Picked this up immediately after getting my PS5, then went on to immediately 1cc Super Easy mode? Maybe I am godlike at games??

Ketsui is shmup perfection - Cave firing at all cylinders. On its face its quite accessible - one button to fire, one button to auto-fire, one button for limited use bombs (which clear the screen of any bullet patterns and do damage to enemies) and the option to hold the fire button to shoot homing fire with an extra laser beam (at the expense of shot spread and speed). From the simple controls, Ketsui shines through its excellent enemy arrangements, bullet patterns, and upgrade/scoring mechanics. The art is incredible, pulling inspiration from mecha anime like NGE mixed with a sort of Metal Slug-esque military vibe that looks great in pixel art form. Paired with some really excellent techno / d'n'b in the score, Ketsui just feels really satisfying to look at and fall into.

I joked about being super good at games at the top after 1cc'ing Super Easy mode but I have to say Super Easy mode is really accessible and surprisingly clearable for newcomers - the biggest two draws here are more reasonable bullet patterns and the auto-bomb feature. On super-easy you start with six bombs per life (and three lives) - auto-bombs will automatically deploy one of these bombs if you are hit - meaning that you essentially have seven hits per life, with six of those clearing the board for you. Paired with additional bombs on stages and extra lives stemming from score rollover and hidden in stages, you can easily take 20-30 hits in one credit. Compared to arcade mode with no auto-bombs where you have 3 hits per credit, it feels like a great way to begin your journey into shmups without feeling like you need to enter the matrix.

M2 did a sublime job with this remastered port - adding some great additional modes (super easy as well as a rearranged "Deathtiny mode), challenge modes where you practice stages in chunks, and Bonds of Growth where you can practice areas you specifically have struggled with (based on your gameplay data). The packaging of all of this is really clean and accessible with some great art and additional stats and resources.

I can't wait to see how the DoDonPachi DaiOuJou remaster turns out later this year - M2 has shown that they're well equipped to knock it out of the park.

Mario is BACK! Nintendo is BACK! In the midst of the final dying gasps of their accursed Switch, they've decided to make good games again!

There isn't really a whole lot to say here, honestly, but that's a good thing. Rock-solid 2d platforming at 60fps, with a very pleasing, clean aesthetic. I hadn't expected the Wonder Flower aspect to be as prevalent as it is, either. There's some wacky gimmick in every level, and it keeps things feeling fresh all the way through.

The badge system mostly functions as a handicap, and I think if you're familiar with platforming games you're better off not using them except when necessary, as they can trivialize many areas when the game doesn't provide a lot of challenge to begin with.

Minor complaints: the "Search Party" levels are awful, but there are only 4 or 5 of them. The talking flowers can also be grating. It's fine when they comment on what's actually happening, and those can be pretty funny, but I don't need to hear them repeat "HI!" and "I BELIEVE IN YOU" or their many variations on "well, THAT just happened!!!".

Excellent game, and so far frontrunner for my GOTY. But it's about to get some stiff competition...

This game is basically the bush iraq war but you play on the side of the good guys instead.
It is incredibly difficult but I believe one step at a time I will be able to do the first loop...
https://youtube.com/watch?v=CYz-95JZruk

edit: 1cc complete, aiming for omote next

Actually incredible game. Like goddamn, man what an experience. The gameplay and OST absolutely beautiful. Seriously this OST gives me life, it's so damn good. The glow up from DonPachi to this has to be studied. Now this is a game I'd replay constantly if I had an actual arcade.

But there's one problem....and that's the second half of the game. Which you can only get to if you not lose a single life not use a bomb, and score of 120 million points. Then I have to beat Ura Loop which has more red bullets and blue suicide bullets. And finally I have to beat the True Final Boss without dying once.

This is my SECOND SHUMP EVER...I literally can't do this. I'm still bad at this genre. Though I will say I was dodging a lot better in this game than in DonPachi. No clue if that was because it was "easier" or because the gears in my head are starting to turn with this genre. But it sucks that I can't see the second half of the game nor fight the True Final Boss unless I beat those conditions. Obviously I want to do it at some point. Unfortunately not now but hopefully and eventually later!

This game rules, while the Castlevania series in general is essentially a celebratory mishmash of classic horror iconography, Rondo of Blood feels like a celebratory mishmash of Castlevania iconography while also being one of the coolest games out there. This is also the point where everything starts leaning harder into an aesthetic that's more anime and a bit more upbeat. It's made even better by the fact that said anime influence bears far more resemblance to the style of shoujo during that era, with the way that Maria straight up looks like a magical girl being especially fun.

