Darklaga: Cannonball Symphony by int13,
Price: $9.95
Reviewed November 2004 by Tony Peak
While Shoot‘em-up games have always been a niche genre
compared to (and often confused for) First Person Shooters,
or even RPGs, there’s a sub-genre of shooters that may
be even rarer: the maniac shooter. Maniac Shooters are typically
Japanese made or inspired, fast paced, hundred to one odds
at any given moment, adrenaline fests. With these shooters
it’s not always the best visuals that win the players,
but the hardest challenge and the most insane matrixes of bullets
and patterns to dodge through.
It’s in this great tradition that int13’s
Darklaga: Cannonball Symphony proudly follows. If you’re
worried int13 is just trying to make a quick buck off of this
fine genre, don’t be. Darklaga’s clearly is an
original homage, thankfully not just a rip-off. From the Kanji
during each fury attack (which says simply “Gekido” or “Rage”,
by the way) to the hidden game modes with names like ‘Oldschool’ and ‘Warning
Forever’, it’s quite clear Darklaga is the work
of fans. While you’ll need to be pretty well versed to
fully appreciate all of the subtle references, there’s
plenty here for new comers and casual players as well.
For the more elite players, int13 has
made sure you’ll
be kept busy. Aside from the standard normal mode (which is
no cake walk by any means), a hard and extreme difficulty with
twice as tough enemies, tougher bullet patterns, and harder
boss fights ensures that plenty of challenge remains. Normal
mode took me nearly a week to finish with confidence, and extreme
nearly makes you start your training over again. Each win unlocks
new modes and challenges, including secret levels, new game
types like time attack and boss challenge, and secret options.
While the game can certainly be played
with the hardware controls, you’d probably need a thumb of the gods to do it. On
the easier levels it’s no sweat, but once the bullets
start flying at maniac shooter level, you’ll really need
the precision of stylus control. Int13 has made a wonderful
stylus control system that even I, despite being a die hard
d-pad user, fully recommend. Response is fast and extremely
accurate, and should you drag too fast a ghost representation
of the ship shows where the actual ship is going to follow.
The one, singular complaint I have with stylus control is that
if you slide over the fury bar when it’s full, you will
unleash a fury attack. This is often not in your best interest,
and I’ve accidentally hit it far more times than I’d
like.
The graphics are amazing, but this
time for reasons other than the other shooters of late. Compared
to the highly detailed semi-3D lands of Sky Force, or the
amazing sprite and character art of Siberian Strike X, Darklaga
takes a slightly different, almost more arcade route. The
backgrounds are more or less seamless patterns that stream
at a very fast rate to represent the area, as in space, tech
corridor, etc. The enemy sprites are all detailed and unique,
but even among the bosses you really won’t find the traditional 5 layered detailed
monstrosities. Where Darklaga shows its real beauty is how
it all comes together in motion, with swarms of brightly colored
attacks and squadrons of enemies constantly on the move. The
game’s best art and visual impact comes from the player
and enemy attack patterns, as well as the attention to detail
in small areas like enemy explosions. Only the planets were
rather sloppily rendered with massive over bump mapping and
an obvious spotlight shine, but they still look good enough
to pass.
Finally, in these days where I’m of
the opinion that Pocket PC game soundtracks just aren’t
going far enough, it’s great to come across a high energy
score like Darklaga’s.
Rich, detailed, and perfectly fitting the pace of the game,
int13 went the extra mile with their soundtrack and sound effects
and it shows. From the voices announcing every pickup to the
subtle sound of every shot and explosion, it's a great
mix.
So while there may be a few gripes
here and there, overall Darklaga has everything it needs
to be one of the best shooters to date on the Pocket PC.
A fair learning curve, tons of unlockables, and the difficulty
to last even seasoned players like myself weeks is sure to
satisfy gamers across the board. Darklaga comes in at a price
that can’t be beat, so if you love
maniac shooters then this one’s a must own. If you don’t
yet know the genre, then let Darklaga make you a fan and make
all regular Shoot 'em-ups seem tame.
Playing Hints and Tips
- Rockets are nice at times not only for their high damage
and spread, but because they launch to the side, helping
to keep enemies from ramming you.
- I personally find the best combo
throughout the game to be Peacemaker, Blades, Fury (M,
B, F) Peacemaker will ensure you’re hitting targets
while dodging, Blades will help you hit more enemies at
once, and fury will keep you alive far longer than shield.
- I highly recommend you do not use fury attacks at all.
If your fury meter is charged, you will not lose a life when
hit by instead only a 1/3 of the charge. Keep your fury at
max always and use it as a shield. Using a fury attack drains
all energy, and leaves you open to losing several lives quickly
afterward before you can recharge. Avoid it!
- As far as I can tell, the hitbox (the only vulnerable part
of your ship) is the blue cockpit. Nothing else matters,
so when dodging only focus on that. Bullets hitting any other
part of the ship give a graze bonus, getting a graze higher
than 20 kicks your weapons into overdrive, the same as picking
up a [!] box. Always try for this, especially when swamped
with bullets and when fighting bosses, it can be your best
escape and far safer than fury attacks.
- Always keep on the move. If the
enemies swarm too much or get too close for you to see
their shots, just move. One thing you can always take for
granted: Wherever they are, they’re aiming for you. Around the 10 th level on normal
difficulty you’ll come across single ships that are
incredible hard to kill, and fire a barrage of player-seeking
tiny blue bullets. To dodge this, stay near the bottom center
at first, then quickly zip to mid-left. The bullets will
try to follow, slowing them down. Quickly zip back down to
bottom-center under them, and up to the mid-right. Keep repeating
this U shaped motion, flying through openings it creates
in the pattern.
- Unless a fix comes out to disable clicking the fury bar
by mistake, avoid the lower left corner of the screen when
fleeing from a barrage of bullets in a panic. Only sorrow
awaits you there, as if you accidentally launch a fury in
the heat of the later levels, you can almost be sure to lose
a few lives before you can recharge.
- *slight spoiler tactic* When fighting
the final boss, and your weapon resets to back default,
don’t try to beat
it right out. You’ll notice your fury bar charging.
Dodge for as long as you can while it charges, then unleash
a special fury attack to win. So far as I know, this is the
only way to beat it. It’s health will fully recharge
otherwise once it’s weak.
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