Bullet Witch is a shooter from Cavia that follows a witch named Alicia Claus on a mission to hunt a powerful demon in a world destroyed by natural disasters and a demonic invasion. The game was released in Japan on July 27, 2006 and in North America on February 27, 2007.
Trailer, via XSEEDgames.
Alicia Claus and the Gun Rod
Alicia fights with a gun rod that can change into a shotgun, machine gun, and Gatling gun. She also summons spells through three magic rings, each holding a different kind of power. The game is set in a ruined American city in 2013, six years after the demons first appeared, and the story follows Alicia as she helps local survivors led by Maxwell Cougar evacuate.
The game’s six levels mix destroyed city streets with open country, and objects can be destroyed to set off explosions. Alicia’s health and magic both return over time, and she can receive restorative items from survivors she saves. Boss battles bring in NPCs alongside Alicia, and she can cast spells while fighting to help with enemy numbers.
What Works
The game’s strengths come from its presentation. The character designs, created by Satoshi Ueda and Taro Hasegawa, blend Western and Japanese styles. The music, composed by Masashi Yano with Nobuyoshi Sano’s supervision, gives the game a dark tone that fits its setting.
The gun rod system is the game’s core. Alicia starts with only the machine gun, and skill points earned after completing levels open the shotgun, canon, and Gatling gun modes. Reloading costs magic, and each gun can be upgraded using magic points.
- The gun rod system holds the game together, giving Alicia a range of modes to choose from as she faces different kinds of enemies.
- The magic rings add depth, letting Alicia summon spells and elemental damage effects alongside her guns.
- The city and country settings give the levels a sense of place, with destructible objects and combustibles adding to the explosions.
- The story, while simple, gives Alicia a reason to fight beyond just killing demons.
- The multiplayer component was not included at launch, though players could join a score ranking competition through Xbox Live.
What Does Not Work
The game’s biggest problem is its controls. Alicia’s movement does not always react well to commands, and there is no multiplayer mode despite the ranking competition online. The difficulty curve is uneven, with some boss fights demanding precise timing that the rest of the game does not prepare players for.
The story is thin. The revelation that Alicia is the archeologist’s daughter who survived through his ritual is a twist, but the game rushes through it without much build-up. The credits end with newspaper articles showing humanity defeating the demons, which feels abrupt after a campaign built around Alicia’s personal mission.
The Verdict
Bullet Witch has a solid premise and a decent gun rod system, but the controls, lack of multiplayer, and uneven difficulty keep it from reaching its full potential. The presentation — the music, the character designs, the settings — is solid, even if the execution falls short.
Alicia’s story deserves more room to breathe, and the game’s online ranking competition is a small comfort when the multiplayer it should have never arrived. The gun rod system alone is worth playing through the rough patches, but the rough patches are frequent enough to leave a mark.
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