Cleared on September 4th, 2023 (SEGA Genesis Challenge: 40/160)
This game is much like Contra in some ways, but made more deliberately clunkier as you are controlling a mech in a 2D shooter where you move on foot. Much like those games, you can aim in multiple directions while moving and shooting, but you cannot duck and your jump is not as responsive as well as being quite floaty. As weird as this sounds, I don't have much of a problem with that. I've played much worse when it comes to controls.
Before starting out a mission, you are given the option to equip 6 different items which can include weapons that do all kinds of things like deal single-target damage, spread shot damage, AoE, homing, and piercing among others. You can also equip Armor to increase health and a shield to reduce damage.
Going into this game, I was warned of how brutally difficult it was and at first I thought that it wasn't that hard. I mean, it's not easy or anything. Enemies come at you quite frequently and you have to deal with uneven terrain, but sometimes that can work to your advantage. Granted, I did find that Reactor in Mission 4 to be really obnoxious, but that's about as much as I expected... well, until the final level.
In the final level you acquire flying controls. This isn't the first time this happens since you get this opportunity in Level 3 and 7, but my god, the level just barrages with you with enemies. You can at least have allies to help blast them for damage, but once you get to the enemy side, you better hang on. Once you manage to get to the labyrinth, it is still quite tedious, but the good news is that you have health regeneration, so just show some patience and you'll pull through.
But then, we get to the final boss, and I just want to say, it is easily the 2nd worst Sega Genesis boss I have faced next to the final boss of Wonder Boy in Monster World. The boss has two attacks. An electric chain that circles around and a wave of missiles that fire at your current direction. The problem is that he attacks so fast that you are given little room to avoid his attacks and you just die so quickly. Now if you have the right weapon, you should have an easier time, but if you don't like I did... well, better start save scumming. And somehow, the 2nd phase ends up being super easy because all you have to do is ring around the circles, shoot and you win.
By that point, my head was hurting and I wasn't enjoying the game as much anymore. It was fine for the first couple of levels, but the final level left me exhausted.
This game is much like Contra in some ways, but made more deliberately clunkier as you are controlling a mech in a 2D shooter where you move on foot. Much like those games, you can aim in multiple directions while moving and shooting, but you cannot duck and your jump is not as responsive as well as being quite floaty. As weird as this sounds, I don't have much of a problem with that. I've played much worse when it comes to controls.
Before starting out a mission, you are given the option to equip 6 different items which can include weapons that do all kinds of things like deal single-target damage, spread shot damage, AoE, homing, and piercing among others. You can also equip Armor to increase health and a shield to reduce damage.
Going into this game, I was warned of how brutally difficult it was and at first I thought that it wasn't that hard. I mean, it's not easy or anything. Enemies come at you quite frequently and you have to deal with uneven terrain, but sometimes that can work to your advantage. Granted, I did find that Reactor in Mission 4 to be really obnoxious, but that's about as much as I expected... well, until the final level.
In the final level you acquire flying controls. This isn't the first time this happens since you get this opportunity in Level 3 and 7, but my god, the level just barrages with you with enemies. You can at least have allies to help blast them for damage, but once you get to the enemy side, you better hang on. Once you manage to get to the labyrinth, it is still quite tedious, but the good news is that you have health regeneration, so just show some patience and you'll pull through.
But then, we get to the final boss, and I just want to say, it is easily the 2nd worst Sega Genesis boss I have faced next to the final boss of Wonder Boy in Monster World. The boss has two attacks. An electric chain that circles around and a wave of missiles that fire at your current direction. The problem is that he attacks so fast that you are given little room to avoid his attacks and you just die so quickly. Now if you have the right weapon, you should have an easier time, but if you don't like I did... well, better start save scumming. And somehow, the 2nd phase ends up being super easy because all you have to do is ring around the circles, shoot and you win.
By that point, my head was hurting and I wasn't enjoying the game as much anymore. It was fine for the first couple of levels, but the final level left me exhausted.