I go back and forth on whether a games price should be considered in a review. On one hand, a game should be able to stand by itself despite the price it’s sold at. On the other, some games are priced better than others. FullBlast, specifically, is priced accurately. At $5.99, FullBlast is the cheapest shoot-’em-up (shmup) title on the Nintendo eShop. This is a budget game, and this becomes apparent as I explore what FullBlast has to offer.



Developer: UFO Crash Games

Publisher: Ratalaika Games

4 Hours Played // Review Copy Provided // 241 MB // $5.99

As far as shmups go, FullBlast is a functional one. I was darting between enemy fire in no time thanks to tight controls. The hitbox of your ship and hurtbox of enemy projectiles match their models. Enemies appear onscreen in varying patterns ranging from “straight line” to “diagonally.” Pick-ups are familiar. Weapons either add a projectile or change to a spread shot. Grabbing the same weapon pick-up will upgrade that weapon until you reach a cap based on the current difficulty level. Occasionally you’ll obtain bombs, which can clear the screen of smaller enemies. Each of the twelve levels ends with a boss. More intricate boss fights end levels four, eight, and twelve. FullBlast is a shoot-’em-up by numbers.

FullBlast does contain enjoyable qualities that don’t involve the mechanics of the game. All the enemy models are based on various wildlife, which I enjoyed. Aliens resembling horseshoe crabs are surprisingly cute. The soundtrack is good. I don’t listen to much heavy metal anymore, since I am now an old person, but I liked the music in this game. However, the lack of variety could lead to it getting old after a while. Finally, Some of the boss fights are well designed. The scorpion boss is a highlight: it creates duplicates, requiring you to find the real scorpion before you can damage.

This guy is a fun fight.

Unfortunately, a number of corners had to be cut to make the game’s price point. TATE mode – a mode that allows you to play games in portrait rather than landscape – doesn’t make an appearance. This is likely a deal-breaker for some fans of the genre. Playing through the campaign on Easy and Normal was a brisk four hours. The more basic bosses are reused throughout the campaign, albeit are later enhanced by simple stat boosts or by fighting two simultaneously. There aren’t many pick-ups; I only found eight during my play time. The dialog isn’t well written or edited. Each level ends with the same conversation between the pilot and their superior officer. While I don’t expect FullBlast to have a good story with strong writing, a little variety in this text would have been nice.

*Rubs temples*

The compromises don’t end there, either. FullBlast contains a small pool of enemies.The same butterfly, horseshoe crab, and dragonfly adversaries from the first level are also in the last and their polygonal models aren’t very detailed. The bosses, in particular, make it easy to see the low detail qualities of enemy textures due to their size.

The stage aesthetics suffer from this lack of variety as well. There are only twelve stages that cover three types of biomes: city, forest, and frozen ocean. These backdrops don’t change very much from level to level, so they get boring. The frozen area is especially painful, as the ice, water and enemy projectiles are all different shades of blue. Often, I would often take damage without noticing the blue projectiles on the blue backgrounds. I’m not sure if this was a design choice by UFO Crash Games to make the final biome more difficult or if this was an unfortunate accident. Either way, it’s frustrating.

*Continues to rub temples*

I confess, I’m no authority on shmups. I’ve played them since I was a kid, but only rarely. I still have a fondness for certain members of the genre, like Galaga, Space Invaders, Galaxian and, of course, Nier: Automata. Clearly, I’m a fan of the classics. I’m not the person to confirm if FullBlast is a modern take on shoot-’em-ups, but it doesn’t feel like it. It’s definitely a shmup, which makes the game fun on a mechanical level.

FullBlast feels great in the first moments with the game. However, after some time with it, the cracks become more apparent, and ends with the experience being merely pedestrian. If you’re on a hard budget of $5.99 and specifically looking for a functional shmup with local two-player co-op, FullBlast is your only choice. Other than that specific scenario, it’s very likely that any of the numerous other shoot-’em-ups on the eShop will offer much more.

Really desire a shmup with a TATE mode? Here is the review of Danmaku Unlimited 3. Into arcade-y games? Read our review of Robbotto for a completely different type of arcade experience. Share your thoughts on the game by joining our Discord. Finally, Nindie Nexus is an ad-free passion project – we appreciate anyone willing to buy us a coffee.