Review: Bullet Witch (360)

In all honesty Gamestyle approached Bullet Witch with a degree of optimism given our staunch appreciation of the flawed, but ultimately enjoyable romp that Cavia delivered in the form of Drakkengard. Time has moved on and Bullet Witch is a new intellectual property from the Japanese developer, unfortunately it represents a gigantic somersault backwards on every front.

Before we dissect what is the worst Xbox 360 release Gamestyle has experienced so far, we’d best cover the story or what exists of it. Frankly it is like the rest of this title being underdeveloped, badly implemented and coming from a Japanese developer we should expect better. Set in 2013, Earth has experienced a period of dramatic change, which has prompted the return of demons to the streets and the total annihilation of the human species, or almost. Facing up to the unrelenting assault that has spread across the Earth’s surface, what exists of the armed forces have joined up for one last offensive against what intelligence sources believe is the location and source of the outbreak.

The key hope to stemming the tide comes in the form of a young woman, dressed like a cheap Glasgow Goth and who answers to the name of Alicia. She is of course the Bullet Witch and packs a tremendous punch with her oversized weapons arsenal, range of magic attacks and ability heal others as well as her own voluptuous form.

The story shows promise but the execution and potential for exploration is dire. The cut sequences belong to a bygone generation or at best in the arcades, as a precursor to the action. Any sense of drama is lost with the audio track running ahead of onscreen events. For instance before the boss fight on top of a jumbo jet, you can hear the characters talking and a sudden explosion almost a minute before the cut sequence displays the event in person. This is laughable and as option to have English subtitles runs alongside the audio, it means there is no escape. The problem persists throughout the whole of the main mode.

Gamestyle expects that Bullet Witch was developed on a tight budget and the game play has been sourced from a past generation. The formula is pretty simple as each stage (of which there are only a handful) is segmented by force fields. These are managed by entities known as walnut heads that hover in the sky and seem engaged in repetitive chanting. Progression is achieved by locating and destroying each to unlock the next area and in-between are squads of demon soldiers.

There are moments where Bullet Witch tries to remove itself from this repetitive experience by increasing the dimensions on offer. Whether this is a decently sized valley setting, or defending a human outpost it cannot help but return to shortcomings of its limited ambitions. If the combat had been refined or at best pedestrian, Gamestyle might have found the will to live; however the lessons of Drakkengard have been ignored.

There is no subtlety to the combat here; the AI of the demons is criminally bad, and beyond belief. While they can take a fair level of punishment, each soldier will either stand and take more incoming fire or charge simply asking to be gunned down. Other common sights include soldiers from both sides stuck on scenery, trying to walk through walls to your position (and persisting in this action) or engaged in a hopeless struggle of trying to walk up slopes and sliding downwards.

Bullet Witch is also unfairly balanced with Cavia offering a challenge by throwing in more opponents rather than being engaged in level design or a rewarding combat system. At least checkpoints are consistent, but this does not still prevent some frustration as you clear an area only to be struck down by a single headshot from a sniper, prompting a return to the previous checkpoint.

The third person viewpoint may exist to show off the curves of Alicia but does little to spice up the combat. If you do become tired of the long range strafing while your finger is firmly pressed on the trigger (ammunition is unlimited), then you can zoom in. This viewpoint tries to mimic the over-the-shoulder approach of Resident Evil 4 but is too distant, insentitive and jerky to be of any benefit. It is the perfect example in how not to implement such a feature.

Upon completing each section your performance is graded and rewarded with points that you can spend to boost weapon efficiency, magic attacks or Alicia’s regeneration ability. You could of course just reach for the off button and the temptation is all too great to do so. Once you’ve had your fill of the main story mode you can return to individual stages that you’ve previously completed or pick a new costume for Alicia. These features have been enhanced through staunch Marketplace support including revised levels if you wish to experience more pain.

When Gamestyle reviews a release we jot down good and bad points as we continue our journey through the title. By now you should have guessed just how bad a purchase Bullet Witch represents. We’ve not even discussed the outdated visuals, invisible walls, bad controls, long loading and many others mentioned on our comprehensive list. The most amazing aspect is that Cavia carried out several improvements for the European and American markets. Just how bad was the original Japanese release? We’d hate to even consider the depths of despair it could provoke. The Xbox 360 certainly needs more titles from the Japanese development community, but Bullet Witch is far from a show of support.

Rating: 2 / 10

Words by Jason Julier