Written by Dan Gill
Ratalaika is on a mission at the moment. It seems the
publisher is determined to bring a load of 16-bit era shooters to modern
platforms, and this can only be a good thing, even if some of the games
themselves aren’t exactly classics, it’s nice to have some sense of
preservation. Their recent releases of Cotton titles are appreciated, being the
series never had a widespread release back in the 90s, and copies of the
original carts fetch silly money these days.
Cotton 100% is the second game in the series about the eponymous
witch. A side scrolling shooter with some light RPG elements, the game’s design
is very much of the Parodius and Pop ‘n Twinbee camp, favouring bright, fantasy
themed levels and cute character designs over the usual sci-fi fare that
normally defines the genre. It looks good, too. The bright backgrounds and
characters offer a refreshing change from the futuristic theme of most SCHMUPs,
and even though things can get busy on screen, the backdrop never causes things
in the fore to be missed. When things get really busy on screen, there is
noticeable slowdown sadly, and it’s a shame this couldn’t have been fixed in
the port.
The gameplay itself is pretty standard, but enjoyable
enough. Cotton earns power ups (the type can be changed by shooting it repeatedly),
and experience is earned through destroying enemies. If you manage to avoid
losing lives, this ends up making Cotton death on broom. As such, the game can
feel a little easy compared to other examples of the genre, and the power up
system is a little simple when compared with Parodius’ Gradius-aping approach.
Along with the original game, there are some modern
improvements as you’d expect of almost any reissue these days (screen filters,
cheats, rewind and the like), but as with Panorama Cotton there’s no English
script. Each level is preceded by a brief anime style intro relaying the story
with Japanese text. It’s a shame an English translation is missing, as it would
elevate the game from a decent port to something that feels more like a labour of
love.
As it stands, with the removal of the usual barriers of the
cost of an original copy of the game (or the moral dilemma of venturing down
the emulation route), this is still a welcome release. The game - while
different to most in the broader shoot ‘em up genre – isn't one that stands out
than others in its niche field of cutesy shooters. It’s an enjoyable, pretty
romp through what I’m sure is a fun story, and is worth a look, just expect to
be charmed rather than challenged.
7/10
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