"Another Truxton piece? Don't you have something else to do?" No.

This is the PC Engine version this time, anyway. It seems to be more faithful to the arcade version (which I've also yet to play), which means it's a lot more unforgiving early on. Depends on the person whether or not this is a good thing, but I do prefer to be eased into things a little better, so that's one point towards the Genesis version. It looks a little nicer here though, with the big ass Raiden-esque interface done away with.

The biggest upgrade here is the music. It kind of sounds like shit on Genesis due to programming errors, but on this version I actually thought to myself a couple times "hey, these are pretty nice background tracks". The rapid shooting kinda gets in the way of the drums, unfortunately. All important points towards presentation go to the PC Engine version.

Really, though, it only wins over slightly. I'd come back for either one next time I get the urge to replay it, honestly. Even despite the Genesis version's half hearted music I could just put on some album or playlist instead and it'd probably be better than if I was playing even with the PC Engine audio.

I retain a soft spot for Truxton compared to other Toaplan outings. A lot of them still don't really stand out to me but something in this one's simpler presentation does it some good work. It also has better weapon balancing, with all three being pretty useful even with how broken the lightning appears at a glance. Compare that to Fire Shark, for example, where you're constantly trying to hold on to the flamethrower while other powerups constantly bounce around the screen to try and throw you off. I would recommend either version of this I've played honestly. Maybe I should replay some more Toaplan stuff but for now this is the primary standout in my opinion.