Still want to try for the 1cc though

Exactlyyyy

Don’t hear this often and it might be a hot take but the marketing behind these survivor-likes also feels downright disrespectful to the genre they latch themselves onto - the whole “be the bullet hell” and emphasis on player power is completely detached from anything shmups games really stand for

Not to put down casual experiences (I think it’s great when shmups come with some form of casual modes for newcomers), but these type of games are washed down to the lowest possible amount of difficulty and friction that could “ruin the fun” - they’re a far cry from bullet hells in that regard

It also feels as if all the craze around “bullet hell” games adjacent to Vampire Survivors comes from the fact they require much less effort but grant similar looking “overwhelming” visuals and dopamine - it’s like doomscrolling in game form, in a way, that requires no real challenge from the player

Putting Steam as an example here but looking up either of those genres anywhere online will net you anything but actual shmup and bullet hell titles, it’s downright depressing