CHROMA+ELEKTRON

Incredibly fun game that sinks its teeth into you. Has an emphasis on pure mechanical execution and does not pull its punches, resulting in a game that made me feel similar things to games like Spelunky - sometimes infuriating, but always feeling doable if you just stop messing up and taking avoidable hits. Thorough gameplay options should make this accessible despite a player's comfort with the genre, so don't be discouraged if you don't play these games often. There is also a lot of personal flair to the moment-to-moment gameplay, due to the way the pickup and power-up system works. Different people I've talked to that have also played this game had differing opinions on what their favourite (and best) weapons and supers were, leading me to appreciate the viability and usefulness of the wide array of options. (Alternate blue is the truth.) I was also pleasantly surprised at the variety of stage gimmicks. They start out pretty simple but I smiled broadly when I got to the stage Crysta...

Intense and fast-paced indie shoot-em-up with satisfying and varied weapons, colorful visuals, and a fittingly atmospheric original soundtrack. Definitely a challenging game, but it's also fair; it's one of those that make you hit Retry again and again knowing you could have dodged what killed you that time. Highly recommend this hidden gem. Details: Gameplay is a mix of player-aimed shooting along with some light platforming elements to both get around the levels, and to collect energy pickups. Every enemy you defeat drops energy corresponding to 1 of 6 colors, each of which transforms/upgrades your weapon for a limited time (e.g. a shotgun or a gravity-based explosive), and also adds to your score and health. Since the game is difficult and your base weapon is significantly weaker than the transformed weapons, it's crucial to be picking up energy while simultaneously dodging enemies and blasting away as you cycle through your 6 colored weapons, which gives the game an addicting rhyt...