By Al Players: 1 Platforms: Nintendo Switch, XBox One, XBox Series XS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC (Steam) It's been a while since we've reviewed a shmup title here at A-to-J, and EastAsiaSoft is here to break that streak for us. Tiny Pixels Vol. 1 - Ninpo Blast (Which I'm going to refer to as simply "Ninpo Blast" from here on.) is a vertical shooter with roguelike elements that released last year on all major platforms, and it seems to be both developed and published by EastAsiaSoft themselves. We decided to take a look at it now since it's getting a sequel of sorts soon, so the wait isn't as random as it may seem. We're going to be trying out the game on the Nintendo Switch today, though it's safe to say that all versions are identical. This is going to be a quick one, so let's dive right in! There is no story at all to speak of in Ninpo Blast, but I'm willing to let that slide since you play as a ninja on a hoverbike, and that's just all sorts of cool. Though there is no story, the game goes for the tried and true approach of a (maybe?) space setting, and bosses that mostly resemble giant bugs. Your only goal is to survive and get a high score, and maybe earn enough coins to make each subsequent run a little easier. This is a vertical shooter, and your character has three forms of attack. The kunai shoots straight ahead, the shuriken fires in a wide arc, and the katana slash kills everything on screen. You can switch between the kunai and shuriken whenever you want since they're mapped on different buttons, and the katana slash needs to be powered up between uses. That's pretty much all you have at your disposal as far as offensive capabilities go, though you also have a shield that allows you to take an extra hit without taking damage. It too needs to be charged, but you'll come to rely on it since it only takes three hits to kill you at the start of the game. Losing all your hearts means the end of your current run, though you do get to keep any coins you found along the way. You also get to place your score on the leaderboards, though that's probably something you won't really have to worry about until you're several dozen runs in. Ninpo Blast can be quite a difficult game when playing it on its base settings, so it makes sense to pick up all the upgrades available to you as quickly as possible. All upgrades cost coins, with several needing a progressively higher amount to fully unlock everything in a particular category. Coins are dropped randomly by enemies and bosses, and will float to the bottom of the screen if you don't grab them in time. You'll probably only get a few each run in the early stages, but you'll later find that you can get dozens in each run as you get improve your character and get better at the game. These coins can then be used to upgrade your abilities and stats, or open up new options in the game. Each weapon can get upgrades that increase their rate of fire, damage output, and number of projectiles, and you can also increase things like your score multiplier, number of lives, and the ability to bring coins to your easier. That's not all though, as about half of the upgrades serve to expand the game itself. These include things like new backgrounds and hoverbikes, and even additional bosses that can cap off each wave of enemies. There's probably more I can say about these upgrades and unlocks, but I think you get the point. It's easy to assume that getting all of the character upgrades will make the game easy, but all they really do is increase the amount of enemies you'll be able to take out before eventually getting overwhelmed by the endless stream of enemies and bosses. There is no way to truly "beat" Ninpo Blast as far as I can tell, as all runs are technically endless. Each run is broken up into waves of enemies that sort of act as levels. Each of those waves consist of a random assortment of enemies that ultimately culminates in a boss encounter. I already mentioned that these bosses are mostly bugs, with the ones unlocked with coins being particularly intense. Defeating a boss gives you a bunch of coins, and you then move on to the next level. It might seem like each wave is the same, but they actually get progressively harder the further you go. New enemies will start to pop up that are harder to take out, bullets will start to fill the screen, and bosses will start to use better tactics and skills against you. Since there's no way to recover lost lives, it's just a matter of time before your current run comes to an end. Even though this gameplay loop may sound repetitive, unlocking more content keeps things fresh, and there's an addictiveness to the experience that's hard to describe outside of playing it for oneself. Part of the reason why Ninpo Blast is so hard to put down has to do with its speedy gameplay, and near-perfect presentation. There's very little downtime to be had, as you'll be jumping right into another run as soon as the previous one wraps up. Depending on bosses, some waves only last a couple of minutes, and the quick pace makes it hard to realize that you're essentially doing the same thing over and over again. Add to this the fact that the game is visually impressive, and features a soundtrack that seems almost too good for a game of this size and scope. I played this game on the Nintendo Switch, and never noticed even a bit of slowdown no matter what nonsense was going on in-game. I also came to love just about all of the game's music, and it wasn't unusual for a particular track to get my blood boiling mid-run. Unlocking upgrades is also a good incentive to keep playing, as are the aforementioned leaderboards. I never managed to place very high on them, but I'm sure that there are several players out there who live for that sort of thing. Ninpo Blast might be as simple as they come, but it truly gets the arcade shooter formula down perfectly. I'd be lying if I said that Ninpo Blast stayed fresh for very long after my initial playthrough. I put in about 4-5 hours to unlock everything, and played for another few hours just because it was that much fun. I then figured I had seen enough for this review, and put the game down. Even though I've gone back to it a couple times since then, I don't see myself playing it for anywhere near the time I've already put into it. I'm not really sure that's an issue though, since the game only costs $4.99. Given its very low price point, I think that there's more than enough content to feel like you got your money's worth no matter how many hours you end up putting into it, and I'm positive that those more inclined to play arcade shooters will keep at it for far longer than I did. I don't think it's at all surprising when I say that Tiny Pixels Vol. 1 - Ninpo Blast is totally worth picking up. It's a must buy for fans of vertical shooters, especially for those who like them to have roguelike elements as well. It's quick, it's fun, and you get a lot of bang for your buck along the way. It may not stay in your gaming rotation forever, but it's sure to draw you in for several hours of arcade fun. I wasn't expecting too much from this game when I picked it up, and it completely blew me away. Pick up now on whatever platform you can, and thank me later. See you in the next one! Check Out Tiny Pixels Vol. 1 - Ninpo Blast on Nintendo Switch: https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/tiny-pixels-vol-1-ninpo-blast-switch/ Story: N/A Gameplay: A Graphics: A+ Music/Sound: A+ Value: A+ Overall: A+ Pros: + A fun and fast-paced vertical shooter that has roguelike elements to keep it fresh. + Not only do the upgrades increase your abilities, but they also unlock more features in the game too. + Has awesome pixel-based graphics, and a soundtrack that seems far too good for a release of this size. + Is extremely addicting, and has leaderboards for those who want to truly master the game. + At $4.99, picking it up is practically a no-brainer. Cons: - There is no story to speak of at all. Even a simply paragraph or two explaining the set-up would've gone far. - Since the game doesn't ever truly "end", it can become a bit repetitive after a while. A copy of this game was provided to us free-of-charge by the publisher for the purpose of this review. This did not affect our review in any way.
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