Psyvariar is very much a niche series in the niche genre of the shmup. The developer SUCCESS saw much more popularity with its cute ’em up franchise Cotton, despite several re-releases of Psyvariar. But like a phoenix rising from the flames, Psyvariar is back with the help of BananaBytes, Red Art Studio and Red Art Games with Psyvariar 3.
I’m Feeling Buzzed!
Psyvariar, as a series, has always done something that sets it apart from the genre. Instead of focusing on killing things quickly, Psyvariar 3 wants you to keep enemies on the screen for as long as possible, firing bullets your way so you can graze your ship by them, building “Buzz” and watching your score and firepower build, ready for the end-of-stage boss.
When you’ve built up enough “Buzz”, your ship will level up, granting you momentary invulnerability and allowing you to move in and out of dangerous situations. The idea behind it is that you chain enough “Buzz” to keep you invincible and a destructive force. It’s a unique system few shmups have used, and one Psyvariar 3 handles excellently.
In terms of playable ships, Psyvariar 3 wants you to have all the options available and thus presents you with seven completely different ship types, even including our favorite cute ’em up witch Cotton. While her playstyle is similar to her titular series, it still falls well in line with the bullet-grazing madness that awaits you. Each ship has a completely different set of shot patterns, “Buzz” reactions, and screen-clearing bombs. While the choices are frankly amazing, it does present an initial stance of confusion, as you have to spend a decent amount of time with all the ships before you find the one that really clicks with you.
Dodge, Duck, Dip, Dive, Dodge
Enemies and their bullets come thick and fast, presenting quite the initial difficulty. It’s here you need to learn how to spin your ship. Doing this gives you a slower movement speed to navigate tougher bullet sequences but improves your shot strength. It’s a delicate balancing act of sacrificing speed for power, and it looks so cool doing so. You do this either by quickly moving left and right or by pressing the shoulder button. The stick-flick technique gives you a momentum boost, whereas pressing the button keeps you more grounded for times you really need to dish the pain out.
The stages in Psyvariar 3 are fine; nothing really stands out in terms of set pieces or backgrounds. There are some particularly nasty enemies that will catch you off guard, but the standout sections are always the boss fights. Each manages to test everything you have and present some of the most exciting and devilish bullet patterns for you to graze while you chip away at its giant health pool.
All You Can Eat
Options on how to play are something the developer has seemingly taken a good deal of interest in providing, resulting in what is frankly one of the most feature-full shmups I have played in some time. While I’ll go over these in slightly more detail, the initial list shows how encompassing the game is: you have an Arcade Mode, Arrange Mode, Mission Mode, Endless Mode, Caravan Mode, and Practice Mode. Couple that with the seven available ships, and you’ve got yourself a shmup with an insane amount of bang for your buck.
Arcade Mode is likely your first stop and one you’ll keep coming back to. It’s your traditional mode where you tackle the game’s seven stages. Here, depending on how much “Buzz” you build in a stage, you can choose a difficulty as you move to the next. This dangles the carrot of improvement to get you to the higher difficulties and also serves as an ideal way to see where you’re currently at skill-wise. As is the fashion of the genre, you also have True Last Boss conditions to fill if you want to experience the full fury of Psyvariar 3.
Arrange Mode does away with the heavy focus on “Buzz”, gives you a fully powered-up ship, and changes bullet and enemy patterns, offering you another way to experience the game’s Arcade Mode. This makes the game feel closer to a traditional shmup, rather than the graze-fest that it is.
Mission Mode presents you with 49 different challenges and really dives into the nuances of the game, presenting these bite-sized challenges and doubling up some learning with the thrill of chasing a high score and even higher rank.
Endless Mode randomly generates a game for you and challenges you to keep alive for as long as you can. Offering unlimited replay here for avid shmup players, it also provides the seed number it has generated, allowing you to challenge your friends to the same gauntlet you’ve taken on to see who the top dog is.
Caravan Mode is a mode that traditionally turns up in most Japanese shmups. It offers a couple of brief stages and challenges you to get the highest score possible. Often used as a competition back in the arcade days, and with the inclusion of online scoreboards for all modes, this is another one any shmup fiend will be clamoring to conquer.
Finally, Practice Mode gives you all the tools to really improve your game by allowing you to practice sections of the game that might be causing you more trouble than others. There are plenty of options here to really nail down that pesky boss that’s been stealing your lives and denying you that glorious 1CC.
On the surface, Psyvariar 3 looks like your standard shmup, but once you dive headfirst into the options available, you’ll start to realize that this is something slightly different than the others, especially when it comes to offering as much content as possible. It’s a tough nut to crack, but the developers have made sure there are enough features here to not only educate but also entertain. I would even go as far as to say that it’s an ideal shmup for a newcomer who’s interested in the genre, as it has enough value in its modes to really justify what is honestly a fantastic price tag, especially when compared to R-Type Dimensions III, which released at double the price and has significantly less content and significantly more issues.
The Stars Are Looking Dull Tonight
Visually, Psyvariar 3 isn’t the nicest looking on the block. It uses 3D models throughout, but they have a very generic and safe look to them, somewhat emulating the look of titles you may have bought off the Xbox Live Marketplace back in the days of the Xbox 360. It’s not terrible looking; it just doesn’t have anything that really makes it stand out in a market full of unique and interesting-looking titles.
I would personally say the stages themselves are the biggest offenders in this regard. Not one of them is appealing, and they are a far cry from the masterwork done by CAVE in titles like DoDonPachi SaiDaiOuJou or my personal favorite, ESP Ra.De. They don’t detract from the gameplay, but from a visual standpoint, they present a rather bland playing field in a genre that really prides itself on some fantastic stages.
I also found that I was struggling at points to keep track of where my hitbox was and to spot enemy bullets. Fortunately, the developer foresaw this and provided several options to improve visibility, making them stand out more. It’s a great feature, but it’s a shame that it was needed at points, which causes me to think that maybe the art direction could have done with just a little more polish in both fashion and functionality across the board.
The sound effects perfectly indicate when your shots land and when you’ve hit enough “Buzz” to level up. The music doesn’t drown the important stuff out, but sadly isn’t the most memorable of soundtracks. There are a few tracks here that do stand out above the others, but it’s a mostly passable affair, and none of the music has managed to make it to my playlist as of yet.
Verdict
Psyvariar 3 is a fantastic new addition to the series and the shmup genre in general. It’s as close to a gateway game to the franchise as you’ll find outside of Angel at Dusk, and I mean that with all the respect and admiration intended. It is ideal for newcomers who want an easy entry into the genre, and shmup fanatics who want to really test their skills on the greater difficulties.
SUCCESS made the right choice in handing the Psyvariar baton over to SophStar developer BananaBytes and Red Art Studio. The game is another feather in their ever-expanding shmup cap, and a title that should be commended for providing an impressive amount of content for a genre that often manages to get by with the bare minimum. It grazes by with near-perfect marks for gameplay, but sadly doesn’t stick the landing when it comes to the presentation.
PSYVARIAR 3 IS RECOMMENDED
If you would like to see more Shooters, you may be interested in our review of Radiant Silvergun.
Many thanks go to Red Art Games for a Nintendo Switch 2 review code for Psyvariar 3.
Pride of utopia & greatest thing ever, I found the One Piece, Collected the Dragon Balls & won the Mortal Kombat Tournament in one night, it was quiet for me that night! Follow me on Twitter @powahdunk
