Overview of Cotton Reboot on PS4

Today we have an exceptional representative of the genre, representing a slightly different atmosphere than SHMUP, which we reviewed earlier. Cotton Reboot! is a perfect example of archiving a classic and modernizing it to today’s standards. Released 30 years ago on the Japanese X68000 computers, this game was one of the keys to the “cute ’em up” trend – a more colourful, fun, fairy-tale variation of the then-common military shooters. In Japan, such games were popular in the 1990s and are widely represented by games such as Fantasy Zone or Konami’s TwinBee. We pretty much missed them.

Sugar, candies and various sweets

And now we learn the story of the capital Cotton – a young witch who is very addicted to sweets. Asking for help from a smart fairy, she goes on a mission to save the earth from eternal darkness. Seven tense fantasy stages interspersed with short scenes in the style of an 80s anime, a herd of enemies – from hostile animals to scary monsters – and challenging boss battles. All this is painfully colorful, colorful and even a little stupidly infantile. However, she does it in such a charismatic way that I immediately bought into the charming and fun style of the whole story.

So, some of you may have guessed that I am a fan of the classic SHMUP school, so it will not be a surprise that I really liked the main course in the form of Cotton Reboot! It’s a great game, not as hard as Cave Games (Mushihimesama) but just as fun and enjoyable. That doesn’t mean it’s easy, no! Cotton will tire the veterans out, and the writers don’t limit themselves to anything before filling the arenas with everything they can find. The game also offers its own gameplay ideas, adding variety to the seemingly uncomplicated gameplay with a fairly deep tactical approach.

Flying on a broom and destroying hordes of enemies, the screen is filled with crystals. They change color when we shoot them – picking them up increases our special magic abilities (special attacks). They also share their attack range, increasing their power and field of fire. The more damage the crystal receives, the faster it turns black. Then it blocks our attacks, but after collecting it, we get the most points. In addition, we follow two bars – one develops the strength of the basic throw, the second allows you to easily increase the score.

30 years have passed like one day

By the “ideal archiving example” mentioned at the beginning, I mean that we get a faithfully reproduced original in its unaltered form. This is a kind of history lesson and a look into the past of the industry. It is also the starting point for the work that has been done on the updated edition. Super stuff and I always appreciate such an effort! It was nice to visit the moment where the series started. Moreover, the goods have not left Japan so far.

Reboot! takes the base and core of the original but heavily remixes it. The pace has been insanely increased and the boards are littered with enemies. All the visuals have been redone, keeping the spirit of the original release (it’s nice and neat). The physics has been changed and the aforementioned tactical options have been added. That was enough for me – I had more fun than the original. I liked the effects, although visibility suffered in some places and it was hard to find the character on screen after playing everything. Cotton Reboot! also presents two modes for the biggest maniacs. Time trials in 2 minute and 5 minute options. Chaotic modes without brakes and room for winding up absurd points for the best.

Cotton Reboot! – this is one of those stylized SHMUP, so he won my sympathy doubly. I’m always more sympathetic to games where you can see a specific main idea. Here, at the first contact, one feels the heart and vision of the authors – the smile does not leave the face. In addition, the game sounds very good, caressing the ear with compositions from several well-known Japanese game dev composers. Even a legend like Shinji Hosoe (Ridge Racer series, Tekken, Zero Escape and a whole bunch of other iconic positions) was on board. The result is a catchy album of energetic tracks.

I will not cling to him by force and look for flaws. I only regret that we are dealing with one game, and not with a collection of the series. However, this is another successful arcade shooter.