Info about Nitro Express: Official game description: Control Settings ---------------- This game was made in Pixel Game Maker MV and runs at 30 FPS. Game language, screen size, screen shake, and key config settings can be accessed by pressing the F1 key on your keyboard. Other settings can be changed in the OPTIONS menu in-game. Mysterious T.O.K.Y.O. --------------------- Welcome to Nitro City, Tokyo Special Administrative Region! The metropolis of Tokyo is a bit different from what we know, but the streets are just as nostalgic, or, depending on where you're from, they're just as good as the place you've always wanted to visit. Companions / Atypical Vehicles ------------------------------ Autonomous drones, affectionately called "Companions", have been integrated into daily life, but in cop terms, they're referred to as "Atypical Vehicles". When they pose a significant threat to society, it's time for the Atypical Vehicle Disposal Squad (AVDS)—a special unit of the Nitro City police force—to commence their mission to destroy all rogue vehicles! Shoot 'Em Up! ------------- Good news: you can bring as much ammo as you want... and that includes grenades! After just a little bit of cooldown, the lightning bolt of destruction will return to your hands. Ah, how wonderful! Just like magic! Gadgets and Gizmos ------------------ Tired of traditional grenades? Why not try out the EMP, damage-dealing radio-controlled drones, auto-firing turrets, flamethrowers, anti-tank missiles, and more? There's sure to be at least one out of the 12 different cool gadgets that'll catch your eye. Understand Your Guns -------------------- By assuming a more stable shooting position, your bullets will hit targets more accurately and deal more damage. You can shoot some guns like SMGs while walking without caring about that, since they're for close-range anyway, but the bigger the gun, the more it's affected by your positioning. Stand still and aim carefully to use them properly. Large Armored Targets --------------------- Oh no! We're under attack by tanks and helicopters! Whatever can we do~?! Rifles and SMGs don't do much to armored targets. You could totally stick with them and show them your perseverance, but you could hit them harder where it hurts with more powerful firearms and gadgets. Radio Comms ----------- Story dialogue in stages are all contained in the police radio comms, which can be accessed at anytime and are completely optional. Which means you can ignore them completely if you want. Great for multiple playthroughs, or for people who think the story sections of video games are basically the same as the instruction manual of an electric toothbrush. And more... ----------- There's more fun where that came from! Release date: May 18, 2025 Categories: Side-scrolling Shooter, Strategic Combat, Single-player Story, Character Progression, Resource Management, Linear Progression - Hardware Profile: No data Feature extractions: - Community Price: No data - Playtime Metrics: No data - Time-to-fun: No data - Player Archetypes: No data Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category. Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews. What players like: - Appealing and detailed pixel art (weight 0.66): The game features a charming and well-executed pixel art style, with detailed characters, animations, and backgrounds. Many reviewers highlight the cute character designs and the overall aesthetic appeal, contributing positively to the game's presentation. - High-quality music and sound (weight 0.65): Reviewers consistently praise the game's music and sound design, noting its quality and how well it complements the action and atmosphere. The audio elements contribute significantly to the overall enjoyment and immersive experience. - Balanced difficulty and progression (weight 0.13): The game balances difficulty with options for progression, such as learning enemy patterns, using healing items, and mastering evasion. While challenging, the game provides tools and incentives for players to improve and overcome obstacles. - Flamethrower is very effective (weight 0.12): The flamethrower is highlighted as a particularly effective and fun weapon. Its ability to deal damage over time and bypass certain enemy defenses makes it a reliable choice for many situations, though some find it essential for boss fights. - Humorous and enjoyable story (weight 0.09): The game features a lighthearted and humorous story with self-aware dialogue and funny interactions. While not deeply complex, the story is enjoyable and adds to the game's overall charm. - Varied missions and gimmicks (weight 0.06): The game incorporates mission-specific gimmicks and side missions that add variety to the gameplay. These elements prevent the game from becoming repetitive and provide opportunities for players to earn resources