unions of exposition and action that it begins to lose its way.

The first problem is a simple one — the plot that’s delivered by all this writing is disappointingly basic, featuring standard anime archetypes dutifully carrying out predictable twists and betrayals. Given that most scrolling shooters don’t even have a plot, it’s somewhat tempting to look past this as an issue, but Ginga Force can’t help but continually call attention to it with all the narration.

The second problem is more structural and, frankly, surprising — this game is a grind.

As a callback to the more open-ended U.N. Squadron from Capcom, players choose from a series of stages and use the cash earned from completing them to buy improvements to their ship. There’s a wide variety of equipment that could conceivably support a variety of playstyles but everything feels frustratingly underpowered.

Additionally, the prices of upgraded items are often very high and/or locked behind the completion of certain stages, which means that players will likely find themselves stuck with a sub-optimal ship loadout unless they repeat missions over and over to build up their budget.

Frustratingly, Ginga Force is more ambitious than it is good, dragging down its occasional moments of signature Qute brilliance with a glacially-paced story mode in service of a forgettable plot. With much more generous tuning of the progression rewards, this could potentially be an effective gateway title to welcome newer players to the genre. As it is, it’s weirdly perched between the old and new, with too much grind and too much noise to really land for anyone.

Here’s hoping that the recent release of Natsumi Chronicles, a Ginga Force prequel/sequel, carries this intrepid developer to at least one more legendary flight among the stars.

Disclosures: This game is developed by Qute and published by Rising Star Games. It is currently available on PS4 and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS4. Approximately 7 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed once (all easy difficulty episodes completed in story mode). There are no dedicated multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E due to Mild Fantasy Violence and Mild Language. There is no official description available on the ESRB website, but there are numerous explosions and weapons fire in a militarized science fiction setting. This should be quite safe for any shmup fan of any age.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: There are no required sound cues for gameplay. All voice acting is in Japanese, with subtitles appearing at the top of the screen for all dialogue in game. There are no options to resize or recolor text. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Controls are not remappable and are limited to three preset configurations.

The post Ginga Force Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH A collection with well-polished presentation.

LOW The platformers are less than stellar.

WTF Did there really need to be three Street Fighter II games!?

I have a soft spot for arcades. Dark, noisy rooms, wasting too many quarters on games that were intentionally unfair, and the feeling of freedom while hanging out with friends. Arcades were a huge part of my early gaming experience, and it’s good to see titles from this bygone era made available for new audiences. It’s even better when they’re offered with the kind of love and care that Capcom Arcade Stadium offers.

With such a wide range of genres, control styles and graphics, each player’s enjoyment will surely vary, but one thing that Capcom does well is the presentation. Everything about Arcade Stadium looks like it belongs in a brick-and-mortar arcade thanks to details like being able to change the cabinet for each title, using the control stick to ‘insert’ the quarter, and even seeing the attract screens for the ‘cabinets’ to the left and right. It’s fantastic little details like these that make Capcom Arcade Stadium pop.

Of course, there are modern niceties, as well. Players are able to adjust the difficulty and even speed up or slow down the action within each game, along with the now-common ‘rewind’ function that allows players to retry a section without having to replay the entire level. These are all excellent additions for modern players since arcade games were primarily designed to eat quarters, not to be player friendly. There’s also local multiplayer, online score challenges, and a whopping 30 save slots! So many fantastic upgrades help round out this well-made collection.

As for the games themselves, those are hit-or-miss, but it’s still great to see them on newer platforms. There are a total of 32 selections available for Capcom Arcade Stadium. The basic download comes with one free title (1943) but there are three DLC packs of 10 games each that can be purchased individually, or for a slightly discount when picking up all three. The last game (Ghosts ‘n Goblins) can be purchased individually.

Pack 1: Dawn of the Arcade (’84 – ’88)

Made up of the earliest titles, Pack 1 definitely shows its age.

Pirate Ship Higemaru involves throwing barrels at pirates, but controls a little clunky and didn’t keep my attention long. Commando is a run-and-gun, top-down shooter — the gameplay is okay but a little bland, and is improved upon by another game in the collection

The shmups in this pack were my favorite, but still feel a little outdated.

