Verzeus brief review

Enjoy all the fun of a vintage Game Boy Shooter without straining your eyes.

Verzeus
Platform: PC
Developer: RETSUZAN
Publisher: Henteko Doujin
Release date: March 4th, 2024
Price: $5.99
Digital availability: Steam

The “Game Buddy” series from Retsuzan debuted on Steam this month. All seven games in the series feel much like they would on a Game Boy cartridge, as the name suggests. The games’ playfields, which are depicted in four colors of olive, visually mimic the device’s iconic output. The Game Buddy titles allow users to optionally apply a filter that replicates the gridded appearance of the dot-matrix-screen.

But you might want to go elsewhere if you’re searching for anything more than a 10:9 monochrome image. Retsuzan doujin circle is obsessed with recreating the feel of playing a Game Boy original game utilizing the Pixel Game Maker MV engine. That does indicate that the chiptune soundtrack of Verzeus captures the lively spirit of an old-school eight-bit game. Another benefit is that the game won’t take up much space on your drive because to its small 134 MB footprint.

Your Fingers Will Love the Constant Auto-Fire

It’s evident that the developer loves Konami’s Gradius, whether you choose to play the game’s practice, standard, or boss combat modes. Verzeus pays homage to Konami’s horizontally scrolling shooter, even though he rejects the option to buy power-ups instantly. Here, the player receives distinct icons for taking out opposing formations or an elevated foe.

These power-ups cycle through several forms, much like Raiden. Thus, to indicate a change in ship speed, a speed indicator alternates between an upward and a downward arrow. You’ll notice varied numbers for your missiles, defense walls, and weapon types (such as lasers or a splitting vulcan shot). With these several versions, you may customize your not-quite-Vic Viper ship to an astonishing degree.

Taking the Armada along

You will definitely require that level of adaptability. Even on the lowest difficulty level, the seven stages of Verzeus are challenging. As you advance toward the boss at the conclusion of each level, opponents and projectiles tend to fill the replicated Game Boy screen. To encourage you to stay close to the center of the screen, the game occasionally even introduces adversaries from the left side of the playfield.

However, you do have a number of advantages that work in your favor. The fact that you cannot fall into the roof or the ground is a welcome departure from tradition. When you gather power-up orbs, they will float next to you, increasing your firepower and providing a little amount of protective shielding. But Verzeus needs your undivided attention because the enemy bullets and your ship are proportionately enormous. But that’s the proper way for a throwback shooter to act, right?

In summary

Verzeus is probably worth the six bucks if you enjoy old-school shoot ’em ups. Even while it’s not nearly as fantastic as Konami’s renowned shooter, if you’ve gone through Hiroyasu Machiguchi countless times, it’s still a fun substitute. Maybe you won’t be able to recreate the first-time experience of playing Gradius again. However, a Verzeus round feels more like a musical cover that honors the original while subtly deviating from it.

On a PC, Verzeus was played using a review code that the publisher had sent.

Review Overview

Gameplay – 80%

Controls – 75%

Aesthetics – 70%

Content – 70%

Accessibility – 75%

Value – 80%

75%

GOOD!

Summary :The “Game Buddy” series from Retsuzan is like a cover band in terms of videos. Gradius is the equivalent of Verzeus in the doujin circles. The action scrolls horizontally in seven phases, and each loss of power-ups from a small mistake seems like a gut strike. It could be a skilled imposter rather than the genuine article.