Amuro Blu-ray
There aren’t enough mech games out there. I mean sure, I grew up with Mechwarrior, G-Nome, Armored Core, and Heavy Gear, among countless others over the years, but it’s still not enough. It’s never enough.
While Galak-Z does have some issues, it does manage to keep the dream mostly alive.
Galak-Z: The Dimensional (PC, PS4 [reviewed])
Developer: 17-Bit
Publisher: 17-Bit
Release Date: August 4, 2015 (PS4) / TBA (PC)
MSRP: $19.99
The way Galak-Z presents itself is by way of “seasons,” which are supposed to be set up in a way that mirrors a television show of sorts. Players must complete five missions per season without dying, otherwise they’ll be forced to start over from the beginning of that season. It’s a way to justify the roguelike elements of the game (notably permadeath) and provide players with some respite for failure.
While the idea actually works from a narrative standpoint, I found this style to be a bit more frustrating than it should be. Rogue Legacy handled progression brilliantly, allowing players to slowly accrue upgrades and “lock” maps into place when they wished. Similarly, Spelunky‘s shortcuts felt organic, like you were exploring a giant labyrinthine maze that was seemingly connected. Here, seasons feel isolated and disconnected — you’re essentially just completing randomly generated levels one after another.
This is easier to swallow because of the endearing anime style of the game. It’s a love letter to classic franchises like Gundam, but it manages to pack in a ton of 17-bit’s signature look, from the decals plastered on the ships to the delightful VCR-styled menu screens. I also love the minimalist approach to storytelling, as each level may provide you with unique tidbits on the game’s world, which are remixed, so to speak, after death. Having said that, I think the voice acting is dreadful, and not in a “so bad it’s good way.” Thankfully there isn’t a whole lot of it.
In terms of gameplay, this isn’t a standard twin-stick shooter — it’s much deeper than that. After a quick tutorial, it’s fairly easy to get the hang of the forward and reverse thrusters, the latter of which allow you to moonwalk (moonboost?) backwards to continue engagement. Pressing both of them allows you to brake, which provides pinpoint movement, as well as the ability to thrust cancel whenever you feel like it. Oh, and you can also press square to “juke,” which has a little effect of your ship coming out of the screen and dodging bullets. It’s really cool. Check out the full control scheme here.
Sound plays a factor in the game as well, as a blue ring around your ship displays how far enemy units can hear you. Yep, your goal is going to actually be avoiding combat as often as you can, because again, death is a big deal in Galak-Z, and it sort of plays into the Last Starfighter vibe that the story is going for. It’s also good then that shields can withstand environmental impacts for the most part and regenerate after a few seconds, so you won’t have too many frustrating deaths.
While permadeath is hard-hitting, you can earn temporary upgrades that will help you avoid your demise, exchange “Crash Coins” for instant upgrades, and locate blueprints, which grant the in-game shop permanent fixtures for future playthroughs. Note that while that blueprints are stocked for every session, you will still have to buy them with scrap (currency you’ll find in the world), so you truly are restarting with nothing to your name most of the time. That right there is probably going to scare a lot of people away. While I generally don’t mind a learning curve, there is some tedium involved — more-so than most roguelikes.
While many games don’t have clear “objectives,” and would rather see you explore at your own pace, the chopped-up level scheme doesn’t always gel in terms of pacing. For some missions, I was able to fly right into a really unique area like a lava cave, blow up some bugs, and escape with a jump point relatively close to the objective. For others, I had to fly through a long network of caverns, find a boring box, blow it up, and then fly back for upwards of five minutes just to complete that stage. But for every randomly generated disappointment, there’s an array of fun moments.
Since multiple factions will attack each other in-game, it’s a joy to pit them against one another, and slowly reap the benefits from afar with your missiles and all of the wonderful toys you’ve acquired through your current season. I don’t want to spoil the transforming mech bit too much, but suffice to say it adds yet another layer on top of everything, and is just as satisfying as it sounds. Getting through a season and learning all of the tricks involved over time provides a clear sense of accomplishment, and you’ll need to put in some work to reap those benefits.
I wish Galak-Z: The Dimensional wasn’t so fragmented, because the core experience is a treat for roguelike and space combat fans alike. Even 15 hours through I was still seeing new items and upgrades, which is a testament to its lasting power, warts and all — I just need to take breaks from the tedium every so often.
[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the developer.]
