Titanium Hound from Red Spot Sylphina is a side-scrolling action game set in a dystopian future where the political power and sway of malignant corporations have been bolstered after the development of a new power source that significantly changed the world and lined their pockets. Now corruption and crime runs rampant in the streets and in order to combat the ne'er do wells who wish to exploit this new technology, the police force needed to fight fire with fire.
That’s where Grace Alarie steps in. A Special police force officer who specializes in piloting a top of the line military grade mech known as the Titanium Hound complex, whose power can hopefully outmatch whatever these uprising cyber criminals can throw at them.
I’m always up for a side-scrolling run ‘n gun, and when I came across Titanium Hound it seemed like it would be right up my alley. Not only did it have gorgeous pixel art, featured exquisitely detailed backgrounds with impressive parallax scrolling, but it also seemed to feature fast paced mech action. You know, the type of game you’d only find on the Sega Genesis if you imported them directly from Japan.
Of course, run ‘n gun games live and die by how satisfying the action feels while playing them, so I was curious to dive in and find out for myself. However, it did appear to have everything needed to scratch that itch.
First up, I just want to say that Titanium Hound certainly delivered on the graphics front. It was impressive to see just how much care went into every aspect of the visuals. I loved how even though the in-game sprites were small, they packed a lot of personality and their animations were smooth as silk. But my favorite part was all the little details put into the environments. For example, you could see cars driving on highways in the background, or blinking billboards advertising some sort of futuristic shenanigans, or even the subtle 3D effects given to the buildings as you pass them by. In a lot of ways, it felt like it was going to be the complete package.
However, that’s where my love story with Titanium Hound ended, and where my internal struggle with playing the game began. I say that because, instead of the game delivering an equally as smooth and satisfying gameplay experience, it instead fought me with awkward mechanics that bucked the flow of the action. Instead of feeling like a powerhouse, like anyone controlling a badass mech should, I would constantly be hamstrung by its energy system, which only allowed you to shoot and/or jump if you had enough power. Otherwise you’d have to refill that energy by utilizing your shield. An interesting concept for sure, but a big downer when the stakes are high and you can’t freakin’ shoot. Luckily there is a melee attack you can use while your shield is up, so you’re not completely defenseless, but it was a bit frustrating when in the heat of the action. These frustrations were also exemplified by some other mechanical quirks while navigating through each stage, like there being slight hiccups after interacting with something that prevented me from moving (or turning), or not having finer control over where I could aim while shooting. All of these things just culminated into an experience that felt stiff and unforgiving. Which in turn made the game more meticulous than I had hoped.
Despite my gripes with Titanium Hound, it truly does have a ton of great ideas with even greater potential, especially when it comes to its setting. I liked the idea of being able to find and equip upgrades for your mech, and I liked the idea of finding materials that you can use to craft powerful subweapons, and I even liked the idea of being able to use non-lethal force on things like security cameras so you don’t trip the security systems. But that only makes it more disappointing when I find myself struggling to actually play the game. With that in mind, your mileage may vary! If you have more patience for a systems heavy action game, then Titanium Hound may just be what you’re looking for. If nothing else, it does new and interesting things in the genre, and that by itself makes it worth checking out. Especially if what you need is something fresh.
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