Game Reviews

Satellina Zero review - Bullet hell puzzling

Star onStar onStar onStar halfStar off
Get
Satellina Zero review - Bullet hell puzzling

2015's red-yellow-green Satellina was far from a sedate casual puzzler, but more akin to the fast-paced evasion of a bullet hell game. Its simpler follow-up Satellina Zero also evokes the same twitchy thrills of bullet hell action, with neon flair and rhythm game flow.

While the first game gave you freedom to dodge through shifting patterns, Satellina Zero confines you to the bottom of the screen, much like an old-school shmup. But rather than evading the incoming patterns of blue and purple nodes, Zero challenges you to intercept and collect them.

Each collected node increases your score, while special nodes offer more points but challenge you to break your flow and rhythm for a higher score.

A deluge of color

Tapping the screen shifts the state of the incoming nodes from empty purple to collectible blue, and letting just one past you ends your game. A high score in Satellina Zero requires speed, focus, and precision, as you tap in sequence to change nodes to blue, move along the screen in sync with complex patterns, and observe incoming nodes to get into position.

Higher scores unlock faster stages and new color schemes, all equally vibrant as the base purple and blue, but Satellina Zero remains a simple-but-repetitive twitchy arcade game throughout, good for quick plays but lacking in contrast to its more dynamic predecessor.

Satellina Zero review - Bullet hell puzzling

Satellina Zero's slick but simple arcade gameplay may grow repetitive, but offers twitchy thrills in short bursts
Score
Christian Valentin
Christian Valentin
Christian always had a interest in indie games and loves to give the games that so easily go unnoticed the attention they deserve