Frantic

Frantic

Details
Name	Frantic
Author	Polymerrabbit
Genre	Shooter
Published	2008-11-01
In-Game Awards?	No
Gameplay Style	Side-scrolling shooter
Upgrade System?	No

Frantic is a scrolling shooter game in which you must take on hundreds of colorful spacecrafts... per second. The game is a typical game in the "bullet hell" genre. You control a spaceship and must shoot down the enemies coming towards you while dodging bullets as best you can.

Gameplay[]

The objective of each level is to defeat as much enemies as possible without being hit too much (if you're going for the impossible badge, then you can't be hit at all). Enemy shots are purple and cyan while your shots are green.

The ship automatically shoots, and its reload rate can be accelerated by purchasing the Reload Speed card (more on cards later).

Whenever you kill enemies, they drop golden balls, which can then be picked up to recieve points. The more enemies you destroy without being hit, the higher your score multiplier increases, which essentially multiplies your score by that number (i.e. A score multiplier of 3x would make is so that when you pick up 100 points, you would recieve 300 points instead).

Also, sometimes enemies will drop weapon upgrades. These look like green arrows, and when you touch them, your weapon is upgraded, making it overall better.

As you kill more enemies, your bonus level increases, which can be found on the left-hand side. When it reaches a certain point, you can activate different bonuses, depending on your bonus level. A low level results in being able to activate a shield which makes it so that when you are hit, you recieve money instead of damage. The next level is essentially the same thing, except that the attacks are reflected, which can then be used to damage enemies. The level after that is also the same thing, but instead of the attacks being reflected, it is transfered into health. The highest level you can reach (which is basically a full bonus bar) allows you to fire a devastating move by either left-clicking or pressing the space bar. This attack does constant damage to bosses, and instantly kills any lesser enemies. When this beam touches any reward, it is the equivalent of you recieveing it. Also, when an enemy attack touches it, it is instantly gone. However, it is unknown if an attack from the rear can hurt you. All of these bonuses have a time limit, and when the time limit reaches its end, then bonus then dissapears.

You can also recieve money from defeating enemies. At the end of each level, you are taken to a shop, where you can then purchase certain cards in exchange for money. These effects can vary from having automatic turrets that periodically fire at enemies, to increasing your reload speed, and to increase your health recovery rate. There are four slots at the bottom of the shop screen. You can only equip four cards at a time. You can also sell cards. If you do, you recieve a lower amount of money then you spent on it. Doing this can free up slots, allowing you to equip new cards. These cards have permanent effects, as long as you equip them to your slots.

Tips and Tricks[]

Try to save up money early on, getting the Reload Speed and Laser cards can become very useful later on.
Don't go for the Lucky card, as there is only a small chance you will double your earnings, and that slot could be used to equip a better card.
Resist the tempation to use your bonuses early on in the level. Save up until you get the max level, and save that untill you meet the boss. The bosses have extremely hard-to-dodge attack patterns, especially later in the game. If you use this while they are attacking, not only will you do a significant amount of damage to them, you're safe from attacks as long as your bonus lasts.