Everything in this feels like an escalation of what was established in previous games, locations being far more chaotic than ever before, each enemy on its own being considerably more aggressive, returning music being waaay funkier, it just hits you all at once, sustains that intensity for the entire game, and brings along some of the tightest level design in the series at the same time. One of my favourite examples of this is the difference in how the player is expected to handle the axe armour enemies. In previous entries these would be handled by a mix of dodging and deflecting if the moment called for it, but here, dodging or anything else similarly defensive will ultimately overwhelm the player due to how quickly these enemies attack now, instead requiring the player to successfully deflect every projectile thrown at them. Instances like this appear all over the game, and make each encounter feel like 2 extremely strong forces being put up against one another, rather than the more oppressive nature of the situations that previous Belmonts found themselves in.

Obviously this is a matter of taste, but I do prefer this feel a bit more in this instance, even though both are good and have their place, it's just that Castlevania in general is so, so good at this specifically that I can't help love it wholeheartedly. I'm also very fond of the way the level design is handled here, feeling like a middle point between Castlevania 1 and Super Castlevania IV, being both a faster paced gauntlet, but carrying on for that bit longer than is comfortable to test your endurance as well. This works well as a way to balance out the item crashes being absurdly powerful, preventing them from being an instant win, but not making it overly tough to succeed if you eschew the use of them either. The alternate paths also go a long way in adding a bit of neat exploration to the experience, never really being a dominant enough force to take you out of that core loop, but providing more depth to the stages and making the game feel fun and varied on subsequent playthroughs as well.

Honestly just one of the coolest games ever while also being one of the most finely crafted in the series as well. In a series of games that I could gladly play through countless times and just continue soaking in everything about how it looks, sounds and feels, this is one of the ones I feel most inclined to play constantly, it's just peak gaming right here.

If you ever wanted to play a version of Ghouls 'n Ghosts that feels like a bootleg, then good news, it's on the Sega Genesis.

A lot of my hangups here are with the controls, which feel like total junk. This isn't a knock against Arthur's stiffness clashing with the unforgiving nature of the game's platforming or anything, in fact I really like Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts and I'd say a lot of aspects of that game's design are present here, even if it lacks Super's satisfying double jump. No, it's that Ghouls 'n Ghosts consistently fails to recognize inputs, so most of the time it just feels like Arthur isn't doing what I tell him to.

The majority of my deaths were the result of inputs being eaten, which happened with such frequency that I thought something might be up with my Genesis controller. I traded out one OEM for another and was still having issues, then switched to a Retro-Bit pad (I have a lot of backup controllers, I know) and it still felt like a total crapshoot getting Arthur to behave in a predictable manner.

At that point I assumed something was up with the cart I bought and decided to try Ghouls 'n Ghosts in emulation, but no, it still plays pretty bad. It is moderately better with a firmer D-pad, so I think that's my preferred way to play the game and it's how I finished up the first run, but I have absolutely zero patience for a second, so I decided to put this down.

I've bought a lot of legit and repro carts for the Genesis and I think this is the first time I've genuinely felt swindled. The only thing stopping me from selling it is the hassle and the only thing preventing me from chucking it is that I'm a pack rat. Ghouls 'n Ghosts controls with such grace it made me think multiple Genesis controllers were broken, and beating it only provided a sense of accomplishment in spite of the game. At least Yuji Naka went on to do better things, like Sonic the Hedgehog and Balan Wonderworld.

About a week or two ago I was gonna stop doing reviews (mostly because they are not good) but I already kind of miss doing them so now they're back and since I saw some people playing this game, I wanted to have a go at it, after all I did play and enjoy the original R-Type this year so it didn't hurt to try.

Honestly this game isn't too bad for me personally but it does has some of that early Super Famicom jank that probably could have been ironed out if it wasn't an early release for the console. I knew going in the slow down was going to be a problem but personally I don't like how it sometimes goes back to normal for a second which leads me to death because I'm not anticipating it.

While the levels themselves can be enjoyable there are some bad ones. There was one stage that kind of just felt like a boring hallway, I think it was the second to last stage. There's a level similar to my least favorite level in the Arcade game and also screw you game for that last trap you had with the wall at the end that made me mad. But the biggest issue is that the levels don't have checkpoints, I don't even like when games did checkpoints anyway but having you do the whole level is even worse.

The bosses are actually quite fun outside of maybe the last one and the game can be fun with weapons though I personally liked to use the one that's like the helixe shape thingy. The game also looks good enough for me but the music I don't really care for though maybe I'm the minority on that side.

