, released in Europe and North America as ''Bells & Whistles'', is a
1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the ...
vertically scrolling shooter
A vertically scrolling video game or vertical scroller is a video game in which the player views the field of play principally from a top-down perspective, while the background scrolls from the top of the screen to the bottom (or, less often, from ...
arcade video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...
developed and released by
Konami
, is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has casi ...
. It is the fifth entry in the ''
TwinBee
is a vertically scrolling shooter released by Konami as an arcade video game in 1985 in Japan. Along with Sega's '' Fantasy Zone'', released a year later, ''TwinBee'' is credited as an early archetype of the "cute 'em up" type in its genre. It ...
'' series and the second to be released for arcades following the original ''
TwinBee
is a vertically scrolling shooter released by Konami as an arcade video game in 1985 in Japan. Along with Sega's '' Fantasy Zone'', released a year later, ''TwinBee'' is credited as an early archetype of the "cute 'em up" type in its genre. It ...
'' (previous sequels were released directly to home consoles). Set several years after the events of ''TwinBee'', players assume the role of Light and Pastel (marking their debut appearance) taking control of TwinBee and WinBee to defeat invading forces of the evil alien Iva and save planet Meru after receiving an SOS message sent by Princess Melora.
''Detana!! TwinBee'' marked the debut of Japanese animator Shūjirō Hamakawa (credited under the pen name Shuzilow.Ha) as primary character designer for subsequent installments of the ''TwinBee'' series. The game proved popular among Japanese arcade players, earning several awards from ''
Gamest
was a Japanese video game magazine that specialized in covering arcade games. Published by Shinseisha, it first began in May 1986 and originally published bi-monthly, later changed to be a monthly-issued magazine in the late 1980s. The magazine al ...
'' magazine, while its ports to other
platforms were also met with positive response from critics. A direct follow-up, ''
Pop'n TwinBee
is a top-view shoot-'em-up game originally released in 1993 by Konami for the Super Famicom in Japan. The game was also released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in the PAL region. It is the sixth game in the ''TwinBee'' series and a d ...
'', was released for the
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a Fourth generation of video game consoles, 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South ...
in 1993.
Gameplay
''Detana!! TwinBee'' is a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up game following the same conventions established in the original ''TwinBee'', where players assume the role of Light and Pastel (whose names are given in the audio drama ''TwinBee Paradise'') taking control of TwinBee (P1) and WinBee (P2) across seven levels to defeat invading forces of the evil alien Iva and save planet Meru after receiving an SOS message sent by princess Melora.
[''Detana!! TwinBee'' arcade flyer (Konami, JP)][''Bells & Whistles'' operator's manual (Arcade, EU)]
The control configuration differs between regions; in the Japanese version, one button is used to fire the gun at airborne enemies while the other is used to drop bombs to the ground, while both buttons are used to do shoot and drop bombs at the same time in the European version.
Holding down the shot button will cause a power-meter at the bottom of the screen to fill up, allowing the player to fire a "Big Shot" attack when releasing the button.
Power-up items consist of bells which can be uncovered by shooting the floating clouds, as well as items uncovered by destroying land enemies.
As with ''TwinBee'', players can shoot the floating bells to change their colors.
Besides the five different colors from the original ''TwinBee'' (yellow, white, blue, green, and red), two new bells are introduced: a purple bell that provides a "tail shield", activating barriers around the player's ship and a black bell that decreases speed of the ship.
Mini-bells and the lucky star from the first ''TwinBee'' return as well. GwinBee, a ship similar to TwinBee and WinBee also appears, allowing players to combine their ship with GwinBee to fire wider fire beams. Two players can also align their ships side by side to achieve the same effect or align their ships vertically for a powerful five-way spread. If both players align their ships with GwinBee between them, he will spring out and destroy all on-screen enemies.
After the first loop is completed, players can replay it for a harder second loop. The game will be entirely over if the final stage is cleared again, but running out of lives results in a game over unless players insert more credits into the arcade machine to continue and receive a "free" power-up.
Development
''Detana!! TwinBee'' was created by most of the same team that worked on several projects at Konami such as the ''
Gradius
is a series of shooter video games, introduced in 1985, developed and published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper.
