Developer: Face Publisher: Face Release: 02/28/89 Genre: Shooter
The PC Engine had no shortage of quirky shooters, chief among them Parodius and Twinbee. But Hanii in the Sky still manages to stand out because it looks so god damn weird. Seriously, the cover looks like an advertisement for condoms rather than a shooter. I have seen the box art and assorted screenshots of this game for years but it was never enticing enough to warrant giving it a try. But at this point I have explored the vast majority of the system’s shooter library and this is one of the stragglers. FACE’s vertically scrolling shmup is equal parts cute and maddening, with bright visuals hiding a surprisingly punishing core. Mechanically the game is sound but the controls, specifically the controller itself let it down somewhat.
One day, Hanii is summoned by the god Izanaki. Izanaki is worried that his wife Izanami’s heart has been invaded by a demon. His once peaceful wife now kills thousands of humans each day and threatens to destroy the world that she once created together with her husband. Hanii must fly into Izanami’s heart and destroy the demon.
Hanii in the Sky follows the vertical shooter with a unique hook: you can fire in eight directions by rotating your cannon using two buttons. Even though you receive weapons that can fire in multiple directions managing your shot position is crucial. In addition the game has no power-up drops. Instead you can access the game’s shop any time outside of boss battles. Here you can buy different swords (weapons), engines for speed, and items to restore health or provide shields. You also receive armors that reduce damage and weapons after defeating bosses too. You can change your equipment at any time which, considering the game’s difficulty is a must. If you need more gold you can revisit prior stages to farm money. Unfortunately you will be doing this a lot.
The controls will be the point of contention with Hanii in the Sky. Button I and select rotate your arms and regrettably it is not intuitive. Reaching over to the select button to rotate your counterclockwise never feels natural. Technically you can use one button to cycle through the various positions. However it is slow and this game demands twitch reflexes. Unfortunately with enemy placement the way it is rotation is called on frequently and the PC Engine controller’s lacking buttons do not cut it. If the game supported the 6-button or even the three button controller it would be perfect.
Because of the controls Hanii in the Sky makes a bad first impression. In fact your lacking default weapon and ship speed make it worse. If you stick it out until the end of the first level it gets better. As you receive new weapons your options open up and you can better appreciate the game’s abstract levels and oddball bosses. The stages run the gamut from forests and underground labyrinths to MC Escher style madness. Level design is inconsistent: some stages are tight and filled with interesting enemy patterns, while others feel like long stretches of filler with too many bullet-spongy foes. The bosses……I can’t even describe some of them. Hats off to the developers for creating some of the most creative monsters in a shooter. Both the levels and bosses make excellent use of your rotary cannon. I just wish the controls and difficulty were better balanced.
Do not be fooled by the often bright color palette — Hanii in the Sky is no pushover. Enemies start out incredibly resilient and your first few weapons are weak. The slippery movement, relentless enemy fire, and lacking controls lead to cheap hits. The health bar helps, but the game does not refill health at any time. Instead you must buy recovery items that are some of the most expensive in the game, forcing you to replay levels to build up money. It is needless padding in an already difficult game. With better game balance it would offset the occasional missteps when positioning your cannon. But as it is the difficulty starts high and only gets worse and you cannot appreciate the game’s good points.
In Closing
This one is hard to sum up. Hanii in the Sky is a charmingly weird shooter with cute visuals hiding a surprisingly rough and challenging game. If you can adapt to the odd controls, Hanii in the Sky offers a different flavor from the usual PC Engine shmup fare. Whether you will like it is hard to assess, this one is an acquired taste. I vary between appreciating it for its strangeness and persistent action and hating it because the game practically screams for a controller with more buttons. I will simply say you must try it out for yourself.
