Espgaluda 1CC (Ageha)

Описание: A CAVE shmup where the main mechanic is slowing down time to get through dense bullet patterns. You switch to this mode via a button press. You collect the gems necessary for this “kakusei” mechanic by killing enemies. This mechanic is also tied into scoring and bullet cancelling. If you kill an enemy or end a boss or mini-boss phase, every bullet they have on screen will become the second type of currency. You can max these out at 1,000 and if you keep them at that number, they become more valuable as you collect them for score. Check out the shmups wiki for more info.

In general, I don’t think this game is too hard of a clear, it picks up around stage 4, but solidifies the difficulty bump at the stage 4 boss. Stage 5 is full of the usual “CAVE is filling the screen with bullets and enemies so you better manage them well through some memorization and good resource management” style gameplay.

What kept me from a clear as I played this on and off for a while is that evil third phase of the final boss. I eventually had enough resources to take him down, but the last phase of the third phase is nuts. The pattern is random, the kakusei mechanic does no damage to him, and your “bomb” HEALS him. For a shmup touted for beginners of bullet hell, that’s a rough time, but it felt good to finally take him down.

Presentation’s fantastic and track 4 in this game is a standout for me. The whole stage while Fort City is playing is just killer.

All according to keikakusei.