Jamestown
- June 8, 2011
- Final Form Games
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"Jamestown: Legend Of The Lost Colony" is a local co-op top-down shooter for 1-4 players, set on 17th-century British Colonial Mars. It offers a unique cooperative gameplay system, where players can resurrect their teammates, and features intense action, deep mechanics, handcrafted pixels, and a masterful soundtrack. Blast your way through historic Mars in this exhilarating and hilarious experience. A remastered version, Jamestown+, is also available with additional content and updated visuals.
Mac OS
PC
Steam Deck
Windows
Reviews
- A solid shoot 'em up with great replayability and a variety of ships catering to different play styles.
- The game features a unique setting and engaging mechanics, including the Vaunt mode that enhances gameplay.
- Excellent graphics and soundtrack that enhance the overall experience, making it a joy to play.
- The game is relatively short, with only a few levels, which may leave players wanting more content.
- There are persistent technical issues, including crashes on certain systems, which detracts from the experience.
- The requirement to replay levels on higher difficulties to unlock new content can be frustrating for some players.
- music111 mentions
- 71 % positive mentions
- 26 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The music in this game is widely praised, with many reviewers highlighting its orchestral quality and ability to enhance the overall experience. Descriptions include terms like "epic," "fantastic," and "sublime," indicating that the soundtrack is not only enjoyable but also memorable, often compared to high-quality film scores. Overall, the combination of great music, beautiful pixel art, and engaging gameplay creates a captivating atmosphere that resonates with players.
“The presentation is fantastic, the setting extraordinarily unique, and a stellar soundtrack that puts most movies to shame.”
“The soundtrack is some of the best I've heard in a top-down shooter.”
“From start to finish, the game feels like a sensual tour-de-force as it blasts incredible music that boasts an orchestral feel while maintaining a retro sound.”
“The soundtrack's extra cost?”
“The music helps too; every track is listen-worthy outside the game and each song gets the heart racing-- a word to describe the music is 'epic'.”
“If you consider the game a little costly, wait for a discount; if the music is also at a discount, make sure you also buy it if you liked it in-game.”
- story107 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The story of Jamestown is a quirky and entertaining blend of steampunk and colonial themes, set in an alternate history where Mars is a British colony. While the narrative is often described as absurd and not the main focus of the game, it features unique cutscenes and a humorous tone that adds charm to the overall experience. Players appreciate the interesting plot and engaging art style, though many note that the story is relatively short, consisting of only six main missions.
“The setting is extremely original, the story is neat.”
“A very distinct and fun visual style, and tongue-in-cheek story told through cutscenes, give the game a style all its own that feels much more open and fun than the anime girls and arcane plots often found in bullet hell games.”
“The story interjects between levels and feels like it came straight from the diary of a colonial American, if a colonial American were ever involved in a war against Martians; yeah, the story is strange.”
“Unfortunately, the story is a little short (about 8 hours of play for the main story).”
“The story itself is pretty out there, but for a bullet-hell game, the story isn't really why we're here, now is it?”
“The only negative I could point to is that your progression through the story is stopped after the third level.”
- gameplay82 mentions
- 49 % positive mentions
- 48 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
Jamestown offers a tightly designed shmup experience that excels in co-op gameplay, featuring unique ship mechanics and a "vaunt" system that enhances both strategy and scoring. The game is praised for its responsive controls, beautiful pixel art, and engaging soundtrack, making it accessible for beginners while providing depth for seasoned players. With multiple difficulty modes, unlockable content, and a focus on multiplayer dynamics, Jamestown delivers a rewarding and replayable gameplay experience.
“The gameplay is tight and well made, with four different ships to choose from, each offering very different play styles.”
“Where it really shines, however, is multiplayer, as Jamestown's mechanics and gameplay were finely balanced around co-op from the start.”
“Breathtaking pixel graphics, stunning music and sounds, engaging gameplay mechanics, and a lot of content make for a beautiful audiovisual experience with high replayability.”
“The player hit-box did not appear to have issues, but the gameplay itself felt slightly lacking.”
“It gives a sort of flat feeling to the gameplay.”
“That said, Jamestown ultimately centers around a simple but involving mechanic of a kind of 'overdrive mode' that is dependent on constantly collecting enemy drops for a power & score bonus.”
