Ecstatic

Ecstatic (2022) is a fast and hard retro shooting game where you control a mechanical Spider that freezes time and shoots rockets. You need to both keep moving and keep shooting to stay alive. It's like what are sometimes described as bullet-hell games, because of the sheer number of bullets to dodge. Here though, you can only move if you are not shooting and your traversal is insect-like so it has a unique feel.

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You play by directing your spider around the arena, holding a button to pause and shoot. You need to keep an eye on what enemies are appearing as well as the bullets heading towards you. You can also fire rockets out of your spider butt which give you a directional boost. Then there are fangs you can collect that let you bump into enemies to deal damage.

It's a balance of defensive and offensive play that develops in sync with the background music. This is emphasised by your limited abilities and ammo to start with. As you progress you can get power-ups that let you freeze time or enhance your aim. You can also develop your spider in a number of areas.

Unlike other retro shooting games, Ecstatic is a challenge where the long game matters. You need to carefully manage your ammo and work on developing your abilities if you are to go the distance. You can also create your own levels with the editor. These levels are synced with music that you supply as part of the creation process.

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Our examiner, Jo Robertson, first checked Ecstatic (Punkcake) 21 months ago. It was re-examined by Andy Robertson and updated 3 months ago.