In the world of shooting games, Gradius is royalty. I once read that Bangai-O started off as a simple experiment to see how many rockets one designer could get on screen at the same time. And slowdown itself becomes a useful partner in your tactical thinking. Bangai-O's screen-shredding special attack relies on you making the absolute most of the carnage rattling around you.
Switching between homing rockets and bouncing lasers as you move around the game's short, hectic levels, the aim is to blast everything you can see as quickly as can be. Bangai-O is a joyous multi-directional shooter that uses very small on-screen characters to make the action feel as big as possible. MR Bangai-OĪ classic story really: a brother and sister climb into a heavily-armoured mech in an attempt to thwart the plans of local fruit smugglers. At a time when the gaming world had seemingly abandoned traditional 2D games, it was a reminder of their potency when served up by masters of the form. It's an ambitious, infectiously energetic thing whose many ideas are held together with some enjoyable crunchy combat. Treasure seemed to lose some of the punkier side of its ethos when it started pumping out sequels and licensed fare for the Game Boy Advance at the turn of the century, but while the likes of Gunstar Heroes Advance and Guardian Heroes Advance couldn't quite live up to their legacy there were some real gems in Hajime no Ippo: The Fighting - Treasure does Punch Out!, effectively, and it's as fun as that sounds - and, of course, Astro Boy: Omega Factor.Ī scrolling beat 'em up with rare imagination, there's so much to marvel at in Astro Boy: Omega Factor. It's a complicated thing that still confounds me more often than not, but that's why I love it so - it's as mad and maddening as anything Treasure ever made. This is a maximalist take on the side scroller that's in stark contrast to Gunstar Heroes' refined two-weapon system, presenting you with a dizzying amount of options that are barely contained by its control scheme. It's tempting to see it as a boss rush distillation of Gunstar Heroes, but Alien Soldier is more than that - it's so, so much more.
Which one I'll tell you is the best depends what mood I'm in, though I'll always assert they're both masterpieces, perfectly presenting both sides of Treasure's beguiling personality. Gunstar Heroes is Treasure at its most refined Alien Soldier, which has always felt something like a companion piece, is Treasure at its most chaotic.
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