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Bullet Candy |
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Developer: Charlie Games Publisher: Charlie Games Genre: Action > Shooter Released: May 14, 2006 Players: 1 |
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Bullet Candy is pretty much exactly what it says it is and I admire it for that. It’s a game that knows its walking on ground that has been somewhat traveled before. Arcade style shooters are not new hat, and shooters like Bullet Candy are old school to the core. So, what to add? A bit of panache, that’s what.
Bullet Candy is a shooter that pays homage to games from back in the day, the days of Atari when polygons weren’t a stylistic decision, but the rule. Users got straight lines and they liked them, by gum! More than liking the look of these titles, however, what gamers kept coming back for was solid, fundamentally good gameplay. Bullet Candy takes that principle of good gameplay unfettered by complicated controls and environments and spruces it up for a new era.
The gamer controls a small, geometric ship. This ship, thankfully, is equipped with a blaster to take on the unending abstract hordes of enemy ships and obstacles that will stream onto the screen from level to level. Defeating all enemies on each level (with the level simply being the height and width of your screen) advances the gamer to the next, which is only different because of the enemies that inhabit it. Just like pinball, and all games before unlockable content made an appearance, Bullet Candy is all about the high score. With this in mind, more points are awarded to the gamer for nabbing bonus icons that float around the level, AND for lengthy runs of enemy kills without losing a ship. The more levels the gamer can get through without getting blowed up, the higher their score will rise. There’s even a button for “suicide� in the game because that death leaves point and weapon bonuses intact, whereas a kill by an enemy wipes that all away.
Which brings us to the issue of controls. The control scheme for Bullet Candy will almost universally start out feeling awkward to the gamer, but will become second nature quickly. Control movement with the keyboard, aiming with the mouse. The only reason this scheme may prove “difficult� is that the space is tight in Bullet Candy and movement must be spot on to dodge in and out of the barrage of enemy fire and enemy units. However, more than controls, the game itself is likely to obscure things to the gamer. This is at once part of the fun and part of the frustration. Trying to track your aim on a multitude of targets while keeping track of your tiny ship in a field of fire is both a huge challenge and huge reward (when successful) and a massive frustration (when you fail 12 times in a row).
Thankfully, Bullet Candy makes it easy to grab points, power-ups and extra lives. The game isn’t stingy and does do its best to help the gamer proceed without slimming down the challenge level at all. The arcade style game can be continued at ever fifth level, too, to help with progression. Though, for me the best method was to start a few levels back when things were easier to boost up extra lives and powerups so that I can get into my Bullet Candy groove.
And groove I did. The soundtrack for Bullet Candy is awesome. Right from the title screen I was ready to roll with the hip blend of techno and jazz that was being fed into my headphones. Bullet Candy is an excellent example of how a soundtrack can really complement a gameplay experience. I thought the two were suited wonderfully for one another.
All in all, Bullet Candy is a very well done retro shooter that is simply a lot of fun to play.
Graphics:
The look of Bullet Candy is as frantic as the play. There’s always a lot going on on-screen but I never detected a hint of slow-down. At times there can be so much going on that it can be hard to tell what’s happening, but that’s part of the appeal of the title. Anyone who is a fan of old school shooters will be familiar with this and anyone who is a fan of the punishing Ikaruga will say the same.
Sound:
The in-game sound was more or less simply there for me. There are laser sounds and the sounds of enemies being hit, but I spent all my time grooving around in my seat to the excellent tunes of the Bullet Candy soundtrack. Quality stuff.
Gameplay:
Very simple, very challenging. That’s the way to do it in my book. Controls can be configured to the user’s preference… and there are only 5 buttons to worry about. Six if you count the mouse. Easy to pick up and hard to put down, Bullet Candy does well to pretty up its graphics while keeping its gameplay basic to the core.
Concept:
Tried and true. No points for originality, but it’s hard to fault someone for taking an idea and doing it well.
Value:
Three unlockable game modes save Bullet Candy here. Only 50 levels to the main mode means that the single player game goes by fast for a skilled player, but extra modes mean extra play and that’s always a good thing.
Fun:
Bullet Candy is fun. Even when it’s frustrating, I know that all I need to do is start over again, five levels or so earlier and beef up and then come back to tackle it again. Gameplay is fast and frantic and always exciting to look at.
