Black Bird, 2018, Onion Games (Switch, PC)

[kid aphex]

I know this game was mentioned in the Switch thread... but I think it deserves it's own thread.
It's out today and is pretty amazing.

https://twitter.com/oniongames
https://store.steampowered.com/app/857500/BLACK_BIRD/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-teYMMF4owM

(I wish it had twin-stick controls...)

[EmperorIng]

Hey, this is from the studio that made Chulip back when it was with Natsume. The soundtrack is very Chulip-esque. I'll have to give this a shot! (I wonder when the Steam release is)

[Special World]

It looks... interesting? Gonna wait on more people to let me know how they feel about this. Seems like it could go strongly either way. Love the vibe and the chunky little pixel graphics, love Fantasy Zone inspired games, love score chasing. But I dunno how solid it looks? I'd happily pay $20 for what I *want* this game to be. There's not much info about it online, though.

[GFoyle]

I got it on friday out of curiosity and wanted to show a bit of support for people making these kind of games (with quality).

On my first and only try, I got end of fourth level and it was super easy (for anybody) and thus a bit boring.

Not sure what to think of it, it's kinda cool, really strange and all, but not sure is there actually a good game there.. it need's to be long to make up the super easy difficulty (I couldn't see any difficulty settings either). Interesting to see what others think of it, but it might take a while before I get back to it myself.

[WarpedByTheNHK]

The style is really interesting. I'll probably wishlist it for now since I have a pretty big backlog.

[mukimuki_rs]

I got it on friday out of curiosity and wanted to show a bit of support for people making these kind of games (with quality).
On my first and only try, I got end of fourth level and it was super easy (for anybody) and thus a bit boring.

There's a true mode after you finish it which offers higher difficulty, hidden characters and various other opportunities to test your skill and shoot for a higher score.
I still haven't played it since Bit Summit this year and it's come a long way since then with several shooting game indie devs in Japan giving their advise to the developers.
Can't wait for it to hit Steam.

[geremy]

I am also interested in what this game is about. Not entirely sure based on the trailer and description.

[Arcatech]

Here is some gameplay video for ya. Plays a lot like Fantasy Zone.
I really don't like the song from level 1 though. BGM volume settings please.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDdxdkcY6mw

[EmperorIng]

I am also interested in what this game is about. Not entirely sure based on the trailer and description.

It's something weird by the guy who made this and this; that's about all I need really, ha ha.

Here is some gameplay video for ya. Plays a lot like Fantasy Zone.
I really don't like the song from level 1 though. BGM volume settings please.

Looking a lot more like Fantasy Zone now, albeit less manic. Game looks pretty easy in that video; good thing there are higher difficulties. Will have to disagree with the BGM though. It's very... Chulip-esque (and I originally disliked the BGM in Chulip). Variety is the spice of life.

[DJ Incompetent]

I keep Million Onion Hotel on my phone. Onion Games make baffling arcade-y wonders.

[Some-Mist]

he was also a writer for moon remix rpg adventure. I still have my cherished copy
I'm still waiting on the PC release because I don't give a shit about the switch and would want to use my hrap vx-sa, but $20 does cost a lot for a game that I'm uncertain if I'll enjoy it or not.

[Darkseed_5150]

How's the framerate on Switch handheld mode?

[CStarFlare]

Are there separate difficulties? I see YouTube runs labelled "True Mode" and "Normal Mode" - but a peek at the options menu doesn't seem to have a mode select. Have people just made up names for the main mode?

[GFoyle]

In one review + here somebody said that after you play it thru once, you get the second, "true mode".

The normal mode it is just super easy, on my first try of the game I ended to the last boss (stage 4, which I guess is last one). The "True mode" would have to be hell of a lot more difficult to have any challenge. The game is getting some praise, but I haven't found motivation to even try a second run yet.

... and I'm not a shmup expert at all.

[Special World]

Is the scoring system anything of note?

[Zaarock]

Yeah the game is very scoring focused. It's sort of like a score attack game with lots of secrets and tricks to do in each short stage. Bombing is integral for scoring so you sacrifice other powerups to get more of those.

Just like GFoyle's I made it to stage 4 boss in my first go at Normal. But first attempt on True died in stage 2. It's a big step up and there's a lot more going on with the enemy spawns and patterns. Along with that comes more scoring potential and items to get for powerup.
True mode seems targeted for shmup fans while Normal can be enjoyed by anyone for the presentation and gameplay that's still dynamic even when it's easier.

