
	Platform PC Genre Schmup Publisher Final Form Developer Final Form ETA 2011
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Indie Spotlight: Jamestown

There is usually a steady stream of independently developed schmups making their way to the PC. Whether it's something from Japan's doujin scene, or a new shooter from a Western developer, there's almost always something new for fans of the genre to try out. One recent entry that very much deserves some attention is Final Form's Jamestown. A decidedly old school schmup, it combines delightful old school, sprite-based graphics with very fun bullet hell gameplay.

As the name of the game suggests, players will find themselves tackling the events surrounding the historical town of Jamestown, and its ordeals as an early British colony in the new world. However, Final Form has gone for an alternate history approach here, with the game taking place on Mars, with a power-hungry conquistador harnessing the powers of an ancient Martian relic in order to destroy Britain's presence on the planet. So, it's up to players to fight him, his minions, and any unearthed Martians that have come along for the ride.

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While Jamestown has several different levels of difficulty, it does encourage players to slowly ramp up how hard the game is. One cannot simply play through the whole thing on the lowest setting, as the game forces players to complete all levels on at least legendary in order to complete the campaign mode. This is actually a nice little feature, as it helps ease in players that may not play all

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that many schmups. However, talking to aficionados of the genre, it sounds like the game isn't all that challenging unless played on the highest couple of settings for those with intimate knowledge of shooters. For me personally, I don't play a huge amount of schmups, but had a really good time with the game. At legendary difficulty the game was just right for my skill level, and I'm eager to play more at the highest levels of difficulty.

While the main campaign mode is fairly short at only five stages, there is plenty of replay value be it from trying the game on harder modes, or simply enjoying it for its pick up and play sensibilities. There are also other play modes that can be unlocked, usually from earning ducats while playing, or sometimes through simply progressing further in the game. These are the gauntlet mode, where players try to make it as far as they can through the game's story mode with a very limited number of ships, and challenge mode which, as the name suggests, has players trying to complete various challenges laid out before them. I particularly like the latter, as it gives players plenty of reason to keep playing Jamestown even if they've finished the story mode.

There is also a decent selection of ships that players can slowly unlock through purchasing them with ducats. One has a spread shot, another's weapon can be aimed to shoot wherever one aims it (though I did find the aiming a tad awkward), a ship that charges up energy balls to launch straight ahead (these inflict huge damage), and a vessel where players can cause its bullets to detonate on command. I found myself gravitating towards the stock spread shot ship, and the one with the energy balls. Their weapons felt the most useful for most of the challenges tossed my way while playing. One caveat I have with all of the ships, though, is that they feel a bit slow and clunky. Each ship can also fill a meter at the top of the screen by collecting nuts and bolts from destroyed ships. When the meter is full, players can use their Vault ability, which surrounds their ship in a temporary force field, which is incredibly useful in boss fights. When Vault is activated, it also starts a score modifier, so if you keep collecting gears after, you can really ramp up your score. The game supports up to four-players simultaneous play, which adds even more fun while flying these ships around. Sadly, everyone has to be at the same computer to do this, though, as there's no online multiplayer yet.

Overall, Jamestown is a pretty tight schmup. Its sprite based graphics look great, the soundtrack is fabulous, and it's simply a ton of fun. Super hardcore fans of the genre might not find it terribly challenging, but whether you fall into that category, or are a relative novice, the game is still extremely entertaining. For only ten bucks, Jamestown is a very good investment.

Mr. Nash
June 22, 2011