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 Deathsmiles
(Xbox 360)
Gamers looking for a classic shooter
in the mold of Donpachi or Cotton will probably want to check out
Deathsmiles. It comes from legendary shmup maestros Cave and has released
on Xbox 360. Far from a mere arcade-port, this release includes several
enhanced versions that include tweaked gameplay, improved graphics and
other additional features. It's play mechanics are fairly standard, but
there are a few twists that keep things interesting. There's several
levels of difficulty as well, so players of different abilities can join
in the fun. Look inside and discover why Deathsmiles is an entertaining
and satisfying release that fans of the classic shooter won't want to
miss. |
Japanese developers Cave have built quite a
reputation among shooter aficionados over their long and stories career
with legendary franchises such as Donpachi building quite an audience.
Their newest release, the gothic Lolita shooter Deathsmiles keeps their
standards high. It began life as an arcade game and is now translated and
converted to the Xbox 360 with numerous enhancement and special modes.
Players can also choose to play in the standard arcade mode with is a
decent port of the original game, though the visuals look pixellated when
you play in this mode. There's also a version 1.1 arranged mode that adds
some features and the Xbox 360 mode that includes upgraded visuals plus
the ability to control your secondary or familiar character. There are
also additional variations of the game included with each mode, which
include a Mega Black Label for the arcade mode that includes an additional
playable character, a new level plus a new harder level of difficulty
labeled 999 is available at the main menu. It's a very intense mode, so
don't go into it lightly. Additional options available include the ability
to resize the screen, play in co-op mode with a friend or online and a
replay mode where you can relive your greatest battles. All of these modes
add plenty of replay value to the game, though there are only so many ways
to play through the levels. These extras do give the game the feeling of
being a complete package and the special modes offer mostly welcome
upgrades to the gameplay.
Deathsmiles' gameplay is fairly
interesting for a bullet hell shooter and while it doesn't break a ton of
new ground, there are some innovative shooters. Most horizontally
scrolling shooters are quite linear, but Deathsmiles allows you to shoot
from either direction. More importantly, the levels and massive boss
encounters have numerous power-ups and weapons that you can collect to
enhance your firepower. One of the key strategies in the game is to use
your character's power-ups to increase your counter. As your counter
increases, you'll gain more points for collecting items that your
opponents drop when you shoot them down. As you gain more points, you'll
earn additional upgrades and even higher scores that you can use to add to
your powers. During each level, the collection of power-ups also allows
you to earn additional lives, which can come in quite handy. Standard
shots are used for the most part, but you can also unleash giant attacks
called bombs that can inflict a ton of damage on any nearby opponents.
These are useful in clearing out difficult sections, but you should be
careful and save them for boss encounters, which can be really intense.
The gameplay is quite intense and most of your energy is spent navigating
the bombs and waves of bullets that your opponents unleash. This isn't too
difficult in the earlier stages but becomes harder as you move deeper into
the game. Your skills are tested later on as the patterns become
increasingly complex and you have less room for error. This makes for what
can become a very difficult game, which can be frustrating. However, there
are plenty of continues available, and this makes progression easier
though not a cakewalk. Deathsmiles' design and layout is fairly
traditional in terms of level design but there are some areas where you'll
need to stay alert to sudden attacks. Like many shooters, good reflexes
and anticipation helps a lot and most players should have little trouble
playing through its levels. The game's structure is fairly interesting as
well. Unlike many shooters, which shove level after level at you,
Deathsmiles allows you to select which level you'll undertake next. This
non-linear approach allows you to go through the game faster by skipping
some levels. You can also visit all its 'chapters' if you want to gain a
higher score, though this makes completing the journey harder. While it's
not the easiest game in the world to master, Deathsmiles strikes a good
balance between challenge and reward with plenty of power-ups and cool
extras to go along with the intense boss battles. Experienced players
should be able to progress through its levels and advance to its epic
final boss confrontation with a little effort and persistence. Its design
and controls are superb and this makes for a highly satisfying and
entertaining shmup that stands with Cave's best in terms of design,
presentation and mechanics.
 Like
many of Cave's previous shooters, there's quite an impressive attention to
detail evident in its presentation and visuals. This is what sets
Deathsmiles apart from the many shmups of recent vintage. A big part of
what makes the game so appealing is its luscious visuals. The game takes
place in 2D space but many of its backgrounds are richly detailed with
incredible animation and color that literally pops of the screen. There's
a great deal of variety in the environments you traverse and most players
will find the eye candy quite excellent. Despite the gothic appearance of
the characters and the somewhat morbid approach, there's still plenty of
colorful levels and brightly rendered environments, making this feel more
like an anime movie than a dark horror film. Deathsmiles' beautiful
character animations are silky smooth throughout, making the game a joy to
watch, especially in replay mode. The game's waves of bullets explode in
impressive patterns that fill the screen with color and make for an
intense experience throughout. Like many bullet-hell shooters, each stage
delivers an impressive amount of intense action throughout and this
intense pace is punctuated by very slick power-up animations when you
release a screen filling bomb. It's visual polish is evident with
beautiful design throughout. The high quality visuals are consistent and
this approach goes a long way, extending to the menus and cut-scenes to
create a consistently excellent aesthetic. The standard game looks good,
but the visuals really impress when you play the special remixed Xbox
edition, which has been redrawn for HD screens and really showcases how
good the design is. Deathsmiles' music matches the look and feel of the
game, complimenting the dark and somewhat gothic feel of the game, though
there are a few reprises of some classic Donpachi music in the boss
sections, which gives things a cool old-school feel. One thing players
might want to know is that the dialogue of the main characters has been
subtitled for the North American release, which helps to keep things
feeling at least a little bit authentic.
Deathsmiles probably won't appeal to a
large section of gamers, its bullet-hell gameplay and somewhat short
length, combined with its difficulty in harder settings will probably be
off-putting to those used to more casual titles. However, its traditional
approach and solid gameplay mechanics should appeal more to old-school
players, who expect a challenge from their games. Deathsmiles' long
learning curve means some players will probably play through it once and
miss out on the nuances of its familiar systems and score multiplier
modes. There are several levels of difficulty and different gameplay modes
that should help to extend its replay value for dedicated players. The use
of both front and back attacks makes the gameplay more interesting than
most shooters and its branching level designs give it more variety than
most linear shooters offer. There are some very intense battles throughout
the game, and Deathsmiles' use of massive bullet-hell patterns delivers
quite an impressive challenge, requiring players to think about their
position and use the special attacks sparingly. This gives the game more
depth than you'd think, and there's more than pattern memorization at play
here. The game's excellent visuals and the solid gameplay mechanics make
it well worth your time. Deathsmiles' finely tuned and challenging levels
and massive amounts of firepower give it a visceral thrill that most
titles on the market are hard pressed to match. While it's definitely not
for everyone, Deathsmiles is a great classic shooter in the classic mold
with several innovative features and multiple modes of play that delivers
a solidly entertaining and challenging shooter.
- Michael Palisano
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