This was a really fun romp, even better than the mainline gradius games. The gameplay is quite solid, frantic and chaotic, and the mission systems makes the levels quite a lot more interesting to tackle. You can clear a level and still fail the mission, so you have to be careful and make sure to fulfill the mission requirements before the level ends (collecting a set amount of coins, defeating a set amount of enemies, destroying a set amount of objects). This layer of complexity is greatly appreciated.
My main criticism is that sometimes the difficulty gets overwhelming in a frustrating manner, with the screen becoming a chaotic mess of colourful bullets, especially in the later levels. I also dislike how dying makes you lose a lot of your power ups, I know this is a relic of arcade-style design, but nowadays it just comes off as frustrating. Nothing that a bit of save-scumming can't solve, though.
The game's strong suit is definitely its irreverent style. I loved the comedic spin on classical shmup tropes, and the erotic undertones add to the charming silliness of this whole experience. The music is also extremely fitting, with high-tempo renditions of classical tunes that will cheer you right up.
My main criticism is that sometimes the difficulty gets overwhelming in a frustrating manner, with the screen becoming a chaotic mess of colourful bullets, especially in the later levels. I also dislike how dying makes you lose a lot of your power ups, I know this is a relic of arcade-style design, but nowadays it just comes off as frustrating. Nothing that a bit of save-scumming can't solve, though.
The game's strong suit is definitely its irreverent style. I loved the comedic spin on classical shmup tropes, and the erotic undertones add to the charming silliness of this whole experience. The music is also extremely fitting, with high-tempo renditions of classical tunes that will cheer you right up.