DonPachi REVIEW

I like to travel to the future to shoot things. Armed to the gills in my ship, I like to shoot down others… and watch them explode… Okay, so I just made all of that up. But in truth, I have the game “DonPachi” to suffice my needs.  Full review after the jump.

DonPachi is a Bullet-Hell Shoot-Em-Up (Shmup) developed by Cave, and produced by Atlus. It was released originally in arcades in 1995, but saw ports to the Sega Saturn and PlayStation in 1996.

The premise of DonPachi is different than the numerous sequels of DonPachi. The objective of the player is to go through an 8 year long training mission (comprised of 5 different environments). If the player proves themselves worthy by surviving the training mission, they may be allowed to enter the infamous “DonPachi Squadron” (A common theme in all the games).

What makes the game bizarre (other than the enemies and crazy bullets) is the unexpected plot twist: the people you were fighting and killing were your comrades who sacrificed themselves so you could pass the training exercise.

The gameplay is simple; shoot everything that moves. After inserting coins, you can choose 1 of 3 ships, each varying in their style of shooting and appearance. The different styles of shooting include a way shot that covers more distance, but is less powerful, and a near shot that is more linear and is more powerful.

The game is narrated by someone you assume is a squad leader due to the player being called “Kid”. No matter what the version the game is, the announcer is always an english speaking guy.

Levels can vary in length. Some are pretty short, and others will make you say “When will this ever end?!”. Enemies are always coming at you from the top of the screen because it is a vertical oriented shooter. Enemies in the beginning of the game come in small amounts, but as you progress throughout the game, the enemies come in hoards. The bullet density also increases with the game.

There are a total of 5 levels. Each level has a ridiculous end boss that will likely kill you in one hit. This is only tradition for most bullet hell shooters like DonPachi. After the player completes all five levels, they have to replay them all over again on a higher difficulty to completely beat the game. This is known as a 2nd round or 2nd loop. In this 2nd loop, the enemies are in greater amounts and will fire more projectiles at the player.

The sound design is good in DonPachi, but the later titles in the series have better tunes. Most of the time, the same song won’t be used twice (unless you count the second loop), creating a feel of diversity in the game.

Graphics are very normal at first. There are a few enemies on the first screen of the first level that you shoot down within seconds. Then as the game progresses on, it starts to get very bullet-hell-esque. Everything is flying everywhere and you can’t discern what was a power up and what was an enemy bullet. The over graphical setup of the game is expected for it’s time. Compared to it’s newer titles, this is the ugliest of the DonPachi games.

All in all, DonPachi is a good, classic  shmup. And with like all shmups, it should have its niche within someone’s heart.

Screenshot ATTACK!!!!

First Level Shmupping	Boss Fight!
HOLY CRAP	Some bullets for you…