Natsuki Chronicles from Rising Star Games is a fun sidescrolling shoot ’em up on PlayStation 4. Learn more about it in our Natsuki Chronicles review!
Natsuki Chronicles from Rising Star Games is a fun sidescrolling shoot ’em up to check out on PlayStation 4 I recently reviewed Ginga Force, and Natsuki Chronicles takes place in the same world of Seventia, switching around the perspective from a vertical shoot ’em up into a horizontal one. In fact, the story for Natsuki Chronicles takes place parallel to the events for Ginga Force, following the story of the titular protagonist Natsuki, as you unfold her past as a rookie pilot, leading up to her becoming an expert on the field.
Natsuki Chronicles is split into a Story Mode and an Arcade Mode. The Story Mode features a timeline that alternates between events from the past and the present. You’ll once again be able to customize your ship between the different weapon types and the equipment you can unlock as you progress through this adventure, but you’ll also be playing with an interesting feature: Bullet Trajectory Display. What this does is show you the direction of enemy bullets ahead of time so that you can plan accordingly. As for the Arcade Mode, as expected, it focuses on trying to get as high a score as possible so that you can get your name into the online leaderboards to compare your performance against that of gamers from all over the world.
Since Natsuki Chronicles and Ginga Force share a universe, it is to be expected that they also share the same control scheme. Your ship will move around with either the left analog stick or the D-Pad. You can shoot your main weapon with the X button and the secondary weapon with the Square button. You also have access to a special attack that is mapped to the R2 button that can help when in a tight situation. Oh, and if you want to shift your ship’s speed, you can do this with the R1 button.
You will be aided by Navi, the RDF navigation system assigned to your ship. It will aid you with all communications with command, as well as by providing new information as you progress through each of the game’s stages. Since you’ll be jumping back and forth between events from the past and what is going on in the present, any information you can get from Navi will be appreciated. Navi will provide you with a briefing overview before each new stage in Story Mode so that you can know what you’ll be going up against.
In fact, Natsuki Chronicles game throws you right into the first stage in Story Mode, hoping that you survive, before sending you into the first training stage, which is set in the past! It is here that you’ll learn that your ship’s shield will regenerate over time, so as long as you manage to survive past the flashing “Warning” scenario, you’ll find yourself in every now and then, you’ll be able to carry on with your mission. Progress a bit further, and you’ll get to take on a second and a third training mission as well.
As you complete each stage, make sure to defeat as many enemies as possible so that you can gain lots of experience points for the stage. The more experience points you gain, the easier it will be to level up. Experience is split into the experience points gained for a stage and the experience points gained as the player. This means you can replay previously completed levels to boost your level so that you can gain access to additional Ex. Shields to protect your ship. Improving your player level will unlock new primary, secondary, and special weapons that you can purchase with the CR you get depending on your overall performance.
Since enemies will attack from the front and the back, you’ll need to purchase different main and secondary weapons so that you can find the right combination for playing through each stage. Sure, you could decide to make your secondary weapon a front-facing one as well, but this does mean you’ll need to be extra careful about the enemies that attack you from behind so that you can use the Bullet Trajectory Display in full, so that you can escape from your enemies’ attacks as you wait for them to pass you, so that you can strike with all of your might – although there are some enemies that hang in the back for a while, so be ready for them!
As for the trophies, the list for Natsuki Chronicles is a bit more straightforward than the one for Ginga Force, but it will be just as challenging as you try to get a new Platinum for your efforts! The trophies will pop at a steady pace since the first one will unlock as soon as you start the Story Mode, with the rest popping as you complete each of the stages in Story Mode, as well as for playing the three Training missions that will pop as you progress through the game. There are also trophies for completing the Arcade Mode, for acquiring all of the primary, and special weapons in the store, to name some examples.
Natsuki Chronicles is a fun sidescrolling shoot ’em up and a great companion to Ginga Force, and you should definitely check it out. The game is out on PlayStation 4 with a $19.99 asking price, and it’s an easy one to recommend for shoot ’em up fans. You can also get the game physically from 1st Press Games, along with Ginga Force, in Regular and Limited Editions.
Disclaimer
This Natsuki Chronicles review is based on a PlayStation 4 copy provided by Rising Star Games.
