GRAND CROSS: ReNOVATION (Steam)

GRAND CROSS: ReNOVATION is a newly released Shmup with a premise and name that would make any JRPG blush. Is it any good though? Read on to find out!.

GRAND CROSS: ReNOVATION is a Doujin vertical shooter published by Henteko Doujin and developed by Eternal Sphere 4, Henteko are known for publishing some of the most niche and well-loved Shmups in the genre such as Steel Vampire, HELLSINKER and one of my personal favourites Graze Counter. 

Dubbed a “Super Aggressive” shmup GRAND CROSS: ReNOVATION holds no punches in throwing you right into a battlefield across the galaxy with explosions that would even make Michael Bay blush and more colours than you can process at times. 

While I have little idea what the story is about, from what I can gather you are trying to take on a god with what is known as the most powerful weapon in the universe “The Sun Blade”, this weapon is capable of being overpowered to take down even bosses in a matter of seconds at the expense of your life bar. 

The sword is also capable of wiping out enemy fire which means tactical use of the blade is a must, trust me the game loves to throw bullets at you like they are going out of fashion, and sometimes even dodging isn’t going to help out!.

The game comes with a few modes for you to tackle, a Prologue mode which sets up the story and gives you a taste of what’s to come, Story mode which is your main mode, boss mode,, stage select and a tutorial to get you used to how this game plays.

There are currently two ships available, the main ship and a second one which changes the gameplay style completely, I won’t spoil the surprise here but it really is worth looking into once you play through the games 6 available stages 

Visually the game throws an insane amount of stuff for your eyes to pour over, the previously mentioned explosions, hundreds of popcorn enemy ships to tackle, mammoth bosses to throw down and all this while you’re dodging shots, firing your own and making ample use of the Sunblade. 

The clever use of sprite work here really cannot be understated, it looks like something that would have been right at home on the Dreamcast and I say that with much love and admiration for the series and its use of sprite and 3D graphics for the genre. 

For it’s asking price you can’t really go wrong with GRAND CROSS: ReNOVATION, it’s a rollercoaster of a Shmup that is easy enough for newcomers to see through to the end yet has enough challenge with it’s hard mode and later levels that fans of the genre will enjoy performing a 1CC. 

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Summary

A rollercoaster of a Shmup ride

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