Cosmonator

Review

The Planet Earth has been attacked and destroyed by an alien force! As a pilot on one of the remaining space fleets, you grab one of the few airships that are left and take off to enact your vengeance on those who have destroyed so many lives. The ship you commandeered is not the best of the fleet, and has only basic armaments. You will need to collect resources dropped from the enemy ship you destroy, which can be used as cash and will allow you to upgrade your ship and weapon capabilities. There is also armor, shields, other special abilities you can obtain to give you an edge against the enemy. You will face an alien fleet of ships that have only one thought, to destroy you. There are many boss battles you must defeat throughout the levels in order to get past a chapter. Good Luck Pilots!

Released and self-published on Jan 21, 2019, by the developer Bourbontank, this is their first release on Steam. It is an indie, action, shoot em up, bullet hell with RPG elements.  The title features partial controller support; I used an Xbox 360 controller without issue for my play time. There are oodles of upgrades allowing you to customize your spacecraft to your game style. These include over 30 passive upgrades, and 40 plus upgradeable spells, along with 40 levels and 20 optional challenge levels. The 5 Difficulty settings, from rookie to impossible, allow for players from casual to hardcore to enjoy the title. Visually Stunning graphics, an excellent score, and well-done sound effects. For their first title on Steam, they have done a remarkable job.

We begin our gameplay at the first level, called First Contact (I leave the tutorial on to learn the basic mechanics; it can be turned off at any time in the game settings). With all the RPG elements and numerous upgrades available, I would recommend that you leave the tutorial on, at least till you get a grasp on everything involved with the upgrade system. We continue fighting through various levels as we work on upgrading our ship in preparation for the boss fights. As I worked through the levels and bosses, getting closer to the second Chapter, I found myself starting to struggle. I returned to the levels that I had not completed with over 75% health and ground for additional upgrades to increase my ship’s abilities. Once done, I returned to the more difficult of the later levels and had a much easier time getting through them.

I must say, quite a fun game for these developers’ first release. I have loved everything about it! It has taken me back some years in my memory as I play. I used to love titles like Galaga, which this title reminds me of a lot, along with the influence of a couple of others. I really appreciated the fact that there are 5 difficulty settings; as hardcore games are a lot harder for me these days, I am playing on normal difficulty (maybe once I finish my first playthrough I will go to the more challenging settings). With the generous upgrade system, I was allowed to build my ship and my other upgrades to fit my play style. Instead of a forced progression (Excellent). I am well on my way to getting my revenge on those who destroyed the Earth, and having a riot doing so!

Review written by DamageInc.for Zeepond.com!