Jets’n’Guns Gold
EDIT: I previously thought this game uses Steam Cloud for saves. I was mistaken, it does not.
If you liked games like Raptor, Stargunner, and UN Squadron (a.k.a. Area 88) then you’re in for something special.
Jets’n’Guns Gold is a side-scrolling shooter, where you play as a mercenary fighter pilot. You make money by destroying targets, and occasionally picking up bonus items you can sell later. Shops sell new weapons and ships, which can be upgraded for extra money. New items unlock as your total score rises, and a few hidden weapons and ships can also be found, if you know where to look in certain levels. New ships have better stats, and more slots to mount more weapons.
– Real player with 561.8 hrs in game
Read More: Best Shoot 'Em Up Side Scroller Games.
Jets’n’Guns has quite a legacy.
Originally released in 2004 (a couple of months after the release of the STEAM distribution platform), the game was in a lower resolution and lacking some of the fine tuning it now has. The game was brought to Steam Greenlight in 2012 and eventually approved and emerged on the store two years later as “Jets’n’Guns Gold”.
Gold brought new levels, comic book styled images to progress the story, and some additional songs in the soundtrack as well as reworked level order to accommodate the upgrade in the story-telling.
– Real player with 63.8 hrs in game
PAWARUMI
Pawarumi is a fantastic vertical shmup and one of the best of all time. Great graphics, great music, three different difficulty settings with the easiest being super easy and laid back for newcomers and the hardest being perfect for those looking for a traditional bullet hell challenge featuring a crazy true final boss encounter at the end w/ a true ending.
Includes an in-game gallery achievement menu, a Practice mode to play individual stages (and being able to go for achievements that can be unlocked on those specific stages). The game’s three color weapon/enemy color system is quick and easy to pick up on and the game implements the system perfectly, allowing you to score more points, refill your health meter (Shield) and refill your bomb meter (Super). Each stage is really well designed and different from one another, with each section throwing something entirely new at you beyond just new enemy ship types. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a fun and challenging vertical shmup with tons of replay value =)
– Real player with 33.5 hrs in game
Read More: Best Shoot 'Em Up Futuristic Games.
I kickstarted this game and haven’t been disappointed. To call it an indie game really doesn’t do it justice - the level of polish is very high. Nice 2.5D graphics that are reminiscent of Radiant Silvergun or Zero Gunner 2, interesting weapon mechanics and a deep scoring system really make Pawarumi stand out among ‘indie’ games, and with just about the right level of difficulty not to scare beginners off. The game has 5 levels each with it’s own unique theme - first level is a snow base, second is a weapons factory set in industry and lava, find the rest out for yourself :-p. With mid bosses and bosses that you can blow bits off to maximize score, anyone who’s played shooters before will be right at home. Only real omission is the lack of a 2 player mode. Definitely worth £12.99 of anyone’s money!
– Real player with 16.8 hrs in game
DARIUSBURST Chronicle Saviours
I’m just going to start off by saying I have nothing but praise for this game. With that said I know most STEAM users are going to look at the price point for this and think, “They’ve GOT to be out of their minds!” No they aren’t This game is packed with so much content that I don’t think there’s a single game of its kind that can topple. I’ll even say that you couldn’t even combine 3 or 4 games together to get the amount of content that this game has to offer fans of the genre.
Aesthetically this game brings a simple and clean presentation to the table. The UI for ship combat is clean and simple to understand without too much info bombarding the player while they are struggling to keep their ship from a fiery demise. The 3D models are low in the polygon department, yet beautifully designed. Everything from simple cannon fodder enemies to the enormous bosses look great.
– Real player with 179.8 hrs in game
Read More: Best Shoot 'Em Up Side Scroller Games.
Shmups have always been a part of my gaming career. I was never good at them like all the experts going for high scores and 1CC runs, but I always tried to prove my worth regardless. I also always looked at shmups as a ‘David vs. Goliath’ scenario; a small, one man fighter versus entire fleets and empires. And what better game to start my shmup career on Steam than Dariusburst Chronicle Saviors? Part of Taito’s Darius series and home console / PC version of Dariusburst, there’s a lot of content to go around in this game. After clocking close to 72 hours of play, is the game worth the price tag and separate DLC? Let’s find out.