Games
*'' Sc ...
'' series, with director Masato Ohsawa leading its development and Toru Shimomura served as sole programmer of the game while Hiroshi Matsuura also served as engineer.
Ryouhei Shogaki, Hiroyuki Ashida and K. Ishimoto acted as co-designers.
Translation
by Shmuplations. ). The title marked the debut of Japanese animator Shūjirō Hamakawa (credited under the pseudonym Shuzilow.Ha) in his first project as game designer, serving as character illustrator for subsequent installments of the ''TwinBee'' series.
Translation
by Shmuplations. ). Konami Kukeiha Club
is Konami's sound team. It is often confused with 矩形波倶楽部 ( Kukeiha Club), Konami's in-house band that has released albums consisting of their studio performances. They are primarily responsible for the sound and music in the majorit ...
members Hidenori Maezawa, Masae Nakashima and
Michiru Yamane
is a Japanese video game composer and pianist. Yamane's musical style draws on Baroque music, baroque, Classical Period (music), classical and rock music, rock traditions, with both Johann Sebastian Bach and Yellow Magic Orchestra as prominent ...
scored the soundtrack.
Yamane stated she wrote the music as colorful and fun to match the "cute bee world" of the project.
Release
''Detana!! TwinBee'' was first released by Konami for arcades in Japan in February 1991 and Europe in March 1991 as ''Bells & Whistles''.
The game was first ported to the
X68000
The is a home computer created by Sharp Corporation. It was first released in 1987 and sold only in Japan.
The initial model has a 10 MHz Motorola 68000 CPU, 1 MB of RAM, and lacks a hard drive. The final model was released in 1993 with ...
computer on December 6, 1991. The title was then ported to the
PC Engine
The TurboGrafx-16, known as the outside North America, is a home video game console designed by Hudson Soft and sold by NEC Home Electronics. It was the first console marketed in the fourth generation, commonly known as the 16-bit era, thoug ...
on February 28, 1992. This conversion is notable for being one of the earliest works of
Koji Igarashi at Konami, serving as enemy programmer. On September 29, 1995, it was included as part of the ''
Detana TwinBee Yahho! Deluxe Pack
is a 1995 two-in-one video game compilation developed and published by Konami for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. It is the second ''Deluxe Pack'' release following '' Gokujō Parodius Da! Deluxe Pack'', which included both ''Parodius Da!'' and ...
'' compilation for
Sega Saturn
The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...
and
PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a di ...
.
''Detana!! TwinBee'' was later ported to Japanese
mobile phone
A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive telephone call, calls over a radio freq ...
platforms such as
EZweb
au, or au by KDDI, is a Japanese mobile phone operator. au is a brand marketed by KDDI in the main islands of Japan and by Okinawa Cellular in Okinawa for their mobile cellular services. au is the second-largest wireless carrier in Japan, wit ...
,
i-mode
NTT DoCoMo's i-mode is a mobile internet (distinct from wireless internet) service popular in Japan. Unlike Wireless Application Protocols, i-mode encompasses a wider variety of internet standards, including web access, e-mail, and the pack ...
and
Yahoo Mobile on July 13, 2004. On January 25, 2007, the game was included as part of the ''TwinBee Portable'' collection for
PlayStation Portable
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 200 ...
and later re-released as a budget title under the "Konami The Best" line on March 13, 2008.
The PC Engine conversion was re-released for the
Wii's
Virtual Console
A virtual console (VC) – also known as a virtual terminal (VT) – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some Unix-like operating systems such as Linux, BSD, illumos, Un ...
as a "Hanabi Festival" launch in Japan on September 18, 2007, then in North America on March 23, 2009, and later in
PAL
Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...
territories on July 24 of the same year.
The PC Engine version was then re-released for the
PlayStation Network
PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smar ...
as part of the "PC Engine Archives" line in Japan on June 16, 2010. On November 24, 2010, the arcade original was included on the
Game Room
Game Room was a social gaming service for the Xbox 360 video game system, Microsoft Windows PCs, and Windows Phone 7. Launched on March 24, 2010, Game Room let players download classic video games and compete against each other for high scores ...
gaming service for
Microsoft Windows and
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generati ...
as part of "Game Pack 012". The PC Engine port was later added to the PC Engine GameBox app for
iOS
iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also include ...
in Japan on February 12, 2014. In addition, the PC Engine version was also re-released in Japan for Windows through
D4 Enterprise's Project EGG digital service on March 3, 2014.
