PS2 Mushihime-sama - New Import
Every two centuries, the monstrous insects of the Forest of Pearls have demanded a teenage human sacrifice from the kingdom of Starfall. It's about that time.     The precocious 15-year old Princess Reko straddles a golden-shelled beetle named Kiniro and works her way through insect-filled levels where purple buckshot chokes the air with their density. Guide Reko through mazes of moving blips and use beetle firepower to take on all comers. Up to two players may cooperate with the second player in charge of a lad named Aki who mounts a silver hued beetle. Upon starting the game and watching an animation of Princess Reko running over a "Now Loading" sign, a list of options appear as follows: Arcade Mode Arrange Mode Gallery Option Exit Arcade Mode features three variants - Original, Maniac, and Ultra. Only the shmup elite need apply to the Ultra mode.  Select Arcade Mode and a sprightly tune chimes in. Players may select from three types of shots as follows: M-Power - Vulcan cannon W-Power - Spread shot S-Power - Streaming laser Additional power-ups may be gathered up during the game such as wingmen which fly adjacent to Reko and add to her main shots and a shadow beetle which follows Kiniro's body with additional firepower.    In the first level, Reko flies over a forest level populated by fuzzy trees and the first wave of insect attackers. Most hover near the top of the screen and shoot their sad bits of offense at the player but prove to be little threat. A bonus beetle soon appears which will give up the first power-up after it is destroyed. Things don't get particularly threatening until a massive wasp-like creature with mandibles starts shooting out streams of purple shots which are tightly spaced to give little quarter for maneuvering. Later in the level, beetles with gun turrets mounted on top present an interesting image. The end level boss is a red crustacean-esque beast which walks backwards with all six legs until it fills the screen and soon spits wave upon wave of purple shots as well as streams of fire. After bursting its front carapace to reveal the gooey goodness inside, the monster falls thereafter with a steady diet of buckshot.    A total of five stages are featured in the game with the second stage set in a desert setting with scorpions and odd delta-winged beasts flitting about. There are points where the oncoming firepower is so thick, heavy, and fast that one would have to be extremely nimble to avoid death or require the shot canceling bomb... When Reko is hit, she cries a little death scream before composing herself and continuing the game...or until her lives run out.    The third level features an impressive crustacean creature who's body first appears as a part of dangling tail near the top of the screen. As Reko flies further into the level, the creature's massive, horn-bedecked, undulating body is slowly revealed while minor insect foes appear from time to time to provide targets and slight resistance. Other parts of the crustacean are shown slowly and destroyed in a level that is somewhat reminiscent of the massive ship level in R-Type where one moves from area to area until the entire ship is smashed. Later on, parasitic worms may be seen slithering out of the crevices of the beast and one eventually reaches the hulking armor plated main body of the creature with its many glistening eyes and feverish spitting attacks.    The arcade mode features standard play with three levels of difficulty but selecting Arrange mode will outfit Reko at full firepower with a complete complement of beetle wingmen which cover the screen with streams of blasts.