Vulgus is an early space-themed shooter, but it’s a little slow to begin and (unfortunately) does not offer a continue function when players get a game over. Players also get two side-scrolling shmups — Section Z and Forgotten Worlds. Section Z is a slog, but Forgotten Worlds flows a little smoother. The original 1942 is included, but the free one, 1943, is superior in every way.

Then there’s Legendary Wings. A fantasy-themed shmup that includes side-scrolling sections where the player walks and jumps until reaching a boss. An intriguing concept, but it never excels at either part.

There are also some dedicated side-scrolling platformers, but as a whole, these are the least enjoyable. Bionic Commando and Tatakai no Banka both feel clunky and I was ready to move on after a short time. Ghouls ‘n Ghosts rounds out the first pack — it’s too difficult to truly enjoy and I still don’t get its appeal, but it controls better than the other platformers included.

Pack 2: Arcade Revolution (’89-’92)

A stronger contender than the first bunch, Pack 2 has a quite a few legends.

Street Fighter II is here — a legendary fighter, and not much more needs to be said. There are a few side-scrolling brawlers like Final Fight and the slightly goofy, but well-made Captain Commando and a beat-’em-up based on a manga set in ancient China, Dynasty Wars.

Players can also try their hands at older arcade platformers like Strider and Mega Twins. Both have large, colorful graphics, but I found the controls and gameplay to be a little lacking.

The sequel to Commando, Senjo no Okami II, is included, but only the Japanese ROM version. It’s an excellent top-down run-and-gunner that improves on everything from the original in Pack 1.

Three shmups round out Pack 2 — 1941: Counter Attack, a sequel (yes, sequel) to 1942. Varth Operation Thunderstorm takes place on an alien planet, but players will quickly notice the influence of the 1942 series. Carrier Air Wing is a side-scrolling shmup that veers towards a slightly realistic plot, but ends up feeling held back by sluggish gameplay.

Pack 3: Arcade Evolution (’92-’01)

If I could only purchase one pack, this would be the one. By this point in the industry, arcade games were beginning to be finely-tuned and all the selections here are worth playing, even if there is some repetition.

The two SFII games included are Hyper Fighting and SFII Turbo — both fine entries. Also included is another fighter featuring large mechs, Cyberbots: Full Metal Madness. I had never heard of it before, so even though I stink at fighters, it was a treat to play something fresh.

Pack 3 also includes three excellent beat-’em-ups. Warriors of Fate is a sequel to Dynasty Wars and improves on its predecessor. Powered Gear: Strategic Variant Armor Equipment sees players taking control of a mech suit to battle across a dystopian future. This is known as Armored Warriors in the West, so I’m unsure why only the Japanese ROM was included here. Last of the beat-’em-ups is Battle Circuit, a quirky alternate-future brawler that allows players to fight as a pink ostrich, an alien, or a humanoid shapeshifter.

A set of four well-designed shmups round out Pack 3. 19XX: The War Against Destiny and 1944: The Loop Master are further evolutions of 1942‘s gameplay, but they probably won’t change the minds of those who didn’t enjoy the earlier versions. Giga Wing is another top-down shmup, but this one takes place in a dystopian future and features a wild special attack to keep things fresh. The best of the bunch has to be Progear — a steampunk-themed horizontal bullet-hell that plays fast and hard while oozing charm.

Capcom Arcade Stadium is a wonderful tribute to a mostly-bygone era that was important and influential in the history of videogames. Hopefully, Capcom will releases more titles and expand the collection, but even if they don’t, this trio is a worthy purchase for any player looking for some authentic arcade action.

