Guns a Blazing
became the next big franchise in the video game world, yeah there was a sequel for the Gameboy Advance that was actually pritty good but it wasn't enough to put this series on the high track; which is really sad because I would love to see something different become popular for once as well as a lot more sequels for this game.
The Treasure company one of my favorate video game companies were always famous for making high quality games that unfortunately no one has ever played. This as you've guessed is one of them and it's one of the best. Well it's you usual platform shooter format with the simple plot to go with it, basically your like a pulp comic book hero that's part of an elite good guy defense force that has to save the planet Gunstar from some evil millitary force full of robots taking over. That's it really, like I said before platform run and gun shooters or any other kind of shooter were never really known for plot, so that's all you need to know just press start, run and gun and don't die.
Some people no supprise will accuse this game of being short since there are only about 5 levels. But that's more than enough for me, and I'll tell you my reasons why I say this.
The game as you guessed it is yeah very hard and I'm not kidding, depending on what difficulty you set this in it's just all crazy all the same. There are all kinds of bad guys that are coming in on you left and right, up and down all around. Mini bosses that could really pound you if your not careful, as well as the main bosses to boot. It's a game that not just test your reflexes but your endurance as well, it is just really exausting because there is just so much going on as you stuggle to advance on foot at a time, so you can't afford to take a breath or your dead.
So yeah this game is not for begineers it is for veteran players like myself, I remember the first time I played it I was getting my butt kicked a lot, though when I practiced and stuck with the game a little more like most games as diffcult as this (most notablly Contra, R-Type, and other series) I actually am able to tear though it sometimes with no problems at all (beaten it in normal and hard mode, working on very hard though) because I know the basic things about the game the right places to stand and where and when to hit bosses and badies, the game really can be easy as pie almost depending on how much you practice and preserverance in general.
Anyway I'll get to more of the qualities of the game, for one thing the
graphics are great they sort of have an anime quality to them which really fits the manic fun atmosphere it has, theres even a little black humor in some places. Soundtrack is pritty good as usual. But of course what really makes the game truely fun and unique is the gameplay which is something I haven't really seen in any other game in general, the ability to combine gun powers is just awsome. Kinda like in the anime series "Sailor Moon" where the Sailor Senchi's powers as the show progresses get more powerful but sometime when one power and another is combined it packs a more powerful effect on their enimies. Sorry, I'm drifting off subject but you get my point, this gives you an element of creativity because you can create all kinds of combinations. My personal favorate is the lazer+homing to create the homing lazer, with that weapon you'll be litterally unbeatable.
And of course the levels have a creativity factor to them because of not just the usual creative obsticles and designs, like where there is one level where you play a board game and depending on which number you roll whatever square you land on you have to get though a game alive or beat a mini boss. But mainly the bosses, the most meomorable and probably toughest bosses in video game history in my favorate level of the game would be the robot that can transform into five or six configurations. That boss sort of reminds of those fusor "Transformers" where there were those robots that can transform into three things, most notably the Deceptacon "Blitzwig". Anyway you get my point ths boss is litterally many rolled into one, is litterally any video game player's worst nightmare. I remember getting my butt kicked by this boss at least 5 to 6 times before I finally got it right and beat him. Yeah he's beatable so don't fret, like any boss there is a pattern which means safe zones, so if you memorize each transformation and can lock down on that pattern then you can beat the boss with no problem, just make sure your lives hold out.
Well I've said enough, all video game fans owe it to themselves to play Gunstar Heroes, you haven't lived till you played it, just make sure you do live though that game cause the chalange will kill you.