Crimzon Clover World EXplosion

This game slaps, and Novice mode makes it so even absolute scrubs like me can enjoy it.

From the mid-to-late 1990s onward, long before the current indie scene, the Japanese [i]doujin[/i] scene has been known as a veritable haven for shmup enthusiasts. [b]Crimzon Clover[/b] is one of the finest titles to come out of it, although both the 2014 Steam release and this one originate from enhanced ports later backported to PC. The production values are quite high for such an "amateur" production. The spritework, effects and bullet patterns are easily close to Cave productions from the first half of the 2000s (thinking about [b]Ketsui[/b] especially); sometimes you even deal with platoons of tanks, parading only to get mowed down, exactly like in many Cave games. A [i]tate[/i] mode to play on a vertically oriented monitor is available. The game comes with not one, but two fantastic soundtracks: the "Arranged" one is completely different and possibly even better than the original - after all, it's composed by Gryzor87, the same one who scored [b]Super Hydorah[/b] and pretty much every other game by Locomalito. The only reminder of the game's low-cost origins are the backgrounds, often flat and mediocre, sometimes outright bad: the entry of the second boss, emerging from behind some mountains, would be even better if they didn't look so lame. They could have easily improved that aspect compared to the 2014 version. The core gameplay is centered around the Break system, as after filling a bar, a very powerful shot can be unleashed; on top of that, filling a second bar, even while executing a Break, allows for a Double Break of [i]ridiculous[/i] power. There's also a very smart mechanic that, even if the Break bar is not completely filled, allows you to use part of it to launch a bomb and get out of a pinch. As the main shot is also accompanied by a lock-on shot that covers a wide area, one could easily think that the game is easy due to an overpowered ship, and to be fair it sells that illusion nicely at first - Double Break is a power fantasy in shmup form - before reminding you that this is still a [i]danmaku[/i] that can, and will, throw tons of bullets at you. That doesn't mean it's impossibly difficult or punishing. It also has a lot of replay value thanks to the several modes available: my favourite is Boost, where once activated, Break mode is infinite unless a life is lost or a bomb is launched, but things get harder to compensate, such as the increasing number of retaliatory bullets released by destroyed enemies. While the action can get really confusing at times, this is an extremely well-crafted, extremely fun, and very accessible shmup that can go toe to toe with the "major" classics of the genre. The main objection that can be directed at [b]World EXplosion[/b] is whether it was really "necessary". Besides the Arrange modes and the support for higher screen resolutions, there's next to nothing new, not even any evident visual enhancements. There is no longer any dilemma about which version to buy nowadays, as the 2014 release was delisted a few weeks after this one came out, but if you already own the older version, you may think twice unless you're a shmup aficionado.

Close your eyes and imagine, feel the magic - Vegas on acid, seen through Yves Saint Laurent glasses...

I'm not sure what the opposite of a dopamine detox is, but that's what this game does to you.

(As is explained in the review, I already have playtime on the last iteration of this game so I'm doing the review anyway) Reincarnation is a principle which posits that after death, a soul is not destroyed but simply transmigrates into a new body. Although it may seem silly to you there's a bit of a natural logic to it. One important part though is that reincarnation is not as limited by time as people assume, that's a too strictly physical understanding of the process. I have a medical condition that causes me to get killed in a freak Samsung-related accident on my 16th birthday. This is why you shouldn't give your kids phones or wireless earbuds as birthday gifts by the way, one of them could be me and I already can't take this ♥♥♥♥ anymore. Unfortunately, there's only one era enwhich you can be so easily headshot by Samsung products and that's the modern age. My only consolation in this endless wheel of South Korean torture is the game Devil Engine, but that releases eight years after Crimzon Clover so I have to settle for this instead a lot of the time and pray that I get a beta code for that other game. I believe I've racked up about ten thousand hours or more on Crimzon Clover at this point which obviously doesn't show up here because reusing passwords after reincarnating, as we all know, is a breach of cosmic law. If you ever hear parents bragging about how their children are real computah guys, or how their kids aren't willing to leave the basement and get a job or call them with the nice new cellphones they bought them, think of me and how much I'm going through. You have no idea just how hard it is to be me. I'm fifteen again already, Samsung's price is soaring. To investors that's the sound of fortune, but to me those are the bells of death.

Very fun bullet hell with some gimmiky bosses that are kinda cheap. Boss 2 and the final boss have some cheap garbage free hit ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ that should be redesigned and/or trash canned. Besides that, its a very skill based game thats fun and causes irregular heart beats. Looking forward to 1cc'ing this game when i feel like beating my head against a wall for some particular reason.

it is not my place to speak of such games, but this one is SCREAMS QUALITY that i can say for sure