A really gorgeous shmup—the big, colorful sprites just jump off the screen, and the 3D backgrounds provide a fantastic sense of depth. Evocative Zuntata soundtrack, simple power-up system, satisfying lock-on mechanic... what more could one want, honestly?
What holds Rayforce back from GOAT status is its rather obnoxious difficulty curve. Everything up through stage 5 feels just right, and then you run into a massive wall as it seemingly realizes that, oh yeah, it's an arcade game, and it would rather have your money than let you keep enjoying yourself. Enemy spawns begin to feel thoughtless and haphazard, whereas in the game's first half they feel so carefully-crafted to induce maximum fun. Bosses take FOREVER to die, even at full power.
And, despite my best efforts and practicing a lot, and despite LOVING the game visually, I still had a little trouble tracking its two-layers of action, which resulted in a lot of "what the fuck even hit me?" kind of deaths. Not something I generally like at all in a shmup... but honestly, this game has enough other amazing qualities that I can pretty much wholeheartedly forgive it.
What holds Rayforce back from GOAT status is its rather obnoxious difficulty curve. Everything up through stage 5 feels just right, and then you run into a massive wall as it seemingly realizes that, oh yeah, it's an arcade game, and it would rather have your money than let you keep enjoying yourself. Enemy spawns begin to feel thoughtless and haphazard, whereas in the game's first half they feel so carefully-crafted to induce maximum fun. Bosses take FOREVER to die, even at full power.
And, despite my best efforts and practicing a lot, and despite LOVING the game visually, I still had a little trouble tracking its two-layers of action, which resulted in a lot of "what the fuck even hit me?" kind of deaths. Not something I generally like at all in a shmup... but honestly, this game has enough other amazing qualities that I can pretty much wholeheartedly forgive it.