Cotton review by substance J

For as long as I've been importing, the Cotton series has been tempting me on various platforms and formats. I've always been interested, but not quite ready to make the leap. Now that Success has brought Cotton to the Neo Geo Pocket, I just couldn't pass it up!

Graphics
Though the original Cotton (which the NGP version is based on) is nearly 10 years old, the graphics you'll find here are quite nifty. The sprites are especially attractive - Cotton and Silk are detailed, richly colored (we're talking full color here), and animate really well for such small characters. Animated art screens used during intermissions are cool...and very wacky. The levels are well drawn and graphically varied, the best of which has to be the first. As you start the level, you'll immediately notice a sweet layer of parallax as the clouds and foreground scroll across a full moon backdrop. A really awesome effect, though it ultimately results in disappointment - it's the only level that uses parallax! Some later levels try to make up for it with animated elements like waterfalls, though it feels like more care was put into the earlier stages. Another odd occurrence is one I didn't expect, that being (gasp) sprite flicker/glitching. Now, before you panic, this isn't a very big deal - it only happens in two areas of the game (bosses who are otherwise alright), and it's over with very quickly. Overall, Cotton's graphics are above average.

Sound
The almost Double Dragon-esque background music is a refreshing change. All 20 or so tracks are nicely produced, and just catchy enough to make you listen to them in the Sound Test every once in a while. When compared to most middle of the road handheld music scores, this is good stuff. Sound effects are expectedly nondescript, but get the job done, I suppose.

Gameplay
The basic gameplay structure is not unlike most shooters - fly along on your broomstick, blasting enemies with the help of Silk the fairy (who acts similarly to some weapon pod add-ons in R-Type and other shooters), trash a midboss, and then wrap things up with a final boss battle. Along the way you'll encounter crystals and other power-up items (well, just one other actually - the bomb power-up). If you pick up a crystal as you find it, your Exp. will be boosted, adding to your firepower. However, if you shoot it a little before swooping in for the pickup, it will be transformed into a magic attack. Each magic attack (either Dragon or Thunder) can be utilized by charging it for a few moments and then letting it loose on an enemy (preferably a boss), causing severe damage and providing a good deal of sadistic pleasure to the player. These power-ups are a load of fun to use, though a greater abundance and variety would have been nice. Deciding when to boost your shot power and when to pick up a magic attack can become an important strategy.

Enemy battles are nicely laid out and can become very intense further into the game. Boss patterns can range from simple to seemingly impossible, though if you take time to observe the subtle gaps in their offence, your success rate will be drastically raised. These nice little bits of strategy make Cotton enjoyable to replay as you gradually learn new techniques to overcome the high level of difficulty.

Overall
It's far from the flashiest game you'll ever play, but Cotton's solid gameplay and hidden depth are satisfying enough to keep you coming back, even though there are 'only' 7 stages to [attempt to] blast your way through. I have some gripes about certain gameplay elements (lack of serious weapon power-ups, etc), and the presentation isn't quite perfect (they messed up on the resizing of the box art, so it's actually squashed horizontally), but no major complaints. Cotton is a rather unique shooter to begin with, not to mention the fact it's the only game of its kind on NGP. So if you're looking for a change of pace and are up to the challenge, I recommend picking it up.