Sol Cresta

• Genre: Shoot 'em up
• Time Played: ~4 Hours
• Too Short/Long: The levels are pretty long compared to your standard shmup and there are 8, and the "Dramatic" mode, which is essentially the actual story mode, makes things play out a little longer. It's a solid length for a shmup, but you can probably knock a full playthrough out in less than a couple hours.
• Pleased/Disappointed: Pretty pleased. Wasn't sure at first, but once I dug into it I appreciated it more.
• Why I played: Like fighting games and metroidvanias I get most shmups I come across worth any salt. Sol Cresta specifically though, was developed by Platinum and co-directed by Hideki Kamiya, awarding it quite a few bonus points.
• Recommend to others: Definitely would recommend it if you like shoot 'em ups at all. If you don't like shmups, it's not going to change your mind and it's not the most accessible for newcomers.

When I first tried Sol Cresta, I had no idea what was going on. It just seemed like a chaotic mess that did little to stand apart from any other shoot 'em up. When I recently tried picking it up again, I still had no idea what I was doing.

It took a bit getting used to, and I had to re-read it's in-game manual like three times, but it eventually clicked. There are only two buttons, shoot and split/dock. But those two buttons go a long way. Shoot can be pressed rapidly or held for a charge shot. Split/Dock allows you to rearrange your three ship squad into various configurations in two different ways. The first is simply the order of the ships, which will form from top to bottom(wish I had this information before playing), and your primary fire will be from your front ship, and your secondary fire from your last ship. Your middle ship determines which "charge shot" you use by holding the shoot button. A drill, laser, or homing missles. Pretty standard stuff for shmups, after grasping out it works, I appreciate the execution. Each type of shot affects different types of obstacles. For example, red shields only come down with lasers. Drills break up rocks.

The other way to use the split/dock is to do "formations" which your ships temporarily do not reform into a big ship, but hold a specific formation which your two extra ships will be able to block shots with AND you'll fire some kind of super shot which has the effect of all three kinds of shots you can do. The pattern/style of the super shot is determined by your formation. There is also an "ultimate formation" you can only form after collecting each formation chip in a level.

One more thing split/dock does. With a timer in which to use it, it also technically slows down time. The game gets VERY tough in it's later stages and I imagine a more flawless execution than I preformed is extremely dependent on strategically slowing time and at the same time reforming into ideal forms with a grace I am not capable with my limited time in the game.

I did finish the game, but it's not easy, and as is the case with many shmups simply "finishing" isn't the end goal, it's do better, do perfect, etc. Sol Cresta seems to offer a lot to unlock/replayability, and in my playthrough I was a bit distracted by trying to pay attention to the story which I have to actually read as action is happening on screen because it only has Japanese voice overs. I would probably fare better in arcade mode, but those last areas are still a huge spike in difficulty compared to the earlier areas. There is just so much constantly going on. It's bullet/enemy hell, with level obstacles/objects, with triggers dependent on your formation. It's a lot to manage at once and can be overwhelming.

I do appreciate the call-backs and the fact that it expanded upon what were some pretty simple old games, and that it tried to mimic various styles of shmups over the years, using standard sprite work, pre-rendered graphics, low res textures, and a whole lot of aliasing. You can tell the people making it had a passion for shmups as a whole.