Review - Aerial_Knight’s Dropshot
**REVIEW WAS WRITTEN BEFORE THE DAY ONE PATCH WAS AVAILABLE - SO NEW FEATURES HAVE BEEN ADDED AND VISUAL PRESENTATION HAS BEEN TWEAKED**
In recent years, we've been lucky enough to have many indie studios release video games that deliver the quick thrill of short time based first person shooters from the addictive Neon White, to the narratively strong and stylish, I Am Your Beast. Now, developer Aerial_Knight and his small development team continue this genre with their own focused interpretation.
Aerial_Knight's DropShot is the third game from studio Aerial Knight. After the narrative rhythm runner action games series, Never Yield and its sequel, We Never Yield, Aerial Knight returns with another arcade game, that trades the sideways running for a sky dropping arcade shooter.
You play as Smoke Wallace, a man who was bitten by a radioactive dragon and cursed with the power to shoot bullets from his fingertips. Then, the dragon killed his family, so he hunts them. After a short Introductory cutscene where Smoke allies himself with an anthropomorphic demonic looking cow, on his vengeful mission to slay dragons and the murderous military force that airdrops alongside him in each level.
The narrative is kept to a minimum, shown through pre-level intros and a couple of short cutscenes. But story isn't the most important part of this arcade shooter - the style and gameplay are its epicenter. Atmosphere and fluidity draw you into DropShot's energetic world, enticing you to keep beating your records on each level.
Aerial_Knight's DropShot contains fifty missions, with an extra mode and a secret level to unlock after the campaign. Most levels take between forty to sixty seconds to finish - breezy shootathons where Smoke aims to dispatch every foe and reach the bottom in the fastest time. An addictive gameplay loop that encourages repeated playthroughs to attempt a better score and to achieve the best rank of S+++ by shooting every enemy before you land.
Image: Aerial_Knight's Dropshot - Menu
Levels are split up into groups of five, with the fifth being a boss encounter. Ordinary levels see Smoke free fall alongside a group of soldiers, all eager to destroy him. The controls are simple and see Smoke move around with the left stick, as long as you stay inside the level boundary or risk being timed out. Smoke can also shoot his one weapon, and punch enemies if he gets within range. With limited ammunition, you must calculate how many shots you can risk to use before you come across your next yellow orb that once shot, refills your ammunition. It takes one shot to dispatch a regular soldier and two shots to defeat a shielded enemy - one to break the shield and one to finish the job.
Other variables come into play as you free fall: dynamite can be shot to take out multiple enemies at once in a single shot, stationary and moving laser traps shoot deadly beams across levels, debris forces swift manoeuvres, ammunition pods can refill your ammo, and dragon eggs grant Smoke a variety of power ups.
Power ups can influence a run in an instant. But which power up you activate is decided by the type of glasses you equip in the menu. New designs are unlocked by progressing in the campaign. Powers vary from a shield to be able to take more hits, throwable explosive rubber ducks, multiple hands that rapid fire like a machine gun, a randomiser that changes the power each time you pick one up and more.
Culminating in a rhythmic experience where you combine power ups, learned accuracy and enemy placement, wind tunnels and slipstream, to improve on your best times. This enjoyable gameplay loop is what kept me playing to beat my scores after finishing the game and getting the platinum. I only wish the normal missions scaled in difficulty faster, as it isn't until the last sets where it really begins to test your ability in order to ace the level.
Image: Aerial_Knight's Dropshot - Finger
The same can be said about the boss levels. Each one forms a palette cleanser between the normal missions - titanic face-offs against gigantic dragons and killer tanks. Requiring Smoke to dip between moving laser traps and large floating rock formations, that increase in complexity and number as you get further into the game.
But it was the later boss encounters where I had the most fun. Bosses double up or incorporate into an existing harder missions, to force players to use their developed skills to simultaneously dodge missiles, dragon fire, lasers, all while defeating standard soldiers and bosses.
Undoubtedly, the visual and audio presentation are as vital as the gameplay to the fabric of Aerial_Knight's DropShot. A palette of striking purple, colours a cartoon graphical style that pops in every environment. Character models aren't overly detailed, but they pop on the screen with a distinct personality. Brought to life with smooth animations that help create a perfect style for a focused arcade shooter.
This energetic atmosphere extends to the score - a cornerstone of any heart thumping, timed arcade video game. Rock style guitar riffs and basslines orchestrate each airdrop, to help feel every punch in the action; a metal laced soundscape that keeps you in the zone.
Image: Aerial_Knight's Dropshot - Multi-hands
However, voice work is sidelined to barks during action, to not distract from the gameplay. Whereas, sound effects act as audible indicators to give feedback about the world: a distinct noise plays whenever an enemy passes Smoke, a reload sound signifies a full clip, a cracking noise plays when you break an enemy's shield, and a crunchy punch confirms a melee connection. All combine flawlessly to make a smooth intuitive experience that flows in a nice rhythm after you've played a few levels.
I enjoyed shooting my way through Aerial_Knight's DropShot's fifty levels, but I do wish the difficulty curve would've escalated at a better pace and the traps and enemy units would've grown in complexity. I was hoping for the introduction of new gameplay mechanics. For example, Smoke does have a reasonable aiming angle, but he stops short of being able to turn and shoot upwards. Something like this would've given Dropshot an extra spark, to further the risk reward system, that could've enticed further use of the wind tunnels to increase speed, without completely missing out on enemy targets.
Lastly, Aerial_Knight's DropShot is an incredibly personal creative work to Aerial_Knight himself, Neil Jones. It's a heartfelt eulogy to his long-time collaborator and friend Daniel Wilkins. Keeping true to his passion to create video games. And you can see this dedication in everything the small team worked on, like the hand animated cutscenes. Even if everything isn't perfect, it's impressive and makes me interested to see what Aerial_Knight comes up with next.
Image: Aerial_Knight's Dropshot - Smoke
But for a small independent studio, Aerial_Knight's created a fun arcade game to play over a weekend. At $19.99, the short play time might be something to consider for some players. But if you are the type of player to redo each level to get a perfect run and beat your highest scores, and enjoy searching for a secret level and delve into an additional mode, then there's enough here for you to play.
Aerial_Knight's DropShot isn't without faults, but it has personality and is a solid shooter. It's a breezy, entertaining way to spend a good few hours locked into a pure arcade experience. If you enjoy replaying arcade shooters and you're happy with the price, there is plenty to enjoy.
Image: Aerial_Knight's Dropshot - Score - 7/10
