Shikigami no Shiro II is a fine example of the modern 2D vertical shooter. It's also suprisingly deep and stylish.
Shikigami no Shiro II, or "Castle Shikigami" is fairly unique among vertical shooters in that it is driven by a cast of a half-dozen characters, each with unique attacks, and quite a bit to say. Each character has a back-story of sorts that is told through Fire Emblem style storyboards. The voice acting sounds straight out of any recent anime series, and although this version contains no subtitles, it's pretty easy to figure out what they are talking about.
The gameplay is quite varied for a game of this nature. There are the standard rapid-fire primary attack, and the more powerful secondary attack that also causes you to fly slower. Each character's attacks are unique, making multiple playthroughs more fun. Shikigami also incorporates a gameplay mechanic simlar to the "Buzz Meter" in Psyvariar 2. When you almost get hit by an enemy bullet, you create "Tension", and when your chosen warrior is tense, your primary attack becomes more powerful. The playable characters even have different enemies which they are more powerful against.
The level and boss designs are also quite varied, as are their attack patterns. One level stands out, as it contains both the extra difficult maze style shooting found in the Sega classic Zaxxon, and a puzzle game style boss fight. Along with multiple very difficult game settings and two player co-op, Shikigami is a fantastic value for a shooter, even as an import.
The graphics are clean, and the various bullitts, ships and scrolling backgrounds are easy to distinguish from each other. Alfa System opted to use green as the primary ememy bullitt colour, which is a nice change from the standard pink. The overall presentation is above average, thanks to a rock-solid frame rate, detailed characters and backgrounds, and the strong manga influence.
The soundtrack is also suprisingly varied, and contains both the original arcade score, and an arranged version presumably produced for the console release. The sound effects are exactly what you would expect, and impacts are satisfyingly loud.
Rounding the contend is "Story Recollect" mode, whick lets you read various scenarios. Pretty useless if you don't read Japanese.
Shikigami no Shiro II is a great value, and a great challenge, even with a friend, and it's the best shooter since the hallowed Ikaruga.