Who here is into the 2D bullet hell shooter genre? I actually quite like this genre, perhaps even more so the first person shooter, despite it’s typically unforgiving difficulty. Perhaps it has something to do with the “no filler” aspect of most games in the genre.
I recently picked up DARIUSBURST Chronicle Saviours which was released on Steam just yesterday. I’d never heard of this game before, but after reading the rave reviews about it being the ultimate shooter I thought I’d give it a try. While it isn’t the greatest 2D shooter I’ve ever played (I’ve yet to play a game that has managed to blast that crown off Ikaruga’s head), it’s definitely a good representative of the genre. The production values are great, gameplay is solid and there seems to be a lot of levels and gameplay options. I recommend it, although you may want to wait for a price drop.
If anyone here has any recommendations of other games in the genre, I’d love to hear them. I’m particularly interested in games that attempt something different with the genre, rather than just being about dodging a lot of bullets. Bonus points if there’s a PC version or the game can be emulated on PC. Further bonus points if there’s an easy or unlimited continues mode.
I think you’re referring to shmup in general and not really “bullet hell”? I do believe the latter is seen as sub-genre. In any case, the last one I played was Astebreed. It’s a solid game. Relatively short, but that goes for most games in the genre.
I watched the video of Astebreed, it looks pretty good; I’ll have to try it at some point. I like the shifting camera that switches the gameplay between different shooter styles.
There’s arguably a continuum between “bullet hell” and a regular 2D shooter. I’m open to trying any arcade style shooter. Obviously, I’m a big fan of 3D rail shooters such as Rez and Panzer Dragoon, so I’d be interested in similar games to those as well, or games which mix and match elements from different genres.
I heard the cry of the aether… someone mentioned bullet hell games and I was not present for it. :-l
Depends how hard you want to go. If you’re looking for games that are fun, the Touhou Project games are great fun (except Touhou 15, which is the shooter equivalent of Kaizo Mario World) and you can pick Deathsmiles for the 360 on XBLA for cheap. For games that don’t involve young looking girls, there’s Dodonpachi as well, that’s available for most consoles of the last generation that I know of, or you can go back to the past and play Thunderforce 1-4 or Axelay, though they aren’t really bullet hell games.
I wondered whether you would see this post, @Arcie. Thanks for suggestions. I’ll primarily be playing on the PC for the foreseeable future (I sold all of my other systems apart from my Saturn which remains in storage), but I’ll keep those console suggestions in mind.
Have you played The Tale of ALLTYNEX? Going by the reviews on Steam, the games are high quality.
Thanks for suggestions. I’ll primarily be playing on the PC for the foreseeable future (I sold all of my other systems apart from my Saturn which remains in storage), but I’ll keep those console suggestions in mind.