When Species Collide: A Guide to Narrowly Avoiding Disaster
And what was not to love?
It offering me a ship to fly me, and I offered it the dynamics of human reflexes and it was on.
Instantly we connected, the flashbacks from Gradius - a younger and more foolishly given love - playing in my head and making me feel, for some reason, content.
And killing enemies in that head on fighting style that meshes every turn with possible disaster, that certainly makes a man content.
The two of us, we'd sit down night after night, those graphics running through my thoughts and savaging them. My fingers constantly sent little pulses of love in many a weapon option back, giving and giving, and we still spend night together from time to time.
The reason behind the allure of this game isn't because its some new thing being tried out on the screen. In fact, its been done many a time before and the storyline isn't all that unique. Its simply Nintendo's Lifeforce on steroids, with everything working like a head-on fighter would. You, of course, have the only ship fighting for your side of a struggle - when you could at least use a little back-up, a weapon on each side that lets you choose different weapon option (mostly worthless), and there are lots of enemies. Everything from the little ships that fly in heavy numbers to smallest, faster ships to mini-bosses and then stage bosses. Within those struggles the sky fills with lots of shells, allowing you to show how skilled you are by dodging and dancing through these, knowing that you have a limited bit of shielding and are the only hope for you people.
Yes, its always good to face a challenge.
Interestingly attached to this is a way to approach points and extra lives, with a bonus given to you for killing something closer to you ship. Also, the more bonuses, the faster the other weapons come up. I'd played some games that have ways to garner quickly through bonuses, but in Slipheed all things have a modifier on them. The multipliers go as high as sixteen times the points, feeding your lives fast, but facing the big point carriers - the bosses - head on is a challenge. So, it never really gets tiring.
And did I mention that the graphics are beautiful, especially in depiction of the scenery?
The only problem I really had with was the weapons.
It was the fact that the guns, while interesting, weren't very functional. Bombs that pulse out are too slow, guns with beams that wobble are nice but don't always go forward, and so on. Sometimes, when playing, I simply stick to the primary cannon given and one accessory - not the way I like to have to play.
It was the way they were earned, allowing a change at the beginning of a mission and somewhere at a "checkpoint" refueling on the board.
For anyone that's into this type of shooter, with a ship that you fly "up" the television screen and with combat remnant of Lifeforce of Gradius, then this is a must have. I had honestly written this release off, thinking it to be just another game from an already dead group of games, but I bought it anyway. And then, playing it, I noticed how wrong I really was. The missions, the creative bosses, the backgrounds meshing it all together, it's a sight to see and a challenge to beat. If you've never tried a game like this before, I would have to say that playing it will be fun because your skills will impress you. At first it'll be hard, dodging multiple shots, but soon you'll notice you're good, then better, and finally showing off for your friends amidst a stunning array of action. And what's the life of the party without you?