VGSources / Games / Team Shanghai Alice
bullet hell
Hifuu Nightmare Diary ~ Violet Detector
By Team Shanghai Alice, released 1 Jan 2018
- Microsoft Windows
What it is
Hifuu Nightmare Diary ~ Violet Detector is a bullet-hell shooter from Team Shanghai Alice, starring Sumireko Usami, a high-school psychic who visits Gensokyo in her dreams. The story begins when Reimu attacks her in a dream that will not end; afterward, Sumireko’s waking memories become unclear and nightmares continue. Play is divided into short stages selected by day and dream. To clear a scene, reduce the opponent’s health to zero and take at least one photo; being hit means retrying. Photos can erase bullets and deal greater damage to a boss when it is nearer the center of the frame. The photo gauge fills over time, and holding slow movement with the photo control speeds its recharge at the cost of firing. Photo scores depend on factors such as captured bullets, the boss and the player appearing in the image; only the highest-scoring photo is recorded. The game is single-player on Windows, with partial controller support, Steam Cloud and Family Sharing listed.
What players like, and what they don't
- Photos can clear captured bullets
- Photo placement affects boss damage
- Short stages are selected by day and dream
- Steam Cloud support
- Getting hit requires retrying the scene
- A scene needs at least one photo to clear
Who it suits
It suits players who enjoy bullet-hell stages built around dodging, shooting and photography. It is listed for Windows, with partial controller support.
Violet Detector makes photography part of both survival and scoring in its bullet-hell encounters. Its stages reward managing the photo gauge as well as attacking and dodging.
