Before I say anything else, I want to say that Alien Soldier is an extremely effective experience that accomplishes everything it sets out to do. However, given that backloggd scores are simply an average of user scores, I feel comfortable with giving this game a score that reflects my own level of enjoyment with it rather than a measure of its objective quality.

So much about Alien Soldier is perfect, but in a way I don't personally enjoy. Given the game's frantic pace I'm totally onboard with the weapon wheel not pausing the action, but I don't like how many frames it takes to appear - if I'm in the middle of a pitched battle I want to be like "A, left, left, go!" and not "A (wait) (get hit)". I also really dislike how getting hit by anything knocks you out of the weapon wheel. I really love your character's moveset - being able to swap firing modes a la Contra Hard Corps is a great option. Having a powerful dash attack available at full health turns your lifebar into a resource, and having the ability to turn enemy bullets into life bonuses gives you a nice risk vs. reward way of interacting with that resource. However, I prefer the way Gunstar Heroes encouraging expressivity with its large moveset, as opposed to how Alien Soldier seems to railroad the player into an optimal approach and loadout through its unforgiving time limit and with some weapons simply not working against some bosses. Also, while I'm no stranger to difficult games, I prefer games that gradually ease you into the masochism (see Rabi-Ribi and Contra) rather than throw you into the deep end of a hydrochloric acid pool like Alien Soldier does.

Then again, I did finish it! Alien Soldier is proof that games don't need to be fair as long as they are motivating - many of the challenges seemed downright mean-spirited, but the combination of the stellar presentation and tight gameplay kept me soldiering on. Alien Soldier is perfect for certain profiles of players: gamers in the 90s who would generally persevere far longer on games they bought, and people willing to sink a sizable amount of time into a challenge that brings supreme satisfaction to surmount. If you're not one of those people - say a casual scrub like me - too bad. Like the fabled honey badger, Alien Soldier doesn't care; it invites forces the player to play on its terms, take it or leave it. In my case, the terms were "I'll stomp your scrotum into the ground like a cigarette butt, then make you swallow your pride and select SuperEasy mode, then continue stomping anyway". And while my personal reaction to completing the game was "oh thank heavens, I feel so satisfied but I don't think I'll play this again", its general reception and average score vindicate it - I completely understand why this is a favorite of so many people on here!

Would that more games gave as few shits as Alien Soldier.