and unlock new equipment. - Anti-tank mines are effective (weight 0.05): Anti-tank mines are very effective against ground-based enemies and vehicles. They provide a different perspective on combat and can quickly defeat large targets. - Lively cyberpunk atmosphere (weight 0.05): The game creates a lively cyberpunk atmosphere with a blend of retro and contemporary elements. The setting, plot, and soundtrack evoke a sense of nostalgia and contribute to an immersive experience. - Missions for money farming (weight 0.05): Several missions are recommended for early-game money farming. Completing side missions and using specific strategies can help players earn money to unlock weapons and equipment. Common complaints: - Clunky, unresponsive, unintuitive controls (weight 0.95): The game's controls are frequently described as clunky, stiff, unresponsive, and unintuitive. Specific issues include awkward camera movement, difficulty aiming, poor keybindings (with lack of remapping options), and sluggish character movement. These control issues make it difficult for players to react effectively and enjoy the gameplay. - Overwhelming visual clutter, low FPS (weight 0.93): The game suffers from significant visual clutter due to excessive effects, similar colors for projectiles and explosions, and backgrounds that blend with foreground elements. This is exacerbated by a low frame rate (30 FPS), making it difficult to track enemies and projectiles, leading to player disorientation and eye strain. This combination of factors makes dodging and aiming challenging. - Awkward, disorienting camera movement (weight 0.88): The game's camera system is problematic, with issues such as sudden and disorienting shifts, awkward movement when turning, and a tendency to lock onto the character during jumps. These camera issues make it difficult to track enemies, aim effectively, and maintain spatial awareness, leading to frustration and motion sickness in some cases. - Sluggish movement, frequent knockdowns (weight 0.87): The player character's movement feels sluggish, and they are easily knocked down or staggered by enemy attacks. This, combined with long knockdown times and limited recovery options, disrupts the flow of gameplay and makes the character feel weak and vulnerable. This leads to frustration as players struggle to maintain control and avoid damage. - Overwhelming enemy numbers, enemy spam (weight 0.81): The game features a high density of enemies, often overwhelming the player with sheer numbers. This enemy spam, combined with their durability and frequent knockdown attacks, makes it difficult to manage threats and maintain control of the situation. This can lead to a feeling of being constantly overwhelmed and unable to progress. - Inconsistent, unfair difficulty (weight 0.8): The game's difficulty is inconsistent and often feels unfair, with some parts being too easy while others are excessively challenging. Enemies and bosses have high health and can be difficult to hit, leading to prolonged battles and frustration. The lack of checkpoints further exacerbates the difficulty, forcing players to repeat large sections of the game upon death. - Game is too short, lacks checkpoints (weight 0.56): Many reviewers found the game to be too short, with a limited number of levels and a story that can be completed in just a few hours. The lack of mid-level checkpoints exacerbates this issue, as players must restart entire levels upon death, making the short playtime feel even more repetitive. The absence of achievements also contributes to the feeling of a lacking experience. - Lacks polish, missing settings (weight 0.43): Several reviews mention a lack of polish and refinement, with issues such as missing settings, unintuitive UI, and a general feeling of being unready for release. Specific examples include the inability to remap controls, adjust resolution, or control frame rate. Additionally, some weapons have long reload times, making them impractical. - Ineffective, short-range dodge roll (weight 0.09): The roll/dodge mechanic is often criticized for being ineffective due to its short distance, lack of invincibility frames, and slow responsiveness. This makes it difficult to avoid enemy attacks, and players often find jumping to be a more reliable method of evasion. The poor design of the roll mechanic is a recurring source of frustration. - Frustrating tank battle controls (weight 0.09): Tank battles are specifically called out as frustrating due to a combination of clunky controls, overwhelming explosions, and frequent knockdowns. The tank's movement can be unpredictable, and the boss weak points can be difficult to hit. These factors combine to make the tank stages a low point in the game. - Flawed game economy, grindy (weight 0.08): The game's economy is flawed, with equipment being too expensive