Shooting Chicken Brutal Suckers (XBLIG): "Kohei Gallery's Anime Hijinks Continue"

Out of all the Japanese based XBLIG developers 'Kohei Gallery' definitely outdoes the rest. During my time as an XBLIG reviewer I have covered two of their games on my blog. The first one I encountered was a racy anime puzzle game with "Moe" girls in it. While the images were a tad bit on the sexy side the puzzle mechanics of that game were very impressive. I had never played another game like it in my life. The second "Kohei Gallery" game I reviewed was "Houchi Play" which was a pervy sort of game where the goal was to inch the old guy ever closer down a bench to the cosplay ladies at the end without being noticed. Once again I found the game to have a unique design, and concept. As a result "Houchi Play" has become one of my all time favorite anime XBLIG titles. Not many games can make you laugh, and have fun like that game does.

After a short absence from the XBLIG marketplace "Kohei Gallery" has returned with a sequel to a game that was created two years ago. I had actually purchased the first game which was called "Shooting Chicken Revenge". The difficulty was honestly a little to serious for my tastes, but it seemed to be well designed. I had never seen a game like it though. The aim of the first game was to survive a never ending onslaught of what looked like stiff rubber chickens. It was a wacky concept, and something I would have enjoyed if it weren't for the extreme difficulty of the game. I have to say that I never thought "Kohei Gallery" would revisit the series, and make a sequel but I think it's a cool concept ... So, here we are about to dive into my review of "Shooting Chicken Brutal Suckers". You'll need to prepare yourself for some wacky word play cause I've got a lot to say about this odd indie game.

Have you ever wondered in your wildest dream what it would be like to be a gun totting anime girl who is out to obliterate wave after wave of feathered fiends? Well wonder no further, because " Shooting Chicken Brutal Suckers" allows you to play out that fantasy in hardcore platforming style. Armed with a pump action shotgun, and various other weapons this anime hottie (Haruka) has one thing on her mind, and that is to rid her world of chickens. These feathered foes are far from the ones you order from fast food restaurants. They fly like superman, and flop around like fish with rigor mortis. Aside from these stiff rubber chicken-like adversaries you'll also encounter obstacles, cows, and larger-than-life animals. There are five levels of chicken plucking madness that will have you/Haruka fighting for survival. In the end it's survival of the fittest, and the odds are stacked against you. What do you plan on doing about it?

In "Shooting Chicken Brutal Suckers" things seem to have changed for the better. I'm a huge fan of platformers, especially when there done well. I think "Kohei Gallery" hit the nail on the head with this sequel, for the most part. Within the game you have two modes of play. The first mode is titled "Challenge". In 'Challenge' you'll play through the five stages of the game. You'll start off in an underground sewer system overflowing with chickens. After that you'll encounter stages that take place in different locations such as the jungle stage of level 2. To add an edge to the already challenging gameplay 'Kohei Gallery' has included environmental hazards such as exploding barrels, steam pipes, and traps. Some of the interactive objects such as the exploding barrels can be used to your advantage, but you do have to be careful, because they can also end your life very quickly.

The second mode included in 'Shooting Chicken Brutal Suckers' is titled "Ranked". In 'Ranked' mode your objective is basically the same as 'Challenge', but the score you earn as you play through the mode's five levels will be displayed on the global ranking leaderboard. Everything about 'Ranked' from the levels to the gameplay is fairly much a mirror of what you experience in 'Challenge'. I didn't really notice any differences other than the menu layout. As I played through the first level of 'Ranked' I checked to see if I had made it anywhere on the leaderboard, and couldn't find my placing. I'm not sure if this was a glitch, or if you had to complete all five levels in order to place. It would be something worth knowing though. One thing I do know is that if you don't exit the game properly ("Quit") your progress will not be saved. I actually remember the same warning being displayed in the first game.

The controls in this game are kept simple, and the developer has included them as a part of the in-game display. It's a feature that definitely helps if you need a quick reference to what button/s you're supposed to press. When it comes to extras 'Kohei Gallery' always includes their fair share. As with their previous games (Houchi Play & Moe Mekuri 2) the game features an in-game playable music track list. One of the most unique features though is an actual "Extras" menu that allows you to purchase items for the game with the in-game money/credits you collect. There is a significant amount of weapons, and boost items that can be purchased with the earned money/credits. One thing I'd strongly suggest that you tweak in the options menu is the "Cartridge" option. It is initially set to "On". The purpose of the "Cartridge" function is unclear to me, but after seeing an in-game message stating that if it's set to off the game may run quicker I turned it off. I have to say it made a heck of a difference, and reduced the lag that goes one a good bit.

After playing "Shooting Chicken Brutal Suckers" for a while I began to really like it. While the difficulty is pretty much the same as the first game in the series it definitely seems to have been improved. I liked how 'Kohei Gallery' turned it into a fully functioning platformer, and added new features such as cows, and boss fights. I plan on spending more time with the game when I have the time to spare. I definitely want to play the game to the end, and get my name on the leaderboard. Any well made game with a high score based mode is fine by me. If you're looking for a challenging indie platformer with a wacky anime twist then I highly suggest you get this game. It's definitely worth it.