Muchi Muchi Pork! & PinkSweets Boosted Review: How Seeet it is!

Let’s just throw this statement right out there – CAVE is one of the most definitive creators of some of the world’s toughest “shmups,” or shoot-em-ups. Ask anyone who’s privy to the genre what their favorite games are, and they’re likely to rattle off a Dodonpachi title or DeathSmiles without blinking. Each game they craft comes off like a new challenge, and even if they stumbled slightly with the recent Dodonpachi Resurrection Reignite on Steam, their streak remains very much alive.

Part of that run includes two games that came out in the mid-2000s, starting in Japanese arcades and eventually on the Xbox 360. 2006’s PinkSweets and 2007’s Muchi Muchi Pork! are, for lack of a better word, “oddball” shmups. That’s because they have “cute” factors that stand out, but they remain as hard as nails.

The games haven’t gotten a proper re-release onto the modern market – until now. Enter Clear River Games and the developers at City Connection, who have treated both games – titled here as Muchi Muchi Pork! & PinkSweets Boosted – with utter respect. There are some minor things that could use cleaning up, but the bottom line is that this package is a must for fans serious about their “shmups.” I know I’m enjoying it.

Enter the PinkSweets

Let’s start with the first release of the two, PinkSweets. This came out as a follow-up to the 2005 game Ibara, and follows a family of sisters as they attempt to rescue their mother from marrying a ruthless monster. So they begin their journey across a number of stages, each with more dedicated hench-bots than the last.

This game is unconventional compared to most shooters because of how it plays. You could simply fire away at enemies like a lunatic, but there’s a neat tactic involving shielding. It doesn’t protect you from everything, and yet you can still utilize it creatively to stop certain bullets. Then when you start firing again, you unleash the Rose Cracker, a temporary blast that gives you slight leverage.

There’s also the Rose Hip, in which you can change your formation, depending on how you want your firing to execute. I’m fine with the default patterns, but dedicated players may find a lot to like here.

It looks and plays remarkably well, and based on your style of play, you can go a long way with PinkSweets. Plus, there are different versions with small variations, depending on your skill set, and I’m a big fan of the remixed soundtrack, featuring Hagane, Sean Bialo, and Yosuke Yasui. Some, however, may prefer the Xbox 360 tracks. To each their own.

PinkSweets probably won’t be everyone’s favorite, but I had a great time with it. Still am, actually.

Oink! Bring On the Pork!

Next up, we have Muchi Muchi Pork! – and you can probably guess that this was one of my favorites during CAVE’s Xbox 360 run back in the early 2010’s. That’s because it’s a truly devoted shooter that goes, ahem, hog wild.

See, the game has a group of women pursuing General Pork Fillet, who handily transforms them into piglet girls. They aren’t too fond of that and immediately enter battle, where they blast foes out of the sky while collecting pigs for bonus points. Yes, you can apparently save the bacon and benefit from it, as they build up your special meter.

Each girl has a different gameplay technique, based on firepower and special attacks – or Lard Attacks, as they’re called here. They come off real nicely, letting you mix up techniques against dangerous foes and larger bosses. It all comes together with a nice dose of personality, and I really enjoy that.

These all combine into a scoring system that can push into new heights, depending on how well you utilize Lard Attacks and collect Kinton medals. But you have to get them all, or you could lose your bonus. (Fortunately, your regular attack can draw them in like wildfire.)

Does the game look cheesy? Yes. It has an infatuation with pigs that would make Boss Hogg from The Dukes of Hazzard lose his mind. (Or maybe the owner of the strip club Porky’s? 80s reference, kids.) But CAVE does a masterful job of putting it together, and City Connection gave it a suitably polished treatment on modern consoles. It does get a little slow at times, but that’s intentional considering the havoc happening on-screen. Plus, the remixed soundtrack by Daisuke Matsumoto is a must-listen.

How Are the Extras?

There are some missing aspects here that I would like to see remedied with a patch. For instance, Ibara would be a nice bonus, considering it’s a lead-in for PinkSweets. There’s also no real history behind the games, and it would’ve been fascinating to get inside the minds of the developers and see why they were so infatuated with candy and pigs. Maybe a dream they had…?

No worries. The scoreboards will definitely keep you busy, thanks to the Online Rankings. Plus, you can switch between Arcade and Arrange modes, and save your best runs via Local Replay Support.

Performance?

I have the game on Nintendo Switch 2 (a key was provided), and I thought it performed just fine. Obviously, an update that makes the game hone in on the power of the system would be great, but the backward compatibility holds up well. So no complaints.

There is, however, no sign of the Xbox 360 soundtracks, as I mentioned above. The newly arranged tracks are top-notch, but I know some of you are nostalgic. Maybe City Connection can weave their magic and add those down the road. I know fans would love it.

I will also say, the menu that opens the game is excellent. It’s mostly in English, but it represents being in a village, in a way, as you take one of two paths to choose the game you want to play. I wish more of CAVE’s releases would get this kind of treatment – it injects it with personality.

Conclusion

Is Muchi Muchi Pork! & PinkSweets Boosted the perfect combination? Not quite. There is a lot to cherish here, and the extra stuff – including the online leaderboards – will keep you occupied. But the lack of Ibara, the Xbox 360 music, and the lack of any kind of historical documentary remove some weight from the package.

But I digress. You still get two of CAVE’s quirkier – and enjoyable – shooters, treated with love and respect by Clear River Games and City Connection alike. They’ll keep you busy for hours on end as you try to save every pig, absorb every bullet, and unleash every Lard Attack. Plus, there are modes to play around with, and something for fans of every difficulty.

Muchi Muchi Pork! & PinkSweets Boosted is a delectable treat for fans of “shmups,” and what it lacks in historical content, it more than makes up for with its action, a little bit of silliness, and unbound strategy. That’s something that’ll certainly make fans go wild to pick it up.

Final Verdict: 4/5

Available on: Steam, Nintendo Switch/Nintendo Switch 2 (Reviewed), and PlayStation. Publisher: Clear River Games, Developer: City Connection, Players: 1 or 2, Released: October 1, 2026, ESRB: T, MSRP: $39.99

Full disclosure: This review is based on a copy of Muchi Muchi Pork! & PinkSweets Boosted provided by the publisher.