I am not good at shoot-em-ups. Horizontal, vertical, it doesn't matter... I lack the level of coordination needed to weave between hails of bullets while simultaneously clearing enemies and obstacles. But god am I ever drawn in by them. One particular favorite sub-genre is the goof-em-up (as I've come to call them), which I think Keio Flying Squadron slots perfectly into, sitting comfortably next to series like Parodius and Cho Aniki.

As a goof-em-up, Keio Flying Squadron is great. Level tropes are absurd, with a particular favorite pitting Keio against a fleet of Russian navy ships. The story never takes itself too seriously either, and the cutscenes done by Studio Pierrot are fantastic. Gameplay, on the other hand, is a bit lacking. Keio doesn't really do anything unique mechanically, but is perfectly fine for what it is. I just wouldn't pick it up expecting the game to turn the genre on its head or anything.

If there's anything Keio is well known for today, it's the insane price it fetches on the used game market. Obviously you shouldn't take out a loan from the bank just to get your hands on a disc or anything, it's not THAT good, and it emulates fine. But if you are a fan of shoot-em-ups and haven't sat down to give Keio Flying Squadron a chance (as I suspect few people have), then you owe it to yourself to correct that. Just... maybe wait until a copy falls off the back of a truck or something.