Japanese games have a reputation for being strange. In the case of Kyuiin by Media Entertainment, nothing is sacred in this twisted fairy tale world of giant frogs and flying vampire nuns. As a young boy who pilots a vacuum cleaner (bet some of you wish your Bissell could do that), you must free your favorite fairy tale from an evil wizard.
Unlike most shooters, Kyuiin is very unconventional in its approach. Since the vacuum is your main source of travel – and your only weapon – it is important to understand how it works. As an all-purpose weapon, the vacuum cleaner is capable of shooting standard projectiles, but it can also suck up enemies and turn them into garbage via the hose extension.
A garbage gauge keeps track of the items collected. Once enough garbage is collected, the contents of the vacuum can be used to annihilate everything on-screen. Unfortunately, anything that is destroyed by this attack is not added to your score.
The vacuum cleaner’s hose extension can also suck up incoming projectiles, but only if they come in contact with it. Once the projectiles are consumed by the vacuum, they permanently disappear. Even boss projectiles can be absorbed by the vacuum cleaner.
Despite only giving the player three lives, Kyuiin has unlimited continues. However, continuing will send you to the beginning of the level. Luckily, your vacuum cleaner can sustain some damage before exploding. When an enemy or projectile hits the player, the vacuum cleaner’s hose extension disappears.
Once this occurs, you must either retrieve a med kit to repair the vacuum (which will appear on-screen shortly after losing the hose) or be very good at dodging projectiles. If you somehow miss the medkit – and get struck by a projectile – the vacuum will explode, killing the young boy. No one ever said fairy tales had to be friendly.
The boss battles borderline the strange, ranging from a giant princess in a white dress to a flying vampire nun with a halo. Unlike most shooters, Kyuiin’s bosses have hit points that display in a black box above their heads.
Earlier bosses have less hit points and are much easier to kill, but later bosses – like the flying vampire nun – take more elbow grease to defeat. The bosses are definitely an odd bunch; the dog playing congo drums and the green cow playing guitar in level 6 top the scale as far as strangeness is concerned.
Kyuiin is a game that can be enjoyed alone or with a friend. Its diverse collection of bosses, enemies and story book landscapes create a unique experience that gamers will find intriguing. With polished gameplay and responsive controls, fans of the shoot ’em up genre will find a well-rounded experience waiting for them.
Kyuiin is available on the Playstation Network in the Import Store for $5.99
Mike Pittaro
Platform: Playstation 3
Developer: Media Entertainment
Publisher: Monkey Paw Games
ESRB: N/A
Price: $5.99
Monkey Paw Games’ Website
| Review Score | |
|---|---|
| Graphics |  |
| Despite its age, Kyuiin's 2D graphics look clean and polished. | |
| Sound | |
| The music fits the theme; it ranges from strange to somewhat eerie. | |
| Gameplay | |
| Solid gameplay that will satisfy any hardcore shmup fan. | |
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Kyuiin is a shooter worth owning. | |
