DoDonPachi Resurrection
The past is being altered. An android, known as Next EXY, has traveled one thousand years back in time. Your task is to stop NEXY and the other Elemental Daughters who were built in the image of the Elemental Dolls who once protected humanity. What is NEXY’s intent? Should you attack what you shouldn’t understand? Orders are orders, and Col. Godwin Longhener is not to be ignored. The legendary bullet-hell shoot-’em-up series has come to Steam with DoDonPachi Resurrection from CAVE Co., Ltd., the powerhouse behind revered bullet-hell shooters such as Mushihimesama and Deathsmiles.
SCREENSHOTS
PHYSICAL
HISTORY
DoDonPachi Resurrection, known in Japan as DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu (怒首領蜂 大復活, Angry Leader Bee Great Resurrection), is the fifth arcade game in Cave's DonPachi series, published in 2008. The game was unveiled at AOU2008 Amusement EXPO.
Gameplay
In addition to all 3 ships seen in the original Donpachi and Dodonpachi, there are 3 different ship styles to choose from to suit one's playstyle. Bomb style, recommended for beginners gives you a stock of 3 bombs that can be increased upon death, the MAXIMUM bonus upon obtaining bombs past your maximum capacity, an autobombing skill that deploys a weak bomb in case you get hit, and bomb powerups that increase your stock of bombs. To compensate, your firepower is somewhat small. Power style replaces bombs with a Normal/Boost system, where pressing a third button on the controller/joystick would change your style of firepower. Normal is the same amount of firepower as it is the Bomb style, but Boost doubles the firepower and gives you a larger laser. Strong style (Introduced in Black Label and Version 1.5) gives the player max firepower as well as bombs but makes the game slightly harder.
There are now 2 types of bee medals, which are still revealed with the laser like in previous games. Yellow bee medals give a large score bonus that increases the more you collect without losing a life. Green bee medals give a meager score bonus but massively increase the Hyper Gauge. Once revealed, the bee medals will alternate between yellow and green until the player collects them.
The hyper gauge is the primary method of scoring and has been changed from the previous game as well. Hypers are built up through large combos, attacking enemies at close range, and collecting green bee medals. However, there is only one hyper meter that when filled, the player can activate by pressing what would normally be the bomb button. In addition to increasing firepower even more, hypers can cancel bullets fired by enemies, with each bullet cancelled contributing to the combo gauge. This is integral to scoring, as point items would have their value multiplied by how many hits are on the combo gauge, and with enemies firing large streams of bullets at the player, the player can maximize combo scores by learning when to activate their hypers and where to activate them so the enemies don't get destroyed too quickly.
The game has a second "Ura" loop, which must be accessed by fulfilling 2 conditions: Collect all 45 bee medals in all 5 stages of the first loop, don't bomb more than twice (including autobombs), and if the player is playing using strong style, they cannot lose a ship more than once. There is also a secret Ura route in the game. By destroying the large silos near the beginning of stage 1, not only does it take you to an alternate pathway, but all midbosses are replaced with those from the first game.
Future releases of the game on consoles and PC have expanded and modified the original arcade release. Version 1.5 is a refined version of the original arcade release, with Novice difficulty being a version of the game for newcomers. Version 1.51 is similar, but with a rebalanced scoring system and bombs now being granted through green bees. Arrange A (or Ver L) uses the same hyper system as Dodonpachi Daioujou, with only one ship to pilot (the narrow shot ship from Daioujou, piloted by the element doll Leinyan) Black Label and Black Label novice add a new red gauge for scoring, much harder patterns, and a new final boss encountered at the end of the game if you fulfill certain conditions, Zatsuza. Arrange B on the PC release is a mode where you can play through singular stages with any ship you like, with altered bullet patterns for enemies and bosses. Arrange B on home consoles as well as Black Label Arrange on PC is a version of the game that uses the scoring mechanics of Ketsui: Kizuna Jigoku Tachi of collecting score chips, mixed into the combo-stringing gameplay of the original. Smartphone mode, exclusive to the iOS and Android versions, includes a new Slaughter-Menace meter that would influence a point multiplier, a revamped hyper system where it increases power by spinning the ship with the touchscreen, and a new soundtrack. A Zatsuza practice mode exclusive to the Nintendo Switch release will allow players to challenge the boss with 3 lives and maximum bomb stock.
Plot
After the turmoil caused by the assault on Lunapolis which sparked the "Blissful Death Wars" (as depicted in the previous installment), peace seems to have been restored, with the legendary DonPachi Corps retreating to its HQ in a space-time fold. Six years later, anomalies are detected in the space-time fabric, yet tests reveal nothing out of order, with the portals regularly functioning for both teleportation and time travel; also, the leader of the DonPachi squadron Colonel Godwin Longhener (a descendant of the deranged Schwarlitz Longhener who once commanded the Donpachi Corps like he had) dismisses the matter due to the lack of actual danger.
Nevertheless, a technician delves deeper into the anomaly, discovering that something has infiltrated the HQ computer systems and is using the portals to send large quantities of materials and data to the past, spreading out like a virus and quickly evolving. In an ironic twist, the virus is discovered to be the program originally installed in the Element Dolls six years ago, now reaching beyond the DonPachi Corps programming and seeking to annihilate the human race in retaliation for their "enslavement" (after the war, they met a rather cruel demise at the hand of their own human creators) by waging war in the past rather than in the present: unsettled, the Colonel authorizes the last transport ship to time jump in order to fight back the invasion before future changes. However, he states: "Start over from the past... I never thought of that", echoing the ideas of mankind's imperfection which has always been a recurring theme in the series.
And once again, the three pilots jump back in time to 2008 and enter the fray, the transport ship being targeted as soon as it exits the portal: the Element Daughters, gigantic evolutions of the Dolls, are awaiting...
