Initial release date: August 6, 2024
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, MORE
Developers: KeelWorks, KeelWorks Limited
Genres: Shooter game, Indie game
Publishers: Konami, Konami Digital Entertainment
Engine: Unreal Engine 4
Konami released a series of well-known coin-operated shooters in the 1980s, including Super Cobra, Gyruss, Gradius, and TwinBee. However, the publisher’s long-standing dominance of providing scrolling firefights was coming to an end by the time Axelay was launched on the Super Nintendo in 1992.
Compilations would celebrate franchises like as Gradius, Parodious, and TwinBee, while new entries dwindled to a depressing trickle. Konami made an attempt to bring the genre back in the 2000s with Otomedius, but the result was a shoot ’em up that was overly dependent on tradition and was hardly playable. Thankfully, CYGNI: All Guns Blazing does not follow that scenario.
Hudson Soft is less than Housemarque
Konami’s most recent offering in the shooter genre is intriguing and has little in common with the past. You won’t be able to view a ship that resembles a Vic Viper or hear any references to Konami Kukeiha Club material. However, what you’ll discover in Edinburgh-based KeelWorks’ debut release are seven stages of nonstop action that approach the chaos of the most difficult shooters available today.
CYGNI: The name All Guns Blazing is not hyperbole. To survive, you must cut through hordes of adversaries and dense areas filled with projectiles; this task requires all of your focus. It makes sense that not everyone would be up for such a task.
The Powerful Orca
Your spacecraft has an incredibly versatile weaponry that it uses in each vertically scrolling stage. You can arc your air-to-air armament around thirty degrees by using the right stick on your controller to curve your stream of firepower rather than just blasting upward. You can choose to give up some shot power if you’d rather have your main gun lock onto opponents. In the meantime, enemies on the ground may occasionally entice you with the chance to earn bonuses and energy containers. However, as Xevious once showed us, engaging in ground and aerial combat at the same time might be dangerous.
However, those energy carriers are essential. Another option is to increase your firepower by sacrificing a portion of the five-part protection on your spacecraft, the Orca. The AI of the enemy is quite vicious; players may occasionally try to surround or even get close to the orca from behind. Redirecting power to your weapons and firing a barrage of homing rockets to neutralize the threat is one of the finest countermeasures. Choosing wisely during combat is challenging, but it becomes more crucial as you advance through CYGNI’s harder difficulty levels.
Sharp Reflexes Desired but Not Required
The easiest degree of challenge offered by All Guns Blazing will put your reflexes and visual sense to the test, but it will be mild. Although there are three ships instead of only one Orca in this instance, the amount of opponents has not decreased significantly. As a result, formations of hundreds of adversaries will move quickly, necessitating continuous mobility. It’s not necessary to navigate with pixel-perfect accuracy, unlike most bullet hell games. Yes, part of your shielding will be lost when you make touch with an adversary. However, energy containers are so abundant that you can bypass some stages by using the momentary invulnerability that follows an attack on Orca.
Every stage naturally ends with a drawn-out boss fight against an enormous enemy. CYGNI’s usage of the Unreal Engine is frequently on display during battles against these superior foes, as animated monsters lash out with outrageous weaponry and unleash legions of opponents. The first two encounters place you against huge arm-wielding machinery and a spinning sphere that creates asteroids for armor, making these showdowns particularly spectacular. The best part is that All Guns Blazing forgoes the conventional fixed attack patterns, even though these opponents have unique attributes.
A Powder Keg of Particle Effects and Pixels
Anticipate some pleasant surprises, including nearly lifelike explosions and smoke that conclude each show and giving participants money for whatever energy containers they haven’t utilized. However, the music of CYGNI is a bit of an action movie. Yes, there are some Hans Zimmer/John Williams-esque swells, and it’s nice to have a break from guitar rock. However, the speed and intensity of the action on screen are not conveyed by the symphonic score.
There are definitely a few more errors. The animated scenes that bookend CYGNI’s phases are as detailed as those found in CGI movies. However, the narrative lacks enthusiasm and reads like a collection of science-fiction cliches, even with a cheeky panty shot. It’s nice to be able to modify the Orca’s firepower distribution and enhance its drones and missiles, but the game ought to provide an explanation on how to do so. It also seems a little harsh to not receive any prizes until you defeat the level boss. Lastly, framerate decreases on a variety of various rigs occasionally affected performance. Not even an RTX 4070 Super could provide action at a solid 60 frames per second.
In summary
You may become addicted to CYGNI: All Guns Blazing if you enjoy the kind of retina-searing, heart-pounding action that can be found in severe bullet hell shooters. Yes, it may be really difficult at times, requiring all of your focus during each of the game’s fifteen-minute stages. For shooter addicts, however, CYGNI is a must-have because of the exhilaration of fighting hordes of foes while hanging over the edge of survival.
On a PC, CYGNI: All Guns Blazing was played using a review code that the publisher sent.
Review Overview
Gameplay – 82%
Story – 68%
Aesthetics – 90%
Content – 75%
Accessibility – 70%
Value – 80%
Overall Rating – 78%
Good
Summary: When played at its finest, CYGNI: All Guns Blazing demands your undivided attention, with stages pitting your lone ship against an unparalleled quantity of foes. Even if there are a few framerate issues and an odd music, they don’t really ruin the experience of working through seven missions where hardship hits you like a ton of bricks.
