Blasters of the Universe is a VR exclusive bullet hell first person shooter. It pits you against Grand Master Alwyn, Virtual Space Lord. This uber nerd took over cyber space after stealing a VR helmet in a sort of TRON/The Man Who would be King event and has been filling it with his mechanical soldiers and war machines ever since. You must destroy this mechanical menace and save the digital world.
The aesthetic is schlocky 80s neon cyberpunk. It looks like I'd expect a Saturday morning cartoon version of TRON made with budget CGI in the mid-2000s to look like. Glowing trim on dark metal, bulky T-900 looking Robo Cops and utterly ridiculous blaster shapes that could be sold as a dozen separate toys. The sound track is an equally retro synthesizer heavy action music mix and the sound effects are generic blaster noises. Pew-pew. The whole game would boarder on cutesy if Alwyn didn't take a moment to cuss at and belittle you at the beginning at end of each level. As it stands the game really nails the whole video arcade feel right down to the heckling git.
The game play consists of firing at foes from a fixed location with a blaster while defending with a shield. The only part of the player that is vulnerable is the head so your effective hit area is tiny and the projectiles are very slow. This is counter balanced by the prodigious number projectiles fired at you and the fact that they are coming from a full 180° arc in front of you. You're shield provides dubious cover at best and if it takes enough hits it breaks. The blaster is fully customizable, with a variety of stocks, barrels, ammo types, and special attachments that grant the player a huge range of rates of fire, types of projectiles, and charge attacks. All of this makes the best defense a good offense since dead enemies can't shoot you. When that inevitably fails and you get swarmed the best option becomes mobility. The huge waves of projectiles move at such a leisurely pace that simply moving from one side of the play space to another lets you avoid a whole onslaught. When several onslaughts are all traveling at you from different directions this becomes really hard. This game makes you sweat when it gets going. The skill floor and the skill ceiling are both high so this isn't for the faint of heart. I'd suggest it to the hardcore, fit, and quick who aren't afraid of a challenge.
IRON NODER THE THIRTEENTH