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[adversesolutions]

KETSUI: DEATH LABEL JIGOKU KIZUNATACHI

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Basic Information
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A boss-rush version of the initially overlooked but belatedly beloved arcade shooter Ketsui, which features multiple courses through the game, unlockables and an entire mode dedicated to the advice of Tsuneki Ikeda, CAVE's head programmer!

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3040/2957890002_87ed3d9f75.jpg

Official Website: http://www.arika.co.jp/product/ketsui_hp/

Genre: Danmaku Shooting

Rating: A

Release Dates:

Japan – 10/23/2008

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Preorders
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No pre-order bonus for the game, however it does come packaged with a DVD superplay of Ketsui arcade, in which player SPS pilots the A-type craft and player Gan pilots the B-type ship to over 500 million points. The B-type replay is apparently viewable on the DS and not the DVD.

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Box Art
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Features
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From Wiki and Duckroll:

The game adds the ability to save replays, which can be sent to other Nintendo DS units. In addition, it can upload the Ketsui demo game to other Nintendo DS units. EVAC Report feature allows players to unlock panels when specific conditions are met.

Single player modes:

* Novice: 2 mid bosses + 1 boss.
* Normal: 2 mid-bosses and 2 bosses.
* Doom Mode: Battle against Evaccane.

More courses are unlocked as you clear certain requirements

Multi player modes:

* VS mode: Competes against other player for multiplier chip. When one player has a longer win/loss gauge, multiplier chip goes to that player when an enemy is destroyed.
* Kizuna mode: Co-op play

Training mode: Allows selecting stage, boss difficulty, player's ship, ship stock, bomb stock, auto bomb.

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Images
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Videos
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http://www.arika.co.jp/product/ketsui_hp/movie_etc/movie_etc.html#

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Reviews & Impressions
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Famitsu - "7-8-8-6"

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In Conclusion
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Should be good preparation for the 360 release of this monster.

 

[duckroll]

......RPG Action Adventure? :lol

 

[adversesolutions]

lol, that's what I get for ripping format from the Castlevania thread

 

[thetrin]

I played Ketsui DS at TGS. I liked it a lot, but it felt really really cramped because of the screen dimensions.

 

[duckroll]

I just checked the official site. Looks like they've changed the difficulty modes. The information we used to have is outdated. Novice now has 2 mid-bosses and 1 boss. (midboss -> midboss -> boss), and Normal has 2 mid-bosses and 2 bosses (mid-boss -> boss -> mid-boss -> boss). Hard mode is gone, replaced by Doom Mode. Doom Mode just says that it's the battle against Evaccania Doom, the final boss of Ketsui, and it's a course for experienced players. They also mention that these 3 courses are the ones available right from the start, and you'll unlock more when you clear certain requirements.

 

[adversesolutions]

Ah word, yeah Miura was clarifying that on his blog the other day.

Ok, will update. And TheTrin, yeah it is gonna be pretty cramped. I wondered if they couldn't somehow do a Ninja Gaiden esque vert-screen thing, but alas...

 

[Lee N]

Ah word, yeah Miura was clarifying that on his blog the other day.

Miura? Do you mean Mihara?

 

[adversesolutions]

Yup, 0 for 3.
Sorry, shit at work is hectic right now.

http://mihara.sub.jp/top/blog/sb203/

 

[thetrin]

Ok, will update. And TheTrin, yeah it is gonna be pretty cramped. I wondered if they couldn't somehow do a Ninja Gaiden esque vert-screen thing, but alas...

That would be a nightmare to control (unless you mapped fire to stylus touching or something) :\

 

[dodonpalex]

I'm a big fan of Cave games so I'll probably buy it but my eyes hurt just from looking at screenshots of the game.

 

[Moor-Angol]

preordered saturday with Thunder Force VI

 

[PowerSmell]

This game will be boss. (get it?)

 

[adversesolutions]

My impressions of the game so far:

Fun!
The game has the standard Ketsui mechanic where the closer you get to an enemy, the higher the value of the multiplier chip you receive. So basically you want to be as close to bosses as possible to maximize the multiplier, which then is calculated against the point value of the boss and its parts.

One thing that is definitely new is that you will collect multiplier chips even when you bomb. The closer bullets are to you when you bomb, the higher your multiplier will climb. Since your three bombs refresh for each boss, it is critical to both use these and use them intelligently. If you no-miss a boss, your bomb count goes up to four meaning more chips.

There are four colors of chips:
Green chips you get from popcorn enemies.
Beige chips you get from bosses/laser enemies.
Red chips you get when bombing.
Blue chips you get when using shot.

