Been surprisingly hard to write about this. The Panzer Dragoon series has been steeped in a real mystique all my life, but it’s weird finally sitting down and realizing that this first entry is basically: vibes + shooting everything. Probably a little reductive and a little harsh on my part, but still I think it works- there’s a spartan charm to it all.

While most of the talent who would go to work on titles that would use a similar rail-shooting style, such as Rez and Omega Boost, seemed to have been involved in the development of Zwei, you can really see the strong precedents this game set. I’m reminded of a lot of HotPocket’s excellent Armored Core 1 review (again), where he noted that the game had, “lots of messiness and annoyances, but nails a shocking amount of fundamentals from the get-go.” I think the same applies here as well: locking onto enemies feels great (serves as a nice form of aim-assist too!) and the concept album comparison that many reviews here have made seems especially appropriate, considering that’s an appeal that Rez and Omega Boost would start really to hone in on. Love the shift from the initial orchestral grandeur to intense prog-rock, seems like a very knowing choice on the part of composer Yoshitaka Azuma, something that better compliments the lethal reality of the action.

As an arcade game, it seems to have inherited the difficulty spikes of the era, but not the scoring complexity. It really is a game that boils down to “shoot everything,” where replaying early stages can start to feel especially rote if you’re having trouble with the game- there isn’t really an opportunity to leverage your early-game mastery by hoarding resources for an especially tough section or anything like that. Having played a little bit of Zwei already, with its different routes and Rayforce-style scoring system that has you tripping over yourself to lock-on to as many targets as possible, it certainly puts the simplicity here more starkly in focus, but again, the game manages to rise above that.

So often with older titles it can feel like you need the primer on why something was cool to really appreciate it, but when the music hits and you’re cutting through some of the stage’s claustrophobic hallways, just barely keeping up the choreography of enemy patterns, you hardly feel the 30-year gulf between it’s release and now at all.

Time has been kind to this one.

it's alright. the music is good and the enviroments are really nice for a saturn game, in its launch year even. though the game has this really weird control scheme, if you use the 3D control pad you can only move in a small square around the screen, and the cursor snaps into the center if you let it go, but with the normal D-Pad controller, you can move the cursor wherever across the screen. what's up with that?
it's bearable for the first 3 stages, but the difficulty goes crazy in the last 4, and it makes for a pretty painful experience in the end. it's a shame, because the game has a lot going for it, hopefully the sequel is way better

This game is really ambitious and cool. It was a Saturn launch title and the stuff its doing is really impressive. Despite how low poly it is, it immediately captivates me into its world with its incredible music and designs that fit really well within the hardware. I love how unique the gameplay is from other rail shooters. Changing your viewpoint in four directions is something that adds a lot of dynamism to the gameplay. It is incredibly satisfying to do really well in a level, it has killer sound design where everything feels super good to pull off. Making a big laser chain might be one of the coolest things in a video game and the it rewards you for doing that effectively. It being a rail shooter allows the otherwise linear music tracks feel dynamic, like you are playing through an epic action sequence from a film.

This game has a lot of issues that hold it back a little bit for me. This being an early Saturn title, the game struggles to fullfill its ambitions. Its hard to see whats hitting you a lot of the time. The game has a really low framerate which makes it feel sluggish to play. There are a couple of bosses in this that are rather poorly implemented and some of them drag the pace down. The four way view is confusing and finicky. When I first played it, I thought it was like a first person mode where you just rotated 360 degrees to find your targets, but the easiest way to use it is to tap the L or R buttons to make it face four predetermined directions. Even when you do this method, it feels sluggish, so you cant use it to react to stuff coming at you, you have to really anticipate incoming waves. It overall doesnt feel great. I also dislike how much you gotta mash the shoot button.

Even with all those issues, I think this game is really cool. Its a really short romp, lasting less than an hour. Its a fun game to try and master. Even when a game over happens, its not too frustrating to pick it right back up, its cool how much better I got even with just a second or third try. If you have a Saturn I think its a must play. It really stands out comparatively to other rail shooters and its one of my favorites in the genre.

