This one's on the Japanese eShop and has one, yet huge, difference with the games I've written about recently: it's good. I'm also having fun with it, but I think it's a byproduct of the game being good.
Mind you, it's nothing groundbreaking, but it's a nice platformer that you can easily compare to MegaMan, mixed with a bit of...Gradius.
I don't know anything about the story, but there's this witch named Zizou that has to beat other witches. And everyone's a loli. Good enough for me.
Zizou starts off slow, with a simple jump, and a linear shot. Each enemy killed is transformed into "tr?s", black butterflies that gradually fill a powerup bar. The first powerup is a speed up, the second a limited hovering ability after a jump, the third a two-way shot, then more powerful porjectiles; some powers can be increased more than once, but when you're hit you lose a certain number of tr?s, decreasing your power bar. Tr?s are also used as currency between levels, with which you can get extra lives, a longer life bar, increase your attack, or get more tr?s for each kill.
Levels aren't particularly long or complex, but all of them offer multiple paths, some longer, some with more enemies, some that lead to hidden crystal to permanently upgrade so abilities.
At the end of each level, there's the boss encounter, and defeating one witch will grant Zizou a special weapon. I don't really know if certain witches have some specific weaknesses, especially because most special weapons tend to be less flexible than the standard shot.
The game moves at a brisk pace, each level is different enough from the other, and their design favours a run&gun style, though you can hit enemies outside the screen, and certain enemies release projectiles upon death, so sometimes you'll be hit by something you never noticed. Some boss attacks and enviromental hazards are a bit lost in the graphics, and if you know what to collect and upgrade, it can be relatively easy, though the Lunatic game mode will always be a though nut to crack.
Graphics are aboslutely gorgeus, even without 3D effect. As the title implies, the game is completely in 2D, with big, colourful and splendidly animated sprites; the downside is that there isn't much enemy variety, but each level has three or four exclusive bad guys. As with many doujin games, backgrounds tend to be less detailed than sprites, with a couple of levels looking very basic. The game is also fully voiced, and music is rather nice.
All in all, a very pleasant game, though nothing particularly new: I'm enjoying it more than Shovel Knight, probably thanks to DWS' faster rhythm and run and gun style, although I'd say that, overall, Shovel Knight is more carefully crafted. Nevertheless, if you are in the mood for a 16bit style plaftormer, Dark Witch's Story is there for you.
Mind you, it's nothing groundbreaking, but it's a nice platformer that you can easily compare to MegaMan, mixed with a bit of...Gradius.
I don't know anything about the story, but there's this witch named Zizou that has to beat other witches. And everyone's a loli. Good enough for me.
Zizou starts off slow, with a simple jump, and a linear shot. Each enemy killed is transformed into "tr?s", black butterflies that gradually fill a powerup bar. The first powerup is a speed up, the second a limited hovering ability after a jump, the third a two-way shot, then more powerful porjectiles; some powers can be increased more than once, but when you're hit you lose a certain number of tr?s, decreasing your power bar. Tr?s are also used as currency between levels, with which you can get extra lives, a longer life bar, increase your attack, or get more tr?s for each kill.
Levels aren't particularly long or complex, but all of them offer multiple paths, some longer, some with more enemies, some that lead to hidden crystal to permanently upgrade so abilities.
At the end of each level, there's the boss encounter, and defeating one witch will grant Zizou a special weapon. I don't really know if certain witches have some specific weaknesses, especially because most special weapons tend to be less flexible than the standard shot.
The game moves at a brisk pace, each level is different enough from the other, and their design favours a run&gun style, though you can hit enemies outside the screen, and certain enemies release projectiles upon death, so sometimes you'll be hit by something you never noticed. Some boss attacks and enviromental hazards are a bit lost in the graphics, and if you know what to collect and upgrade, it can be relatively easy, though the Lunatic game mode will always be a though nut to crack.
Graphics are aboslutely gorgeus, even without 3D effect. As the title implies, the game is completely in 2D, with big, colourful and splendidly animated sprites; the downside is that there isn't much enemy variety, but each level has three or four exclusive bad guys. As with many doujin games, backgrounds tend to be less detailed than sprites, with a couple of levels looking very basic. The game is also fully voiced, and music is rather nice.
All in all, a very pleasant game, though nothing particularly new: I'm enjoying it more than Shovel Knight, probably thanks to DWS' faster rhythm and run and gun style, although I'd say that, overall, Shovel Knight is more carefully crafted. Nevertheless, if you are in the mood for a 16bit style plaftormer, Dark Witch's Story is there for you.
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