and rewards being too scarce. This forces players to grind for currency and makes it difficult to unlock new weapons and upgrades. Additionally, high medical fees can further deplete resources, making it challenging to progress without resorting to repetitive farming. - Side mission 19 unbalanced (weight 0.06): Side mission 19 is highlighted as having a significant difficulty spike due to unlimited and instantly respawning enemies. The boss can only be damaged in a limited area, making the mission feel unfair and frustrating. This suggests a potential balancing issue with specific side missions. - Unfavorable Metal Slug comparison (weight 0.03): Several reviews compare the game unfavorably to Metal Slug, a similar title in the genre. Reviewers note that this game fails to match the quality, lightheartedness, or straightforward gameplay of Metal Slug, setting a negative comparison point for players familiar with that series. Gameplay feedback: - Varied weapons, strategic loadouts (weight 0.29): Players can equip and switch between multiple weapons and gadgets, each with unique characteristics and usage scenarios. Experimentation and upgrading are encouraged to overcome challenges. However, some weapons are considered weak, leading to players gravitating towards specific, more effective loadouts. - Metal Slug-like, strategic, difficult (weight 0.25): The game is a side-scrolling shooter reminiscent of Metal Slug, blending arcade-style action with strategic weapon usage and level memorization. It features short stages with high difficulty, requiring players to adapt to enemy placements and optimize loadouts. The game's world is inspired by titles like Patlabor, creating a unique tone. - Tactical elements, posture affects damage (weight 0.21): The game incorporates tactical elements such as reload management, dodging (rolling/jumping), and posture-based damage modifiers. Crouching often increases damage output, while movement can decrease it. However, some players find the character's movement limited and the stance mechanics poorly explained. - Story and mission modes (weight 0.15): The game features both a story mode with conversations and boss battles, and a mission mode for replaying stages to earn currency. This currency is used to unlock more gear and experiment with different loadouts. The mission mode is primarily used for farming money. - Reflecting bullets, regenerating sub-weapons (weight 0.07): The game features stages with reflecting bullets, and players can use a shield to deflect them, damaging enemies. Sub-weapon ammo automatically regenerates over time, encouraging their frequent use. - Weak weapon balance, unimpactful upgrades (weight 0.05): While weapon variety exists, many weapons are currently weak, leading to players using the same effective ones. Gun levels exist, but their impact is not noticeable. - Unintuitive twin-stick aiming (weight 0.03): The game offers both classic 8-axis and free 360-degree aiming systems. However, the twin-stick aiming with a controller feels unintuitive due to a strange "buckle" design on the right stick. - Helpful radio communication tips (weight 0.03): The game provides helpful tips and information through radio communication during boss battles. This radio communication can be accessed via a specific key, providing players with important knowledge. - Clicking minigame awards money (weight 0.03): The game includes a document writing minigame after each level where rapid clicks award money. Players can earn significant rewards through this mechanic, even without using an auto-clicker. Performance notes: - Locked 30 FPS hurts gameplay (weight 0.31): The game is locked at 30 FPS, which many players find unacceptable for a fast-paced action game. This limitation is due to the Pixel Game Maker MV engine and results in a sluggish feel, mouse unresponsiveness, and stuttering, especially during intense action sequences with many enemies or projectiles. Some players also report frame rate drops below 30 FPS, further exacerbating the issue. - Steam Deck: Remap controls (weight 0.04): The game is playable on Steam Deck, but the default controller settings make aiming diagonally difficult. Remapping the controls is recommended for a better experience. - External fixes worsen performance (weight 0.04): Using frame interpolation software or lossless scaling to address the 30 FPS cap introduces new issues. Frame interpolation causes erratic game speed, while lossless scaling increases input latency, both negatively impacting the player experience. - Adjustable screen and control settings (weight 0.03): Players can adjust screen size, screen shake, and button configurations via an in-game menu accessed by pressing F1. Disabling screen shake is recommended to improve visibility during gameplay. - Shotgun/Claymore weapon synergy (weight 0.02): The 6-shot