The SHMUP (shoot 'em up) genre has a wonderful little sub-genre known to fans as the "cute 'em up." Essentially, it takes everything we love about classic 2D shooters and slaps it with an adorable aesthetic, layering on the bright colors and vast amounts of irony.

Not often, but sometimes, these cute 'em ups are known to rival the real thing, which is why we are talking about Mamorukun Curse! today.

Its maker, G.rev, is not the most recognizable of developers, but that is because most of the credit for the games it co-developed goes to the other half of the equation, the much more well known and beloved Treasure.

G.Rev and Treasure worked together to create the absolute best SHMUPs of the previous generation, Ikaruga and Gradius V. Those who have blasted their way through these masterpieces know what I'm talking about. There are all other SHMUPS, and then there are these two. I'm not quite certain which is the stronger of them.

Whereas fan-favorite SHMUP developer Cave creates games which focus on wild shooting and twitch skills, these two games rely more on tactical thinking and working out situations thanks to well implemented mechanics.

Mamorukun Curse! is no different with its new "Curse Bullet" mechanic. The curse bullet creates a field on the screen which halves enemy defenses, but also makes their patterns more hectic and difficult to predict. This risky maneuver can double the amount of candy Mamorukun gets after defeating them.

SHMUP fans are well known for their extreme perception to details within the games of their beloved genre, and it's only a matter of time before one of them is able to figure out a way to use this tactic to completely master the game for all its worth.

You can check out Mamorukun Curse! on the PlayStation Network on July 16th. Give it a shot, because I can promise these guys know how to deliver.

In related news, be sure to also look out for Kokuga on the 3DS eShop. Its director, Hiroshi Iuchi was the lead director at Treasure and worked with G.rev too.