Disclosures: This game is developed by and published by Capcom. It is currently available on Switch. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch. Approximately 6 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and multiple games within the collection were completed. Zero hours of play were spent in multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Violence, Blood and Gore, Mild Language, Partial Nudity, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco. While the descriptors sound concerning, these are older arcade games that are tame by today’s standards. The blood and gore are mild and never over-the-top. The language, tobacco and alcohol use, and partial nudity are so rare that I can’t think of any specific instances from my time playing.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: Numerous games within the collection offer subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized, though each game’s display can be altered to fit the screen differently, which may impact text size. While I did not finish all 32 games, none appear to have sound cues that impacted gameplay. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Certain functions are remappable. All non-directional buttons are fully remappable on each individual game. Directional controls are tied to the left stick and left direction buttons and cannot be changed. Each game has unique controls, which can be accessed and altered from the in-game menu.

The post Capcom Stadium Arcade Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Obtaining 30 ships and then the ghost for twice the firepower!

LOW That ghost always runs out right before a boss battle.

WTF Well hello there, floating half-of-a-lady-robot boss…

Ten years ago after reading Brad’s glowing review, I was persuaded to pick up the indie classic, Shoot 1UP. A decade later, a deluxe version of this intense shmup has been released for modern consoles and I’m happy to report that it’s still a blast to play.

Shoot 1UP DX takes the basic concept of vertical shmups and amplifies it. Instead of waiting until the player has crashed and burned, 1UPs collected mid-level instantly become an additional ship onscreen. More ships equals more firepower — players can amass up to 30 ships at once, all flying side by side to combat the alien hordes swarming the skies across eight levels.

However, there’s a twist besides simply having more virtual wingmen in the skies — the player is able to expand or contract their formation, and each position has different results. When clustered together, the swarm shoot large numbers of small bullets. When spread out, the armada combines their firepower to create a huge single-beam energy cannon.

All this controlled chaos and shmup goodness is backed up with tight controls. Commanding the squadron, even 30 at once, is as smooth as silk, even if trying to avoid 30 different bullets made my eyes cross!

The only negative here is that Shoot 1UP DX is still extremely short! Even with new levels added to this version, players will be able to fly through the main campaign in an hour or less. Fortunately, the “A Score Trek” feature (players get one ship and try to make it as far as they can) and “Serious” difficulty (yes, it’s tough) are included to help extend playtime.

Even though it’s on the short side, Shoot 1UP DX is still a thrill. The ‘multiple ships at once’ concept still feels fresh a decade later, and this landmark indie deserves a spot in every shmup fan’s library.

Disclosures: This game is developed by and published by Mommy’s Best Games. It is currently available on XBO, XBX/S, PS4, PS5 and Switch. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS4. Approximately 3 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed on easy and normal modes. Zero hours of play were spent in multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E 10+ and contains Fantasy Violence and Suggestive Themes. This game is relatively safe for parents who are comfortable having their kids play most shmups. Enemies explode when defeated, but there is no blood or gore. One level appears to have a pod of dead orcas on the ground, but again, no blood. Another level has a large-breasted robot woman as a boss, but no full nudity.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

 Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. Some approaching enemies, especially boss fights, are indicated by visual cues, like a blinking exclamation mark, on screen. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls.

The post Shoot 1UP DX Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH A well-designed futuristic armory.

LOW: Arcade shoot-’em-ups used to be more challenging, didn’t they?

WTF: No support for mouse & keyboard on PC?

Habroxia 2 is an old-school 2D spaceship shoot-’em-up (shmup) from Eastasiasoft Limited and Lillymo Games. The player will fly deep into uncharted darkness and save humankind from an alien threat by clearing out 18 side-scrolling and vertically-scrolling levels filled with waves of enemy ships and fierce bosses.

While most of its gameplay is straightforward shmup action, something that caught my eye was the level design — some areas act as junctions where the player must choose between two paths, each with its own boss.

At first, I was fascinated by the idea. Creating reasons to come back to a previously-completed level to find secrets or new areas is a key element in metroidvanias, and including those kind of elements in a 2D shmup would be an impressive innovation! Unfortunately, it was not to be.

Although Habroxia 2 gradually offers new weapons to the player, they don’t change the way the ship interacts with the world. So, despite appearances, the player is only being asked to play a level twice and choose a different path each time in order to reach the final boss. I appreciate that this adds some replay, but the unrealized potential here is a shame.

