Another Cave classic that uses solid visuals, great design and hardcore shmuping to create a gem of the genre...
After warming up with the Don Pachi series, Cave had established itself as the premier shmup creator. Manic shooters were a fans dream and twitch heavy games had hooked many an arcade goer in the late 90's. Cave became respected for intense game play as well as sharp and creative visuals. The release of Guwange, only solidified this position for the company in the gaming industry.
Guwange is an overhead shmup with a feudal Japan setting. A new twist was making the player an actual person as opposed to a space craft or plane. The gamer can select one of three characters and embark on a manic quest to defeat the oni-like menace that haunts and controls the land. Your avatar runs and shoots his/her way through hundreds of enemies that storm towards you as you make your way through a demon filled town-like setting. Holding down the fire button creates a "Spirit" that hovers towards enemies, laying multiple hits and attacking new villains as they arrive. Of course, the price to pay for having this spirit helper is a dramatic slowdown of your main characters movement.
This helper and the obligatory bomb are much needed as...true to Cave form....the enemies and bullets are en masse and every little bit helps. With all this action onscreen at any given time it is surprising that there is next to no slowdown or graphical glitches. Bullets and projectiles glow an eerie blue(or yellow) and missiles stream towards you with no hiccup or pause. The music is subtle with a Japanese theme and fits the game perfectly. Explosions, marching enemies and howling bosses sound crisp and clean. The entire package fits together, creating a coherent and beautiful game that shows and plays Cave to the fullest.
Guwange is manic, fast, colorful and exciting. This is an arcade game so there are really no bonuses to speak of. The sheer delight of running through skeleton filled towns and battling mutated bosses is bonus enough. Bullets fly liberally and many a quarter is needed to make it to the inevitable end battle of good vs. evil. All three characters are pretty much the same, aside from a different visual look, shot-type and Spirit protector.
Like most Cave games , Guwange is made with passion, love and most importantly, a deep understanding of the shoot 'em up genre. However mad the action gets, focusing and quick thinking will always prevail, and "swimming" inbetween the bullet flows becomes necessary and natural. This quality shmup never throws a wall of bullets at you without that little zone to sneak through. This shows the amazing design of the game and the programming skill of the Cave team. This game is a legend and a remarkably intense chapter of the shmup history book. This is a classic that should be played by all shooter fans. Beautiful, intense, exciting and just plain fun to play. Do yourself a favour and play this game...you deserve a treat.