Overview – developed by Brain-dead Rabbit Games and published by Eastasiasoft, Damikira is an ultraviolent arcade style arena shooter, where the player must survive the hordes of mutants. As one of three playable characters, wield an arsenal of powerful weapons and a grappling hook, nimbly moving around as you slay mutants and save the hostages. This title is available on all console platforms, with a link to each version of the game at the bottom of this review.
Disclaimer: before I get into the review, I would like to thank Eastasiasoft for providing the copy of Damikira that was used for this piece. The provision of this software has not influenced the contents of this review, all thoughts and opinions contained within are my own.
Now with the introductions out of the way, let’s get into the review, starting with the story. Please be warned, this game makes use of flashing images that may cause difficulties for those with epilepsy, so if you have photosensitivity issues, please check out the other content on the site.
Story – the year is 2035. After an economic and military crisis, the United States has fallen as a super power, leading to rampant poverty and crime. The country has lost their agreements with the bordering nations, leading to a hopeless future. In an attempt to regain their dominance, they contracted the EAD corp to create a new super soldier. This company is based in Santa Querida, a city on the border of Mexico.
The EAD corporation, started a radical bio weapons project, mixing animal and human DNA to create hybrids called “Dummies”, poised to replace the weakened US military. However, the experiment goes horribly wrong and the mutants slaughtered everyone, overrunning the facility. This has led to a critical emergency, as they pose a threat to the nation and potentially invade the bordering nations. Now three unlikely heroes step up, ready to fight the horde.
Gameplay – Damikira is frantic side scrolling arcade shooter, where the player is tasked with completing missions, getting a high score and surviving as long as possible during a run. At the start of a run, the player will be able to select from one of three characters, each with their own unique weapon. The playable trio are Emily, who uses a short range revolver, Eric, armed with a powerful shotgun and Henry, the Axolotl hybrid who wields a long range pistol.
The three different characters share the same basic move set, with the ability to run, jump and use a grappling hook to get around the stages. In a stage, there are platforms that players can jump between and use the grappling hook, allowing them to quickly manoeuvre the areas. To clear a stage the player must complete missions, which include killing a target number of foes and rescuing hostages. When the stage is cleared, the player will warp to the next.
There is a fast and frantic pace of the gameplay, with the player moving and aiming independently, this gives the game a bit of a twin stick feel, but can be a little awkward. Thankfully, there is an auto-aim option, which targets the closest enemy to the player. The grappling hook is also tied to the aim system, so it is important to take a moment to practice with it to get a feel for it. There is one life per run, so when all the health is gone it is game over.
During a stage, enemies will spawn all around and trying to swarm the player. They can attack up close, but as the player gets deeper into a run, they will get increasingly deadly. Enemies will spawn in with powerful weapons as the player progresses, increasing the risk for a quick death. It is possible to get swarmed and easily killed if players get pinned down, it is a frustration when this happens, but it is all part of the gameplay experience.
During a run, the player will be able to pick up different items dropped by enemies and hostages. The various items include weapons, which last until the ammo bar runs out, power-ups that increase damage and health packs that restore damage taken. There are also upgrades that last for the duration of the run, like increased fire rate and maximum health boosts. This title has a roguelike feel to it, so any time the player dies collected upgrades are lost.
However, there are some things that do carry over between runs. New weapons can be unlocked by collecting weapon icons, with new weapons being added to the arsenal after collecting set amounts. All weapons are added to the available pool, being given to the player randomly when unlocked. Coins can be picked up during a run, which are added to the running total for the player. These coins are used to buy hats, which can be applied to characters.
The last thing to discuss is the ratings and scoring system, which is a little bit hit and miss in how it works. When a run ends, the player will be rated on their performance, with the highest score earned added to the global rankings. There is no real way to know what grade will be given at the end of a run, making it feel random. It can also take a while for global scores to update, which can be frustrating when getting a good score and not seeing it on the rankings.
Now with the gameplay covered, it is time to cover the other aspects of this game, starting with the controls.
Controls – the controls for Damikira are inspired by twin stick shooters, with the player manually aiming with the right stick while moving with the left. The triggers are for firing and using the grappling hook, with the x button being used to jump. This layout works well enough, but due to the frantic nature of the game, it can be hard to aim quickly so there is an auto-aim button. During play, the inputs feel comfortable to play when using the Dualshock 4.
Difficulty – there is only a single difficulty for this game, with the general balance being a little bit off during the first few attempts when playing. But as more time is put in and runs are attempted, it gets easier as new weapons are added and skills improve. The further the player gets the tougher enemies become, which may be a stumbling block for players. There is a two player option that may alter the challenge, but I was unable to test this feature out.
Presentation – this release has a retro inspired style to the visuals, with chunky pixel art and a lot of gore on screen. Everything goes at a fair pace and there is no issue with lag, but the amount of gore effects and explosions on screen can affect visibility. The sound is a little bit of a mixed bag, with the effects overpowering the background music, which consists of Incompetech and royalty free music. There is some okay voice acting, which gives it a bit of a b-movie feel.
Final Thoughts – I am a fan of the ultraviolent shooter genre, having enjoyed titles like Smash TV, BroForce and others over the years, so this was right up my alley. When I jumped into the experience, I wasn’t overly impressed as I died almost instantly. However, as I spent more time with this game, I found myself enjoying it more with each run while I adapted to gameplay. There is a lot on offer here in a rather small package.
It does feel a little awkward to get used to the game, but it all falls into place after a few runs, especially when getting used to the chosen character. There is a satisfaction to getting a high score during a run, seeing it on the leaderboard and trying to beat it. I can easily recommend this game to everyone after a fun, gory shooter that is fond of internet culture. With references to games like Undertale, Five Nights at Freddy’s and even Super Mario Brothers.
In the end, I give Damikira a final score of 3.5/5. This is a fun and frenetic platform shooter, with buckets of guts and gore to splash on the arenas, offering a fun time that will pull you in, making you say “just one more try” to get that better score. If you want to check it out for yourself, a link to each version of the game will be below. NOTE: pages may be age-gated, as this title is rated Mature.
Link to PlayStation version (HERE)
Link to Nintendo Switch version (HERE)
Link to Xbox version (HERE)
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