Black Paradox

From the moment you see the retro opening and hear the synth soundtrack, it's clear the developers at Fantastico Studio love the 1980s. And they aren't alone, because lately it feels like pop culture is swimming in a sea of '80s nostalgia. The newest love letter to the decade is Black Paradox, a fun 2D shoot 'em up with random stages and over-the-top bosses. But not unlike the decade that brought us big hair, the Yugo GVL and massive shoulder pads, this shooter discovers that 1980s swagger will only get you so far.

This is the story of an unnamed bounty hunter who zips around the galaxy using a flying DeLorean known as the Star Phoenix. Your job is to track down seven cartoony fugitives by fighting through a bunch of randomly-created shoot 'em up stages. But don't get blown up, because you only have one opportunity to win the bounty on all seven bad guys. If you die, then it's back to the beginning, where you'll fight through another batch of randomly-created stages.

While we've seen this type of shooter before, Black Paradox does a lot right. For starters, you don't lose the money you earn between runs. This is important because a lot of the game revolves around buying and equipping new upgrades to the Star Phoenix. The missile, repair, triple shot and shield add-ons not only have obvious benefits, but also add some much-needed health, speed and attack points to the DeLorean. The problem is that you can only equip four parts at a time, so a lot of the strategy comes down to picking and choosing the right parts, all while buying newer versions as they rotate through the store.

Back to the action, the levels all seem to play out the same way. While the enemies and obstacles may be random, the structure certainly isn't. We fly around the slowly-moving stage shooting down bad guys, picking up powerful weapons and biding our time until the boss shows up. This leads to a chaotic battle against a dinosaur with a Godzilla-shaped battleship, a warlock on a motorcycle, a scary android wraith and a shadowy space cowboy.

For as much as I love the designs of these bosses, the fights themselves aren't nearly as compelling. Sure, they are exciting, but they tend to be so chaotic that they kind of blur together after a while. The problem is that a lot of the bosses can be taken out the same way, which involves staying back and waiting until the special move powers up that allows you to call in reinforcements. The weapons they use and tactics on display pale in comparison to the over-the-top characters, and are ultimately a weaker part of the game. It doesn't help that you can kill many of these bosses in less than a minute.

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Sadly, that's not the only thing wrong with Black Paradox. For a shoot 'em up that can often be described as bullet hell, I wish the gameplay was tighter. This is the kind of shooter where it always feels like you're sliding on ice, and while I eventually got used to the loose handling, it remained a constant thorn in my side as the stages got tougher. You can customize so much about the Star Phoenix, so it's frustrating that the gameplay never felt right.

It's especially annoying because there's so much that I like about Black Paradox. Although it felt a bit grindy at first, I ultimately really enjoyed buying upgrades and trying them out on randomly-generated stages. I also enjoyed the boss designs and the graphics. And I can't forget about the music, which got my pulse pounding from the moment I pressed start. The presentation is great and there are some good ideas here, but I had a hard time getting beyond the floaty gameplay.

A good-looking shooter with a colorful cast of characters, Black Paradox has a lot going for it. Unfortunately, the bullet hell action comes apart thanks to floaty gameplay and chaotic boss fights that all blur together after a while. It's also a bit repetitive, thanks in large part to seeing the same lackluster backgrounds in every playthrough. But even with those issues, Black Paradox has a great sense of style and a killer soundtrack. It's a lot of fun killing the seven bosses in an effort to buy better gear, and that was enough to keep me coming back for at least a few hours. Much like the Star Phoenix at the start of the game, Black Paradox is due for some much-needed tightening up.