The TwinBee the series enjoyed equal success in Japan throughout the & # 39; 80s in the late & # 39; 80s. Not Twinbee it was the sixth match in the series, and the last proper entry before Konami's arrival took you in a different direction with things like the spin-off of the platform Rainbow Bell Adventures.
Because it has never been released in North America, Pop Twinbee has never enjoyed the next it may have been. In an era of endless explosions and overcrowding where spacecraft and stars made up 95% of the genre, Pop & # 39; n Twinbee's colorful style and quirky enemies should actually give you a bigger fanbase (same, unfortunately, it goes for another cartoon shooter Parodius).
The game tells the story of Light and Pastel, two unnamed pilots who design colorful, dynamic flights of TwinBee and WinBee. The couple was touched by a young girl by the name of Madoke, informing them that her scientist grandfather, Dr Mardock, had come to a head and had become ill. Mardock wants to take over the world, so it's Light and Pastel to enter TwinBee and WinBee, flying through seven enemy-packed divisions and taking advantage of the good firearms' help in this bad doctor's cow.
TwinBee (or WinBee if you're a Second Player) is armed with both a standard fire rifle and an artillery missile. Enemies can only be killed on one side or the other, depending on their planet. Along with this standard attack you can also perform a special screen-fill action in which you burn a large number of small TwinBees on the screen, dealing with systemic damage: naturally, this is limited in value.
Finally, he also has the ability to make a punch attack. At first glance this move is like a little bit of wasted given how close you are to enemies to accomplish it, but it can also define certain characters and it is necessary to get rid of certain enemies that will not hurt you in any other way. All these different steps combine to make the shooter more than just tap one fire button and navigate.
Taking the planes aside, Pop Twinbee's other big violence is its power plan. Instead of simply picking up randomly disposing weapons and the like in many other explosives, here you pick up the bells that fall from heaven. These metals tend to be bronze in color when they first arrive, and only give you points when you download them. However, you can shoot these instruments and return them to the air, with the power to change their color in the process.
The pink bells lift your shield, the green adds a little extra relief ship to fly around you, blue to speed and so on. The trick is therefore to keep the metals running until they turn into a useful color, while also having to deal with ongoing enemy attacks. It's a fun way to keep you on your toes, even if the two weapons strength you can gain is less important on the lower side. One large invisible blade seems to have more power than your average shotgun, while the other is a spreading blade that gives you fire with a wide range but low fire speed.
One player mode is as you would expect, but if you don't like to leave, the second player can enter the WinBee pink and they both have fun for all seven levels together. There is also some glamor here that should have been available in additional co-op games over the years but sadly it failed to hold up: it's called Couple Mode and, as the name implies, is designed to allow you to play with your partner, even if they don't have many game experience.
Here's how it works: with Couple mode turned off your co-op experience is the same as it is in another shoot summary: both of you regard nearby enemies as equals and deal with them in a normal way. Turn on Couple mode, however, and enemies will focus all their attacks on TwinBee (one player), which means the WinBee-controlled player has a simpler time frame and can act as an assistant, taking the bad guys to lessen their aggression against the partner. It's a great way to get a non-gaming partner, child or sibling to participate when they are not intimidated by the load of characters running away from them.
You would think that this pairing method combined with its excellent graphics could make it an easy game, but the reality is that Pop Twinbee is as challenging as you want it to be. The Options menu provides you with seven difficulty settings to choose from, which means you can turn it into a scroller-free scroller or knuckle-clenching Knabching depending on your tastes. Hardness is a lot easier than most shooting, however, and this – combined with the fact that managers are less expressive than their peers – makes it an ideal entry point for people who are passionate about genre but are intimidated by the issues of & # 39; bullet Hell & # 39; hijinks.
Conclusion
Finally making its official deduction in North America 27 years after its original release, Pop & # 39; n Twinbee is a charming, colorful display that will appeal to both finishing novices and dazzling royal drivers. Its special Couple mode is a great week in the standard co-op formula, and its stunning platform and enemy designs make it a playground to this day.
