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Progear / Storm of Progia |
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2001 Capcom / Cave
This is a difficult review to write. On the one hand, Progear is a pretty nice shooter in its own right, with a relatively unique control system, wonderful presentation and some cool new ideas. On the other, those new ideas don't really work, and it's fairly clear which areas were done by Capcom, and which bits were contributed by Cave.
Progear is a horizontally-scrolling bullet-curtain shooter with an immediately appealing steampunk anime theme reminiscent of Hayou Miyazaki's work (think Laputa). The presentation is top-notch, and there's a pleasing amount of action on-screen at any given time.
Anyway, on to the mechanics and flaws therein - at the beginning of the game, you'll choose a ship (with pilot) and a gunner (which affects how your homing shots work). There are two buttons, for shots and bombs. Pressing the shot button fires a standard shot (no shit, Sherlock) and holding it down rapid-fires smaller shots while the the gunner fires her weapons. The gunner's projectiles target enemies automatically, giving you far less to worry about. The craft's movement slows down to about two thirds of its standard speed when the shot button is held down, but that's seldom a deterrent to keeping it pressed. What does serve as a deterrent comes in an addition to the scoring system. Destroyed enemies leave behind dozens of little icons, which can be picked up for a bonus - or, by releasing the shot button and holding it down again, they can be automatically sucked towards your craft.
On paper, this sounds like a pretty nice, intuitive and pleasingly different control mechanism. In practice, it's where the problems start. By having the peripheral enemies pretty well automatically destroyed by the gunner, Capcom have effectively reduced the game to a practice in avoiding enemy fire, rather than evading and returning.
Nowhere is this flaw more apparent than in the vertically-scrolling level. Yeah, a vertically-scrolling level in a horizontal shooter - sounds delightful, until it becomes clear that your craft can still only fire from left to right, and the gunners are now your main weapon, effectively making the return of fire completely automatic. The vertical level is in itself another example of a good idea, poorly executed.
I've said it before in my review of Hyper Duel, and I'll say it again now - it's very, very hard to find originality in scrolling shooters, so I'm thankful of it when I see it. Capcom should be applauded for trying a new idea, even if it just didn't work - after all, it's very, very rare that Capcom have any new ideas at all.
Hit "Read More" for the final judgement and scores.
FUN
3. I dithered between a 4 and a 3, but to be honest, given that a major part of what makes a shmup a shmup had been toned down so brutally, I had a harder time finishing the game than I did with more worthy shmups in spite of this game's other charms.
NOTABILITY
2. Fine ideas, that just don't work.
PRESENTATION
5. Wonderfully detailed and beautiful backdrops and settings, manually-drawn sprite graphics, chunky explosions, and hypnotic, mesmerising bullet patterns. Even the forgettable background music can't keep this one from getting top marks.
ADDICTION
3. I played all the way through, which is pretty standard for me on most shmups. However, by the end I was ready to call it a day. Fortunately the game only had five levels anyway.
SURVIVAL
3. Again, dithering between a three and a four, here. On the one hand, it's a little too hardcore for casual Western tastes, there are some flaws that really do prove irritating, and only time will tell whether the graphics age well (although I suspect they will, being well-drawn sprite graphics and thus kinda timeless). On the other, it's well-presented and a lot of fun to play, for the first few levels anyway. Stick it in an arcade today and it'll probably take a few quid, but I wouldn't want to bet either way on whether it'll still make money in ten years' time.
OVERALL
(3+2+5+3+3)/5 = 3.2. It's a shame to give this game such a middle-of-the-road score given the care and attention that has gone into its presentation and its bravery for trying new ideas, but I can't overlook the flaws in gameplay. And let's face it, playability is what it all comes down to.
This is a difficult review to write. On the one hand, Progear is a pretty nice shooter in its own right, with a relatively unique control system, wonderful presentation and some cool new ideas. On the other, those new ideas don't really work, and it's fairly clear which areas were done by Capcom, and which bits were contributed by Cave.
Progear is a horizontally-scrolling bullet-curtain shooter with an immediately appealing steampunk anime theme reminiscent of Hayou Miyazaki's work (think Laputa). The presentation is top-notch, and there's a pleasing amount of action on-screen at any given time.
Anyway, on to the mechanics and flaws therein - at the beginning of the game, you'll choose a ship (with pilot) and a gunner (which affects how your homing shots work). There are two buttons, for shots and bombs. Pressing the shot button fires a standard shot (no shit, Sherlock) and holding it down rapid-fires smaller shots while the the gunner fires her weapons. The gunner's projectiles target enemies automatically, giving you far less to worry about. The craft's movement slows down to about two thirds of its standard speed when the shot button is held down, but that's seldom a deterrent to keeping it pressed. What does serve as a deterrent comes in an addition to the scoring system. Destroyed enemies leave behind dozens of little icons, which can be picked up for a bonus - or, by releasing the shot button and holding it down again, they can be automatically sucked towards your craft.
On paper, this sounds like a pretty nice, intuitive and pleasingly different control mechanism. In practice, it's where the problems start. By having the peripheral enemies pretty well automatically destroyed by the gunner, Capcom have effectively reduced the game to a practice in avoiding enemy fire, rather than evading and returning.
Nowhere is this flaw more apparent than in the vertically-scrolling level. Yeah, a vertically-scrolling level in a horizontal shooter - sounds delightful, until it becomes clear that your craft can still only fire from left to right, and the gunners are now your main weapon, effectively making the return of fire completely automatic. The vertical level is in itself another example of a good idea, poorly executed.
I've said it before in my review of Hyper Duel, and I'll say it again now - it's very, very hard to find originality in scrolling shooters, so I'm thankful of it when I see it. Capcom should be applauded for trying a new idea, even if it just didn't work - after all, it's very, very rare that Capcom have any new ideas at all.
Hit "Read More" for the final judgement and scores.
FUN
3. I dithered between a 4 and a 3, but to be honest, given that a major part of what makes a shmup a shmup had been toned down so brutally, I had a harder time finishing the game than I did with more worthy shmups in spite of this game's other charms.
NOTABILITY
2. Fine ideas, that just don't work.
PRESENTATION
5. Wonderfully detailed and beautiful backdrops and settings, manually-drawn sprite graphics, chunky explosions, and hypnotic, mesmerising bullet patterns. Even the forgettable background music can't keep this one from getting top marks.
ADDICTION
3. I played all the way through, which is pretty standard for me on most shmups. However, by the end I was ready to call it a day. Fortunately the game only had five levels anyway.
SURVIVAL
3. Again, dithering between a three and a four, here. On the one hand, it's a little too hardcore for casual Western tastes, there are some flaws that really do prove irritating, and only time will tell whether the graphics age well (although I suspect they will, being well-drawn sprite graphics and thus kinda timeless). On the other, it's well-presented and a lot of fun to play, for the first few levels anyway. Stick it in an arcade today and it'll probably take a few quid, but I wouldn't want to bet either way on whether it'll still make money in ten years' time.
OVERALL
(3+2+5+3+3)/5 = 3.2. It's a shame to give this game such a middle-of-the-road score given the care and attention that has gone into its presentation and its bravery for trying new ideas, but I can't overlook the flaws in gameplay. And let's face it, playability is what it all comes down to.
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