Ibara (PCB)

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corbie
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Ibara (PCB)

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GAME TITLE: Ibara
COMPANY: Cave
YEAR OF RELEASE: 2005
HARDWARE: Cave 3rd Generation

Ibara represents the first Cave title from famed shooter developer Shinobu Yagawa, a former member of Toaplan and Raizing development groups. Yagawa is probably most famous for his Raizing bullet hell shooter Battle Garegga and one play of Ibara will quickly give that fact away given the similarities between the two games. In fact, it wouldn't be too much of stretch to say that Ibara is probably as close to a Battle Garegga sequel as shooter fans will ever likely see. Not only does Ibara share visual and musical similarities, but even many of the game play ideas themselves feel like they were taken straight out of Battle Garegga or Battle Bakraid, another Yagawa shooter title. But make no mistake, for all of these similarities, Ibara still very much stands on its own and brings a host of new ideas and added intensity to the table. In fact, most shooter fans will tell you that Ibara still stands as one of Cave's most manic and difficult shooters and one that can take quite some time to get a handle on and a lifetime to master.

As previously mentioned, there are a great many game play ideas borrowed from Battle Garegga, so anyone that's played it should feel right at home with Ibara. The game makes use of a two-button control scheme and takes a "less is more" approach to game play management. One button controls your cannon fire. You can press and hold the fire button to create a steady flow of cannon fire and you can even control your rate of fire by how fast your pressing the fire button as you press to hold it down. The other action button controls your smart bombs and will ultimately become your best friend in the game, especially if you hope to last very long or rack up some big points.

Ibara also makes use of the same type of real time "Rank" system as found in Battle Garegga. What this means is the difficulty of the game will constantly change depending on how you're playing the game. If you manage to stay alive for long periods of time and are causing a lot of destruction, your rank will automatically increase as you play. That means the game will become more difficult the better you play it. The good side to that is that the higher your rank, the more points you'll score. This is where your smart bombs come into play. When you set off a smart bomb attack it will cause enemy bullets to become roses. You can collect these roses in order to score points and lower your rank. It's this careful balance of cannon fire and smart bombing that will determine how far into the game you'll get, not to mention how many points you'll ultimately tally. But there is one catch; unlike other games that make your ship invincible when you set off a smart bomb attack, you'll enjoy no such luxury in Ibara, so they can't be used so much as a panic attack as they're often used in other shooters.

Since Ibara is a bullet hell shooter, you'd better be prepared for a barrage of curtain fire, not to mention a high level of difficulty. Even on the normal setting, Ibara can be quite a handful, even early on. Luckily the hit detection in the game is spot on perfect, not to mention the smooth and responsive play control that goes along with it. You can even choose different types of ships that feature different power up options, as well as varying movement speeds to fit your personal tastes. So as hectic and intense as Ibara can become, you'll always feel like you have a fair sense of control and maneuverability. Just don't expect to 1cc Ibara without a fair amount of practice.

The visuals in Ibara are outstanding, as you'd expect from a 3rd Generation Cave title. The game makes use of a unique, almost monochromatic, color scheme that makes use of very subtle colors of varying pastel-like hues and it all somehow blends together to create a very visually appealing presentation. The downside of this is that enemy fire can sometimes blend in with the other graphical elements in the game, thus making it difficult to see and avoid. The areas themselves can sometimes seem a bit bland in places, but the eye candy does seem to pick up the farther into the game you progress.

If you can appreciate a good boss, you'll certainly find a lot to love about Ibara. The end of level bosses in the game are some of the best seen in a Cave title and the steam punk theme the game employs really comes to life with these unique mechanical creations. The animation of these bosses is also quite impressive and there's generally several different forms of each boss that you'll see as you destroy various parts of them during your boss encounter. The game might not feature the same brightly-colored visual flash found in many of the other Cave releases, but it's unique style really makes it stand out from the crowd.

Cave shooters have long been known for their outstanding musical scores and Ibara is certainly no exception. The hard rock tunes that abound in each level seem to fit the game's intensity to a tee. It doesn't hurt that these musical tracks are quite catchy as well. But even as intense as the music is, it never seems to overpower the amazing sound effects that drive the game's audio experience. There are plenty of earth-shaking explosions to go around and you'll never be at a loss for something to listen to in each of the game's levels between the game's solid soundtrack and wide range of sound effects. While not quite on par with the musical scores of Deathsmiles or Muchi Muchi Pork, Ibara is still one of the best Cave shooter soundtracks out there and one you'll definitely want to crank up while you play.

Ibara is certainly not going to appeal to just any shooter fan with it's insane level of intensity and sometimes brutal difficulty, but if you can appreciate its unique game play system and somehow manage to stick with it long enough to come to terms with the game's intricacies, you'll be well rewarded for your efforts. Ibara is easily one of the most uptempo and action-packed bullet hell shooters available today and it won't take you long to see just why so many seasoned shooter fans hold this game in such high regard. Ibara is easily one of Cave's best shooter releases and a game that belongs in any shooter fan's game library.

SCORE: 9/10
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