It keeps things simple with the single weapon upgrade system, and has some of the most detailed sprites to grace any game at the time of its release. The gameplay is serviceable, with some neat looking bosses, but the level design is rather uninspired and the first person stages are clunky.
I played 1 level of this and almost had a seizure
Cry for the moon...
Entering the infinite void of what's beyond the thermosphere of our planet, we gaze upon her majesty. That moment we take in the supposed sanctuary of our mother goddess is where our unknowable enemy launches their sneaky surprise attack at the start of the round, we don't even notice there's two moons until it's too late. The imposter of our beautiful rock in the sky slowly approaches from the background as warning sirens blare through your speakers. I hope you're prepared fellow pilot, because it's only downhill from here when it comes to questioning what lies in front of your eyes.
The mechanics of your ship are shoddy and experimental at best, just as rough and rugged as the scenery you'll be digesting in your next trip through your shmup smorgasbord. The unknowable enemy will not make things easy with their positioning and method of approach, and your ship may be ill-equipped to deal with their lunacy and onslaught of Space Mambos. Persevere through it all and your Black Fly getting inevitably crushed and sandwiched between the ceiling and floor by a funny rascal, and you may just find yourself in a fight against a phantom phallus utilizing your own kind's history and imagery of what may be your childhood pet cat to drag you deeper into it's method of madness.
Once all is said and done, you will be led to wonder, were you dreaming or was it reality? Perhaps it's time to wake up...you were born to be free....
Wake up.
Entering the infinite void of what's beyond the thermosphere of our planet, we gaze upon her majesty. That moment we take in the supposed sanctuary of our mother goddess is where our unknowable enemy launches their sneaky surprise attack at the start of the round, we don't even notice there's two moons until it's too late. The imposter of our beautiful rock in the sky slowly approaches from the background as warning sirens blare through your speakers. I hope you're prepared fellow pilot, because it's only downhill from here when it comes to questioning what lies in front of your eyes.
The mechanics of your ship are shoddy and experimental at best, just as rough and rugged as the scenery you'll be digesting in your next trip through your shmup smorgasbord. The unknowable enemy will not make things easy with their positioning and method of approach, and your ship may be ill-equipped to deal with their lunacy and onslaught of Space Mambos. Persevere through it all and your Black Fly getting inevitably crushed and sandwiched between the ceiling and floor by a funny rascal, and you may just find yourself in a fight against a phantom phallus utilizing your own kind's history and imagery of what may be your childhood pet cat to drag you deeper into it's method of madness.
Once all is said and done, you will be led to wonder, were you dreaming or was it reality? Perhaps it's time to wake up...you were born to be free....
Wake up.
Amazing visual style for a game made in 1991 and a bizarre ending.
Very psychedelic and kinda disturbing. Goes beyond your average arcade spaceship shooter. Should be in every schizo, psychedelic and weirdcore list of this site.
Me, pressing the fire button on my laser-cannon at the glowing heart of a transparent dolphin-alien-skeleton while it feeds me power-up orbs over the backdrop of the history of the universe:
"...Is God speaking to me?"
"...Is God speaking to me?"
Dripping with Style
Metal Black's surrealist imagery, bleak and lonely atmosphere, as well as its eclectic soundtrack from Yasuhisa Watanabe, unleashed a newfound appreciation for the shoot 'em up genre and developer Taito. There's nothing quite like Taito's shoot 'em ups and this isn't even the one I'd consider their best. It's honestly one of those games that continues to stay in the back of my mind and I get this constant urge that I should write an essay on what it manages to convey. Video games don't have to be filled with hour long cutscenes or be dialogue-heavy to provoke that level of thought.
Supercool spin-off from the Darius team. They’re masters of creating unsettling worlds and creatures. Lacks the polish of the Darius mainline but a fascinating thing.
I have no fucking idea how you're supposed to not die constantly in this but holy SHIT the visuals and music are insane