Trouble Witches Neo! (XBLA): "A Cute Anime Witch Shmup"

Trouble Witches Neo! is actually two games in one, and was developed by 'Bouken/SNK PLAYMORE'. It features the original game (Trouble Witches AC) as well as an 'Arranged 360 Mode (NEO)' with revamped anime character designs. The story of the game follows 8 young maid-witches on a quest to restore peace to their kingdom. They must each face other maid-witches (via boss battles), and claim the fragments of the ring of Draupnir in order to do so. The king has also stated that anyone who captures the one responsible (Amalgam) for the threat that has troubled his kingdom will recieve one wish. Each maid-witch in the game has their own unique look, personality, and story as well as a magical pet that flies alongside them. There are a handful of modes, and even extras to unlock as you play through this anime styled shoot 'em up. I do believe there's a maid-witch that all anime, and shmup fans will definitely be able to call their favorite in this game. If you're looking for a cute, and stylish anime shmup then this might just be the one you've been looking for ...

The characters in 'Trouble Witches Neo!', and it's beautifully rendered fantasy worlds are what really makes this shmup stand out from the rest. You will encounter, and play as eight of the cutest maid-witches a shmup has ever had. Among the witches you'll find an apprentice (Pril), a genius pop star (Aqua), a selfish celestial witch (Valorie), the princess of fairies (Symphony), a vagabond witch (Louie), a preacher (Conan), a perpetual pessimist (Lyla), and an anime otaku astrologist (Sakurako). Following alongside each witch is a magical pet that helps shoot down the enemies. The pets include a cat with bat wings, a shark with a mustache, a turtle that shoots bombs, and several other unique/odd creatures. You can follow the detailed stories of the eight witches through the 'Story Mode' in the 'Arrange 360 Mode (NEO)'. Each story is brought to life with panel style artwork, Dialogue and cute semi-animated anime characters (maid-witches/magical pets).

There is definitely a lot to enjoy in 'Trouble Witches Neo!'. It offers two full games, story modes, single play, 2 challenge modes (Score Attack, Boss Attack) as well as multiplayer modes (Local, Xbox Live). In the original mode you can experience the game as it was in an arcade cabinet style view. This mode features single play, and multi play modes as well as two unlockable characters (Conan, Lyla). The Arrange 360 Mode is my favorite, and features a revamped widescreen version of the original game with greatly improved anime character designs. The story mode in this version is also more detailed, and fills you in on the background of each of the characters as well as their interactions with the other maid-witches in the game.

As you play through any mode (except Boss Attack) in the game you will encounter a blimp/shop that looks like a pumpkin, and it's owner with a matching pumpkin hat, 'Autumn'. You can enter these shops any time they appear to purchase magic cards, and upgrades with the gold you recieve from enemies you've destroyed. There is a time limit in the store, and if you overstay your welcome you'll be booted out. The magical cards in 'Trouble Witches Neo!' actually enhance gameplay allowing you to perform different types of shots (seven star spray, bubble, arrow ...). The upgrades in the game involve magic points (mp), and health. I found that the upgrades make it much easier for you to last longer, and fight the bosses in the game better. The magical cards help in accumulating more gold, and make defeating enemies easier. The shop feature definitely sets this game apart from other shmups that I've played, but in a nice way.

Enemies in 'Trouble Witches Neo!' mainly consist of flying airships that looked a lot like those from the Final Fantasy universe. You'll also encounter other witches, and obstacles along the way as well. As with any 2D side-scrolling shmup/bullet hell type of game you'll also encounter various bullet spray patterns from the enemies. Sometimes the bullet spray becomes quite intense, and using your barrier shield becomes a necessity. The barrier shield in the game has two purposes. It can be used to slow down bullets that are coming towards you (only certain types), or as a way to make extra gold. To use the barrier for the purpose of gaining more gold you must allow the bullets to pass into the barrier, and then destroy the enemy that shot them. When this is done the bullets you have stopped will turn into gold coins. It's a good way to gain some extra gold for items from the shop.

If you are an achievement hound like some Xbox 360 gamers are, you'll be glad to hear that this game does have some achievments to earn. I also found that the game has downloadable content via the Xbox Marketplace. The available DLC includes a new character (Luca - 160 msp)', Three premium Xbox 360 themes that cost 240 msp each, and six character icon packs at 80 msp each. There are a few things that you can unlock in the game as well including the two characters (Conan & Lyla), wallpapers for original mode, and even 'Mind Blowing Mode' considering you can make it through the game withought losing a continuation. One of my favorite features of the game is the ability to change the character's voices to Japanese. I'm a huge fan of the Japanese voice-overs in games, and I think it's cool when a developer includes them in the North American releases. Another neat little feature I found is the ability to communicate on Xbox Live with short audio messages (Preset Voices - Left Trigger, Left Bumper, Right Trigger, Right Bumper). Each 'Preset Voice' has it's own message (Thanks, Greeting, Watch Out, Happy) that can be set to be spoken in English, or Japanese.

In the end I found 'Trouble Witches Neo!' to be an amazing shmup. It had a lot to offer with the various modes that were available. The characters were very interesting as well, and like I mentioned at the start of this review I'm sure there will be a favorite witch for everyone. As for me, my favorite maid-witch happens to be the anime otaku astronomer 'Sakurako'. I'm sure you could have probably guessed that though. Everything about this game is of superb quality, and I would expect no less from a Bouken/SNK PLAYMORE game. I'm definitely glad that it was included as an XBLA title, and I'm sure you will be pleased with it as well.

CONTROLS

- Shots = A
- Magic Barrier On/Off = X
- Magic Cards = B
- Preset Voice: Greeting = Left Bumper
- Preset Voice: Thanks = Left Trigger
- Preset Voice: Watch Out = Right Trigger
- Preset Voice: Happy = Right Bumper