Touhou For Your Thoughts · 4:01am Aug 17th, 2017
So, you guys know about the Touhou Project? I might've mentioned it a couple of times in my stories. Well the 16th entry, Hidden Star in Four Seasons, released recently, and last night I finally got hold of and beaten it with no continues... after three tries. I figure since I haven't seen any new pony, I'll instead provide a review of this latest in my favorite shmup series.
When I first played the demo a few months back, I wasn't really impressed. The music and characters didn't really grab me, but the new gimmick was pretty neat. Now having played the entire game and much of the Extra Stage, I can say that, while it's not one of the greatest ZUN has made, it was a fun and enjoyable experience nevertheless. For those not in the know, the story with this entry is that the seasons are going out of control throughout Gensokyo, so that different sections are experiencing a different season, prompting four magical girls to go out and investigate it. The story didn't turn out as dire or epic as the likes of Touhou 7 or even 15, yet it led to some interesting places and characters. Well, not that interesting, but fun encounters.
The gameplay gimmick in this entry is getting to choose a subshot which attaches to your back and fires forward: four types based on the four seasons. Each one operates differently and gather strength by collecting little flaky things that come off enemies as you kill them or when you're bullet grazing. You can also deplete the stored power to form a small barrier with the C key that also grants extra abilities for a limited time while also acting like a last ditch bomb which, as it so happens, doesn't penalize you whenever used during spell card attacks! Furthermore, it's the means by which you increase your score input. Any enemy bullets that go into that little barrier get erased and build up the value of the blue point collectables. Releasing a barrier in the middle of a boss' bullet storm is a quick way to build up points and a fast way to build up extra lives, as those are gained through your overall score. Once you know the best places to set off releases, you'll be making bank like nobody's business. Plus, some subshots are seriously broken when paired with specific characters, so fun times!
Stages 4-6 proved fairly challenging my first time through, as did the bosses, whom I bombed like heck for most of their spellcards. But after playing against them a second time, I saw the patterns fairly quickly and economized my bomb/release usage better. One of my most memorable experiences playing this my game file included an English patch so I was able to follow the story, and during the Stage 5 boss one spellcard had some bullets falling down like a gentle rain, nothing difficult. But then I looked up and read that the spellcard name was "Behind You" and looking down, sure enough, those bullets had transformed into homing ones and were heading right for back. Wouldn't have had that kind of surprise if it wasn't translated, but I found it cool that the card name gave away what to expect, so that gave me a last second advantage. The final boss was interesting for a number of reasons. One, she's the only one sitting in some kind of chair. Two, who she is is of some significance to the greater Touhou lore. And three, she's also the Extra Stage boss, a first for the series. Undoubtedly lots of people would call this lazy, but the story does provide an explanation for this, which made me more hyped going into Extra Stage. Extra Stage, I will tell you, is perhaps the easiest, or at least one of the easiest to date. In my first blind attempt I made it to the fourth or fifth spellcard of the main boss, when normally it takes me a few tries to get past the stage portion. Yet there's a twist to the gimmick here that makes things more fun and interesting.
Overall, this has been another fun delightful romp through Gensokyo. None of the frustrations from the last game; just a very breezy jaunt of shooting and item collecting once you learn how to utilize the gimmick effectively, which is quite easy to do. By all means, give it a shot if you're into shmups or on the fence as to whether this is worth playing compared to previous entries. While nowhere the jaw-dropping spectacle or stirring ride, you'll still get the kind of fun you'd expect from a main entry title... unless it's Phantasmagoria of Flower View :P
Touhou, I believe that's a "bullet hell" type game? Unfortunately, I've never got into those sorts of games before, reactions aren't up to snuff, the most reactionary games I've played are dark souls and overwatch.
Currently playing MGSV and splatoon2
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Quality games, no question.
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There's always Easy Modo
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Well, there's a second chance for everything I suppose, I'll give it a try in the future!