– Real player with 113.6 hrs in game
ESCHATOS
For those that may be unaware, Qute’s ESCHATOS is the spiritual successor to Judgement Silversword and Cardinal Sins. Those familiar with the predecessors will find many aspects of this game more than a little recognizable. Sadly, gone are all the judges and sins. The story line of ESCHATOS can be summed up in about two sentences: Aliens have invaded the earth and captured the moon! It is your mission to save the Earth!
It’s about the depth of story one might expect from a shoot ‘em up. One might say it’s even preferable to have a bare bones story. After all, if you’re playing a shmup do you really want to see things like dialogue and cut scenes? Having said all of this, I would have liked to see them build a little bit more on the judges that they introduced in the previous games. It would have been more unique than an alien invasion. While the judges themselves may be things of the past, it isn’t entirely fair to say that they’re gone.
– Real player with 32.8 hrs in game
If you care about these type of games in even the slightest, this is a must purchase.
In what seems to be a common trend among people who are first exposed to this game, I was initially ready to dismiss it however many years ago before it initially arrived on Xbox 360, based on the seemingly underwhelming visuals and rudimentary looking gameplay.
Then, I played it, and it demonstrated how wrong I was about it.
I now consider it one of the best shmups to have come out in the modern era, and my favorite of that wave of 360 releases aside from G.Rev’s Strania. Yes, it’s a relevantly simple game on paper, unadorned by any of the complicated scoring trappings of your average CAVE shmup and it’s contemporaries, or the elaborate weapon systems of more “traditional” shmups, but the beauty of this game lies in the execution. I like to think of it as a modern day Zanac (which is one of my favorite games of all time), where underneath the mediocre aesthetics and muted presentation, lies a game full of depth and complexity. A shmup that was crafted with such quality, it became one of the standout examples of excellence in the genre.
– Real player with 20.1 hrs in game
Nyxx
Funny but very challenging small game with an okay price!
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level design
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basic but good graphics
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cool soundtrack
- a bit too hard for shmup beginners
– Real player with 0.9 hrs in game
BLUE REVOLVER
If ever a game could be called a love letter to a whole genre, that game is Blue Revolver and the genre is maniac shmups. Anyone who has put much time into CAVE, Raizing, or Psykio’s classics will find themselves in familiar, yet fresh and unexplored territory. This sense of familiarity doesn’t come from superficial or visual similarities but the nitty-gritty design of the game, especially and most obviously the boss bullet patterns. These are varied and novel: you won’t see anything you’ve played before but you will see things that riff on classic patterns, changing the dynamic with new elements. BR’s patterns are down-home, working-class patterns; they mostly do without flashy razzle-dazzle bullets that add to the spectacle but not the threat. Every element was added because it constrains your movement, or forces it, or confuses the safe path, or…
– Real player with 28.1 hrs in game
Blue Revolver is my new danmakuwaifu
Very nice surprise as I didn’t expect it to be this good.
Gameplay
1. Introduction
Gameplay is simple but satisfying and gives room from playing survival or scoring. Difficulty has 3 different modes : easy, rank dependant and maxed rank. I’m far from being a good shmup player but I think it has enough options to be satisfying for the complete newcommer to the genre as much as for the veteran player.
2. Character, ship, and weapon selection
– Real player with 22.6 hrs in game
Celtreos
One or two players. Use a mouse or trackpad, keyboard (including Touch Bar), or 1-2 game controllers.
Mac or mobile only, and updated for macOS “Big Sur” with x86_64 and arm64 support.
“Celtreos” is like the space shooters of decades past: tiny ship, big weapons, waves of foes, power-ups and obstacles.
Music, Sound and Voice
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Over 25 different songs (nearly 45 minutes of music!)
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You can even play your own music and auto-next-song for key game events
Stages
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12 stages: a city, space station, ocean and more
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Horizontal scrolling but more than one “screen” of vertical space
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Start from any stage you want!
