John Bilbo
Gold Member
Devil Blade Reboot NeoGAF |OT|
RELEASE DATE:
23 May, 2024
DEVELOPED & PUBLISHED BY:
Shigatake Games
PLATFORM:
Steam
SOUNDTRACK BY:
hasu
About
Devil Blade, a 1996 indie shmup released only in Japan, has received a full remake almost a quarter century later by the original creator, taking advantage of the latest technology.The solo developer of Devil Blade Reboot who is known as Shigatake works also as graphic designer in the firm Vanillaware known for their striking and unique visuals.
Story
2XXX A.D. The world has been divided into two nations, Eminence and Zork. The nations have entered a bitter war, throwing the world into complete chaos.Staring into the face of overwhelming military power, Eminence devises a plan to pierce through the Zork army and strike at its leader.
The Shining. A small, high-powered fighter. Eminence's last trump card, created only to carry out this final desperate mission.
The final battle begins now.
Features
The scoring in Devil Blade Reboot focuses directly on killing the enemies while flying as close to them as possible. This is called point blanking. If you choose to ignore scoring and focus only on survival you can clear the game much more easily.Survival and scoring higher create an itching feeling for the player: do I play it safe and kill the enemies from further away or do I go for a much closer kill for gaining a higher score but risk dying myself?
Point blanking enemies will activate the berserk mode. In berserk mode you gain a lot more points for killing enemies BUT the enemies also become tougher AND have more complex attack and bullet patterns for you to dodge!
The player ship has two different kinds of shots which both deal the equal amount of damage. Depending on the situation one of them will top the other however: the wide shot covers a vast amount of screen space and allows a fast movement speed and the narrow shot is more precise with a slower player ship movement speed allowing easier weaving between the bullets.
The game offers a good replay system and stage select. Online leaderboards are also available.
Retro Mode
While the enhancements of Reboot are visually stunning, some may want to look back in history to see the origins of Devil Blade.Included as an unlockable with the in-game currency gained from completing stages is an Arrange mode of the original "Devil Blade" created in Dezaemon+ in 1996 with the Berserk system added but the original atmosphere preserved.
It is notable that the retro mode is not a one to one recreation of the original game.
It appears I made a mistake. The original game is not available for purchase. Only the previous version of the original development tool is available for purchase on Nintendo Switch 2 and Playstation 5. The original game was developed with Dezaemon+.
The original game can be found only on the original PlayStation via the Dezaemon Kids! compilation, Dezaemon Select 100 disc released in 1996.
Console Archives Dezaemon | Console Archives | HAMSTER Corporation
"Dezaemon" was released by ATHENA in 1991 for an 8-bit home console.It is a game creation tool that allows you to produce your very own original shooting game.You can design characters and backgrounds using pixel art, compose music with an 8-bit sound engine, and create a wide variety of enemy...
Specs
・Ultra-hardcore, 100% pure, mechanics-focused vertical scrolling shmup・Two types of shots + bombs - back to basics
・Berserk System increases score when enemies are destroyed nearby
・Story mode to play through all 6 stages in order
・Stage select to choose any stage to replay
・Four levels of difficulty that can be changed at the player's discretion
・Retro Mode that recreates the original Dezaemon+ version is included
・Unlockables that reward repeat playthroughs
・STEAM achievements and global rankings
・Multilingual localization handled by passionate shmup fans
・Heavily customizable settings to tune the game to your liking
Trailers:
Screenshots & GIFs
Critical & Player Reception:
Article: With its engaging gameplay loop, instant accessibility, potential for intense high-level play and blistering presentation, Devil Blade Reboot is a legitimate shmup masterpiece and one of the best examples of the genre we've experienced in quite some time – and it runs flawlessly on the Steam Deck. Make sure you pick it up.
Article: Devil Blade Reboot may only be five stages long, but it's five stages of shmupping perfection. I love it. It's made me swear in frustration at my own mistakes, what was almost a no-miss run ruined by a careless error. It's made me smile when a brave, skilful, stupid, move of mine—probably involving getting really close to a whole bunch of giant lasers I could've avoided entirely—paid off. It's rolled the credits and told me I was all done, but left me itching for another go.
There are a lot of shmups on Steam, covering all sorts of subgenres, eras, developers, and price points. I can't think of a single one that's definitively better than this though.
OP's notes
Devil Blade Reboot is an audiovisual spectacle with a very easily understandable scoring and survival system.The game has something to offer for everyone interested in shmups:
- For total beginners or the ones just wanting to dip their toes into the genre or experience the rollercoaster ride the easy difficulty is the right choice.
- If you have some experience in shooting games and navigating a ship around bullet patterns normal difficulty is for you.
- If you are skilled in the genre and seek a decent challenge you have to train a bit for, there is the hard mode.
- For those seeking to conquer the mountain and squeeze every last drop out of this game and themselves the inferno mode is a must.
Hard difficulty has the usual shield drops but you cannot refresh the shield using bombs.
In inferno mode the player has no bombs or shields. The player also has to point blank most enemies to keep their berserk mode going. Without the berserk mode in inferno difficulty you will die: In this mode the way you score points and survive go hand in hand.
I like the game although I find the scoring system straightforward and simple.
The developer has confirmed to be working on a new extra mode for the game. The extra mode will focus more on scoring:
I had fun creating the low poly ship in picoCAD2 for the banner animation. Here it is spinning around:
Other shmup adjacent topics:
- ZeroRanger OT
- Sophstar OT
- Night Striker Gear OT
- The Schmup of the year has landed!- Earthion!
- Shmups Are The Best Genre You Don't Play
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