Though most certainly a classic in graphics and sound, it's immense difficulty and presentation is often carried on weak
DoDonPachi follows a different story this time around: you assume the role of a special strike squadron fighter pilot who is called into action by their highest commander (once again, solely named The Commander, though far different than the last one). After an expedition to Mars is decimated by the mechanical fleet of Martian invaders, the invaders start attacking various cities and occupying areas on Earth and it's your job to destroy them all. Their true purpose however is up to you to discover. I must say in DDP's favor that the story has improved from the original seeing how the twist in the middle of the game actually impacts the story though it does lack the original's symbolism (there's a reason why it was called Project 'Leader Bee'), but I digress.
The controls to DoDonPachi are once again quite simple in that they are direct and are user-friendly for just about anyone who picks up the controller. Much like the last game, DDP offers various weapons at the player's disposal. Players have an automatic shot, an array of screen-cleaning bombs, a big laser beam for stronger enemies and a huge, shot cleaning beam that is fired when the bomb and laser buttons are combined. This time however, when you choose your fighter you can also choose to empower either your laser or shot which will make whichever one you choose stronger than the other as you collect upgrades.
Now for everyone concerned with the game play, you've got a mixed bag in your hands: DoDonPachi is far more manic than its predecessor and thus far more intense; even on easy mode, your enemies, no matter how small no matter how few spew shots at you that with one enemy alone could blanket a good portion of the screen. Even with your unlimited continues, it's next to impossible to survive the forces you face.
However, with this increase of difficulty comes a bigger difficulty that sort of jabs the game play in the foot: replay value. In the first DonPachi, the moment you beat the seemingly final stage, you were forced to re-endure the previous stages with the only difference being the increase of enemy bullets once you destroy them (and any other objects in the background).
This time however, after beating the sixth stage, you must perform one of various tasks and survive with them at the end of the sixth level in order to actually beat the game. If not, then the game ends at the sixth level, as does the story. I won't say what you need to do to appease the game, but I will say in full honesty that the attempts of ever advancing into the 2nd loop in DoDonPachi is next to impossible as all of the tasks require you to accomplish them at the very end of the sixth level and from the beginning of the first level you're facing enemy squadrons that fire weapons that don't know the meaning of 'over-heating.' It practically sucks the fun right out of the experience.
Of course, this is the Saturn version we're talking about here, so in a marginally thankful way, the conversion staff thought it to be a nice idea to include an easier version of the game called Saturn mode. This mode is actually pretty special as it increases the levels and boss fights by one and you still have unlimited continues so you can have as much fun blasting and being creamed by your enemies as much as you want and still make a desperate attempt to make the game's high-score. Of course, Saturn mode cuts out the story aspect as well as the repetition of the normal mode of game play, so there's that side.
As far as audio goes, DDP both wins and fails. The sounds are very good in some aspects while weak in others. Sometimes a large boss blowing up sounds pretty good as far as listening to scraps of hot metal being blown apart should (or would) sound, yet there are other explosions that hardly sound accurate. It's like in an anime where a character gets horribly eviscerated to the point where it's practically impossible to be eviscerated... the moment of impact sounds like 'something' being quickly torn apart, but it doesn't sound fleshy, liquidated or even... terrestrial. In DDP's case, some of the weaker explosions are basically that anime sound of evisceration: you know it doesn't sound like what's being represented, but you can't describe what it sounds like, either.
As far as music goes, DDP introduces some very nice songs that focuses on the action, yet it tends to forget the idea of originality. Most of the level songs include some well-paced electronic-rock music that fits the pace and mood of the game's action in that it sounds like the kind of music you'd hear in a flight-combat based movie where there's a dog fight every five minutes at high altitudes against enormous squadrons. Sadly, the level music does lack something, that something being quantity: seeing how there are six default levels, Cave did not find it expedient to throw in as many level songs as there are levels. That's right, at level 4 the level songs repeat themselves in the same order. Most of the music to introduce other segments run from mood-wreaking to mildly satisfying, with most of the congratulatory 'level-completed' songs being stuck between the two. As a side note, it's interesting how the song that plays when The Commander talks to you is so sad and tragic that it kind of sounds like the credit roll to a nihilistic, mature-audiences-only anime series.
The graphics of DDP are a little... hard not to criticize, yet easy to accept. The game offers 2D graphics which are presented with great color and fine detail, though mostly given in the well drawn and designed backgrounds. Some of the enemies look nice, though in most cases the bosses lack the exact intricacy design in that you'll have to squint in order to see the fine detail. Regretably the player's fighter and weapons aren't as impressive especially when full charged, but at least the graphics for both aren't down right piss-poor.
Simultaneously, there seems to have been a rendering problem with the game's conversion in that fiery explosions and crater-scarred terrain is very one-dimensional and in some cases look a bit blocky. Though aesthetic, you will remember that this is game the offers you wide-spread destruction and you WILL be seeing crater-scarred terrain a lot. If summary the graphics aren't exactly satisfying as demonstrated by the boss explosions as they start out colorful and effective, but the moment the boss explodes, al we get is a white screen and a billow of smoke that dissipates faster than it came which leaves in place the background the boss previously hovered over.
One thing that made DonPachi so fun was the company of the goofy Wing Leader commentary which this time around is replaced with digital female voices. Now whether or not you hated the first voice accompaniment or not, chances are you're going to hate the new female voices even more for the following reason: the are dull. Dull to the point of practically being apathetic. Although they don't have as many lines as the original guy, they lack the energetic feel and overall excitement the Wing Leader proffered. The female digital girls don't even congratulate you when you blow the boss to bits! It's like digitizing the dialogue of Henry Townshend - emotionless yet bizarrely heroic dullard of Silent Hill 4 fame - and applying his commentary to a blood sport! It just doesn't match up and for that reason is not advised!!
Overall, DoDonPachi is a manic/maniac shmup that is all challenge and all competition. Enjoying it will depend on whether you can appreciate both at the same time for a shmup where your only reward for failure to even so much as beat the game just once is a possible stab at a new high score. For anyone who is a game masochist who loves getting their butt strapped to their head on a twenty second basis then I highly recommend DoDonPachi and suggest you buy some tight, spiky leather duds to go with it.