Q-Yo Blaster

Story

As is the case with many games in the “Shmup” genre, the story is very thin on the ground.

in Q-Yo Blaster you take control of one of many colourful characters, from a rag-tag bunch of heroes to defend Earth.

Earth is being invaded by an alien race of insects that fell to Earth on a meteorite. Your job, should you choose to accept it, is to wipe them out over the course of 10 stages.

Having A Blast

All the characters here are separated into subclasses (which I’ll admit is a nice touch.)

 

• Damage – Does exactly what it says on the tin!
• Endurance – Is geared more toward defensive strategies
• Mix – A bit of both

 

That’s not to say the game is easy, quite the contrary, as the game is actually pretty tough.

Although I wouldn’t consider myself an avid Shmup fan, I still struggled a little (even on Beginner setting!)

What A Viewty

Q-Yo Blaster is a 2-D side-scrolling Bullet Hell Shoot ‘Em Up, with a 16Bit aesthetic. Although Team Robot Black Hat hasn’t gone full-on pixel art with this one, however,  it still gives me that retro arcade feel.

Each of the heroes you choose has a unique look. From a tomato man and a Panda looking creature to the more generic Hero and Android types (15 in total).

 

It’s fair to say that the wackiness doesn’t stop there either. The majority of the enemies and bosses have very outlandish and bizarre designs too. Complete with evil grinning faces and big white-gloved hands acting as guns! (Cuphead anyone?)

Manic Melodies

The sound design is also pretty solid. Whilst the weapons and explosions did sound a little underwhelming, it was redeemed somewhat by the awesome music. Opting for a more arcade style synth-rock, it really does fit the arcade nature of the game really well.

 

There isn’t much in the way of game modes here. You have your Classic Mode – where you take your chosen character through the campaign to the final boss. Then there’s an Arcade Mode – where you compete for high-scores.

You do get an upgrading system, though it is very basic. At the end of each stage, you’ll be given a choice of a  handful of upgrades which, are the same each time and for each character.

These will range from a simple 1UP to more bullets for weapon pick-ups, to increased speed.

Final Thoughts

Coming in at £8.99 GBP or $9.99 USD I do feel this is a little steep for what’s on offer here. Bearing in mind that there are only 2 game modes and 10 stages, (which are the same regardless of character). My first 2 runs only took me around 10-20 minutes to clear. Like most Shmups, the emphasis here is fully on the replay value, which I personally wasn’t really feeling.

Add to the mix some rather rough translation in the story cutscenes, and you really do get the sense that this game would have benefited from a bigger budget, or at the very least some more time in development.

 

With all that said I do think this one will struggle to stand out in the already bulging Nintendo eShop. There are already so many superior Shoot ‘Em Ups out there, Cuphead for instance, which I can’t help but feel inspired this one.

If you are on a budget, however, or maybe you want some 2 player couch co-op, then this is the perfect game for you. Just don’t expect hours of content, well unless you’re a high-score beast, in which case knock yourself out!

Recommended

Did you enjoy this review? Why not check out some of our other reviews? Cuphead Review: Yes, it is that Hard or how about Duke of Defense Review – Teaching an Old Dog New Tricks.

If you like our content and would like to contribute to our site, consider donating a coffee on Ko-Fi! Thanks!

Code Provided by Forever Entertainment. Reviewed by Neil.