Bugs are the worst, right? How about giant alien bugs that threaten innocent people? Now that’s unforgivable, and incidentally the gist of today’s video, a review on The Bug Butcher, an arcade shooter ported to the Switch some months ago, made by Awfully Nice Studios and published by 2AwesomeStudio, who also supplied review code.
Now, if you’re expecting some deep story from a game about shooting bugs…okay, you’re forgiven, but no, there’s no deep plot here, just the essentials. You are Harry, an exterminator with a knack for killing bugs and an ego as large as his guns. He gets a distress call from a facility that’s being overrun by bugs, as told by one of the sole surviving scientists, and is tasked with eliminating the problem. This involves going through the entire facility, protecting your defenseless scientist sidekick as you go, more on that later, and killing bugs. Simple, not much else to say.
The Bug Butcher is a 2D side-scrolling shoot-em-up, where you are permanently restricted to shooting upwards to kill stuff. Particularly old viewers might remember this as being the gameplay from Super Buster Bros., while others may recognize it from Flash games like Bubble Trouble. For those who aren’t familiar with either, the gameplay involves shooting enemies that come from above. When an enemy dies, it splits into two halves, a process which repeats until that enemy can’t split anymore. This is largely true for Bug Butcher as well, but there are different elements added into the mix to make the game varied.
Each area of the facility has its own unique gimmick, such as the robotics lab having destructible platforms, the garden having periodically vanishing walls, and the smelting area having a giant hammer that kills both you and any enemies on contact. These stage hazards add additional depth to the task of killing bugs, which is something you must do under a time limit in each stage. Another added element to micromanage is your defenseless scientist sidekick, who as you’ll find out quickly might as well be Baby Mario under that hat for one simple reason: your scientist gets in danger all the time.
Yeah. Bug Butchers taps into Yoshi’s Island of all things for its other central objective between stages, protecting your defenseless load, who cries out like an actual baby. Oftentimes, a ceiling enemy will approach alongside the standard splitting enemies, and their sole purpose is to try to abduct your hapless partner as a snack, so you must kill the abductors before that happens.
For the main campaign, this formula stretches on for 30 stages, all with a star-based scoring system, which encourages level replaying to get the highest rank. Apart from that there’s an endless arcade mode as well as a co-op mode to squeeze out some extra gameplay time.
The campaign can be finished within two hours, possibly a bit more if you’re trying for max rank and depending on how often you die, which can be often depending on your difficulty setting. For the purposes of this review I played on Easy after hearing some reviews saying that the game was difficult even on Easy, but that’s something I disagree with. Easy gives you about 8 hits before dying, so you can afford to take mistakes, though seriously reckless play will get you killed regardless, and Easy won’t save you from occasional cheap shots like getting swarmed with these frequently appearing facehugger enemies that instantly kill you. Despite this, levels are short enough that death can feel cheap, so it’s not a big deal overall. Overall, The Bug Butcher has some solid gameplay, albeit demanding some dexterity.
To sum up the presentation in a word: smooth. A fast-paced shooter should have some fluid visuals to match, and Bug Butcher doesn’t disappoint, delivering a style that is equal parts cute and grotesque. It also runs smooth as butter, so if you die, it’s always your fault and not over technical hiccups. The techno soundtrack accompanying it is also pretty catchy, albeit something you won’t necessarily hear all the time between the sounds of guns firing, insect guts exploding and your crying baby scientist buddy.
For 8 dollars, or your regional equivalent, The Bug Butcher is a worthwhile shooter to invest in, though its longevity depends on what type of player you are. Completionists will find themselves sinking in hours beyond the main campaign to complete every level perfectly, something which does demand high skill. A more casual minded player not necessarily interested in a perfect score could play the game in short bursts and maybe finish the campaign within 2 hours, with occasional revisits afterwards for co-op and endless modes. Said varying longevity is arguably the game’s key flaw in a general sense since the straightforward gameplay also means it’s not much different upon replaying. But that’s for the end consumer to decide.
I bought this game on PS4 awhile ago, pretty decent imo.
Great review!
Anyone who haven’t played The Bug Butcher yet, do yourself a favor and get this epic 2D side-scrolling shoot-em-up.
Awfully Nice Studios might have been inspired by the late 80’s co-op two-player arcade called Pang by Mitchell Corporation.
Of course, The Bug Butcher takes it to an all new level by incorporating bosses, upgradeable weapons, endless mode, dashing, co-op, and unlockable special attacks.