sewer. Whether a ham-fisted portmanteau of Darius and Gradius, or in relation to the game’s core mechanics, which is a silly name any way you look at it. Team Ladybug, a developer based in Japan, is known for pretty good software lately Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder LabyrinthThe heavy shooter game on Switch has had to wait eight months since the game was released on Steam, but will it live up to the hype?
Drainus pays homage to many genres of classics; a touch of Down border in its ship functions and styling, a nod to einander the aesthetics of its second stage train attack, and a lot Gradius DRAW during its transformation boss stages. An influence heavily advertised in previews, inexplicably, is Ikaruga, as if it were the only other title in the genre that the mainstream gaming press had ever heard of. Although Drainus has a system to absorb enemy fire that can respond with a salvo of directed lasers, the execution here has more in common with Takumi. wings than Treasure’s puzzle-shmup combination, making it a largely misleading comparison.
Drainus has a weird typo, whose tutorial section doesn’t teach you about laser bombs, health, or quick-access train speed adjustments (done with the button on the left shoulder). Though confusing at first, it’s still a remarkable piece of work: bold, daring, incredibly creative, and utterly beautiful.
While the absorb and reflector functions are simple enough to understand, perfecting its timing takes practice, especially when you’re looking for a spot to inhale in the middle of a screen of bullets. A continuous, satisfying, rhythmic engagement, the overall stage design takes into account every aspect of its capabilities, requiring its use not only to wipe out enemy fire but also to navigate. through the laser wheels, the inner maze and to survive the massive cannon attacks. Boss subplots open up, revealing laser links and bridges to attract or move through, and stage obstacles often require timely use to survive the required reel. For tighter segments that require precise movement, you can slow down the train using the button on the right shoulder. This creativity is what makes everything work. Similarly, Drainus is pure action, requiring reflexes and muscle memory rather than memorizing strategies to get through.
On the surface, it’s a work of art, running 60 frames smoothly both in handheld and docked modes. Rarely has a 2D shooting game been blessed with such breathtaking visuals – and the time has come. Modern hardware is capable of producing a graphical performance without overblowing or using raw, misplaced content. Drainus, like Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth, transforms sharp detail and beautiful animation into an awe-inspiring spectacle, its style unlike any other. phalanx on X68000.
The first stage you charge from a frayed sand tube, the landscape rotates 360 degrees, before you cross a desert surface and plunge into a road of rage-esque dust storm. From there, you ascend to a rainy sky, drops of water rolling across the screen, and then into space, where the planet below sinks into oblivion, leaving you to navigate a smoldering asteroid field. after it appeared. That is quite something.
Boss and mid boss are great assemblages of cyborg dragons, transforming fortresses, and even a 2001 monolith, many of which provide spin-offs to the strip and multiple stages. not since Shiny silver gun Have we ever witnessed such a creative march against large-scale enemies, and Drainus isn’t afraid to borrow a few ideas. There are typical shooting games, such as the giant mothership attack, where you punch inside to destroy the core, but it’s done in a whole new way.
In terms of gameplay, however, there are some details that won’t immediately appeal to shooter game purists. In terms of scoring, there are certainly methods to win more digits than the next best player, but at the same time pass up opportunities to perfect a dedicated system. Also, your score counter is only reduced with resuming and there is no indication of the online leaderboard (yet).
Drainus also has a weapon upgrade structure that requires a mid-game pause. While a pause in action is often frowned upon by shooting game enthusiasts, it’s time to embrace a new way of working, and the ship fortification feature offers a unique dimension to travel. motion. However, Arcade Mode restricts upgrades to periods between stages, which should probably be a default option instead of being locked until you’ve completed two rounds of the game.
The energy boxes accumulated during play act as a form of currency. In your pause screen is a giant menu of boot and power-on options. Initially, your ship has three tiles, and you can apply your newly acquired weapon to the available tiles in the order you choose. During the game, choosing power-up symbols will activate each slot in ascending order, automatically activating their applied weapon. These tiles also double the health of your ship, meaning eating a bullet will drop one tile and fall back to the next weapon. When you’re teetering on the last active slot with a weak pea shooter, you’re in the precarious position of nearly dying on impact for fear that you might power up again. It’s a system that incentivizes you not to get hurt, especially if you use your best weapons sensibly for the highest possible position. There are laser firing powers and upgrades, optional lineups, and more trinkets to buy and configure, and half the game depends on how and when you spend your money. It is quite possible, depending on skill, to go through several stages without buying anything, and then win a huge bonus all at once. Each player will determine their own personal preferences, but it will take a lot of play before you know what’s right for you, and due to the rather limited description, it takes a while to figure out all the ones. what it does.
Perhaps an obvious problem for purists is that the default and even difficulty difficulties are too leisurely. While admittedly seasoned in the genre, we hit a clear single-credits, two-round result on our sixth attempt. And, while the second loop gets tougher, it’s more gentle by retaining all your life and strength, while giving you even more powerful weapon options. . Saying it’s too easy may not be entirely fair, but for some it certainly is. However, completing both rounds and the final boss will actually unlock additional modes, including a “Ridiculous” difficulty setting for advanced players to participate in.
Drainus never reached the adrenaline high of Andro Dunos 2, partly because the music — though still good — isn’t on the same level, and the overall climax nature of things isn’t quite as satisfying. Its dominant point is its desire to impress. When you puncture the internals of the mothership, detonating giant, slow-moving structures with power-ups and heat-ups, it really does work. The visual feedback is strong enough and the constant pressure to work with the bullet absorption creates a sense of layered engagement that feels more engaging than most shooter gimmicks.
Conclusion
Team Ladybug is really showing off its programming expertise with Drainus. It’s dangerous and brave to try a shooting game on the scale of Gradius V or Einander, but for the most part, the developer succeeds convincingly. It’s far from perfect, arguably too easy, and various aspects that will suit some players better than others. But, at least, it’s a breathtaking sci-fi action epic that’s constantly evolving, inventing, and performing. In the end, Drainus will land well with both hardcore and casual players.
