Sol Cresta Critic Reviews

SOL CRESTA is an intense and deep vertical shooter entry on Switch, and genre enthusiasts would be doing themselves a favor by adding it to their libraries. In-game achievements unlock new content, such as Caravan Mode, online leaderboards, and the aforementioned Sound Test. Even finishing the final stage on normal difficulty is a steep challenge that requires a fair measure of skill, particularly with swapping formations and the slowing of time that this ability grants. If this is the level of quality we can expect from future arcade-style shooters courtesy of PlatinumGames, I’ll be demanding as many as we can get, until Kamiya-san blocks me on Twitter.

For anyone who’s still just dabbling with the genre, there are a slew of genuine retro shoot ‘em ups – many of which have been published on the Switch by Hamster itself – which serve as perfectly fine entry points at a fraction of the cost. For those who already adore shooters, however – the sort of people who call them ‘schmups’ – Sol Cresta is a fantastic entry that won’t leave you disappointed.

Sol Cresta is a game that you need to chew on for a bit before it shows its true value. But stick with it, learn its idiosyncrasies, and you’ll find a unique, satisfying entry into the crowded shoot-em-up genre. Is it an all-timer? Probably not, but considering Platinum just waltzed into this club for the first time, it has done an exemplary job.

A fun little gem for retrogames' lovers. It still has something to improve on Switch, both on the technical and the difficulty side, but it plays like a breath of nostalgia for long-time fans of shoot'em ups.

Sol Cresta has excellent core gameplay with a lot of depth, but it is held back by technical issues in its current state on Nintendo Switch. If PlatinumGames can improve on this base release through updates, Sol Cresta has the potential to be something special.

If you’re a fan of this now very old series, you might find Sol Cresta’s mould appealing. It’s certainly fun to improve, win shields, and prolong your survival by grabbing back lost ships; and to be able to whip your craft into formation and quickly destroy bosses with a countdown of powerful ordnance — and the audio is sublime. At the same time, with all of its interesting ideas, one can’t help but feel that there are elements here that need more polish and careful implementation. There are very few memorable boss attacks, and while some stage junctures are somewhat shrewd, others come off as ill-conceived or uninspired. By no means is that to say it’s unenjoyable — there is a definite groove within its visual mess that becomes clearer over time as you chip away at the interesting core gameplay — but the fact of the matter is that Sol Cresta is up against a wealth of extremely steep competition, and to stand out it needs to be hitting the all-important notes with greater finesse.

Behind Sol Cresta lies the desire for redemption of a Platinum Games wounded in pride since Star Fox Zero. A Shoot 'em up with ancient inspirations but aware of coming into the world in 2022, capable of introducing a huge variety of innovative and brilliant mechanics but that exaggerate with the amount of its contents, which become almost suffocating. Excellent work done on accessibility in a genre in which it is not obvious to have so much freedom of approach, less brilliant than done in terms of legibility, crippled by a shallow color palette and a difficult understanding of the layout of the individual stages. Absolutely unacceptable that its plot has been cut and is being sold separately in a DLC priced at € 10.

Sol Cresta can be a little annoying with its mechanics for anyone who is willing to take the time to get good at it. There are way better scrolling shooters already on Nintendo Switch and the one thing that makes this one notable is the pedigree behind it. At the very least, the music is pure fire and energy - some of Koshiro's best work to date.