''Detana!! TwinBee'' was re-released in its PC Engine form between April and May 2014 across
cloud gaming
Cloud gaming, sometimes called gaming on demand or gaming-as-a-service or game streaming, is a type of online gaming that runs video games on remote servers and streams them directly to a user's device, or more colloquially, playing a game rem ...
services like Smart TV Box, G-cluster and
Hikari TV. The PC Engine conversion was eventually re-released only in Japan for the
Wii U
The Wii U ( ) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4.
Th ...
s Virtual Console on November 24, 2014.
Hamster Corporation
is a Japanese video game publisher, with office located in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan. The game division of Toshiba-EMI Limited spun off Hamster Corporation in November 1999.
On the Japanese PlayStation Store, more than 200 titles are distribu ...
later re-released the arcade version for
Nintendo Switch
The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a tablet that can either be docked for use as a home console or used as a portable device, making it a ...
and
PlayStation 4
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...
on January 16, 2020, under their ''
Arcade Archives
is a series of emulated arcade games from the late 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and Nintendo Switch, published by Hamster Corporation. A sub-series called is focused on rereleasing Neo ...
'' series.
Reception and legacy
In Japan, ''Game Machine'' listed ''Detana!! TwinBee'' on their March 15, 1991 issue as being the third most-popular arcade game at the time. Both Martin Gaksch and Heinrich Lenhardt of German magazine ''Power Play'' regarded the game to be a nice vertical-scrolling shooter with enjoyable candy-colored visuals.
In the May 1991 issue of Japanese publication ''Micom BASIC Magazine'', the game was ranked on the number six spot in popularity. Maurizio Miccoli of Italian magazine ''Computer+Videogiochi'' gave the title a positive outlook.
''
Gamest
was a Japanese video game magazine that specialized in covering arcade games. Published by Shinseisha, it first began in May 1986 and originally published bi-monthly, later changed to be a monthly-issued magazine in the late 1980s. The magazine al ...
'' gave it several awards for the 5th Gamest Grand Prize (1991), winning 3rd place in the Grand Prize, 1st place in the Best Shooting Award, 4th place in the Best Graphic Award, 3rd place in the Best VGM Award, 5th place in Player Popularity and 8th place in the Annual Hit Game.
Nishikawa Zenji of Japanese magazine ''Oh!X'' applauded the X68000 conversion for its arcade-accurate graphics and sound, among other aspects.
This version also proved popular among the X68000 userbase, eventually being nominated for a "
Game of the Year
Game of the Year (GotY) is an award given by various award events and media publications to a video game that they feel represented the pinnacle of gaming that year.
Events and ceremonies
British Academy Games Awards (BAFTA Games Awards)
...
" award by ''Oh!X'' but losing against other titles such as ''
Parodius Da!''.
The PC Engine port received positive reception from critics who reviewed it as an import title.
Public reception was also positive: readers of ''
PC Engine Fan
PC Engine Fan was a Japanese magazine dedicated to the PC Engine, published by Tokuma Shoten. It ran from 1988 to 1996.
History
The first issue of ''PC Engine Fan'' was published in late 1988. The magazine originated as a section in ''Family Comp ...
'' voted to give ''Detana!! TwinBee'' a 24.79 out of 30 score, ranking at the number 19 spot in a poll, indicating a large popular following.
Both Kaneda Kun and François Hermellin of ''Consoles +'' praised the PC Engine conversion for its colorful graphics, sympathetic music and impeccable gameplay but criticized the presentation.
Four reviewers of ''
Famitsu
formerly ''Famicom Tsūshin'', is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the ...
'' gave the PC Engine version a score of 24 out of 40.
''
Computer and Video Games
''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website ...
''s Frank O'Connor commended the PC Engine port for its arcade-accurate presentation and gameplay but criticized the music for being annoying.
