[Análisis] Gigantic Army for Nintendo Switch – iGamesNews

Gigantic Army is an indie arcade developed by Astro Port and distributed by Storybird which pays tribute to mecha shooters from the 16-bit era like Cybernator, Assault Suits Valken, Metal Warriors and Front Mission: Gun Hazard.

This title was originally released on February 5, 2014 on PC and almost 6 years later it reaches Nintendo Switch, which is the version that I will analyze today.

Are you ready to shoot left and right?

Argument

It is the 21st century and Earth is at war with the Ramulons, an alien race determined to halt humanity's advance into space. Mankind's war against the Ramulons has reached the planet Ramulon and now it is up to us to pilot the GMR-34 SALADIN, a manned combat robot, and face the Ramulon army.

Although its history is nothing of the other, as it usually happens in the majority of titles of the genre, it serves as a perfect excuse to get down to work.

Gameplay

Gigantic Army is a single player arcade shoot ‘em up that combines action and 2D lateral development platforms in which we must overcome a series of 6 levels.

They are all very linear and basically our objective will be to kill all the enemies that are ahead of us until completing the level and moving on to the next. At the beginning of each of them, the story will be narrated in the form of a diary of one of the pilots.

To finish off our rivals we will have a manned combat robot called GMR-34 SALADIN, although the first of all will be to select a weapon before starting the game (we cannot change it). We have 3 at our disposal: rifle, submachine gun and missile launcher. Each has its own characteristics: the rifle has normal power and range, while the submachine gun has the weakest power but the highest range and the missile launcher has the highest power but the lowest range. In addition, each weapon in turn has a different special attack: cluster grenade, more missiles and a powerful laser. Therefore there is no better weapon than another and each one will do better in different situations. It should be noted that we can shoot in different directions.

But in addition, our robot can also perform other actions, such as protecting itself with a shieldmake a Turbo (we can do it twice in a row) or jump with a jetpack, which will also allow us to fly to reach higher places for a limited time. As for the melee, it will also have a knife It normally does more damage than other weapons, but at the same time it leaves us more exposed to enemy attacks.

The game has two initial levels of difficulty (easy and normal), but to make life easier for us, like any self-respecting shoot’em up, throughout the levels we will find a series of powerups to regain life and enhance our attack. But not only that, since we will also find others that will increase our weather. And it is that in this title, unlike others of the genre, it is very important to control the time marker, since if the counter reaches zero, our robot will quickly begin to lose life until it explodes. It is a mechanic that must be taken into account, and therefore we can not recreate ourselves by killing enemies and we must use the turbo continuously, while we are killing enemies if we do not want to see the Game Over screen. If we die we will start again from the beginning of the level where we are and if we lose all our continuations we must start from the beginning. We must remember that we are facing an arcade game that pays homage to old school titles, so here the fair ones help.

For more inri, at certain points of each level we will also find huge bosses (Normally there are two per phase, one intermediate and one final), which can give us the most difficult things and if we are not skilled, they will not lose much life and, above all, time.

Finally it should be noted that this title, like most Switch games, can be played in portable mode, desktop mode and TV mode. In addition also It is compatible with the Nintendo Switch Pro controller and the cloud data saving service.

Graphics and sound

At the graphic level, Gigantic Army is a very colorful title that has retro arcade style inspired by 16-bit titles. It presents good animations both of our robot, and of the enemies (each with their own weapons and attack patterns), which despite having little variety and repeating themselves, are superbly detailed.

Regarding the scenarios, despite presenting a linear design, they are also well represented, some being more extensive than others, so once we know them it is a delight to go through them as quickly as possible.

On the other hand, at the sound level, the title presents quite cool melodies that perfectly match the action we see on screen. The sound effects are also well implemented, something fundamental in this type of titles, where we will continually hear gunshots and explosions.

Finally it should be noted that the title is in English, although you do not have to worry, since it is not necessary to understand the story (which as we have previously commented is very simple), so you can perfectly enjoy the game even if it is not in Spanish.

Duration

Gigantic Army is a very short title, since as we have mentioned, it only has 6 phases, so it can be exceeded in approximately 1 hour. However, as in any self-respecting arcade title, its greatest asset is the replayability to increase our final score. Unfortunately, this game does not have a cooperative mode for two players or internal achievements, which would have been a plus, because this type of title is always fun to play in company and to get for the different challenges.

It will also depend largely on the level of difficulty in which we play (initially only easy and normal will be unlocked) and the skill level at the controls of each player. In addition also we can unlock two new levels of difficulty, so whoever wants more, here is a challenge that will take a few more hours.

Finally, the game also has a practice mode where we can, as its name suggests, practice in the different phases that we have been unlocking in the main mode, with the difference that once finished we will not go to the next. It is an ideal way to get to know the levels better and learn how to go faster.

conclusion

Gigantic Army is a game that despite its short duration will delight lovers of shoot’em up. We are facing a frenetic title, where the control of time is essential if we do not want to die. Despite the fact that the enemies are little varied, we are facing a very replayable and challenging title at its highest difficulty levels. All a tribute to the 16-bit era.

Gigantic Army It is available in digital format, through the Switch eShop, from February 21 at a price of € 8.99. You must have a free space on your console of 346 MB to download it.