A Bullet-Hell Style BunnyVania that is so cute it hurts… Literally Review
A Bullet-Hell Style BunnyVania that is so cute it hurts… Literally
Publisher: CreSpirit, Neverland Entertainment
Developer: CreSpirit, GameYue, Ein Lee
Genre:
PEGI: 7
Comments:
If you know me then you know that I dislike the Bullet-hell genre. Yet, the last game I played that had Bullet-hell elements was The Knight Witch, and I fell in love with that game (which by the way, if you have not played yet, I highly recommend you do so). Fast-forward to today, I needed a game to scratch that itch of a Metroidvania and bullet-hell in one, and TEVI didn’t disappoint me.
Developed by CreSpirit, who also created Rabi-Ribi, comes a spectacular anime version of a Metroid-esque BunnyVania. With Japanese voice dialogue and adorable looking characters (including the waifus we didn’t know we needed), This game gives all otaku fans their dose of medicine.
The Story:
The story of the game isn’t very clear, and I have tried to understand exactly what’s going on, but I think because the game focuses so much more on the dialogue and the development of characters, I don’t think anyone really notices the lack of story herein. However, my assumption from what I took thus far of the game is that the Empress Dahlia is facing turmoil because the city of Az is fighting a revolution by its people. Everyone is trying to obtain the key, meanwhile some inhabitants are overpowered by Magictech and as a result are facing unfathomable power that basically corrupts them. You, Tevi, are on a mission to find these Magitechs and so your journey begins.
The Gameplay:
I really enjoyed the combat of this game. It isn’t your normal Metroidvania where you just slash the enemies and that’s that. Tevi uses a dagger to attack her enemies, and as you progress the game you unlock combos that assist in making strong combination attacks. Tevi is joined by two floating companions, a demon and an angel, and if you’re not too distracted by that angel, you’ll soon realize they are important factors of most of your attack system. With the angel being more powerful than the demon, they both deliver close range and long-range blows. Another attack system you’ll notice as you’ll attack enemies, is that each enemy has an outline of red or yellow, and depending on the color is who and what combos you’d utilize to attack.
You upgrade with sigils that you find scattered around the map, and you can only equip a certain amount at a time, but different combinations work together to form stronger abilities and attacks, and they also power up your sidekicks, so keep that in mind when designing the combination that works for you. Enemies also drop various items in the game for crafting material. Crafting allows you to create delicious recipes to heal your health points, upgrade your bomb ability, and much more. I personally love when there is crafting in a game.
You do find other abilities in the game, such as a double jump as well as a slide upgrade, so make sure to explore every area, every hidden nook and cranny and remember that all Metroidvania games have secret walls, so don’t stop kissing every wall you encounter.
The map design of the game isn’t complex, with a boxed layout that shows the items obtainable as well as provides you the ability to pin any secret in the room that you’d need to come back to eventually. The game also puts markers on the map to show where you have to go in order to progress the story. The developers obviously designed the game to follow the story, but it is a Metroidvania so you might end up fighting a boss in another area that isn’t part of the story path, just keep in mind that enemies do get stronger and if you’re in an area you’re not supposed to yet, the enemies deliver heavy blows, almost lowering your health to zero.
Previous players of Rabi-Ribi, will soon come to realize that TEVI or (Rabi-Ribi 2) relies heavily on bullet-hell boss fights. In fact, most enemies have bullet-hell type attacks making this game a bit challenging even on the normal level and boy do I love it. Don’t get discouraged because of this however, as the game delivers lots of fun otherwise.
Audio and Visuals:
The graphics of this game run on 60 fps and moving from location to location has no loading time. The art style is beautiful and if you have been following the development of the game then you know that Ein Lee, the graphic designer of RWBY also programmed TEVI and the design is adorable. All the NPC characters in this game were well thought out and designed and you begin to choose your favorite amongst them all.
The music is banging, and I jam out to most of the soundtracks. Even the starting menu music is great, and you soon realize that the music can be compared to games like Mega Man. Also, when doing a little research, currently on the official CreSpirit website, there is a TEVI Collector’s Edition OST for preorder and its adorable. It comes with the original soundtrack steelbook, enamel pin, art board, astral gear wireless charger and a collector box all for around $106.39 USD.
Steam Deck Compatible:
While not Steam Deck Verified, this game plays amazing on the deck, with 60 FPS graphics and smooth game controls, this makes handheld gaming for TEVI, an amazing experience.
Conclusion:
Don’t sleep on this BunnyVania, and don’t be afraid of getting into this game if you’re not a fan of the bullet-hell genre. This game is more Metroidvania than bullet-hell and more Metroid than ever. You will fall in love with the graphics of the game, the NPC characters (I am almost sad there is no dating element because of how adorably cute some of the characters are), and the amazing voice acting of the game. While I can’t speak Japanese, I know that there were moments I just listened to the entire dialogue, with their cute expressions and their tone of expressions, it was very satisfying. Definitely give this game a try, you won’t regret it.
Thank you to the publishers and developers for the review code.