Developed By: CAVE
Published By: Degica
Date of Release: November 12, 2015
Price: $19.99
In the year 2004, the bullet-hell game developer know as CAVE released what is arguably it's greatest game. Inspired by the Hayao Miyazaki film Nausicaa of The Valley of The Wind, it featured not gritty military hardware and testosterone-fuled action, but a cute princess riding on a giant beetle. This game was none other than Mushihimesama, quite literally translating to "Bug-Princess". Instead of bleak apocalyptic and war-torn locales, it took place in a lush and majestic forest, populated by giant insects of all varieties. Yes, this game is absolutely riddled with bugs, but thankfully they are of the insect variety, CAVEs work is INCREDIBLY polished.
The gameplay in Mushihimesama is standard SHMUP fare, with an assortment of beam configurations and a plethora of powerups to collect. Don't get too complacent though, the bullet patterns in the harder difficulties are epic mandalas of death and destruction. YOU WILL DIE A LOT. Of course, that's how you learn, practice makes perfect. The colorful sprites and backgrounds along with the beautiful score make it easy to keep going, and you'll find yourself taking just one more try. The difficulty is punishing, however it is never unfair, and you can play through with infinite continues if you like. The controls are tight and rebindable, and whether you use a keyboard, gamepad or arcade stick they are perfectly responsive.
When it comes right down to it, Mushihimesama is a perfect example of what makes a CAVE game great, and it is a perfect appetizer course for the upcoming feast of CAVE titles coming to steam. According to Degica, the next course will be Deathsmiles, coming in Spring of 2016. Personally I am looking forward to it, I have the Xbox 360 version already, and it was an absolute blast, and I can't wait to see how much better the PC version will be. Here's to CAVE and Degica, our bullet hell champions! May the future hold epic proportions of danmaku!
