Crappy DREAMCAST game alert!

[Atari7800]

I'm a sucker for Space Harrier type games, and when I heard that the Dreamcast had a Japan-only shooter named RAINBOW COTTON that combined elements of Space Harrier and Panzer Dragoon (Saturn), I just had to find out for myself. I know, I know... I heard the game wasn't good, but it certainly had to have SOME decent gameplay elements. I was wrong.

I'm a big fan of the Cotton games... I have never played the original TurboDuo game (the only Cotton game to make it Stateside) but I have played both Saturn games (the 2-D horizonal shooters Cotton 2 and Cotton Boomarang) and I love the Space Harrier-style Panorama Cotton for the Japanese Mega Drive. I figured this one had to have something going for it, so I ordered it off E-Bay. Imports are so easy with the Dreamcast... it's so simple to slap in a Utopia boot disk and then swap it out. I can't believe the Dreamcast is so much easier to trick than even the original Playstation.

ANYWAY, this game is a mess. It looks great... lush color, sharp graphics, a very high framerate, huges bosses, great lighting effects, and some very interesting level design. So why is it so bad?


1. Your character takes up nearly 10% of the screen. The little witch (seriously... she rides a broom) blocks almost all the incoming fire, making it nearly impossible to play with anything approaching skill.

2. You target sight is SELF-CENTERING. This may not sound like a big deal, but it really, really is. Your character moves all around the screen, but the target sight is forever darting back to the center of the screen. It's pretty impossible to keep your sight on any enemy for more than a second or two, and some enemies take a lot of shots to kill. The only things you can easily kill are enemies who happen to come directly towards the middle of the screen. It really is a big old mess control-wise.

3. The intro and cut-scenes are annoying as hell. Crappy animation, terrible facial expressions/dubbing, and multitudes of that high-pitched female screeching that you unfortunately find in quite a few Japanese games (It must be a cultural thing. Where's Kathleen Turner when you need her?) The story is a bunch of nonsense about a candy-loving witch and some bathing suit-wearing fairies.

I wish I had listened, but I didn't. I truly love Space Harrier type games, but this game just blows. Only for the truly hardcore shmup collector.














By the way... does anyone know if Magical Chase (for the TG-16) and the Cotton series are somehow related?




!

[rbudrick]

Cool review....damn, that game sure is pretty.

No clue about the Magical Chase idea....

-Rob

[gamergary]

Those cutscenes look nice and so does the game. Also have no idea about the magical chase thing.

[Atari7800]

Those cutscenes look nice and so does the game. Also have no idea about the magical chase thing.

Yes, there is no denying that the game does indeed LOOK great. I'd love to see the later levels, but the game seems determined to kill you before you make it very far.

The original Cotton on TurboDuo and the sequels on Super Famicom, Neo Geo Pocket Color, and Saturn were all 2-D shooters starring a red-headed witch riding a broomstick from left to right. Magical Chase for the TG-16/PC Engine is a... 2-D shooter starring a red-headed witch riding a broomstick from left to right. Just seems bizarre that both games appeared first on what was essentially the same console yet there appears to be no correlation as far as I can determine.

[Blackjax]

You do remember that Space Harrier is an arcade game in Shenmue?

And yes, you're right. Rainbow Cotton blows on a cosmic level. and since i didn't know any better at the time, i ordered it from BuyRite and paid way too friggin much for it!!!! *cries*

[GaijinPunch]

I don't think it's THAT bad. If it didn't have the Cotton name on it, I don't think anyone would've complained.

BTW -- Magical Chase and Cotton aren't related as far as I know. Magical Chase is wicked though, for those that are curious.

[le geek]

I don't think it's THAT bad. If it didn't have the Cotton name on it, I don't think anyone would've complained.

I agree, I place it in the guilty pleasure category...

Cheers,
Ben