Overall it's fine, it's decent. I'm not a fan of it only letting you get the ending and credits if you beat it on the secret pro ending though. It's got it's issues and honestly It's probably not even worth trying today but you could do much worse and there's even a hack that removes the slowdown though IDK how much it improves the game. Nowadays there are better shmups to play, even on the Super Famicom like Super Aleste so it's best to leave this one on the shelf even if it's not bad.

With great shame, I've always been apathetic to Mario's plight. His journey is a noble one, but I do not see myself in his bings, nor his bings. His wahoos do not reach me. I feel like a cunt rat bastard for giving this Three Succulent Backloggd Stars ⭐⭐⭐ and absconding with the ultimate sayaway that this is "still one of the better Marios" but that's-a my burden, not yours - my paesano in cristo. I pirated and completed the game days ago and earnestly found myself worrying I'd forget I even played it before it released and I could officially log the game on BL.

It's good!!! Honest and true!!! Nice to see what felt like notes of 3D World in here with the little rosary bead structure and rhythm of each level having their own little wonder flower acting as an F5 button, refreshing the level's objective into a unique blink-and-you'll-miss-it sleight of hand trick. It keeps u guessing but only so much. It's still Mario, it's still the charisma of a cereal box free toy, but credit where it's due - the soundtrack is nice and they did a great job in shuffling the artstyle up into representing illustrative 3D. Not losing my nut over this but it's nice to see some sparks of personality rattling around behind mario's shark eyes.

proof that dumbasses will clown on anything that differs from what they're comfortable with. take it from someone who had zero gen 5 experience and nearly wrote this game (as well as verdict day) off due to its flak and generally misconceived perceptions as being outdated and invalidated:

these people are fuckin' wrong!

yeah - the ACs are shorter and stockier, the game's slower paced and the combat's more tactical. but this is a problem... why? as if 4/fa weren't massive departures for the series in the first place, gen 5 tends to be treated like a black sheep when it has more in common with old gen to begin with. give me a break

if you like weighty mechs that feel akin to cobbled together machinery - this may be the AC for you! movement seems limited compared to gen 1-3 on paper, but it also boasts more potential. you may not be able to boost directly up in the air - fly high or watch the sun rise - but you can hop up and off walls infinitely, hover in midair and execute a slew of more advanced movements that amp the mobility tenfold

a lot of gen 6 ideas can be seen in their infancy here. shape based emblem editing that doesn't suck ass is a nice one (iykyk) as well as the boost kick and scan mode. more importantly, weapon bays make their first proper appearance (hangars don't count) and they're especially significant due to there being 3 damage types this time around. if this sounds daunting - it isn't. so as long as this image doesn't describe your attitude, you'll be fine - you have five fucking weapons - do the math

as for the campaign: it's all killer and no filler for the main story missions. they're lengthy and totally substantial - clocking in at around 10-20 minutes minimum and 20-40 a pop on average. here's the catch: there's only 10 of them (one less if you don't count the finale being a potentially 15 second long boss fight). it's pretty short. additionally there's 80 or so "order missions" which serve as a sort of postgame side content, but they're pathetically simple compared to the main story, super trivial and probably not worth the time

but overall - fuck what you've heard. this game's fun. if the short campaign doesn't sway you too negatively, pick it up. it's still a rewarding single player experience and physical copies aren't nearly as outrageously priced as vd's

oh yeah - soundtrack bangs too - but you knew that already

Hagane: The Final Conflict is the best Shinobi rip-off you've never played. Or maybe you have played it. By this point, countless "hidden gem" retrospectives for the SNES have probably elevated this game to just "gem" status. It's definitely good, but I suspect it's no longer as mysterious and unknown as it once was.

Hagane is just as fun as it is challenging. This is a tough game, but one that feels fair and engaging throughout, never stooping to the same "rental difficulty" level of cheapness that a lot of similar games of the era do. Levels and set pieces are brought to life by some incredible sprite art, and I really love the darker presentation of the game over Shinobi, which is such a stark contrast in color even the two lead characters exist on opposite ends of the color spectrum.

Hagane has a pretty large repertoire of moves, including plenty of acrobatics, a small but useful selection of weapons, and his own version of Ninja Magic. The controls feel great, and the rather short length of levels keeps the game moving at a brisk pace. This definitely falls into the same category as other games I've reviewed where subsequent playthroughs feel better, and executing more efficient runs through the game feels very rewarding.

Can't recommend this one enough. If you have an SNES it's an easy pickup, and you can find plenty of copies on Ebay ranging from a few hundred dollars to a couple thousand.

Wait... oh god damnit.

