Game Type DX | PS4 Review

Nathan Fouts of Mommy's Best Games has a storied past on the indie scene. He is one of many indie developers on the Xbox 360 platform that fought to be noticed, and eventually found his way in. I think of Nathan Fouts as one of the pioneers of the modern indie scene. A man who dared to challenge the status quo, and set himself apart from the ordinary. He was, and is still one of my favorite indie developers of all time. Seeing his works return as relevant as they ever were to new platforms is a welcome sight for sore eyes. I've seen the ups and downs of the indie genre as Nathan has, and watched as something that once flourished and encouraged originality, and creativity has now become a cash grab collective looking to game the system, and capitalize with the lowest effort rendered. Thankfully games like "Game Type DX" continue to exist to remind us of this struggle, and point out that the road to 'Triple A' isn't as clear cut as it might seem.

Game Type DX, Nathan's satirical jab at unfriendly console UI, tells a story and delivers one heck of a shmup challenge all at the same time. It is a game with a puzzle front designed like an Xbox console dashboard. A game wherein to find and play it you must sift through Xbox era advertisements. It is these ads that both educate you about the underlying purpose of Nathan's creation, and showcases parodies of the entertainment biz. More or less memes before memes existed. 

Somewhere in the midst of the faux dashboard, and it's parodies lies the startup icon for the main game, "Game Type DX". Getting there is half the fun, and will earn you some PSN trophies if dare take a look. Also included are the game instructions, and scoring tutorials. Something that will prove useful once you begin playing. That, and Nathan's mission statement. His reason for creating the game. The game itself has you playing an enigmatic character known as hoodie girl. This girl in a hoodie frozen in a parkour position is your ship. She has multi-directional shots, and those shots can be powered up via power-ups. Additionally she has a powerful kick shot that amplifies score earnings, and cash amounts. Using the cash drops you collect, and the meter that cash feeds into. Combined with the time pulse bomb this allows for a slowdown situation that makes dodging bullet hell and making bank easier. 

Where 'Game Type DX' gets interesting is in it's three modes of play. It has the original game intact as it was with an infinite, and 3 minute time limit. An experience that loops after a wave of enemies and grows faster in pace with each consecutive loop. The levels themselves are filled with corporate icons, and money grubbing mascots of the daily consumer's life. While that base game is enough to satiate returning fans Nathan has included a 'Parkour Remixed' mode with new enemy types, and a power-up system that drops both helpful and harmful power-ups. Things like one million bonus points, a screen clearing super bomb, and a guns down power-down are but a few of the things you'll either need to avoid or collect if you want to maximize your score. In addition to parkour remix, 'Surprise!!!' also delivers a new experience for returning fans. A sort of randomized take on the original formula with new enemy arrangements, types, and bosses. Also including the remixed power-ups.

With these three modes of play comes local and global leaderboards. All for bragging rights. It includes all three modes, and a listing per each for both the infinite timer, and 3 minute time limit. As of typing this review my scores are all top scores on the global scene, but I have played this game before. Getting used to the rhythm and flow of combat, and bullet hell is a must. You will need to learn enemy patterns, and utilize the core mechanics efficiently to rack up the highest score possible. It's doable, but do realize that this game is visually cluttered, and can be a strain on the eyes. Losing track of your hoodie girl in the mayhem is a high probability, but you have multiple lives, and the ability to earn more in-game. 

The Verdict ...

I knew what to expect coming in this review, and my review could easily be seen as biased, but I do love me some Mommy's Best Games shmups. While this one is a little more lowkey than "Shoot 1-up" the historical context, and it's part in gaming history adds to the value of what is being sold. It's a peek back at a time when the struggle for indie game discovery first began rearing it's ugly head. As Nathan pointed out his games were being buried in a dashboard filled with mindless entertainment ads that has nothing to do with gaming or gaming consoles. Like so many other rising indie developers this caused frustration, and in doing what he did ... in creating 'Game Type DX' he helped bring to attention a real problem. Something that sadly persists to this day. 

While that bit of gaming history holds value, especially for someone like myself, it is the actual game that will either win over or lose shmup fans. For me it's a solid shmup that offers a proper challenge with unique mechanics I've personally not seen elsewhere in the genre. It is a leading example of that creativity that I mentioned early on. Back when indies were allowed to thrive on their unique quality alone, and not have to pass some corporate screening process to make it to the storefront. I can't tell you how bad I miss those days, and I know Nathan does too. Pick this game up if you like solid shmups, and don't mind a little gaming industry satire on the side!