As mentioned, Habroxia 2 contains plenty of secondary and special weapons. Short bursts of lasers are good for close encounters, while things like homing missiles are suitable for long-range engagements. The wide variety of guns is one of Habroxia 2‘s main features, but the general lack of challenge reduces the need for experimentation. After completing the first five or six levels and upgrading the offensive capabilities of my ship, I became an undying beast and managed to finish the game with little effort.

After rolling those credits I jumped into the unlocked boss rush mode and took down a surprising 32 bosses in a row before I was finally defeated. It’s not that my shmup skills are exceptional, but probably more due to Habroxia 2‘s too-soft difficulty curve and poor enemy design. The aliens in each area don’t possess any noteworthy attacks or patterns, so there’s not much need for any special tactics to approaches to engage them.

On the technical side, Habroxia 2 has some shortcomings. First of all, it does not support using mouse or keyboard on PC — the only way to play is with a controller. The game also provides no graphic options, meaning that the player can’t even change the resolution or any related qualities. Habroxia 2 is clearly designed for consoles in mind and the devs made no effort to add even basic PC amenities.

Habroxia 2 certainly looks like an ’80s shmup with its the space theme and retro-style graphics, but it fails to capture the thrill and challenge of those titles. It’s an enjoyable ride for the three or so hours it takes to finish, but it will fade from a player’s memory soon after.

Disclosures: This game is developed by Eastasiasoft Limited and Lillymo Games and published by Eastasiasoft Limited. It is currently available on Switch, PS4, XBO, PC and Vita. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and was reviewed on PC. Approximately 3 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T for Language. There’s not much to worry about here.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: The game has no spoken dialogue so, all the communication in the game happens made through text and subtitles. These subtitles cannot be resized or altered. No audio cues are necessary for play so this game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable.

The post Habroxia 2 Review appeared first on Gamecritics.com.

HIGH Experiencing this absurd, colorful shmup.

LOW Onscreen chaos makes detecting incoming bullets tough.

WTF The game is about flying bulletstorm cats.

It’s rare when I finish a game and think to myself “what the hell just happened?!?” It’s even rarer when I finish such a game while enjoying every single minute of it. Neko Navy Daydream Edition, a madcap, flying cat shmup, is one such.

Even for a shmup there’s not much story, but the craziness happens right from the start. Players take control of an ordinary looking housecat… except the cat can fly.

And shoot bullets.

And launch bombastic, screen filling attacks.

The graphics are bright and colorful, resembling a hand-drawn cartoon. In addition to the cats, there are various cheerful looking adversaries, like biplanes, sausages, medical mannequins, and toadstool canons, all trying to strike down the flying felines.

When defeated, enemies leave behind glowing cat icons. Collecting these icons charges each cat’s secondary attack — huge explosives that take out multiple enemies at once. This leads to plenty of chaos, as the screen fills up with more and more enemies and explosions.

Navigating this chaos is effortless, as controls are smooth and precise. I would recommend the control stick over the directional buttons, but thankfully the developers have made the control scheme fully customizable to fit a player’s needs.

There’s not much to complain about with Neko Navy, but it is a little on the short side. With only seven stages, shmup pros will have no problem beating the game in less than an hour. Fortunately, the developers have included plenty to keep players coming back — unlockable cats, hidden bosses, a “Death” difficulty, and an endless wave mode.

Having beat Neko Navy: Daydream Edition, I’m still coming back for more, Yes, I’m still not exactly sure what is going on — who’s attacking and why are these cats called in for defense? But honestly, there’s no need for a coherent story when everything else is done so well.

Disclosures: This game is developed by DeathMofuMofu and published by Fruitbat Factory. It is currently available on Nintendo Switch and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch. Approximately 4 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E and contains Mild Fantasy Violence. The game is full of happy looking cartoon adversaries that shoot at a flying cat. When defeated, enemies and cats explode in a bloodless eruption.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: The game has very limited story and in-game text. Text size is not adjustable. When bosses approach, the sound effect is accompanied by a large, flashing “Warning” text on the screen. There are no other noticeable audio cues. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls.

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