Even as far as most bullet hell games go,∀kashicverse -Malicious Wake- dumps an absurd amount of shots on you from the start and never stops.
I am used to a certain pace at the start of most games. Even Bullet Hell shmups usually ease you into the game with a few enemies and shots before ramping things up. I was dead in a few seconds while playing this game as the opening squad of enemies just lit up every corner of the screen, leaving almost no place to hide. Sure, a skilled player could probably weave through that shower of shots, but I had been playing for maybe three seconds and was already completely overwhelmed.
The game isn’t so cruel to have you die in a single one of those shots, though. You do have a shield that will absorb a few shots before it breaks open, leaving you vulnerable to that single shot death. You just need to avoid most of the gunfire and you should be all right. As long as you aren’t getting hit, your shield slowly charges, which is nice. It charges faster if you open it up and leave yourself vulnerable, though, so you can get back in the fight faster if you take massive risks. Getting to know how to manipulate this shield is a big part of the game, and ensures some truly tense starship battles.
You have quite a few offensive abilities that will save you some shield power, too. Your basic gun fires a massive array of shots of your own, and you can steadily build power in one of several special weapons that will clear bullets and do big damage to enemies. And they alleviate some of the on-screen chaos, which is nice.
∀kashicverse -Malicious Wake- offers a steep challenge for anyone looking to take it on, but it was undeniably satisfying to take it on and survive for any amount of time for me.
∀kashicverse -Malicious Wake- is available now on Steam Early Access.
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