FRCTL

1.6 mil score// the upgrades are bad. the combination of some remove others. the enemies are so boring theres only like 5 types and one boss. could go places if enemies and player speeds were the same. you have A bullet or A laser. you can make so MANY types of enemies. the upgrades need work.

the dev said he'd do terrible terrible things to me if I didn't give a good review

FRCTL is a tiny arcade shooter that keeps things simple and focuses almost entirely on fast action. I control a small spacecraft while geometric enemies come at me in waves, and the main goal is to survive long enough to reach the boss at 100,000 points. I like how quickly it gets going because there is very little getting in the way of the actual gameplay. I can start a run, move around, shoot things and immediately understand what I am supposed to be doing. The combo system is probably my favourite part. I am not just trying to destroy enemies as quickly as possible. I want to keep the chain going so I can build up a much higher score, which makes positioning and timing more important. The enemies also have different behaviours, so I cannot completely switch my brain off and just hold down the attack button. When I get into a good rhythm and manage to keep a combo alive for a while, the game becomes much more satisfying than the simple presentation initially suggests. I also like the upgrade system because it gives each run a little more direction. I can choose upgrades as I progress, which means I have to decide what fits the way I am playing rather than simply getting the exact same setup every time. The bullet hell elements make these choices useful because surviving becomes more difficult as the run continues. The game also has bullet time, which gives me another way to deal with situations where the screen starts getting crowded. It is a small system, but it adds some breathing room when things become hectic. The biggest weakness for me is the amount of content. FRCTL is deliberately tiny, and even the developer describes it as a small project that is still being expanded. There is a complete run through to the boss, but there are not a huge number of enemy types, upgrade paths or bosses at this point. That means I can understand most of what the game has to offer fairly quickly. I do not think that is a major problem for something that is completely free, but it does stop me from treating it as a game I can spend hours playing without getting familiar with everything. The minimalist presentation works well enough for the type of game this is. The geometric enemies make it easy for me to see what is happening, which is important when bullets and enemies start filling the screen. I would not say the visuals are particularly memorable, but they do their job and keep the focus on the action. I also appreciate that there is no unnecessary story or complicated system trying to distract me from the arcade gameplay. It knows that its main appeal is getting a little better with every run. Overall, FRCTL is a small but enjoyable arcade shooter that I think gets the important things right. I like the fast movement, enemy variety, combo system, upgrades and the simple goal of pushing my score high enough to reach the boss. The limited content is definitely noticeable, especially once I have played enough runs to understand the main systems, but I have to judge it as the free and very small game that it is. For me, it is an easy game to pick up when I want a quick action fix, and there is enough underneath the simple presentation to make those short runs worthwhile. Rating: 6.7/10