My biggest problem with this game is the structure. I like the aesthetics and the music is absurdly good (despite my ROM having a bug and not having played any music during the levels. I only had the right to hear the shots, screams and explosions), but why does this game have an arcade continue system?

I mean, the obvious answer is: well, the game is short, so it's to extend its useful life. But at the same time, the game is hard as fuck, and I for example only gained 1 continue during the entire gameplay.

If the game had been about the vibes of flying the dragon and seeing the abstract environments and structures, I would have enjoyed it a lot more, but it focuses on punishment and difficulty, and I'm not sure it's a good fit.

Even so, I'm looking forward to Zweii, Saga and Orta. All of 'em look very good.

I emulated the original Saturn version. It definitely has a great vibe, and the soundtrack, especially the first episode, is really cool.

It's pretty difficult I thought, I was planning to not use save states, and I made it to episode 5 without them (meaning I got a few game overs and had to beat the first few levels several times), but eventually gave up on that (just used them to get unlimited continues though, didn't save state mid-level). There are multiple buttons to shoot, and it definitely feels like it was designed to require the player to kind of drum on two fire buttons so they can shoot down incoming attacks faster and not die, at parts particularly in level 5

Cool game, after a little break I'm planning to continue onto 2 and then Saga

US Saturn Release #004 - Panzer Dragoon

Played on a real American Sega Saturn with the Fenrir ODE

As of writing this I have yet to beat episode 5, though I have gotten close. I'm completely new to this game so I still have some learning to do. Though, with this experience I can say confidently that this is something incredible. This is a phenomenal arcade rail shooter, feeling like an evolution of After Burner, which I enjoy a lot but have a hard time actually playing. This was more comfortable yet also equally as challenging when you get farther in.

I really commend this game for its difficulty balance. the first 3 stages are easy conistantly up the challenge, giving you more opprotunities to learn how the game works and develop your skill for the jump in difficulty with episode 4. It's tough and really disorienting at a first play, but you very quickly develop strategies, understanding when to use your single shots and when to use your lock ons. Hell, the fact that there's points to use the single shots over lock ons really shows that this is a well thought-out game.

Even though restarting an entire level can be a hassle when you get so close to the end, it really isn't that frustrating because this game is just that fun, just that thrilling to go through, and each time I go through it again I find myself performing better than the last time.

Like many of my favorite video games, Panzer Dragoon is tough but fair. With its toughness is excitement, and with failure comes a strong desire to try again. It's addictive and never a bore. This is a must-have Saturn title, definitely the launch's killer app (saying a lot against the already wonderful Daytona USA)

9/10

Historia interessante, Trilha sonora incrível, criativo e revolucionário para a sua época. Entretanto não envelheceu tão bem (nem digo no aspecto visual pois para mim tem bastante charme) mas sim em game design e gameplay. O gameplay em si tem uma essencia simples e divertida e que se suprime bem para um jogo de 1h que ele é. Porém claramente o jogo tenta fazer o mais do que ele poderia; a mecânica do radar pode confundir e dispersar pelo fato do radar não ser tão preciso e pecar muito para o jogador, e pelo fato do radar não ajudar tanto é bem fácil se ver tomando tiro das costas e sendo surpreendido constantemente. Por isso esse jogo as vezes parece um bullet hell de tanta merda que tem na tela, e não sei, não parece algo proposital e mais uma falha na estrutura do jogo.

E esse jogo, é... injusto e inclusive achei que eu tinha sido unico que tinha achado isso mas aparentemente meio duzia de gato pingado também acha e isso é porque esse jogo é o equivalente a um jogo de arcade no sentido de que tu morre e tu tem alguns creditos pra dar retry na fase, mas se acabar os creditos tu volta desde o inicio do jogo e considerando que alguns chefes são e fases sejam uma questão de costume e familiarização com as mesmas isso só dificulta o jogo mais do que deveria. Serio se o jogo não tivesse isso e so resetasse na fase mesmo, ia ser bem menos frustrante e filha da puta.


no geral, é isso, decidi apontar mais os pontos que me incomodaram mais por que eu sinto que eles se sobressairam mais do que deveria.

