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So hey remember when I did that article on Lethal Application two weeks ago? Good times. A friend, HyperGeek, is doing a playthrough of it and that’s awesome. He also does a lot of other doujin games such as Daidai’s Suguri series and EasyGameStation’s Chantelise, which are both awesome games as well.

Hello and thanks again for reading, doujin enthusiasts. Today I’m going to bring a humble offering in gaming, and a free one at that.

Lethal Application was made in 2004 by circle Daisessen and is an interesting take on basic platforming mechanics. Rather than being a true platformer, Lethal Application puts you in the role of an extremely small (and lightweight) gynoid named Applica. The concept is simple, simply scale your way to the top of each stage where the goal awaits. However, since jumping is out of the question, the only other way to do so is for our heroine to propel herself upwards through the force of her weapons. There is a catch to this, as firing constantly depletes your energy, and if your energy reaches zero then it’s Game Over. Throw in the Burst Mode mechanic, a last ditch option activated by holding both normal and special weapon keys that grants you two Gradius-esque bits that triple your firepower at the cost of constantly sapping your energy, and a slowly scrolling electrical wall that chases you all the way up, and you get a well-paced action game that promotes blowing as many things up as quickly as you can.

Seems crowded? Don’t worry, most of it explodes all the same.

Despite all these factors adding up to send you back to the Game Over screen, Lethal Application is actually rather forgiving mechanically. Most enemies drop some form of energy capsule or powerup and actual energy canisters are littered throughout the stages. You also have a variety of weapons at your disposal, a powerful bazooka, a sweeping blade, spheres of electricity that persist in an area, and a strong forward laser. Getting used to the shoot-to-move mechanic may prove troublesome at first, but it’s a skill that’s picked up quickly and adds a unique and rewarding twist to the gameplay.

The technical details of this game are simple, having fairly low end requirements in order to run properly. Interface-wise, I feel Lethal Application works a lot better with a gamepad, but the game plays great with a keyboard as well. The controls are split into the old Japanese standby of Z, X, C, and V in conjunction with the arrow keys, where most of your focus is going to be on keeping the primary weapon held down and movement up to the directional keys. The music of the game is something I personally like, but it isn’t anything special. While simplistic, it does well to convey the themes that are present at any given time, and in that sense the music is great. As far as replayability, Lethal Application features a new game+ which finishes the story from the first run as well as stage select, however there isn’t too much to keep a player engaged after they’ve beaten the game aside from self-imposed challenges (Burst Mode from the start, pacifist runs, etc.) but for a simple (and free) game like this that suits it just fine.

Maxed Lasers are a great way to clear paths of enemies.

While it is in Japanese, many of the options are in English and the only thing requiring Japanese comprehension is the story. I believe I’ve seen a translation out for it somewhere, but that’s something you, the reader, will have to find on your own. (Also, as much as I’d like to myself, please refrain from posting it in the comments section if you do find it.) Thus, even someone with no knowledge of Japanese can enjoy this game with no difficulty.

You can download this game off of the Daisessen”s official website in the Downloads section.