Espgaluda ( Esupugarda) is a manic shooter by Cave that was released in 2003. Espgaluda II is the spiritual prequel to the company’s renowned ESP Ra.De. (also known as Esprade). You can control one of two siblings, Ageha (faster but with narrower shooting capabilities) or Tateha (slower but with a broader attack). As you progress through the stages, various mechanical enemies attack with many bullets, often nearly filling the screen. Aside from the standard shots, Ageha and Tateha have special abilities that aid the player in navigating the numerous shells. The first is a guard barrier; when activated, the player is immune to collisions, and when released, a more powerful laser shot is fired.
A meter at the bottom of the screen indicates the amount of power remaining in the barrier. The second ability is known as the Kakusei mode; when activated, your character switches sex and gains the ability to fire a more powerful shot. More importantly, when this mode is enabled, all enemies and their bullets slow down significantly. At the same time, the player’s speed remains constant, making it easier to navigate through a tricky bullet pattern. Activating Kakusei mode quickly depletes the player’s supply of green gems; because the number of gems is limited, the player may be unable to stay in Kakusei mode for a long. When not in Kakusei mode, extra gems can be obtained by destroying various enemies. Enemy bullets start moving faster than usual if the player runs out of rocks. Gold nuggets are another game bonus that significantly increases the player’s score. These are found in Kakusei mode; when an enemy is destroyed, all its bullets become ingots that the player can collect.