pump shotgun can be used effectively in sustained combat when paired with the claymore special weapon. Recommendations: - Enjoyable, but needs refinement (weight 0.56): Many reviewers find the game enjoyable despite its flaws, citing its fun gameplay loop, art style, and potential. However, some suggest waiting for updates or a sale due to concerns about price, content, and difficulty. The game is recommended for players who enjoy a challenge and are willing to experiment. - Wait for sale/updates (weight 0.4): Several reviews suggest the game is not worth the full price in its current state. They recommend waiting for a sale or for the developers to address issues such as optimization, content, and difficulty balance before purchasing. Some reviewers even suggest that the marketing may be misleading. - Controller is highly recommended (weight 0.06): Several reviewers recommend using a controller for a better experience. Some request a more streamlined control scheme, such as a one-stick option for movement and aiming. This suggests that the default keyboard and mouse controls may be less intuitive or comfortable. - Incomplete, but has potential (weight 0.05): Many reviewers see potential in the game's art style and world-building, but feel it is currently incomplete. They express hope for more levels and content in future updates. This suggests a strong foundation that needs further development. - Learn from similar games (weight 0.02): The reviewer suggests that the game could learn from similar games like "Saving Countryball: Sona-chan", which addresses pain points well and provides a more comfortable experience. This suggests that the game could benefit from studying and implementing features from other successful titles in the genre. Other player notes: - Good content volume for price (weight 0.05): The game offers a reasonable amount of content for its price, including a complete script, excellent design art, and challenging gameplay. The main story can be completed in approximately 2 hours, with a total playtime of 4-5 hours. - Paperwork reward diminishes continuously (weight 0.05): Players can earn money by completing paperwork, but the reward decreases with continuous use. The reports themselves are interesting, but it's unclear if there is only one pattern, and button mashing does not change the content. - Charming characters, divisive art (weight 0.02): The characters are charming, but whether the art itself will carry an entire game is up to individual. This suggests that the game's art style may be divisive, with some players finding it appealing while others may not. - Bullet color causes visual confusion (weight 0.02): The similar color of enemy and player bullets creates visual confusion, especially when enemies have reflective armor. This makes it difficult for players to track projectiles and react accordingly, negatively impacting gameplay. - Unclear campaign/mission progression (weight 0.02): The game features separate "Campaign" and "Mission" tabs that unlock simultaneously, but the logic behind their progression is unclear. This lack of clarity can confuse players and make it difficult to understand how to advance through the game. - Engine affects configuration aspects (weight 0.02): The game was made with "Action Game Maker MV", which affects some of the configuration aspects. This may limit certain customization options or introduce specific quirks related to the engine. - Unopened gadget implies post-game (weight 0.02): One unopened gadget implies the existence of post-game content. This suggests that there may be additional challenges or rewards available after completing the main story. - Game features internet memes (weight 0.01): The game features internet memes. This may appeal to some players but could also be seen as a dated or irrelevant addition by others. - Catering to otaku tastes (weight 0.01): The reviewer feels like the game is specifically catering to otaku tastes. This suggests that the game may contain elements that are particularly appealing to fans of Japanese anime and manga. - Check fortune with guns (weight 0.01): You can check your fortune with guns. This is a minor gameplay element that adds a touch of whimsy to the experience. - Bald but good boss (weight 0.01): The girls' boss is bald but a good person. This is a minor character detail that adds to the game's overall charm. - Looking forward to updates (weight 0.01): The reviewer is looking forward to future updates and improvements to the game. This suggests that the game has potential but may still be lacking in some areas. - Complete military knowledge (weight 0.01): The game seems to have complete military knowledge. This suggests that the game's developers have put a lot of effort into researching and accurately portraying military themes and concepts. Emotions: No emotions}