The bee is still humming.
Ending
After beating the game, the entirety of the plot is revealed: one of the Dolls, EXY, interfaced with the enemy computer network at the end of DaiOuJou, managing to shut it down but succumbing to madness soon thereafter. Overwhelmed by the sea of new information, she turned against her human pilot, killing him and herself and becoming the parasitic virtual entity detected by DonPachi HQ; still following her original programming, she created the Element Daughters and the robotic army featured in the game in a desperate attempt to destroy the installation that would start the chain of events leading to the Blissful Death Wars - presumably, DonPachi Corps HQ itself at the time of the elite squadron's birth.
Exploiting their deranged plan for salvation, Colonel Godwin Longhener manipulated the Element Dolls/Daughters into destroying order and civilization, convinced of its intrinsic imperfection (much like his ancestor, Schwarlitz Longhener) and aiming towards rebuilding it according to his idea of flawlessness (an attempt already foiled centuries before by the first DonPachi Squadron). Said ambitions come to an abrupt halt with his death and the destruction of the ultimate fighting machine Hibachi.
As the pilot jumps back to the future, he comes to finally realize how, instead of preventing the bloody future depicted in the series, Next EXY actually triggered it: he/she is forced to watch, powerless, as Longhener is appointed as the commanding officer of the DonPachi Corps with the rank of General, the Daughters standing beside him - the date being just a few years before the start of the Blissful Death Wars.
Realizing that everything had been for nothing, the pilot comes to the conclusion that perhaps the future cannot be changed.
The arrange modes have different endings after you defeat Hibachi. In Arrange A, Leinyan appears in front of EXY in her ending of Dodonpachi Daioujou, and manages to console her into giving up her plan, preventing the chain of events that would lead to this game. In Black Label Arrange, the ending reveals that the mode was a simulation meant to train pilots in the Ketsui universe.
Development
Music
DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu Original Sound Track is a 23-track CD that includes music tracks and voice samples from the video game, and a bonus song called Image Song (Bonus Track). The soundtrack went on sale on January 26, 2009. DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu Black Label Original Sound Track was released on February 20, 2010.
An arrange soundtrack was also released. This is the same as the CD included in the Version 1.5 Limited Edition and Resurrection Deluxe Edition Xbox 360 ports. The iOS exclusive soundtrack was also separately released on CD.
== Releases ==…
1CC RUNS
One-credit clears we point to as the benchmark for this game.
TRAILERS
STORES
Nintendo eShop: Switch digital sales ended in December 2024 after Live Wire's licence expired. The publisher says previous purchasers can redownload the game. Availability source . Verified 10 Sept 2026.
Prices are cached from each storefront and may be out of date. Last checked 24 Sept 2026.
PRICE HISTORY
Every price change we know of, per shop. Flat means the price held; PC shops reach back through IsThereAnyDeal's archive, console shops start when this site started watching.
Fanatical low: $8.39 (11 Dec 2025) , Humble Store low: $10.49 (18 Dec 2025) , Steam low: $10.49 (4 Dec 2025)
REVIEWS
Published elsewhere, collected here. Every score is the outlet's own, on the outlet's own scale. Follow the link for the full review.
“Not for the faint of heart, DoDonPachi Resurrection is a classic, tough-as-nails shoot 'em up that boasts a complex but incredibly satisfying combat system for single or two-player alien-blasting action.”
“DoDonPachi Resurrectiuon is aAnother brilliantly packaged Cave classic lands on Switch. Bullet hell is bullet heaven.”
“All in all playing Dodonpachi Resurrection is a lot of fun and any serious lover of shmups shouldn’t miss out on.”
“DoDonPachi Resurrection is a monster of an arcade shooter.”
“If you're thinking about picking up DoDonPachi Resurrection, you're staring down the barrel of one of the best shoot-'em-ups of our time. Don't hesitate, just grab this one first, then get Mushihimesama, followed by Deathsmiles.”
“DoDonPachi Resurrection is a classic shoot'em up and fans of the genre will definitely appreciate to dive in deep on its revision history. Though the technical differences may not offer enough value for casual players, it's an impressive package that deserves to be highlighted.”
“When it comes to great shoot 'em ups, DoDonPachi Resurrection is one of the best with challenging yet easily digestible gameplay and stylish eye-popping visuals. Plus, the fact that it's jam-packed with modes and content makes it one complete package.”
“Resurrection is arguably one of the best of its genre even after all these years and a lot of competition (plenty of it coming from developer Cave themselves). It’s relentlessly challenging, breathlessly inventive and exhilarating to play; an essential purchase for confirmed shmup fans. But it’s also one that needs you to do a lot of homework to get anything meaningful out of it.”
“Dodonpachi Resurrection is an excellent bullet hell shooter that will only feel like a step back for the series if you’re familiar with Dodonpachi DaiOuJou.”
“DoDonPachi Resurrection is a thoroughly fascinating 2D shooter. Its various systems compound onto one another to create a unique and very addictive experience. However, it takes a long time just to make sense of everything, let alone make it work to the player's advantage. At any moment, there's just so much that can go wrong, and even the best strategies are undone by the tiniest movements. Getting the most out of this game's many flavours will take a seemingly endless number of retries. It's a vicious cycle, but some gamers wouldn't have it any other way.”
“Rising Star releases DoDonPachi Resurrection, Cave's futuristic 2d shooter, in its Deluxe version, enriched by the soundtrack and a very explanatory manual. The Xbox 360 conversion is well done, thanks to a competitive leaderboard system and a couple of well-made Arrange modes.”
Reviews are the work of the outlets named. Titles, scores and quoted excerpts are reproduced for identification and criticism; each links to the original.
