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Many gamers have never been introduced to such a pandemonic, niche genre of games: pure bullet hell. A type of shoot ’em up with a mad dash of chaos and a tough learning curve, most bullet hell enjoyers would recommend a title in the Touhou Project series for newbies. These games are a bit more popular, and story-wise can be quite engaging.
Developed by Compile Heart and String Entertainment, and published by Idea Factory, Touhou Spell Carnival is a strategy-based tactical RPG containing a myriad of bombastic spells, humorous plot points, and a cutesy surplus of characters. Released on November 19th of this year, fans of bullet barrages will get quite the kick out of this game. Beginners and those interested in the genre might find Touhou Spell Carnival to be a good entry point.
This game can be played on the PlayStation 4 and 5 as well as the Nintendo Switch.
A barrier between reality and fantasy
Taking place in the fictional city of Gensokyo – a faraway place where humans and youkai coexist – the game begins with the main character Reimu Hakurei the shrine maiden and her friend Marisa Kirasame the magician. Mysterious pillars popped up all over Gensokyo, so Reimu begins some detective work.
It turns out that the bewitching youkai named Yukari Yakumo is hosting a month-long Spell Carnival circulating around a strategy card game. Reimu enters the competition, and the rules are simple: the victor obtains all of the losers’ cards and also adds the loser character(s) to their team. The protagonists want to find out why the carnival has been initiated so abruptly, and if Yukamo has any other intent.
The storyline might come off as strange and unrelatable to those not familiar with Touhou. The game unfolds into brief visual novel segments and then will combust into combat. If you are not a fan of reading, luckily the transientness of these segments is entirely bearable. At the very least, the script is engaging. Confusing perhaps, but full of charm.
There are also side stories in addition to the main plot. The choices you make as a player will determine when things unfold chronologically, particularly the order of gaining certain party members. This mechanic is a bit weird in my opinion, as it removes congruent plot build-up. Characters entering the game out of nowhere detract from personal connection and semblances of relevance. On the other end, it is quite fun to see the unique cast of characters interact with one another, oscillating between humor, bittersweetness, and emotionally impactful dialogue.
Tactical, theatrical, and impractical
Touhou Spell Carnival is a mix of bullet barrage and tactical RPG elements. The gameplay might be rather brutal or refreshingly challenging for purely RPG fans. Players will learn how to sift through the chaos of bullet hell while also making strategic decisions to achieve victory.
Taking place on a grid-based system during combat, players can use up to five characters at a time. Each party member comes with their own unique abilities that will strengthen when leveling up, as per most RPGs, and can be customized with stat-boosting equipment. Every character can move around the grid to the player’s will, so it is important to place your party members in safe enough locations to avoid the onslaught of AI-powered enemy attacks.
The main mechanics are barraging enemies with your own attacks, grazing through enemy bullets to absorb power, and unleashing bombs or honing projectiles. Each character relies on an AP gauge to utilize spell cards, and powerful Ace Spell Cards with character-specific animations. The grazing maneuver will increase AP, as well as bonus items dropped by enemies. Item drops can also recover HP and bomb stock as well.
Fully understanding bullet hell mechanics can be hard, and as a beginner myself, I experienced some heavy confusion and vexation. Fortunately, Touhou Spell Carnival has adjustable difficulty settings in order to adapt to players’ experiences and desires. You can choose to play with ultimate combat challenge, or go easier and focus on the narrative.
The beloved “Mary Sue” character design
Touhou features loads of bright and lively characters in the anime style. For example, the game has Saki Kurokomo who looks like a black-winged angel cowgirl; Remilia Scarlet the cornflower-haired vampire; and Reison Udongein Inaba the personified “moon rabbit.” It looks great stylistically, but the character design itself is overdone. Frankly, most characters do not look like they would exist in the same room.
This game has the typical 2D visual novel backdrop cycles, but each scene looks pretty enough. The backgrounds of the combat scenes, however, are insanely boring. It might be muted colors, or a void of nothingness.
The CGI elements are quite marvelous, and it is fun running around to chat with each character and read conversations between the cast. The Japanese voice-acting over the English text is amusingly theatrical. The soundtrack is mesmerizing and fitting to each scene. Overall, I would consider the sound design the game’s greatest highlight.
Final thoughts
Touhou Spell Carnival was my personal introduction to the Touhou universe, as well as my first exposure to utter bullet hell. I am certainly intrigued a bit by the genre, and I appreciate the silliness and melodrama within the script. Kudos to the voice actors and their dynamic performances, as well as the passionate art design.
Spell Carnival and the 19 other mainline Touhou games (and the 13 spin-offs . . . yes, that many) are ultimately catered to niche group of gamers. To be a legitimate game recommendation, I suggest being somewhat comfortable or at least heavily interested in bullet hells shmups. It would not hurt to have knowledge of the Touhou universe either. Unfortunately for me, the constant flurry of projectiles, the aggravation of controlling a full party during combat, and the personal lack of connection to the in-game world left me feeling irritated and bored. But, if you are up for the test, and want to witness some anime girlies duking it out, then give Touhou Spell Carnival a try.
