Redux: Dark Matters - a New Game for Sega Dreamcast & More

[ninjainspandex]

My copy arrived today, but after waiting two and a half years I am afraid to play it.

Mine arrived today as well, still have not removed the cellophane. I'm still shocked that it actually did arrive. I had completely forgotten about it.

[Nemoide]

So I got my copy earlier this week but only played the game(s) tonight.
I tried Redux first, since it was the game that was advertised and I figured it might be a little more interesting despite the poor graphics. I didn't hit the game-freezing bug, but I did die a lot. The graphics really are as bad and blurry as everyone says. The music is pretty good though! The gameplay... is kind of a mess. Maybe I just didn't get what I was supposed to be doing though? Every time enemies die, they leave boulders that I guess you're supposed to collect? The difficulty is really just in trying to figure out what you're supposed to collect, what you're supposed to dodge, and what's just in the background. Since your front-shield-thing absorbs a lot of types of enemy-fire, I found myself thinking some things were GOOD but then later realizing that they're BAD after touching them from a different angle. But I'll stick with it for at least a little longer!

So I decided to try Dux 1.5. The graphics are a lot crisper and everything feels very clean. It's nothing special though. Like pierrot said, it's a breeze. I didn't complete it my first try, but I did my second. Since there's no "boulder-collection" (or whatever was going on in Redux) I had a much easier time figuring out what I should be doing. I never really understood how/why my main weapon would change, but at least I got the hang of controlling the missiles to go vertically or horizontally?
I DUNNO. It wasn't BAD but it wasn't especially GOOD and the replay value just ISN'T THERE compared to other modern shmups I know of.

I guess I'm glad that the game came out and that I received my copy, but I wouldn't recommend anyone actually buy it at $65. I'll try Redux again tomorrow...
At least the music is good!

ALSO FALSE ADVERTISING: THERE WEREN'T EVEN ANY DUCKS. : [

[noiseredux]

based on these reviews, I'm pissed that this game was named after me. :\

[pierrot]

based on these reviews, I'm pissed that this game was named after me. :\

As you should be. I'll never be able to think of you as fondly again. Such a shame.

I'd recommend suing for defamation.

[Nemoide]

Guuuuuh, the final level of Redux is SO MUCH HARDER than the rest of the game. I've gotten to the last boss but that's it for today.

In the last level, the vast majority of the shots are lasers you can't absorb (defeating the key mechanic of the game), AND there are VERY FEW power-ups, which means if you die a few times and/or continue and lose what you have, you're pretty much screwed. Add to this the fact that the game doesn't have any checkpoints within the level and you have A RECIPE FOR FRUSTRATION. Seriously, I felt pretty good when I got to the last boss but then I died and had to start from the beginning... KIND OF A PAIN.

I can get through the rest of the game without continuing and with lives to spare but MAN THAT LAST LEVEL. The easiness of the earlier levels just makes it that much more annoying, because it means I have to go through THE ENTIRE GAME AGAIN which just feels like a waste of time.

Still... I MUST BEAT THIS GAME.

[pierrot]

I'm not sure how you can stand to play it. Your eyeballs must be coated in Teflon or something.

[Nemoide]

Your eyes go numb eventually. It's part of the "experience."

Oh I have some icing for this game's terrible terrible cake... you know how the manual is only one folded piece of paper? Well the little information it does have is WRONG. It says you fire homing shots with the left trigger, but it's actually the right.
SO YEAH, that's something...

[dunpeal2064]

You should play a good shmup instead Nemoide.

[Nemoide]

OKAY OKAY I'M STOPPING. I got to the final stage with nine lives, was still killed by the last boss.
I dunno, I think it's pretty good for a kusoge...
I mean, if this was a rough beta version or a proof-of-concept or something, it wouldn't be so bad. For a remake of a remake, representing the TRUE VISION of Dux... YEEECCHH. What were they thinking?

Seriously, I can't believe that one of the stated reasons for delays was the involved beta testing. Really? REALLY? There are so many problems with this game! Is it supposed to have no check points? Is the last boss supposed to really turn into something crazier than the craziest bullet hell? Because he does. It starts off tough, but manageable, then just goes INSANE.
Are you supposed to get lives after scoring points? You get one pretty quickly, but I don't think I got any after that.
Do the stars you collect serve any purpose besides points? If not, why do they make a special chime when you collect them?
In the final level, why do enemies shoot lasers even after you've defeated them? I mean, you can destroy an enemy, then see a "charging" effect where it USED to be and then the laser still shoots! What the hell!?
In one of the levels, there are lasers that kind of charge and then form temporary laser-walls, so you have to get out of the way. You encounter this early in the stage and more at the end. In the middle there are objects that LOOK like they SHOULD make laser-walls but at most you'll see the walls JUST fading away the second they're visible, not to come back. Is that on purpose? Is the scrolling speed wrong? Would this work better if it was widescreen?

If a big laser blast is shot but detached from the source of the beam, it shouldn't be able to rotate and change angle. I figured out the pattern for the boss that does this pretty easily, but it just looks weird.

And that's ignoring the awful lo-res graphics!
The sad truth is that this game is clearly not intended to be a Dreamcast release. Maybe they'll fix problems on PC, XBLA, iOS, etc... but yeah, it does not feel like a final version.

[Ghegs]

The sad truth is that this game is clearly not intended to be a Dreamcast release. Maybe they'll fix problems on PC, XBLA, iOS, etc... but yeah, it does not feel like a final version.

Redux 1.5 incoming.