Star Hunter DX

Star Hunter DX is a considerable improvement from 1CC Games' previous shmup, Space Moth DX. This one is much more polished and has a really solid scoring system to boot.

Star Hunter has the feel of a proper vertical shooter but the presentation is slightly off. The graphics are there, the sound is passable and sometimes (not often) the patterns break out into the satisfying flow state that I come for in these games. There's not a ton of extra modes, but enough content to justify the price. I appreciate the visual style although I wish the portraits were more serious looking? I'm on board with the design decision to make the action fast paced. Your ships base speed is kindof slow, which is fine 90% of the time but annoying when the game throws large projectile at you. Graphics make up a huge part of how playable these games are. A game doesn't need to show off and be flashy, but you do have to be able to clearly identify whats a bullet, what's a background asset and (relevantly) what's a particle effect. This game is close to the mark, but has a few issues. Stage 3 plays fine, but that water strobe is HARSH on the eyes and it has a pink background. The bullets in this game are....pink. The blue cubes that are just there to demonstrate your stupid bomb gauge filling move just like bullets and clutter the already packed screen. I think this might come down to what style of shooter you're looking for. The store page calls it old school hard, but 'bullet time' and endless screen nukes don't scream old school gameplay. People who love modern post touhou bullet hells with a gameplay loop of limping through bullet grazes to fill up your 30 second OP GOD MODE meter will like this. People looking to unravel the secrets of every screen with a predictable weapon may not. I just find myself waiting for the next cheap death knowing there is no way in hell I'll remember what to do next time. Patterns exist in this game that are essentially impossible to beat without using your screen nuke.

Unlike the other SHMUPs from this dev (the Space Moth ones), this one is horizontal and makes better use of the screen resolution, so it's pretty good. The visuals are nice in general, and there are also some cool cutscenes. In terms of gameplay, you have three characters with two types of shot: one concentrated and one wider. These vary the speed of movement when used, allowing you to dodge with precision. The big downside is that it can be a bit unfair at times. There are certain attack patterns where you need to use two other types of ability to survive: a bomb that destroys surrounding projectiles and a slow-motion ability that, when you destroy an enemy, also destroys their projectiles. Another downside is the lack of online leaderboards, that would have been a nice addition. Overall, it's a cool game with decent quality and quite accessible when on sale, plus there's a demo available. [quote] [i] Check out [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/44959158-Critiques-Sans-Frontiers/] our curator page [/url] to discover more little underrated games like this one. [/i] [/quote]

I'm pretty hooked on this game! The scoring system is intuitive yet deep, and feels very fun. The bullet patterns are dense, but also pretty fast, so this game feels different from a lot of other bullet hell shmups. Heads up though! This game is tough! I've played a lot of shmups and even the easiest difficulty level in this game feels like a respectable challenge.