Overall:
Any fan of old school shooters will love Bullet Candy and for anyone not familiar with the style, Bullet Candy is a worthy introduction to a classic genre.
Bullet Candy is a shooter that pays homage to games from back in the day, the days of Atari when polygons weren’t a stylistic decision, but the rule. Users got straight lines and they liked them, by gum! More than liking the look of these titles, however, what gamers kept coming back for was solid, fundamentally good gameplay. Bullet Candy takes that principle of good gameplay unfettered by complicated controls and environments and spruces it up for a new era.
The gamer controls a small, geometric ship. This ship, thankfully, is equipped with a blaster to take on the unending abstract hordes of enemy ships and obstacles that will stream onto the screen from level to level. Defeating all enemies on each level (with the level simply being the height and width of your screen) advances the gamer to the next, which is only different because of the enemies that inhabit it. Just like pinball, and all games before unlockable content made an appearance, Bullet Candy is all about the high score. With this in mind, more points are awarded to the gamer for nabbing bonus icons that float around the level, AND for lengthy runs of enemy kills without losing a ship. The more levels the gamer can get through without getting blowed up, the higher their score will rise. There’s even a button for “suicide� in the game because that death leaves point and weapon bonuses intact, whereas a kill by an enemy wipes that all away.
Which brings us to the issue of controls. The control scheme for Bullet Candy will almost universally start out feeling awkward to the gamer, but will become second nature quickly. Control movement with the keyboard, aiming with the mouse. The only reason this scheme may prove “difficult� is that the space is tight in Bullet Candy and movement must be spot on to dodge in and out of the barrage of enemy fire and enemy units. However, more than controls, the game itself is likely to obscure things to the gamer. This is at once part of the fun and part of the frustration. Trying to track your aim on a multitude of targets while keeping track of your tiny ship in a field of fire is both a huge challenge and huge reward (when successful) and a massive frustration (when you fail 12 times in a row).
Thankfully, Bullet Candy makes it easy to grab points, power-ups and extra lives. The game isn’t stingy and does do its best to help the gamer proceed without slimming down the challenge level at all. The arcade style game can be continued at ever fifth level, too, to help with progression. Though, for me the best method was to start a few levels back when things were easier to boost up extra lives and powerups so that I can get into my Bullet Candy groove.
And groove I did. The soundtrack for Bullet Candy is awesome. Right from the title screen I was ready to roll with the hip blend of techno and jazz that was being fed into my headphones. Bullet Candy is an excellent example of how a soundtrack can really complement a gameplay experience. I thought the two were suited wonderfully for one another.
All in all, Bullet Candy is a very well done retro shooter that is simply a lot of fun to play.
Graphics:
The look of Bullet Candy is as frantic as the play. There’s always a lot going on on-screen but I never detected a hint of slow-down. At times there can be so much going on that it can be hard to tell what’s happening, but that’s part of the appeal of the title. Anyone who is a fan of old school shooters will be familiar with this and anyone who is a fan of the punishing Ikaruga will say the same.
Sound:
The in-game sound was more or less simply there for me. There are laser sounds and the sounds of enemies being hit, but I spent all my time grooving around in my seat to the excellent tunes of the Bullet Candy soundtrack. Quality stuff.
Gameplay:
Very simple, very challenging. That’s the way to do it in my book. Controls can be configured to the user’s preference… and there are only 5 buttons to worry about. Six if you count the mouse. Easy to pick up and hard to put down, Bullet Candy does well to pretty up its graphics while keeping its gameplay basic to the core.
Concept:
Tried and true. No points for originality, but it’s hard to fault someone for taking an idea and doing it well.
Value:
Three unlockable game modes save Bullet Candy here. Only 50 levels to the main mode means that the single player game goes by fast for a skilled player, but extra modes mean extra play and that’s always a good thing.
Fun:
Bullet Candy is fun. Even when it’s frustrating, I know that all I need to do is start over again, five levels or so earlier and beef up and then come back to tackle it again. Gameplay is fast and frantic and always exciting to look at.
Overall:
Any fan of old school shooters will love Bullet Candy and for anyone not familiar with the style, Bullet Candy is a worthy introduction to a classic genre.
By: Michael Scarpelli
Posted: Friday September 08, 2006
Posted: Friday September 08, 2006
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