- graphics75 mentions
- 52 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their vibrant pixel art and charming retro aesthetic, reminiscent of classic 16-bit titles. Many reviewers highlight the detailed backgrounds, engaging animations, and overall artistic style that enhance the gameplay experience. However, some users have reported technical issues, including graphic glitches and slowdowns, which detract from the visual enjoyment.
“The graphics are fantastic, excellent vibrant pixel art crawling with details and wonderful animations.”
“Breathtaking pixel graphics, stunning music and sounds, engaging gameplay mechanics, and a lot of content make for a beautiful audiovisual experience with high replayability.”
“Jamestown is a wonderful indie shoot-em-up with tight controls and colorful, detailed graphics matching its quirky story and setting.”
“The graphics look old.”
“I can't recommend the game in the state it is in; the trailer you see on Steam is how the game used to be, but now the game has random graphic glitches and the entire game has slowed down. It's like you are playing in a bullet time mode.”
“Constant graphics artifacts and screen flashing, both in-game and on the menu, make this game impossible to enjoy.”
- replayability15 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 20 % negative mentions
The game boasts high replayability due to its multiple difficulty levels, a variety of ships, and engaging challenges that encourage players to revisit levels with different modifiers. While the number of levels is limited, the inclusion of bonus missions and online leaderboards enhances the overall replay value. Players appreciate the rewarding progression system and the depth of gameplay, making it a solid choice for those seeking a game with lasting appeal.
“An in-game currency keeps the experience on a positive path; players are rewarded for higher difficulty mission completions. In-game cash is used to purchase new missions, some on previous levels with special modifiers or objectives adding to the replayability factor.”
“The game is highly replayable thanks to multiple difficulty levels, and the levels themselves are rather short.”
“Breathtaking pixel graphics, stunning music and sounds, engaging gameplay mechanics, and a lot of content make for a beautiful audiovisual experience with high replayability.”
“Not enough levels, but the challenges make the replay value high.”
“If you're looking for weak points, the only things that come to mind are the extra ships DLC (because you either love them and use them or end up sticking to only one or none at all since you already love one of the base game's ships) and the inherent what-you-see-is-what-you-get replayability that's associated with fixed levels and how high the skill barrier is for you.”
“Definitely quite a bit on the short side, but it's got a lot of replayability.”
- humor9 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by its over-the-top, zany setup featuring cowboys in spaceships and a tongue-in-cheek narrative, complemented by well-crafted pixel graphics and an excellent soundtrack. Players appreciate the funny dialogue options and engaging cutscenes, which add variety and charm to the bullet hell gameplay. Overall, the game successfully blends humor with challenging mechanics, making it an enjoyable experience for fans of the genre.
“The 'Jamestown' setup is pretty funny and over the top, coming with a good pixel-based graphic style.”
“It's got a funny story and a funny setting (steam-punk schlock science fiction), plenty of challenge, and most importantly, it's got single-screen co-op.”
“Fantastic bullet hell sh'mup, amazing art style, and a tongue-in-cheek story (with an unlockable funny version).”
- atmosphere4 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its inventive co-op features, captivating art style, and evocative soundtrack, which together create a vibrant and immersive experience reminiscent of pirate adventures. Reviewers highlight the effective storytelling and historical setting that enhance the overall ambiance, making it a standout aspect of the game.
“Great atmosphere, soundtrack, and controls.”
“The art style, poetry of the storytelling, and particularly the music give this game an atmosphere that's akin to Wind Waker (think pirates, terrifying sea creatures, and a general buccaneering vibe).”
“It really adds to the atmosphere of its historical setting.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been criticized due to frequent graphic glitches and significant performance issues, leading to a gameplay experience that feels sluggish and unresponsive. Many users feel that the current state of the game is far from what was initially promised in the promotional materials.
“I can't recommend the game in its current state. The trailer you see on Steam is how the game used to be, but now it has random graphic glitches and the entire game has slowed down; it's like you are playing in bullet time mode.”
“The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable. I expected a stable experience, but instead, I get constant interruptions.”
“There are so many bugs that it feels like the game is still in beta. I can't enjoy the gameplay when I'm constantly dealing with stability issues.”
