Dimension Drive

Dimension Drive is a shoot’em up game developed by independent Dutch team 2Awesome Studio. The title was released, among other platforms, on PS4, PC and SWITCH and it was funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign.

Plot

Dimension Drive for PS4, PC and SWITCH takes place in a multidimension universe controlled by aggressive race of aliens called Ashajuls. Their empire is based on the slave work of the inhabitants of conquered planets. Dimension Drive, a drive developed by Ashajuls, accelerated their war machine and enabled them to expand to other dimensions.

The player assumes the role of Jackelyne Tywood, a pilot of Manticore – the only known spaceship equipped with Dimension Drive that doesn’t belong to Ashajuls. Due to her spectacular combat abilities, the girl became the central character of the fight against the Ashajuls’ conquests. The protagonist is also trying to reveal the mystery of her own past and the origin of Dimension Drives. She isn’t alone – she can count on V.E.R.A., an artificial intelligence that both serves her with advice and maintains the systems installed in Manticore.

Mechanics

In Dimension Drive for PS4, PC and SWITCH the action is shown from a top-down perspective. The gameplay, similarly to other shmups, is based on constant moving towards the top of the screen and eliminating incoming enemies – including giant Ashajuls’ warships that serve the role of bosses. From time to time the player must solve a simple environmental riddle as well.

Due to the fact that Manticore is equipped with the titular drive, the game features an unusual mechanic – during the game the screen is split in half and player can freely teleport between its parts. It is important because teleporting is the only way to collect all power-ups placed in both dimensions. It is also useful when avoiding incoming bullets, the number of which sometimes equals the number of bullets in bullet hell shooters.

The player must keep in mind that the batteries deplete quickly and the ship requires wise energy management. Teleportation must be done at right time – a glowing ball on the other side of the screen informs the player where his ship will appear.

Game modes

Dimension Drive for PS4, PC and SWITCH can be played alone or with another player in local cooperation mode. What’s interesting, both pilots share everything, including lives. The game features four difficulty levels – while on normal level the ship is protected by special shields, on hard and extreme difficulty players have access only to one life. The final difficulty level is called WTF! and there the ship is destroyed after a single hit. Player’s actions are graded by a score system – results are shared on internet rankings.

Technical aspects

Dimension Drive can be liked for its nice looking, two-dimensional cartoon-like graphics. The title features an exclusively composed soundtrack that effectively cheers the player to combat.

Last updated on 16 April 2018