(I don't want to seem like I'm ripping off Jenny's review with the Shinobi comparison, so I want to point that out as it's very apt.)

originally had this scored as much lower because the author of the thread where you can download this recommended you try out a much rougher version first because it's more challenging, and not the rebalanced 1.31 version that's actually fun to play and teaches you its systems. imagine that!

this is an interesting one. night slashers x is a fanmade revision of data east's night slashers, replete with the usual tweaks and adjustments you'd see in a project like this such as widescreen support and a four player co-op mode. but they've also made a significant overhaul to the original game's rather simplistic suite of mechanics. the original night slashers was essentially a final fight clone (honghua's animations are without exaggeration 1:1 with guy's). so aside from the horror trappings which inform its aesthetic, the only component distinguishing it from a bevy of similarly inclined beat em ups is its treasure-lite sensibilities. mob waves are intense, difficult, and uncompromising, but boss encounters are plentiful, fair, & challenging. night slashers is very much a beat em up which reduces its capability for player expression as a result of teetering-on-unfair encounter design, but the end result is a manageable title which asks the player to strip down to only the barest necessities for each combat encounter and to carefully engage in hitbox outfighting and counterpunching. of course, this description reflects the game at its best when more careful examination reveals this may not exactly have been the intention. there's a suite of chargeable attacks which are almost completely incompatible with the title's whims; charging takes far too long and enemies are far too zealous in approach, rendering it largely superfluous as a means of offence. likewise, your two shmup bomb-eque special attacks are both conveniently introduced 'get-off-me' panic buttons which decimate the calvaries of the dead while incurring significant damage to the player, which should act as a deterrant to player abuse, but can quickly be overcome through modern emulated credit feeding. even disregarding that, it's still clearly a mechanic introduced through necessity in a game with mobs as dense as these. these mechanics both depict a game that isn't exactly designed sharply, or even with honest intentions at heart, but with the right mindset one learns to quickly ignore these infelicities. you surpass night slashers by rarely resorting to the charge attacks, having a plan for every encounter, and using foreknowledge of the stages to manage health for future encounters - you have to know ahead of time when is the best moment to strike with a special attack. the end result is a simplistic & snappy albeit broken game that nevertheless manages to thrill with its contradictory ruleset.

X, meanwhile, should be the better beat 'em up in theory. widescreen support allows for increased environmental legibility and allows for more careful circumnavigation of mobs, rebalancing some encounters means they often do not skew as much towards nickel-and-diming you, and there's an immense amount of additional content this time around. but i think it's also just this complete and total testament to fangame maximalism. every new mechanic under the sun that could have been implemented is here. wake-up attacks, recovery, blocking, dodging, counters, input commands, smash bros-esque combo strings and grabs, a meter bar separate from HP tied to your specials, risk/reward mechanics tied to regaining meter, counterhits...the list goes on. likewise, this is the most insane roster of guest characters ever conceived? ash williams from the evil dead, i understand, but what's ortega from saturday night slam masters doing here? or kurokishi from guardians: denjin makai ii? or aska from tournament fighters? it boggles the mind. total indulgence. it's technically a bit more fairly designed, but it's this immense deluge of newly introduced options and heaps of 'polish' that ironically detracts from the kinetic flair of the original night slashers, irrespective of any enjoyment to be had here. the length of the campaigns are vaguely similar despite some extended segments or newly introduced levels in X - so why does it feel like X is so, so much longer than the original?

at the very least, as a fangame, this is an impressive effort - and it's a better translation of what makes the original night slashers enjoyable than streets of rage remake is for that franchise. but sometimes less is more, and maybe sometimes cruel is more, too.

A very solid action platformer by CAProduction. Great movement, smart enemy placement and really good boss fights. The game rewards memorization and solid strategies for each section, and the more you have memorized, the faster you'll get through the game -- a thrilling combination.

My only criticisms are that bombs and health pickups, as well as 1-ups, are RNG drops from enemies, who all drop an item upon death. I feel this makes the game much easier than it should, and all those should instead be carefully placed items in certain stages. It didn't take me long to get a No-Death clear, around 8 - 12 hours, if I had to estimate. However, that was due to the hardest two stages in the game, which killed several runs, 1-4 and the Final Boss, which is a chase sequence involving good knowledge of the platforming tools you have. This would have been a far faster clear without those two run killers.

There's a large variety of interesting tools you can use for various situations, and I never felt any tool was just for show. I ignored the more overpowered super attacks and backflips, but you can easily find many different ways to approach stages and bosses.

Worth a play. It's no Shinobi, but it's still a great action platformer that's well worth your time.