I received a copy of Jamestown to review several months ago and I’ve been at a lost as to how to review it ever since. Jamestown is a vertical shmup with 5 main levels, 4 ship types, several difficulty levels, leaderboards, a challenge mode with stuff like “Dodge a million bullets for X seconds,” local co-op, and various unlockables. There aren’t really any gimmicks or unusual game mechanics to talk about. The strangest thing about the game is its setting which is a mismash of American Colonial and OUTER SPAAAACE! There are no major flaws to complain about. There really isn’t a whole lot to say about the game except this…
It’s awesome.
The levels are expertly crafted, the graphics feature intricately detailed 2D art that reminds me of SNK at their height, the music is fantastic, and it’s just a whole lot of fun.
If Jamestown had been released in the 90’s as an arcade game, it would have been considered one of the classics of the era. It’s one of the best vertical shmups I’ve had the pleasure of playing.
There is the interesting mechanic in the game where you can use that temporary shield which doubles as a point multiplier (it’s called Vaunt? or Vault? one of the two). So you have to choose whether to use it during certain swarms to maximize your score, or hold onto it to save yourself from being killed. So there’s that risk-reward mechanic.
Please note that this is a great game, but it’s infinitely more fun when playing coop with friends. We’ve played 4-player coop and it was a fantastic experience 🙂