The EVAC reports as described elsewhere are like achievements, and you get them for really random stuff like changing the sound settings but also important stuff like high scores, destroying all the parts on a boss etc. As they unlock, panels are taken away on pictures of the bosses. Each time you get a picture unlocked new features open up. And you can ask IKDsan more stuff. There are 113 panels with one big one on the last page, which could be the replay? Or something else. Hopefully the replay is relatively simple to get.

Playing through the courses themselves is fun, and there's no reason to get discouraged given that the game keeps increasing your life count so that you can get through them all. Good players however will not lose many lives, maximize their bomb usage and get quite high scores.

 

[shykyoichi]

Why are there so many good DS games and too little money for buying them?

Still adding to watchlist.

 

[adversesolutions]

Anybody else playing this? Really an awesome package.

I just unlocked extra mode today which is a different version of stage 5 from the arcade PCB.

Here's EOJ from the CAVE-STG boards explaining why this game is worth picking up:

Here's what you get for your $48 (that's the price I paid from Play-asia. Anyone can get it at that price after you find a $10 off coupon online. Just google it):

-Lovely box set with a full DS game and a superb superplay DVD that surpasses the score on the previous DVD set that now sells for over $150.
-7 boss rush courses ranging from 3 to 11 stages each.
-Doom mode (this is the perfect pick up and play challenge)
-Extra mode (full stage 5 from the arcade PCB with remixed enemy patterns, and a doom fight at the end).
-Multiplayer mode (play with 2-8 others in stage 5 with a competitive scoring element)
-Ask IKD-san mode - 40 or so comic book-ish exchanges with Ikeda from CAVE, the Ketsui characters, and a few Arika employees (including the guy who made this game, Mihara).
-Training mode
-Great stat tracking and score-tracking features (pretty much everything you could imagine, and then some).
-Replay save and exchange feature.
-A full Ura loop replay w/ the b-type ship (w/ a WR score) viewable on the DS cart.
-Over 110 challenges to complete to unlock various features and artwork.

 

[Hive]

Anybody else playing this? Really an awesome package.

I just unlocked extra mode today which is a different version of stage 5 from the arcade PCB.

Here's EOJ from the CAVE-STG boards explaining why this game is worth picking up:

holy crap, so there is a full stage in this game~

I'm getting it, but not until January

A full Ura loop replay w/ the b-type ship (w/ a WR score) viewable on the DS cart. <-- what's this mean? I don't speak Shmup ^o^

 

[adversesolutions]

Haha,

The Ura loop is a special second loop of the game accessible only under really tough conditions, I believe no miss and less than 2 bombs? So the player not only makes it there but all the way to the end of the Ura loop, dying only once on the true last boss, DOOM.

Full stage is fun, but...not easy to unlock! :lol

 

[Drkirby]

A new DS shump you say? *Grabs eyepatch and peg leg*

 

[Tain]

I'm wanting to try multiplayer pretty badly. Haven't put a ton of time into the game yet, though; just at Hard C.

 

[Hive]

Full stage is fun, but...not easy to unlock! :lol

thanks, it sounds sooo hard.

Maybe you can unlock everything for me, keep the cart in near mint condition, and then sell it to me once you're done!!

 

[Dash Kappei]

-7 boss rush courses ranging from 3 to 11 stages each.

So there are actual stages and not only boss fights?

I'm gettin' it either way but I'd like to know...

 

[duckroll]

-7 boss rush courses ranging from 3 to 11 stages each.

So there are actual stages and not only boss fights?

I'm gettin' it either way but I'd like to know...

No. Stages = bosses.

 

[Peronthious]

Oh shit, this one snuck right past me. I've been looking forward to this for a long while, and of course my DS is KIA at the moment.

 

[Munin]

So if they can do one full stage, why not all of them?

 

[sixteen-bit]

A new DS shump you say? *Grabs eyepatch and peg leg*

smh

 

[Space Runaway]

I'm enjoying the game quite a bit but it's such a gigantic cock tease. It makes me want to play the full arcade version soooo bad.

 

[Hive]

-7 boss rush courses ranging from 3 to 11 stages each.

So there are actual stages and not only boss fights?

I'm gettin' it either way but I'd like to know...

no, we were referring to the EXTRA MODE, which does have the full stage 5 from the arcade.

So only 1 full stage exists in the game, apparently~

 

[pancakesandsex]

A new DS shump you say? *Grabs eyepatch and peg leg*

So you're going to pirate it?

 

[Tain]

no, we were referring to the EXTRA MODE, which does have the full stage 5 from the arcade.

kinda sorta. An adaptation of it.