Replaying after finishing Zweii 2x and Saga's first disc. Honestly, it grew a lot. Mainly because I managed to play a lot better than the first time, and the atmosphere really got to me more than the first time.

Sad that the first level is the best, but that makes it one of the best first levels in video games. I still think the difficulty curve is a bit fucked up, but it's a game designed to be played over and over again. Too bad that Zwei exists in this world, and I prefer to replay Zwei at any minute, hour or day.

I wish shoot-em-ups continued developing in this direction.

This game has one of the most gorgeous art-designs I've ever seen. And it's spectacle galore without sacrificing the gameplay depth. That being said, the gameplay is pretty basic (as most shoot-em-ups are). Most of the time you're either shooting or dodging, because your aiming and movement are controlled with the same directional keys. And, when you turn around or to your sides, you can't move at all.

Now imagine this game with a free mouse look on PC. If you could control your aiming and movement separately, the gameplay depth would've doubled or tripled, because the level designers could invent challenges that require dodging and shooting simultaneously. The old shoot-em-up formula would've immediately died off.

Still, Panzer Dragoon feels very fresh even today, largely because of the amazing presentation and meticulously designed levels and bosses.

Half a star removed for the bullshit "easy mode" that removes the last two levels of the game completely. I hate when games do that. It's not easy mode, it's incomplete mode. Had to replay the same levels because of this.

Super good and influential rail shooter that's lock on mechanic is still being copied to this day. Its a lot slower than some of Sega's other rail shooters but it makes up for it in pure vibes and novel mechanics. From the very first level the open water and ruined architecture, accompanied by an outstanding orchestral piece of unusually high production of the time (CD audio in games was not new, but tended to be mainly synthesizer music or rock music that sounded like it was recorded in someone's garage) set the mood and tone of the game. Even the synthesizer tracks tend to be huge stand outs filled with intense tribal drums that fit the action and mood well. The design of the world is undeniably inspired by Moebius's Arzach (Moebius even drew the Japanese cover of the game) and Miyazaki's Nausicaa. Its a testament to how good Team Andromeda's art team was that the influence isn't lost in the finished game through the Sega Saturn's primitive 3D rendering.

The rail you follow also feels very dynamic in how you move through the environment which gives moving through the world a more natural and cinematic feeling. As side effect of this decision is that it can be a bit hard to avoid and dodge enemies and obstacles in some sections since you aren't always moving straight and its can be hard to judge the depth of a scene while the camera moves and sways. It isn't too big of an issue and I think the tradeoff is completely worth it, it really helps add to the intensity of the game. The game's lock on targeting has been copied to death, but its nice to play it and see how well the game balances it with the traditional shot. Most projectiles can't be locked on to causing you to juggle between the regular and lock on shots, and if a boss or enemy only has one vulnerable area it is often much more efficient to hammer the fire button than pelt it with lock on shots over and over again. Sometimes though it feels like some shots cant really be avoided or shot down reasonably which can hurt the game feel a bit. Dying sends you back to the start of the level which feels a bit too harsh. Not even from a difficulty standpoint but it really hurts the flow of the game, especially because most the stages tend to have a surprising amount of dead time in them which you will have to sit through again every time you die. The game could have benefitted from having a checkpoint in the middle of the level or at the boss and made up for that by cranking the damage up slightly to make up for it and it would make the game flow and feel a lot better to play through over and over again. It also wouldn't be quite as much as a problem if the mechanics had a bit more going on, its hard to say exactly what it needs but it feels like it is missing something to really take it to the next level.

Panzer Dragoon is still a pretty darn good playthrough and a strong early Saturn game worth playing, definitely look forward to making my way through its sequels at some point this year.