Assault Android Cactus+ Review

April 17, 2019

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Future Expectations Met

You visit the Assault Android Cactus+’ s website and know diligence and hard work. You do some research and discover it was a game destined for Nintendo’s Wii U console. This never came to fruition. The general lack of success of the Nintendo Wii U, with just 13.56 million consoles sold in January 2018 according to

Polygon, made it impossible for some developers to create games on the console. In 2019, Nintendo Switch and Witch Beam Game’s final collaboration offers players a new twin stick experience they must embrace. What makes this different from Dodge Roll’s Enter the Gungeon, or 10Tons’ Jydge?

Character Boost

The work by Tim Dawson, at @Ironicaccount on Twitter and on behalf of Witch Beam, is epic in Assault Android Cactus+. I have not seen his Dragon Tails comic series, but this game has the vibrant look and bold character design of some solid nostalgic games. Actually, who can forget Mister Sanatana Mishra’s influence, @sanatanamishra on Twitter, and Jeff van Dyck’s sound, @Jeff_van_Dyck on Twitter.

Assault Android Cactus+ specifically reminds me of a style seen on NEC’s Turbo Graphics 16. You can play games like Keith Courage and the Alpha Zones or Bonk’s Adventure to see examples of this style. Assault Android Cactus+ expands on the limits of its 16-bit predecessors. It fully embraces the high-resolution visuals on Nintendo’s mighty, portable, but home console.

This game offers players doom and destruction, in the end. Well first, wait, Assault Android Cactus+ follows Cactus, a police android, who responds to a stranded space freighter. She discovers it is under siege by its malfunctioning robot workers. Cactus, and her android recruits, battle through the crippled freighter, Genki Star, to reach the brain of the ship and correct this malfunction.

The Cactus Crew

Choose between Cactus, Holly, Lemon, Coral, and a few secret characters to get to the brain of the Genki Star. Each player has a main weapon and a limited secondary weapon. Players can use the, cross pad or left stick to move your character.

The right analog stick aims your weapon 360-degrees in any direction on a level. Players shoot using the R or ZR shoulder buttons and switch between primary and secondary weapons with the L or ZL shoulder buttons.
Players can use the Nintendo Switch portable mode, dog bone, individual Joy con, or the Nintendo Pro Controller to play this game.

These Levels Are Worthy

The levels in this game allow you to feel safe, at first. The three-dimensional game models are seamless. The action in this game is constant and pressures when necessary. The three-dimensional game levels, however, deceive players.

They initially surround and initiate you into the world of Cactus and the Genki Star. Early levels allow you to dodge pressure, along linear levels, and enjoy the game. The challenge comes later as level designs work in tandem with enemy attacks to corner, delay, and overwhelm the player in your quest to get to the end of the title.

The game includes a variety of minor characters that attack in swarms. The end of each of the levels finishes with a major boss character. For example, in the first levels, there are minor, blue, spider walkers in the game. Blow them apart. In later levels, red varieties of the same spider walkers attack, with heavier armor, and surround your character, the other spider characters, with smaller enemies.

Some of these enemies have electrical current to hold your character in place. Other flying enemies attack you with light, and heavy, armor to bombard and overwhelm Cactus and the others. The series of levels ends with the attack of a massive Spider boss, with rapid and various, projectile attacks.

The Source of Power

The biggest issue in this game is the process of refilling your android battery. Defeat the enemies in each level and section to recover your android battery. If you do not do this, your battery depletes, and your character dies. Each character also has a life bar.

The objective of the game is to build combinations and increase the potency of you primary and secondary weapons. Characters die, and return, with the life bar, but you lose the effectiveness of your primary and secondary weapons.

Your android battery goes, and it is game over. This android battery process, as the game goes forward, can be arduous. In my opinion, each player will approach this process with a different perspective. It just feels like overkill, at times.

Conclusion

Assault Android Cactus+ is awesome. There is one cool issue. It is possible to complete the game with one character, or switch between the various characters and complete the game. It really works best if two or more players jump in this game. Either way, it is just a fun time. Finish the game and unlock some major modes that will push your limits and give you that plus you wanted and more. What is most apparent? This game is fun and must buy on the Nintendo Switch.