This is definitely quite the step up from the first game! It's also one of the most overrated video games ever in my eyes! It's good, but like.. it's nowhere NEAR the best imo.
I feel bad for this game, it didn't deserve to be rushed. That being said, WOW this one falls off after the initial 8 Robot Masters. The Doc Robot levels are an insult to 2D action-platforming... oh well, at least the music in this game is fire.
Man screw this game! DD1 on NES sucks! The only reason it has higher than a 1 star is cause I respect its legacy. There's such stupid stage gimmicks like the blocks in the wall and the platforming.
Another classic. For a long time, I didn't really get the hype behind this one. But one time while trying to play through, it just... clicked. Now I think it's great!
This was definitely a better shmup than Gradius. I didn't have nearly as many "Gradius syndrome" moments. It was like I could actually somewhat recover from my mistakes!
Now this is a cool game. Even without a map, I still find it quite enjoyable. It's so atmospheric and it's so satisfying to just grab all those upgrades. I did achieve the best ending in this one.