Deathsmiles (PC) Review

Unlike the common shoot 'em up, Deathsmiles abides by a horizontal side-on style of scrolling as opposed to the standard vertical. Enemies are able to attack from both sides, necessitating a deep level of focus. Getting flanked from the left while trying to fend off monsters from the right creates a scenario where a deeper level of concentration is needed to succeed. Not just that, though, but the horizontal scroll also allows for there to be action on-screen at all times. Unfortunately, this is one of the few aspects of the bullet-hell where there is any sort of depth.

Deathsmiles is a game full of illusions. There are five playable characters, but the differences in play style are so minor that choice ends up not really mattering. Level selection is presented in a way where it looks like the campaign will branch off into different paths depending on what level is played first, but every level must be played to get to the final stage, making the ability to choose rather meaningless.

The only choices that aren't meaningless are the mode and difficulty options. There are two main modes, Arcade and Mega Black Label. Arcade is the original release, and Mega Black Label is a remaster sporting a new playable character and boss. While Arcade has three difficulty options, Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3, Mega Black Label adds a Level 999 - the definitive way of tackling the shoot 'em up.

Even with a higher difficulty, however, there's still much left to be desired. While Level 3 and 999 certainly give off the appearance of a tried and tested bullet-hell, it's merely just another unsatisfying disappointment. There's no rhyme or reason to the design of each level. Enemies will fly out from any given area with little to no telegraphing, leading to potentially frustrating scenarios.

While the levels and enemies are nothing to write home about, Deathsmiles succeeds rather impressively in the boss department. Every boss challenges the mechanics and tests focus on a deeper level than anything else, but the boss to level ratio isn't enough. There's one at the end of every level, but the levels are so much longer that it feels too much like a chore to trek through a tedious stage just for a two to three minutes of engaging shooting.