My first impressions video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mznpaE9ZvP0 Star Hunter DX is a game that feels like it would be right at home on a 16-bit console, or maybe more accurately on one of the CD add-ons for those given its soundtrack. This is a solid, tough as nails Bullet Hell shmup that brings some unique mechanics to the table but also has a couple of commonly expected features omitted. You'll play as one of 3 characters (only 1 unlocked at the start but the others are easy to get), each of which has their own strengths and weaknesses and you'll go through a series of relatively short stages, followed up by boss fights. The bosses are all very different and need very different strategies to take down. The first stage or two might seem relatively straightforward but things ramp up quickly and will get punishing fast. Even on the easiest difficulty, practice will be required to get through to the end. Thankfully, a very feature rich practice mode is offered to help you work on the sections that stump you without having to repeatedly play to that point. Where Star Hunter DX really innovates is in its combo and scoring systems. You combo increases by just killing enemies or grazing bullets but will drop quickly when you're not doing these things so you'll want to play how you handle multiple waves to ensure you keep it maxed. Bombs are available, though they only serve to clear an area around you ship, as opposed to the entire screen as is typical in most shmups. Killing enemies results in drops that when picked up, not only increase your score but also fill a meter that will give you additional bombs. You can carry a maximum of 3 and while you will get bonus points based on how many remain at the end of the level, since it can never be more than 3, you're encouraged to not hoard them. You also have a slow-mo ability that not only makes it easier to dodge but when active, also significantly increases the value of the point drops, making it easier to recharge bombs and get a higher score. There's also a meter under the score display that shows your progress to an extra life, which is a nice touch. The bullet patterns are complex, frantic and clearly had a lot of though put into them. They're very tough but also fair and will reward patience and practice. This is combined with a great, high-energy soundtrack. The notable omission from the game is online leaderboards and replays. This is a pretty standard feature in shmups these days and I think it's a pretty serious omission here, especially given the price. Cheating for leaderboards is a rampant problem on Steam but other developers have found ways to manage it and a replay system is not only valuable for players to learn from each other but helps make it obvious who is cheating and who isn't. There's also no multiplayer, which I don't personally mind but others might. Overall, this is a very high quality Bullet Hell shmup that would feel right at home on a 16-bit machine, in the best way. What it misses is easily made up by the cool innovations it brings. A solid addition to any shmup fiend's collection.

Горизонтальный буллет-хелл от авторов Space Moth DX, но в этот раз более интересный. Рисовка и саундтрек специфические, зато радует разнообразие механик. Есть замедление как в Espgaluda - оно расходует шкалу. Если во время замедления убить врага, то его пули превращаются в очки. Есть грейз, то есть когда находишься рядом с вражескими пулями, копится множитель и шкала бомбы. Взорвав бомбу, можно накопить шкалу замедления, но ещё она копится за уничтожение врагов и подбор астронавтов. В итоге игра проходится по следующему циклу - копим множитель, у которого максимальное значение 8, включаем замедление при максимальном множителе или во время опасности, стараемся находиться рядом с пулями. Как только замедление заканчивается, заново копим обнулившийся множитель, а если замедления не хватает в нужный момент, взрываем бомбу. Бомбу можно взорвать и во время замедления - тогда это даст очки, но не заполнит шкалу. Ну а очки здесь не только для хвастовства - частое и умелое применение максимального множителя позволит получить несколько дополнительных жизней, выдаваемых за очки. Три уровня сложности, три персонажа, из которых двоих надо открыть. Я прошёл за изначально открытого персонажа на максимальной сложности без продолжений. Их ограниченное количество, но на средней сложности со знанием механик можно достаточно быстро пройти игру и только на высокой приходится стараться. Режим тренировки с возможностью начать любой уровень с любой степенью заполненности шкалы прилагается.

３面までは楽しめましたが５面があまりにも酷すぎる。 画面の上下左右で反射する弾を連射してくる敵が大量に出現するという頭のおかしいステージ。 スコア稼ぎは結構面白そうな感じでしたが、５面を見た瞬間にやる気も失せました。

i have yet to find a spaceship shooter on par with Nebula Fighter 3D from 1997 its like megaman, meets bullet hell shoot em up 2.5/10 - ship move speed is so slow... - not much content here - i think this game only has five short levels.

Liked it at first but this type of shmup is way too fast and chaotic for me. My ship moves kinda slow and everything else is blazing fast, tons of ships, bullets, etc (and I'm playing on easy difficulty). It's a constant chaos, while having to simultaneously focus on bullet time to slow it down and graze against bullets to earn bombs (yes, really) to even make a dent.

Instant classic! The lads at 1CC have outdone themselves with this latest release. Space Moth was wonderful, but Star Hunter takes things into an entirely new space, while maintaining the integrity of their original design. The color palette is dead on; the character and story arcs are just enough to pull one into the game; and the gameplay (as expected) is damn near perfect. If you liked the vibe of Space Moth, this brings the same experience but with a far more refined and well-designed finish. Awesome.