This game promised both bullets and cats, and well, this game has both of those things!
I think if you had some other team members who could tune you in to some Touhou lore, you could have definitely take this art style and game design and made it more, ya know, Touhou-y. There's definitely plenty to draw from if you want to keep it cat and fish-themed as well. As for what's in front of us, it's a particularly interesting eight-way shooter that allows for a lot of freedom of movement. That would be pretty unique in the Touhou sphere. If there were parry mechanics, a way to be more direct with bullets, power-ups or a way to bomb, that would go a long way to helping the playability. I think there's great potential here for a boss rush game as currently constructed.
Also the music is GREAT. The way it builds up over time is anxiety-inducing in a good way. More games should take advantage of that.