Gekirindan: Playable archeology

Taito’s Gekirindan, the Saturn version shown here the only unemulated home port the game’s ever had (the arcade version can be … Continue reading Gekirindan: Playable archeology

/Famicom, Konami, _Shmup

Salamander: Even better than the real thing

This Famicom/NES exclusive take on Konami’s Salamander is a terrible port of an incredible arcade game. Entire stages have been slung straight … Continue reading Salamander: Even better than the real thing

/PC Engine, _Shmup

Spriggan Mark 2: Speak ’em shmup

The bulk of Spriggan Mark 2‘s manual isn’t used to describe the stages to come, or show off some of the … Continue reading Spriggan Mark 2: Speak ’em shmup

/Playstation 2, Sega, _Shmup

Sega Ages 2500 Vol.3: Fantasy Zone

Unlike Monaco GP, which took a truly old game even by my retro-leaning standards and then made an honest attempt to … Continue reading Sega Ages 2500 Vol.3: Fantasy Zone

/X68000, Konami, _Shmup

Parodius Da!: A non-sense fantasy

The back of Parodius Da!‘s box promises 1991’s idea of gaming perfection – the arcade experience at home. This was always … Continue reading Parodius Da!: A non-sense fantasy

/Famicom Disk System, HAL Laboratories, _Shmup

Gall Force Eternal Story: HAL-GAL

Gall Force: Eternal Story, HAL’s Famicom Disk System vertical shmup, is technically based on the 1986 movie of the same name, although the … Continue reading Gall Force Eternal Story: HAL-GAL

/Playstation 2, Konami, _Shmup

Gradius V: Shoot the core!

Gradius V‘s staff roll reads like a fan’s happy daydream, bringing Treasure, G.rev, and Konami (with none other than Hitoshi Sakimoto on … Continue reading Gradius V: Shoot the core!

/PC, _Shmup, ~Reviews~

Review: Sol Cresta

Shmups occupy a strange space in gaming: They “should” be cheap because they’re short and because they’re shmups – ancient … Continue reading Review: Sol Cresta

/Saturn, _Shmup

Battle Garegga: 1UPs for rent

I can remember only three things about Raizing’s celebrated/feared arcade shmup Battle Garegga: It’s rank-based, which means the difficulty dynamically alters … Continue reading Battle Garegga: 1UPs for rent

/PC Engine, Hudson Soft, _Shmup

Star Parodier: A PC Engine parody

Originally a 1992 Japanese PC Engine exclusive before being finally gifted to the world in 2008 via the Wii’s Virtual … Continue reading Star Parodier: A PC Engine parody