is a
shoot 'em up
Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs
) are a sub-genre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of chara ...
game, and is the 12.8th official game in the
Touhou Project
The , also known simply as , is a bullet hell shoot 'em up video game series created by one-man independent Japanese ''doujin'' soft developer Team Shanghai Alice. Since 1995, the team's member, Jun'ya "ZUN" Ōta, has independently developed ...
by the
dōjin circle
In Japan, is a group of people who share an interest, activity, or hobby. The word is sometimes translated into English as "clique", "fandom", "coterie", "society", or "circle" (as in "sewing circle"). Self-published creative works produced b ...
Team Shanghai Alice
, formerly known as ZUN Soft, is a Japanese ''dōjin'' game developer. Since 1995, the sole member of the group, Jun'ya "ZUN" Ōta, has independently developed and self-published the ''Touhou Project'', a bullet hell shoot 'em up series, as we ...
. The game was released on August 14, 2010 at
Comiket
, more commonly known as or , is a semiannual ''doujinshi'' convention in Tokyo, Japan. A grassroots market focused on the sale of '' doujin'' (self-published) works, Comiket is a not-for-profit fan convention administered by the volunteer-ru ...
78.
The game is the sequel to the ''
Touhou Sangetsusei''
manga
Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...
series. The game's illustrations were done by Makoto Hirasaka, the artist of the ''Touhou Sangetsusei'' series, instead of ZUN. The game is sometimes called ''FW'' or ''GFW'' for short.
Gameplay
The game plays somewhat like a fusion of the ''
Shoot the Bullet
is a shoot 'em up photography game, and is the 9.5th official game in the Touhou Project by the dōjin circle Team Shanghai Alice. It was first released in the 69th Comiket on December 30, 2005. In English-speaking circles, the game's title is ...
'' and ''
Phantasmagoria of Flower View
is the ninth official game in the '' Touhou Project'' scrolling shoot 'em up series. It is often abbreviated as PoFV in English speaking circles. ''Phantasmagoria of Flower View'', like the third ''Touhou'' game, '' Phantasmagoria of Dim. Dream'' ...
'', combined with "standard" Touhou gameplay. The player controls Cirno, who is able to shoot regularly, but also possesses a new "freezing" technique that adds a new twist to the game. Similar to Aya's camera in ''Shoot the Bullet'', Cirno has a counter that fills up during gameplay, which determines the strength of her freeze attack, which is triggered by holding and then releasing the shot button not unlike the charged shots in ''Phantasmagoria''. When activated, Cirno's freeze attack will freeze the immediate area directly in front of her, and freeze any bullets it comes in contact with for a duration proportionate to the level of charge % before vanishing afterward. When other bullets come into contact with frozen bullets, they too will freeze, allowing for large chains of bullets to be frozen in this way. Points and bombs are awarded for freezing large numbers of bullets.
Like the main-series games, ''Fairy Wars'' contains full stages each home to their own specific midboss and boss. However, Cirno is the only playable character, and there are only three stages during a playthrough instead of the usual six. On the other hand, there are four different "paths" the player may choose to take, which influence the stages they play. Three of the paths are playable upon starting, while the 4th path is unlockable. The three paths that are playable from the beginning also offers two different routes in which the story will progress.
Characters
''Fairy Wars'' does not introduce any new characters, but three characters from the ''Touhou'' official manga ''Eastern and Little Nature Deity'' and ''Strange and Bright Nature Deity'' make their game debuts as stage bosses.
*: The main character of the game. She set out to find the ones responsible for trashing her dwelling and leaving an unsigned declaration of war.
*: A cheerful fairy who likes to play pranks, often called "Sunny" by her accomplices. She manipulates the power of the sun, namely the power to control reflection, with which can make things appear to be invisible. She considers herself the smartest of the three, though she fails often. She is from the manga ''Eastern and Little Nature Deity'' and ''Strange and Bright Nature Deity''.
*: A fairy who likes to play pranks, often called "Luna" by her accomplices. Her power comes from the moon, and she can use it to silence the sounds around her. She seems to be the most cruel of the three. She is from the manga ''Eastern and Little Nature Deity'' and ''Strange and Bright Nature Deity''.
*: A fairy who likes to play pranks, often called "Star" by her accomplices and "Saphi" by the fans. Unlike the other two, her power does not wax and wane with the time of day. In reality, she seems to be the smartest of the three, and often escapes punishment while the other two are caught. She is from the manga ''Eastern and Little Nature Deity'' and ''Strange and Bright Nature Deity''.
*: A magician who was just finishing her flower viewing and was suddenly challenged to a duel.
References
External links
''Fairy Wars'' on ZUN's blog''Fairy Wars'' on Touhou Wiki
{{Touhou Project
2010 video games
Touhou Project games
Shoot 'em ups
Video games developed in Japan
Windows games
Windows-only games