Varia

From the developer:

Varia is a game I made for the SHMUP-DEV Competition 2k7 Round 2, in which it came in first place. It is a vertical shooter like Kairuga, although this time not a computer remake, but a mix of several classic japanese shmups coupled with my own twists. The theme of the competition was "Options", basically the ghost ships in the Gradius series or any type of satellite.

The way the options work in Varia is similar to the way they worked in Gradius series - the options trail after you, and one of the abilities that you have in both games is the ability to freeze your options into their relative positions. Gradius V has a lot more ways to use your options, but I felt the freeze method worked very well. I came upon the idea of letting the player to be able to absorb an enemy weapon with the options that you can get from power-ups. You have to freeze the options in place and "catch" an enemy shot, which you'll be able to use to destroy the enemies in return. There are 10 different types of shots you can absorb.

Free Full PC Game Download (15 MB):
Official link