''
AllGame
RhythmOne , previously known as Blinkx, and also known as RhythmOne Group, is an American digital advertising technology company that owns and operates the web properties AllMusic, AllMovie, and SideReel.
Blinkx was founded in 2004, went publ ...
''s Kyle Knight gave positive remarks to the imaginative boss designs and enjoyable gameplay but noted the audio design to be a mixed point on the PC Engine release.
Olivier Prézeau of ''Joypad'' and ''
Joystick
A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. A joystick, also known as the control column, is the principal cont ...
''s Jean-Marc Demoly praised the PC Engine port for its graphics, sound and controls as well.
Reviewing the Virtual Console re-release, ''
Nintendo Life
Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British mass media company based in Brighton. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and ot ...
''s Corbie Dillard praised its responsive controls, arcade-accurate visuals and upbeat soundtrack.
''
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa dist ...
''s Lucas M. Thomas commended its anime-inspired world and co-op play feature.
''
Eurogamer
''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 and owned by alongside formed company Gamer Network. Its editor-in-chief is Martin Robinson.
Since 2008, it is known for the formerly eponymous games trade fair EGX ...
''s Dan Whitehead compared it with ''
Xevious
is a vertically scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Namco for arcades in 1982. It was released in Japan and Europe by Namco and in North America by Atari, Inc. Controlling the Solvalou starship, the player attacks Xevious for ...
'', stating it was not as good as ''
MUSHA
''MUSHA'' is a vertically scrolling shooter developed by Compile and released for the Sega Genesis in 1990. An entry in Compile's shooter series, ''Aleste'', ''MUSHA'' places the player in the role of a flying mecha pilot who must destroy a l ...
'' nor as cute as ''
Fantasy Zone
is a 1986 arcade game by Sega, and the first game in the ''Fantasy Zone'' series. It was later ported to a wide variety of consoles, including the Master System. The player controls a sentient spaceship named Opa-Opa who fights an enemy in ...
'' but regarded it as an appealing vertical-scrolling shooter for casual players.
A clone of ''Detana!! TwinBee'' for the
Amiga
Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore International, Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and sign ...
titled ''Gunbee F-99'' was published as a
covermount
Covermount (sometimes written cover mount) is the name given to storage media (containing software and or audiovisual media) or other products (ranging from toys to flip-flops) packaged as part of a magazine or newspaper. The name comes from th ...
alongside the December 1998 issue of ''
Amiga Format
''Amiga Format'' was a British computer magazine for Amiga computers, published by Future plc. The magazine lasted 136 issues from 1989 to 2000. The magazine was formed when, in the wake of selling '' ACE'' to EMAP, Future split the dual-format ...
'' magazine.
Notes
References
External links
''Detana!! TwinBee''at
GameFAQs
GameFAQs is a website that hosts FAQs and walkthroughs for video games. It was created in November 1995 by Jeff Veasey and was bought by CNET Networks in May 2003. It is currently owned by Fandom, Inc. since October 2022. The site has a databas ...
''Detana!! TwinBee''at
Giant Bomb
''Giant Bomb'' is an American video game website and wiki that includes personality-driven gaming videos, commentary, news, and reviews, created by former ''GameSpot'' editors Jeff Gerstmann and Ryan Davis. The website was voted by ''Time'' ma ...
''Detana!! TwinBee''at
Killer List of Videogames
Killer List of Videogames (KLOV) is a website featuring an online encyclopedia devoted to cataloging arcade games past and present. It is the video game department of the International Arcade Museum, and has been referred to as "the IMDb for pl ...
''Detana!! TwinBee''at
MobyGames
MobyGames is a commercial website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes nearly 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms. The site is supported by banner ads and a small ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Detana!! TwinBee
1991 video games
Arcade video games
D4 Enterprise games
Konami games
Konami arcade games
Mobile games
Nintendo Switch games
PlayStation (console) games
PlayStation Network games
PlayStation Portable games
PlayStation 4 games
Sega Saturn games
X68000 games
TurboGrafx-16 games
TwinBee games
Video game sequels
Video games scored by Michiru Yamane
Virtual Console games
Virtual Console games for Wii U
Windows games
Xbox 360 games
Video games developed in Japan
Hamster Corporation games
Multiplayer and single-player video games
Cooperative video games