Desperate Times

Desperate Times is a challenging shmup in which you blast and dodge through five levels of enemy waves. When you run out of ammunition, your ship transforms into another ship. Destroy thousands of attacking enemy ships, survive a wave to face its boss, and defeat the boss to advance. Complete all five levels to win; a full run takes about 15 minutes.

Weapons and enemies

The game has 41 base weapons, which can appear with different weapon modifications. These combinations produce over 2,000 available weapons, including versions with changes such as size, multiple shots and penetration or explosive effects. The weapons can be powerful, but winning still requires attention and skill.

Enemies in each wave are adjusted to create a distinct challenge or serve a specific purpose. Some appear shielded, some fire more aggressively than usual, and others move in elaborate patterns across the screen before leaving.

Changing waves

The game selects each hand-crafted wave at random, so you do not know what is coming next. The randomized order makes runs replayable.