Author’s note: This is part of a series where oprainfall will briefly cover publishers that specialize in bringing lesser-known titles to the forefront, be it publishing independent games or bringing Japanese titles Westward. Fans of indie games or Japanese gaming and anime should pay close attention to each of these publishers. The best way to support them is by purchasing the titles they publish. So, without further ado, we present this month’s publisher:
After spending the last couple months on American game companies, I thought it’d be nice to get back to what oprainfall is known for: talking about Japanese publishers. It’s funny. I didn’t even know about this publisher until reading our recent review of Gigantic Army. Or rather… I should say that I wasn’t aware of what Nyu Media had been putting out. As it turns out, there are many doujin titles that I’ve had an eye on that all happened to be handled by this publisher. While the company’s library contains a few adventure and platforming titles, the selection leans heavily toward shoot ‘em ups and bullet hell games. Not that that’s a bad thing, but it’s nice that they have a little variety to suit different tastes. Let’s take a look, shall we?
First on our tour of Nyu Media is a visual novel title from Japanese indie developer 773 called Cherry Tree High Comedy Club. Players take on the role of a high school junior named Miley Verisse. An avid fan of comedy, Miley wishes to start a comedy club at her school, but, unfortunately, she needs to find at least three more people to make it official. Over the month of April, Miley will use her Spring Break to find and socialize with six potential “targets,” and convince them to join the club. This is achieved by taking part in various activities to increase a handful of stats that will help you get closer to your targets. I personally developed a taste for this kind of gameplay after playing the Persona games, so it seems right up my alley. It looks like a great game for people who want to try out the “dating sim” genre without having to deal with the *ahem* adult situations that come with the territory.
Next is Edelweiss’s beat ‘em up title, Fairy Bloom Freesia. Don’t let Freesia fool you. She may be a fairy, but she can still kick your butt! A faithful practitioner of “fairy-fu,” players control Freesia as she blasts through waves of enemies and fights to convince humans to leave the forest alone. Gameplay is deep, with freestyle combat allowing you to chain combos, launch enemies and juggle them with a variety of different attacks. You might also give souvenir circ’s hack-‘n’-slash title, Croixleur, a look. Taking on the role of Lucrezia Visconti, players will fight through waves of monsters in fully 3D environments in a quest to beat her rival, Francesca. The game features a variety of different weapons for players to use, so there’s sure to be one to suit any play style.
Eryi’s Action, a 2D platformer from Xtal Sword, is next. All Eryi wanted was to eat her much-anticipated melon, but, tragically, it was stolen by the greedy Farta. Now Eryi is on a quest to get her snack back. Don’t let the cutesy, sprite-based graphics fool you – this game is deviously difficult. Taking cues from games like I Wanna Be The Guy, just about everything wants to kill you, and each stage is fraught with traps. However, the game leans more towards challenging and tricky rather than mind-numbingly frustrating. Gigantic Army also falls under this category. Players control the giant robot GMR-34 SALADIN as they fight through waves of similar robots and other instruments of war. The game has a classic arcade feel, harkening back to the days of Metal Slug.
As I mentioned before, while Nyu Media has these few other genres represented, the vast majority of their titles are of the shmup and bullet hell persuasion. If it’s classic side-scrolling arcade style shmups you’re looking for, Armed Seven and SATAZIUS can scratch that itch. If you like pretty graphics to go along with your ship combat, you’d do well to give ALLTYNEX Second and ETHER VAPOR Remaster a look. ALLTYNEX’s sequels, RefleX and KAMUI are also available. If cute anime girls blowing stuff up is more your style, though, you might give the eXceed series of bullet hell games a try. The three titles; eXceed: Gun Bullet Children, eXceed 2nd: Vampire REX and eXceed 3rd: Jade Penetrate Black Package are all available either individually or in a handy collection.
Even if you’re not a fan of shoot ‘em up or bullet hell titles, don’t immediately discount Nyu Media. If you like the design and feel of doujin games, you’re sure to find something up your alley. While everything is available for purchase on their website, fans can also find many titles on Steam, as well. It may not be the biggest list of games out there, but it’s certainly a nice selection. I said earlier that I’ve had my eye on at least a few of these titles, but I feel like now might be a good time to unload my wallet.
Keep up with the latest from Nyu Media:
