I'm not remotely skilled at or knowledgeable about shmups, but I do know that Ketsui is one I like a whole lot, and this is a real good version of it. These M2 ShotTriggers releases seem pretty cool! The Super Easy Mode and the Arcade Challenge training mode are great inclusions to break players in to the game and slowly build them up to taking on the crushing whirlwind of Normal Difficulty, and the Bonds of Growth mode that records your deaths and lets you practice those moments is something I want in every shmup going forward. As a package, this is pretty flawless!
A good side effect of having these modes that increased my familiarity with the game: now that I'm not in a constant state of desperation (most of the time), I was able to appreciate the game as an artistic endeavour beyond the insane gameplay a lot more on these repeated playthroughs. Little moments like the first stage music properly kicking in right as you pick up your first powerup and come up against the first tougher enemy type. The part right after Black Draft in stage 4 where you slow right down as you hit the cliffside and mop up a couple of ground mooks feels like taking one deep breath before you descend into the absolute hell corridor that is the horizontal section. The inverse of that, right after Trafalgar in stage 5 where you're immediately beset by a rush of smaller enemies - no rest this time, we're in the endgame. Speaking of stage 5, how good is that music, that melancholic rendition of the first stage's theme, driving home that this whole thing is a suicide mission? What a game. What a game!
(Marked this as Mastered because I got the plat, but please understand I have in no way, shape or form mastered Ketsui. Please don't ask me to prove that I've mastered Ketsui)
A good side effect of having these modes that increased my familiarity with the game: now that I'm not in a constant state of desperation (most of the time), I was able to appreciate the game as an artistic endeavour beyond the insane gameplay a lot more on these repeated playthroughs. Little moments like the first stage music properly kicking in right as you pick up your first powerup and come up against the first tougher enemy type. The part right after Black Draft in stage 4 where you slow right down as you hit the cliffside and mop up a couple of ground mooks feels like taking one deep breath before you descend into the absolute hell corridor that is the horizontal section. The inverse of that, right after Trafalgar in stage 5 where you're immediately beset by a rush of smaller enemies - no rest this time, we're in the endgame. Speaking of stage 5, how good is that music, that melancholic rendition of the first stage's theme, driving home that this whole thing is a suicide mission? What a game. What a game!
(Marked this as Mastered because I got the plat, but please understand I have in no way, shape or form mastered Ketsui. Please don't ask me to prove that I've mastered Ketsui)