Beat Hazard Ultra (XBLIG)

As a gamer I've never quite encountered a game series such as that of "Beat Hazard". Being the shump (shoot'em up) fanatic that I am I gave the original version a try years back when I had first got my Xbox 360. It had set me back five dollars which is definitely not chump change by any means, but seeing as it was liked by the online gaming community I thought I'd give it a proper chance anyways. From the moment I began playing the game I was hooked. I had never imagined that a developer such as "Cold Beam Games" would be able to implement a system which thrived solely on the music that I owned outside of the core game. Being able to use my own collection of music to engage in such a solid gaming experience was awesome. For those of you who are unaware of the game, and it's offerings it literally takes music from your collection, (whether you upload MP3 files via a memory card, or rip your CDs directly to your console) and applies every beat, melody, and tune contained within the tracks to make the onscreen shmup action to come to life.

This unusual combination of shmup style gameplay, and music works by utilizing various aspects of the soundtracks that you choose to play. As you blast your way through enemies you'll gain power-ups in the form of "Volume Boosts", "Cash Power-Ups", "Score Multiplyer Power-Ups" as well as the generic power-ups that you'd find in any generic shmup game. The enemies who appear onscreen range from tiny swarming ships to gargantuan alien spacecraft, and will appear according to the intensity of the music being played. With the shmup genre being the game's main focal point you'll find that it is a score based experience. By playing through each level which lasts the duration of a single music track you can rack up points based on a few different factors. Points can ultimately be earned/increased by blasting away the enemies, by racking up the score multiplier with collected power-ups, and even by staying motionless/not firing ("Daredevil Points"). Keep in mind that the difficulty setting also plays a huge factor in your achievable score. The difficulty settings range from "Casual" to "Insane", and must be unlocked in order. Once a difficulty setting is unlocked it can be activated at the main menu.

In the original game, otherwise known as "Beat Hazard" things were kept simple yet effective in that they provided a solid shmup experience with all the features that would make such a game highly replayable. Aside from the score/music based gameplay you'd find cool additions such as the ranking system (Military Ranks ... Master Chief ) which allowed the player to earn ranks based on a continually collective score. Along with the ranking progression also came some perks that could be used to boost certain gameplay features. The "perks" included such things as additional volume boosts (affects the music volume) at the start of your playthrough as well as extra lives, and screen clearing bombs which were also made available from the start of a round. In this way players could enhance the quality of their in-game experience making the game fun enough to return to regardless of any difficulties they may have had completing their playthroughs initially. The fact that you could play as many music tracks as you could upload to your Xbox 360 only further added to the higher than average replay value of the game.

It has actually been quite some time since a new "Beat Hazard" game has been released on consoles, but thankfully "Cold Beam Games" saw it fit to bring their latest version of the series, "Beat Hazard Ultra" to the Xbox 360 marketplace. I had initially tried to get the game for Steam as it was released on there a couple of years back, but due to PC issues I was unable to do so. Being able to finally get my hands on the XBLIG version was a privilege indeed. This latest version of the game basically takes all the features that the first game was popular for, adds them to the current game, and spices things up with a new selection of enemy spacecraft, bosses, and additional multiplayer features. Once you get into the game you'll be greeted by a very familiar menu layout that is highly similar to the original "Beat Hazard" indie. In this way the developer makes things easy to access, and easy to get back into. Among the significant differences included this time around you'll find that there are two new boss ships, and ten new enemy spacecraft included making for a more intense experience. The fact that the bosses appear more frequently, and sometimes in pairs ramps up the challenges at hand even more. Even the smaller spacecraft have new attack patterns, and bullet hell sprays that will give even veteran shmup players a run for their money.

As far as multiplayer options go you'll find that 'Cold Beam Games' have included a co-op, and versus option for both online, and local (offline) gameplay. These two modes are among the most unique additions to the 'Beat Hazard' series, and were not included in the first game. They make for a proper multiplayer experience whether you choose to play with a partner, or go up against an opposing player. For those of you shump enthusiasts out there looking for a different type of gameplay that isn't of the standard wave orientation you'll find that the developer has also added a "Boss Rush" mode as well as a "Survival" mode which each add their own unique experience for the player.  In "Boss" mode you'll simply take on boss ships instead of the usual waves of smaller spacecraft, and meteorites that litter Beat Hazard Ultra's night skies. The "Survival" mode on the other hand is a more intense experience in that the player must survive wave after wave of enemies with only a single ship/life. Before I go I should also mention that among the 24 perks included in the game you'll find that there are three new tactical weapons also included for a pricey fee. Unlocking perks within "Beat Hazard Ultra" is basically done by gathering cash power-ups from destroyed spacecraft/meteorites. This collected cash can in turn be used to buy perks which are unlocked permanently after purchase. Another thing to note is that if you reach a certain score within the game unlock a special golden ship! What's not to like!?

As far as recommending the game goes I think it's definitely worth the $4.99 asking price assuming you are not prone to having seizures. Beat Hazard, and 'Beat Hazard Ultra' are both known for being extremely flashy. I highly suggest that if you, or a family member has been diagnosed with a seizure disorder that you avoid this game at all costs. The developer has applied a seizure warning at the start of the game, but by the time you have read it you will have already bought the game. If on the other hand you can tolerate such a flashy experience, and are into high quality, and affordable shmups then I strongly suggest adding this gem of an indie to your collection!