Detana!! TwinBee
A 1991 arcade shooter featuring TwinBee and WinBee.
Detana!! TwinBee, released in Europe as Bells & Whistles, is a 1991 vertically scrolling shooter developed and published by Konami for arcades. It is the fifth entry in the TwinBee series and the second arcade release in the franchise, marking the debut of characters Light and Pastel as pilots of TwinBee and WinBee. The game also introduced Japanese animator Shūjirō Hamakawa as primary character designer for subsequent TwinBee installments.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Konami
- Director
- Masato Ohsawa
- Designer
- Hiroyuki Ashida
- K. Ishimoto
- Ryouhei Shogaki
- Programmer
- Toru Shimomura
- Artist
- Shūjirō Hamakawa
- Composer
- Hidenori Maezawa
- Masae Nakashima
- Michiru Yamane
- Series
- TwinBee
- Platforms
- Arcade
- X68000
- PC Engine
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
Detana!! TwinBee is a vertically scrolling shooter that follows the conventions of the original TwinBee. Players control Light and Pastel, piloting TwinBee (player one) and WinBee (player two) across seven levels to defeat the alien Iva and save planet Meru after an SOS from Princess Melora. The control scheme differs by region: the Japanese version uses one button for shooting airborne enemies and another for dropping bombs, while the European version uses both buttons for shooting and bombing simultaneously. Holding the shot button fills a power meter at the bottom of the screen, enabling a Big Shot attack upon release. Power-up items include bells revealed by shooting floating clouds and items from destroyed land enemies. Bells change color when shot; in addition to the five original colors (yellow, white, blue, green, red), two new bells appear: a purple bell granting a tail shield with barriers around the ship, and a black bell that reduces ship speed. Mini-bells and the lucky star from the first TwinBee return. The ship GwinBee allows players to combine with it for wider fire beams. Two players can align their ships side by side for the same effect or vertically for a five-way spread. Aligning both ships with GwinBee between them causes GwinBee to destroy all on-screen enemies. After completing the first loop, a harder second loop is available; clearing the final stage again ends the game, while losing all lives prompts a continue option with a free power-up.
Development
Detana!! TwinBee was created by a team that had worked on several Konami projects including the Gradius series. Director Masato Ohsawa led development, Toru Shimomura served as sole programmer, and Hiroshi Matsuura worked as engineer. Co-designers were Ryouhei Shogaki, Hiroyuki Ashida, and K. Ishimoto. The game marked the debut of Japanese animator Shūjirō Hamakawa, credited as Shuzilow.Ha, as character illustrator for subsequent TwinBee titles. The soundtrack was composed by Konami Kukeiha Club members Hidenori Maezawa, Masae Nakashima, and Michiru Yamane, who described the music as colorful and fun to match the cute bee world.
Release
Detana!! TwinBee was first released in Japanese arcades in February 1991 and in Europe in March 1991 under the name Bells & Whistles. The first port was to the X68000 computer on December 6, 1991, followed by a PC Engine conversion on February 28, 1992, notable for being one of Koji Igarashi's earliest works at Konami as enemy programmer. In September 1995, it appeared in the Detana TwinBee Yahho! Deluxe Pack compilation for Sega Saturn and PlayStation. The game was ported to Japanese mobile phones (EZweb, i-mode, Yahoo Mobile) on July 13, 2004, and included in the TwinBee Portable collection for PlayStation Portable in January 2007, re-released as a budget title under Konami The Best on March 13, 2008. The PC Engine version was re-released on Wii Virtual Console as a Hanabi Festival launch in Japan on September 18, 2007, in North America on March 23, 2009, and in PAL territories on July 24, 2009. It later appeared on PlayStation Network in Japan on June 16, 2010, and the arcade original was included in Game Room for Windows and Xbox 360 in November 2010. The PC Engine port was added to iOS in Japan on February 12, 2014, and to Windows via D4 Enterprise's Project EGG on March 3, 2014. Cloud gaming releases followed between April and May 2014, and a Wii U Virtual Console release in Japan occurred on November 24, 2014. Hamster Corporation re-released the arcade version for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 on January 16, 2020.
Reception and legacy
In Japan, Game Machine listed Detana!! TwinBee as the third most popular arcade game of March 1991, and Micom BASIC Magazine ranked it sixth in May 1991. German magazine Power Play praised its candy-colored visuals, and Italian magazine Computer+Videogiochi gave a positive review. At the 5th Gamest Grand Prize (1991), the game won third place in Grand Prize, first place in Best Shooting Award, fourth place in Best Graphic Award, third place in Best VGM Award, fifth place in Player Popularity, and eighth place in Annual Hit Game. The X68000 conversion was applauded by Oh!X for its arcade-accurate graphics and sound, and was nominated for a Game of the Year award but lost to Parodius Da!. The PC Engine port received positive import reviews; readers of PC Engine Fan gave it a 24.79 out of 30 score, ranking nineteenth in a poll. Consoles + praised its colorful graphics, music, and gameplay but criticized the presentation. Famitsu scored the PC Engine version 24 out of 40. Computer and Video Games commended its arcade-accurate presentation and gameplay but found the music annoying. AllGame noted imaginative boss designs and enjoyable gameplay but mixed audio. Joypad and Joystick praised graphics, sound, and controls. Reviewing the Virtual Console re-release, Nintendo Life praised responsive controls, arcade-accurate visuals, and upbeat soundtrack. IGN commended its anime-inspired world and co-op play. Eurogamer compared it to Xevious, stating it was not as good as MUSHA nor as cute as Fantasy Zone but appealing for casual players.
More in Konami Games of the 1990s
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