 

[Dash Kappei]

I don't get it then, if the DS is good enough for a full Stage 5 rendition/remix then why not all of them?

I wish there were more shmups on the DS, i love 'em on the go and so much so that I can let the "not nearly as good as the PCB boards/home console ports" not bother me.

PSP shmups are unplayable for me, I can't imagine what a bullet hell game would do to that screen, on the other hand DS's screens gap OR tiny/resolution screen would not bother me as much.

I mean, I'd pay 60$ for a portable Dodonpachi/Espgaluda :-/

 

[PepsimanVsJoe]

Shit that's a much better deal than I expected. Cave really went all out for this one.
Shame all my import money is heading towards a j360 with all the goods(R4, RFC, DS, SnS III, K/DDPDoJBL)

 

[Llyranor]

What with the supposed talks of a DDP localization for 360, I'm holding off on this just in case Ketsui 360 gets localized.

 

[Dash Kappei]

A new DS shump you say? *Grabs eyepatch and peg leg*

wat?

 

[Tain]

I don't get it then, if the DS is good enough for a full Stage 5 rendition/remix then why not all of them?

Given the FMVs and shit present, maybe cart space? I'm sure it's a good amount of work to adapt the stages, too.

 

[Dash Kappei]

Given the FMVs and shit present, maybe cart space? I'm sure it's a good amount of work to adapt the stages, too.

Well, who gives a flying fuck about FMVs I say

 

[Princess Skittles]

Why is this game $60? ;___;

 

[∀ Narayan]

wat?

Piracy.

 

[Baron]

I bought this from NCS last week, UPS dropped it off yesterday afternoon. I haven't played Ketsui before, but I've played Cave's PS2 shmup ports and enjoyed them, so I thought I'd give this a try. I haven't had the chance to open it up and play it yet either (still playing Dead Space, heh), but I'll post my thoughts when I do. It's in a very nice package, a shrink-wrapped cardboard box I assume contains both game and DVD. I am not a fan of the cover artwork, but eh.

This is a great month for shmups, Thunderforce 6 coming out tomorrow too!

 

[sixteen-bit]

Why is this game $60? ;___;

Niche title + Bonus DVD

I got this recently. It's okay but I wish the experience was meatier.

 

[Hive]

any indication that this will become rare and difficult to find?

 

[ghibli99]

Alright, just picked mine up yesterday. On top of what others have said so far...

First, it's pretty awesome to see the Cave logo appear on the DS preceding a shooter. I don't know why.

Intro graphics feel kinda Capcomish from the early 90s.

Gets pretty tough by the time you get into the Hard rushes. Not sure if it's due to the small screen size, but I find myself getting lost a bit when I'm so used to playing Cave games and other shooters on a larger screen (but not too big) with a stick.

Jury's still out, but it seems pretty cool so far. More later...

 

[Shaheed79]

Ok now we're talkin.

 

[Dash Kappei]

any indication that this will become rare and difficult to find?

.

Also: moar impressions please.

 

[Hive]

hey Ketsuiphiles! ^_^

Here's some hopeful news. Looks like Ketsui is primed for localization, according to this site

Wouldn't surprise me in the least~

 

[Princess Skittles]

hey Ketsuiphiles! ^_^

Here's some hopeful news. Looks like Ketsui is primed for localization, according to this site

Wouldn't surprise me in the least~

This is for Ketsui 360, not Death Label.

Spoiler

It's still amazing news.

 

[sixteen-bit]

This is for Ketsui 360, not Death Label.

And that's what makes the news better.

 

[∀ Narayan]

It would be cool if the X360 version of Ketsui had an arrange mode with all of the music done by Hitoshi Sakimoto.

If you've listened to his arrangement of Evac Industry, you would agree.

This is never going to happen, though.

 

[grindamasta]

Get my copy today. I'm not a big fan of boss rush games but I'm really enjoying this little gem.. maybe because I never played a shmup on my DS before (no, Nanostray dont count).

The package is awesome btw.

hey Ketsuiphiles! ^_^

Here's some hopeful news. Looks like Ketsui is primed for localization, according to this site

Wouldn't surprise me in the least~

:O !

 

[Akuun]

Awesome. I've been waiting for a danmaku game for the DS.

 

[lupin23rd]

Damn I'm not very good at this game, but enjoying it quite a lot.

Put almost 3 hours into it (not saying much for most games but it seems like a lot for a boss rush shooter).

Anyone unlocked all panels?

Do I keep earning lives by dying with no limit? Fuck Very Hard is very hard :lol

Any tips?