The other day I found myself really wanting to play a handheld game, I decided to check out PS Vita titles. One title I had missed was Vlambeer's 'Luftrausers' published by Devolver Digital. Watching the trailer I felt quite nostalgic due to the style and gameplay. With my debit card in hand, I decided to purchase it.
Years ago I would never have entertained protein bars, it just seemed pointless unless you worked out a lot or were pretty athletic (I didn't tick any of those boxes and don't really now either, maybe a half tick). I got into them over the last year or two as I was trying to increase my protein intake. There are many out there that taste like cardboard and are as tough as it as well. One brand that I found to be really good was Nature Valley. They are still tough, and a little hard to swallow but it tastes pretty good and feels like an achievement eating one. Playing Luftrausers I found myself asking was this the perfect protein bar?
Story
The story is straight and to the point, you are a pilot during the war and while it isn't directly stated, it seems like your enemy is the Nazis. Your mission, survive, or die a lot and hope to eventually survive long enough to get a high score or unlock new parts for your plane.
Overall there isn't a story, and the game makes no qualms about it, which is fine because this kind of game is all about the gameplay.
Visuals
When I first saw the visuals in Luftrausers it reminded me of my days with the GameBoy. Just a couple of colours used to create an amazing looking world. Obviously, Luftrausers is made with much more modern technology, the edges on ships and planes are softer and it is more colourful. That being said it's look is quite retro and very cool.
Overall some really cool looking visuals that were fresh, but retro enough to remind me of my childhood.
Music
The soundtrack is a little more advanced than chiptune but shares some similarities. It has distinct war sound and at points had me thinking about some of the original Command and Conquer games. The soundtrack is composed by Finish composer Jukio Kallio, who has an eclectic mix of work including videos game including Minit, Evil Factory and PixelJunk Monsters 2.
The soundtrack is short running slightly over the twenty-minute mark, but that does mean it's bad quite the contrary. My favorite tracks were; 'Luftrauser', 'Heavyrauser', 'Laserrausers' and 'Devil From The Deep'. Overall a great soundtrack that works well with the game.
Gameplay
Luftrausers certainly falls into the category of 'easy to learn, hard to master'. Training lasts all of about sixty seconds before you are thrown into the thick of it. The plane is controlled with one analog stick and one button for shooting. Essentially you can fly the plane up and then let your self fall with style to avoid and attack enemies. The game is tough but there is one saving grace, stop shooting for a few seconds and your health regenerates.
There are so many parts to unlock for your plane, everything from lasers to nuclear hulls, to propellers that shoot bullets. There are a ton of combinations, each of which changes the name of your plane. On top of that, each part has missions attached to them pushing you to try and use everything. The balance of the plane completely changes depending on the parts used meaning you can't just stick them on you have learned to adjust the way you control your plane.
Even with the simplicity of the controls and the mass amount of plane parts the game is tough. Each enemy you kill increases the difficulty until it gets to a point where you are screwed. But if that isn't enough of challenge don't worry there is a hard mode.
Overall the gameplay is great, grueling and highly rewarding if you don't enjoy a little pain this game might not be for you.
Final Thoughts
So, after fifteen hours of playing how did I feel? Tried, tested, and ready for more. There is no story but the game doesn't require it. The visuals are amazing, the soundtrack is awesome and while the gameplay is tough it is also quite rewarding. Overall this one gets 4 out 5
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