Cotton Reboot! Reviews
Just like the name of the title suggests, this is a successful ‘Reboot’ of the classic rail shooter series, ‘Cotton’. Other than the fact that this is the latest iteration of the Cotton series, it’s a decent time-killing genre when you want to have a go at your bullet dodging reactions or it can be another level of challenge to those who want to be the next high-scorer within the extension of difficulties to choose from. This action packed rail shooter has variable modes to choose from and is affordably priced in comparison to those fully priced packaged games out there.
Review in Korean | Read full review
Cotton Reboot! breaks out the witch’s magic and makes a thirty-year-old game feel fresh and new. While not every update lands perfectly, and some content is worthy of a warning, this is an adorable shooter that looks and plays great. Here’s hoping Cotton can return with even more magic soon.
Cotton Reboot! comes to the West with a remake of the Sharp X68000 version -the best version of the first installment, superior to the original Arcade- where in addition to the beautiful audiovisual section, it modernizes the gameplay. But it also includes the original version of Sharp's computer, so the experience is complete. A Time Attack mode and online rankings complete this ideal work for fans of Cotton and shoot 'em up.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
This game is less about being challenging and more about being cathartic and completely crazy. It’s not about testing your skills, it’s all about throwing as many things for you to shoot at, reaching a point you can barely tell what’s happening onscreen. Thankfully, I love chaotic games like this, so I had a great time with Cotton Reboot!, especially with its brand new “Arranged” mode.
Cotton Reboot! is one for the diehard shmup historian. The core experience is largely based on a dated shmup design, which will be noticeable to newcomers and genre veterans. It’s a welcomed preservation of a rare and oft-forgotten Japanese cult classic. Still, some of the choices in the visual presentation make the reboot experience far more uncomfortable than it needs to be. Nevertheless, better shooters are available and even better Cotton games are on the horizon, making Cotton Reboot! one for the connoisseurs and collectors.
A fine remake, with new mechanics, flashier gameplay, reimagined visuals, and reworked sound. As a bonus, it includes a score attack mode, a port of the 1993 X68000 version of Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams, and online leaderboards.
My highest praise goes to the overall aesthetic. Fantastic Night Dreams is at once vibrant and somewhat gothic in its presentation, with the colorful sprites and characters flying freely through starlit nights and haunted caverns. These already looked nice in the original Cotton, helping it stand out even among other cute ‘em ups, but are even more pronounced in the arranged version. Paired with the excellent soundtrack for stages (which has also gotten completely rearranged, with the originals still available) the whole of a playthrough is a trick-or-treat for the eyes and ears.
Cotton Reboot is an updated, remastered version of the classic and iconic side-scrolling “cute ’em up” Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams which was first released in April 1991 as the first entry in the series. The game tells the story of a hot-headed, immature young witch named Nata de Cotton who always overreacts and rides on a broomstick, with her fairy friend, Silk. Cotton is crazy about candies called “Willows” and she won’t let anything or anyone get in her way to get them.
Cotton Reboot! it's actually a nice introduction of the franchise to a western audience with a pretty cute remake. Including the original game in the package also helps illustrate how far it has evolved, as well as adding to its historical value. However, the shallow content considerably lowers the replay factor, making it a title for a few quick matches and nothing more.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Cotton Reboot is a fantastic Shmup that is perfect for anyone new to the genre. It also has more than enough customization to make this a kickass title for genre veterans. A mixture of interesting mechanics, beautiful sprite work, tight controls, and bombastic, screen-filling chaos makes this game an absolute corker. It would have been nice to see an extra mode or two to add a bit of girth to the package, but there is plenty of high octane madness to go around in its current state.
Cotton Reboot is a good shoot 'em up for those who want to spend a little time unwinding from the every day's stress, or simply for those who like to work hard and always be in first place in the ranking. Mainly, we would like the experience to be a little more extensive, as the only 7 levels were not enough to quench our thirst!
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Cotton Reboot is a remake of 1993’s frantic “cute ‘em’ up” Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams. Well, cute in a Castlevania kind of way, as you’ll be blasting all kinds of ghouls, zombies, and undead monsters as you try to get a few pieces of candy. And save a kingdom or something. Not exactly a big concern for our lead witch, Nata, who’s only interested in laying waste to hundreds of living creatures if there’s some tasty treat involved.
You’ll still have a lot of fun with the shooting action here, even if I feel reboot mode goes into overdrive with the flashy effects, and cotton fans should absolutely pick this up, while scorechasing fans will find the mechanics in Time Attack mode to be an amazing dream come true. Still, considering how the import version got neutered for this translation, I can’t help but feel a bit disappointed with the quality of this localization effort, and how it absolutely wasn’t worth the five month wait for this level of text quality. Super great scorechaser, subpar localization effort.
Cotton Reboot! spoils itself with several stupid decisions: the playability of the original is superior, but you miss out on the new mechanics of the reboot.
Cotton Reboot keeps the basic fundamentals of the classic arcade shoot-‘em-up intact while boosting its visuals, soundtrack, and gameplay for a well-rounded upgrade. Although more features could be added to increase replayability, this remastered title is still the best version of the original. Hopefully, additional Cotton games will make the jump to today’s consoles.
Cotton Reboot! is an absolute treat for arcade fans and a title that shows this genre certainly still holds up years later. If you never got a chance to appreciate Cotton this is a great opportunity to see why this was so beloved in Japan. A brilliant title to enjoy if you don’t have a lot of time on your hands and want to rack up a high score. Cotton has her chance to finally shine in the West, let’s hope we see more games get their chance in the future as well.
Cotton Reboot! allows players to experience Cotton's classic shoot-'em-up action as well as an Arrange Mode with new mechanics. For anyone interested in colorful whimsical action, Cotton Reboot! will provide an entertaining experience.
I played through both options in Cotton Reboot, and was glad I did. I barely have any knowledge of the X68000 whatsoever, and this was an illuminating peek into that chapter of gaming history.
If you like your older-school arcade shooting challenging, a bit on the cute side, and with an undeniable weird streak this refresh may catch your eye...
Cotton Reboot provides an incredible experience for shmup fans with its expertly-crafted arrange mode that modernizes the classic to new heights. In fact, it does such a good job with this that it could be used as a template for any shoot 'em up remake.