hahahahah. god, yes. Yes, yes, yes. A thousand times yes.

It's so unapologetically cool, man. So exceptionally over-the-top and guided by a downright incredible love for the genre and everything it encompasses. It's not awfully hard, to be sure—although you WILL need a decent chunk of practice if you want to 1cc, rest assured—but that's not even important. It's aware that it's not providing some incredibly difficult challenge. That's not what it's here for. No, what it sets out to do is ensure you're—at the very least—seated for a good 40 minutes to delight in the STG equivalent of a very, very, very striking fireworks show. And frankly, for the price point it's at... those are some remarkably pretty fireworks, I'll tell you.

Non-exhaustive list of things I adore:

• The Sun Blade itself, naturally. A beast that's iffy to tame for the first couple of stages, but once you inevitably get a hang of it, it makes for a hell of a grin-inducing tool—if you've wanted to become the final boss of an STG, here you go. Still, wanting to balance things within reason, RAYNEX did give it the fine-print addition of using your Life as a battery of sorts...
  
• ... which ties perfectly into the game's Risk system. Sure, you can play for survival and be cautious with how much you use your overpowering beam of death, but why would you when minimal health over extended periods of time nets you that much more score AND rewards you with Tech popups as if to activate your neurons even further?
  
• The visuals are distinctly noisy and somewhat JPEG-y at times, which you'd think would be a point that I'd chuck into the cons rather than the pros, but something about that—moreso combined with the game's overall glitchy, vector-y aesthetic—gives it a style that is equally overwhelming and unforgettable. Difficult to put into words, and even more difficult to showcase it in static imagery; very much a "see it for yourself in action" thing.
  
• The Radiant Silvergun approach to boss entries is extra funny because whereas BE ATTITUDE FOR GAINS came with notes of a sort—pointers as to how to approach a boss, in a sense—Grand Cross simply tells you which boss you're encountering and then proceeds to, presumably from Nexalts' POV, state that this is not enough. For you, no challenge is enough. Endless battle could not sate you. GOD, that's awesome.
  
• THE SOUNDTRACK. GAH. YOU ATTACH YOURSELF TO A GIANT POWER-UP AND YOU GO FACE TO FACE WITH THIS BIG HUGE JERKWAD WHO GOES "DO YOU PLAN TO DIE WITHOUT EVEN USING YOUR FULL POWER?" AND NEVER BE SURRENDER BLASTS IN THE BACKGROUND AND IT'S THE BEST <EXPLETIVE> EVER

Cough. So on and so forth.

It's times like these that I wish I could super-recommend a game or something, or at least mark it as a favorite. Grand Cross may not have a whole lot going for it in the longevity department by virtue of, again, unarguably being easier compared its peers, and I get that. I also don't care. This is a hyperactive game that absolutely revels in the medium it resides in—and, faced with its contagious destruction-friendly mindset, who am I to say no? I hold its hand. I run by its side. I adore it.

Shine bright, and bring light to this world!!