Apart from a few story things there doesn't seem to be a reason to go back to Normal mode after unlocking True, they even share the same leaderboard. So the easier mode is more of an intro. There's a ton of score competition going on between japanese players in the Switch version.

[mukimuki_rs]

I finally managed to find time to play and found myself sinking 3 hours into it over the course of a few sessions.
Normal is quite easy to finish, but also gives a good introduction to all the mechanics without the difficulty of True.

The emphasis is on speed and destruction (bonuses for each are awarded at the end of a stage) and the key to both of these is learning the enemy patterns and what triggers them, the locations of the various bonuses and building then maintaining a chain until you can find the optimum place to drop a bomb, sacrificing the chain for a huge bonus. Destroy the requisite number of towers, a la Fantasy Zone, then it's off to the boss.

The stages are short, but that's ideal for a score-focused game and is likely what has led to the 'one more play' approach I've been taking...

I personally can't wait to get back to it and conquer True, see the endings and go after a bigger score.

[M.Knight]

Is this game one where it's the scoring that really makes it worthwhile? I have seen way too much praise for the game (to the point where it feels like propaganda) but the few videos I've checked out look pretty disappointing with the unfitting/gimmicky/boring music, the water gun weapon which has as much audiovisual impact as a euroshmup main shot but with an annoying sound effect on top of it, and the free scrolling which doesn't force a specific pace on you.

That said, I haven't played Fantasy Zone games so I could absolutely be missing something. Also, I heard that there is a "True" mode. Could it be that this is where the game is at its best and that's not really shown in the current gameplay videos online, which already may not even be trying to score a lot?

[clippa]

Also, I heard that there is a "True" mode. Could it be that this is where the game is at its best and that's not really shown in the current gameplay videos online, which already may not even be trying to score a lot?

I uploaded a video of my first 1cc of True mode if you want to take a look at that, I'm no hardcore superstud and it's not my best run, I totally cocked up the last stage, but it should give you some idea of the scoring.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aP0ozUjfdE

I love this game so much!

[M.Knight]

Thanks a lot for linking that replay of yours, and congrats on the clear!
It definitely looks better and faster-paced than what I've watched beforehand, as the need to keep the combo alive for hi-scores makes you move a lot more and play pretty much aggressively to uncover newer enemy spawns. And the bomb looks impressive and powerful!
I am still not feeling the sound design at all but I can more easily see that game's appeal.

[clippa]

I love the way it looks and sounds and think that's a big part of the games charm, so if you're not into that at all then it might not suck you in as much, but there's also some really fun mechanics there too so it might be enough.

Yeah, you've got to really work for it, get up close to enemies so you can gobble up all the green gems that power up your bird, keep your chain up and time your bombs, keep your bomb stock up, and search for all the secrets.
I've played for 28 hours and I'm still discovering new things.
There's a guy with over 60,000,000 at the top of the leaderboard so there's loads of room for improvement.

Remote Wapon Gunfencer is so much fun, by the way. Really looking forward to the finished version of that.

[M.Knight]

I could see myself stop minding the music not being my cup of tea after a while, and even maybe start appreciating how audacious and original it is, but sadly the shot sound effect is quite off-putting. I don't feel like hearing a dripping water dispenser for the whole run. A shame because there seems to be lots of things to do to get high scores and enough to keep you busy for a while. Seeing the official trailers they have for the game which are almost entirely about the story really wouldn't give you this impression, so it's nice to see they also catered to shmup fans with the scoring bonuses. Maybe I'll wait for a sale or something and see if it catches my interest again.

And thanks a lot for the enthusiastic words! I remember your feedback from the reddit thread, that was pretty useful.

[schleichfahrt]

Just when one thought Momoiro Underground was weird enough, this thing comes along..

[Logge1002]

Bought it today on switch. Can't wait to play it later.

[MommysBestGames]

I like Fantasy Zone gameplay and the idea of watching and learning enemy patterns and spawns to more quickly unlock the boss.
Knowing the gameplay gist, I started watching clippa's playthrough, and after about 5 seconds was I sold on the music and general weirdness.
Now I need to get off my duff and buy it. Sadly don't have a Switch though so I guess on to Steam.

[BulletMagnet]

Latest Onion newsletter says this is coming to PS4 and PS5.

[Darkseed_5150]

One of the best even though I didn't like it at first glance. Will beat on True mode on PS5. Hopefully it runs locked 60 fps on PS5 since it has spotty performance on Switch and my potato PC.