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Each stage ends with a challenging boss
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Wall layouts and spawn patterns are partially randomized
Weapon Arrays, Special Moves, Power-Ups and More
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Choose from a huge arsenal of weapons and special abilities
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7 different ships to choose from
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Customize ship properties, such as gun mount locations and top speed
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In-game power-ups with weapons, defenses and temporary powers (like Rapid Fire)
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Power-down orbs with temporary inconveniences (like Weapon Freeze)
Additional Configuration Options
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Set number of lives, and number of times that special abilities can be used
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Play in a window or in Full Screen, and specify how much of the display to use in Full Screen
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Set graphics quality to one of three levels
Freedom Finger
The silly and offensive art style is what drew me to this game, not the musicians or voice actors. Despite its cartoony look Freedom Finger is a proper shmup. You have a ship and you shoot enemies with plenty of bullets, enemies and walls to be dodged. The game has two unique game mechanics for a shmup namely grabbing and punching. It’s a bit unusual but it is quite fun. It allows for a lot of different ways to play a level.
Fortunately there’s no shop with upgrades for your ship, you can follow the story but also just hop into any level and start competing for the leaderboard. If you want an upgrade go grab an enemy ship!
– Real player with 38.0 hrs in game
Check out my first impressions gameplay video for Freedom Finger here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TD1OPbuRzCk
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-QUICK FIRE REVIEW (If you don’t have time to watch the gameplay video)
-Story:
Save the American Lunar base from the Chinese who have taken over!
-Graphics:
Very cartoonish. Kinda of reminds me of the adult cartoons you’d see on Adult Swim.
– Real player with 11.0 hrs in game
Star Saviors
This was one I got because of trading cards for pennys a long time back, after that I didn’t really play much. Playing it again more recently though, I can say that if you are a fan of shmups, more specifically of Tyrian, this might appeal to you. Depending on the mode you play, you will have choices of ships. There are 9 variants in arcade and survival that you play through the whole game with whichever you choose, while story lets you choose one of three base ships that can be customized with perks and three weapons of your picking.
– Real player with 30.8 hrs in game
short:I recommend it for all ppl who like shootem’ups in general, but consider that it doesn’t feel like a true arcade or classic game, which is the reason why I don’t recommend it.
Saviors tries to bring the bullethell genre on a next level and misses the point. The gameplay is not comparable to normal shmups. That’s ment in a bad way. The gameplay just feels plain. . The design hits the standards , but is more generic than outstanding. The appearance of the on the topscreen are making the game in some cases more confusing than fitting. The soundtrack isn’t unique as well. There is one soundtrack to go for, the one in the trailer. The others are just like “not there!"…they sound monoton.
– Real player with 13.7 hrs in game
ALLTYNEX Second
Alltynex Second is the first chapter in “The Tale of Alltynex”, the game is also a remake of the original FM TOWN: ALLTYNEX, just bought from the 2017 Steam Summer Sales and fell in love with it. Here some pros and cons for the game:
The pros:
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Simple story-lines.
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The graphic is good.
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Very well-level designs as well as using camera angle to make the game more dynamic. Nice visual effects.
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Amazing soundtracks that fit the atmosphere through out entire game.
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Responsive control scheme. Still recommend to play with a controller.
– Real player with 58.3 hrs in game
ALLTYNEX Second is a very solid shmup and the best part of the trilogy. Those familiar with the trilogy know that each game revolves around the special weapon of the ship. I played Kamui 10 hours and enjoyed the background enemy game mechanic. Whereas Reflex and reflecting shield wasn’t really my cup of tea.
ALLTYNEX Second has (in addition to normal and homing shots) extremely overpowered swords that back up as a bullet shield (just slash the barrage of bullets) and huge laser that also erases the bullets. Playing the game normally consist mostly racking the chain up by destroying small enemies with normal shot and then killing bigger enemies with swords. Bosses are often killed by cheap shotting them 4 seconds with the swords. I know the description doesn’t give a very alluring picture about the game but it is surprisingly fun and challenging (check out my game time).
– Real player with 44.3 hrs in game