Continuing where the last game ended, the forces of CANY had been demolished by the previous Strikers' line-up. However, a small group known as the FGR stole the sources and technology responsible for the last events and planned to continue CANYs work by initiating world-warfare with massive mech technology. Once again, the Strikers are called into action.
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My favorite STG from my favorite shmup series. It sits right in the perfect spot before the psikyo games turned into bullet hell slop that look cooler than they actually are to play. And it's after they finally ditched that power loss mechanic after you shot a couple of times. It's also more consistent with it's patterns and revenge bullets than those previous games. You have to get really unlucky to encounter pattern combos that make you feel like you got screwed.
Even compared to other entries in the series, I think the creativity with the different ships you can pick between is just right. They all cater to a different playstyle, while not just falling into some boring formula like you'd see with Cave games. Like in Dodonpachi, where you just have the straight shottypes, and the wide shottypes. With less or more bombs depending on which power lever you want. It's functional, but that's it and nothing more. Here all the ships are just right for each playstyle while also having unique and cool features.
Do you like sitting safe at the bottom of the screen? Pick Hayate. You can put options on screen that will stay in place for around 10 seconds and destroy and enemy that comes on screen.
Do you prefer a more tank-like ship? That's slow, but powerful and defensive? Pick Mosquito. You get missiles that pulverize any enemies that dary come near you. And if you're in trouble, you can use the best bomb in the game that clears bullet and provides with helper planes that will grant even more coverage long after you used a bomb.
Rather play something fast and agressive? Pick the Flying Pancake. While funny-looking, it's the most energetic and flashy ship. You get homing shots that will take care of any small fry, while you move all around the screen killing big enemies before they become a problem. Pancake played well is a sight to behold.
I could go on for all the other ships, but they all have cool features that give that little extra umph you can't get from more basic ship selection methods.
Scoring in this game is always balanced just right. No one trick or milk is going to ruin your run if you don't get it. Medal timing is an aquired taste, but the game allows for several more ways of increasing score. Being able to survival longer during bosses, stacking bombs and lifes for score bonusses, powering down strategically to summon more enemies in certain areas, just to name a few. There are even some glitches that really test your expertise on the second loop bosses, like getting a Double K.O. without losing your resources. This game has it all!
I wouldn't have minded if the presentation was more expressive and creative. While I love Psikyo's style of taking a seemingly normal aircraft and phase by phase turning it more into some intimidating mech, that's where most of the creativity in this game ends. All games in the series suffer from this unfortunately, but just the sheer joy and excitement they provide while playing more than makes up for it.
Even compared to other entries in the series, I think the creativity with the different ships you can pick between is just right. They all cater to a different playstyle, while not just falling into some boring formula like you'd see with Cave games. Like in Dodonpachi, where you just have the straight shottypes, and the wide shottypes. With less or more bombs depending on which power lever you want. It's functional, but that's it and nothing more. Here all the ships are just right for each playstyle while also having unique and cool features.
Do you like sitting safe at the bottom of the screen? Pick Hayate. You can put options on screen that will stay in place for around 10 seconds and destroy and enemy that comes on screen.
Do you prefer a more tank-like ship? That's slow, but powerful and defensive? Pick Mosquito. You get missiles that pulverize any enemies that dary come near you. And if you're in trouble, you can use the best bomb in the game that clears bullet and provides with helper planes that will grant even more coverage long after you used a bomb.
Rather play something fast and agressive? Pick the Flying Pancake. While funny-looking, it's the most energetic and flashy ship. You get homing shots that will take care of any small fry, while you move all around the screen killing big enemies before they become a problem. Pancake played well is a sight to behold.
I could go on for all the other ships, but they all have cool features that give that little extra umph you can't get from more basic ship selection methods.
Scoring in this game is always balanced just right. No one trick or milk is going to ruin your run if you don't get it. Medal timing is an aquired taste, but the game allows for several more ways of increasing score. Being able to survival longer during bosses, stacking bombs and lifes for score bonusses, powering down strategically to summon more enemies in certain areas, just to name a few. There are even some glitches that really test your expertise on the second loop bosses, like getting a Double K.O. without losing your resources. This game has it all!
I wouldn't have minded if the presentation was more expressive and creative. While I love Psikyo's style of taking a seemingly normal aircraft and phase by phase turning it more into some intimidating mech, that's where most of the creativity in this game ends. All games in the series suffer from this unfortunately, but just the sheer joy and excitement they provide while playing more than makes up for it.
Let me tell y'all about my boy The Flying Pancake, they ain't no floppin' flapjack I'll tell ya what.
I'll always feel awful that I bounced off ESP Ra.De. as hard as I did, but I can't help but feel that the exact reason was because the theming didn't strike me that hard. Maybe if it had an experimental aircraft going by the name of "The Flying Pancake", an incredibly gritty guitar going off in it's OST, and cool fake photos of the wartime monstrosity bosses I was going after prior to the missions I would've seen the light.
The Strikers games I feel hit me in that exact sweet spot where it features military aircraft, but doesn't stick to realism to the point I'm begging for the aircraft carriers to at least pull out a photon cannon on me. I enjoy me some bits of legitimate history to go along with my crazy video game shenanigans once in a while, and I'm proud to say I instantly recognized the name of "Rommel" that the fortress stage boss used and had full knowledge that The Flying Pancake was a real airplane. Sometimes little nods like that which trigger your little brain remembering coils are very nice, even if it doesn't exactly walk straight up to you and give you the sharpest body blow to the right kidney.
I quite like this second game in the trilogy, even if it doesn't get quite as ridiculous as the first one introducing space alien crabs or the third one utilizing insects from another dimension, but at least the final boss is a giant cyborg ballsack. My only big takeaway is that some of the patterns are straight up too evil in the last third, and the sub-boss in the final stage's usage of the aforementioned photon cannon is way too much of an instantaneous "fuck you" even if it's goddamn hilarious the first time you inevitably die to it. The third one's second half is far harder though, at least in my recent marathon!
Recommend all three, but don't 1cc the first one otherwise you'll get swatted by the FBI.
I'll always feel awful that I bounced off ESP Ra.De. as hard as I did, but I can't help but feel that the exact reason was because the theming didn't strike me that hard. Maybe if it had an experimental aircraft going by the name of "The Flying Pancake", an incredibly gritty guitar going off in it's OST, and cool fake photos of the wartime monstrosity bosses I was going after prior to the missions I would've seen the light.
The Strikers games I feel hit me in that exact sweet spot where it features military aircraft, but doesn't stick to realism to the point I'm begging for the aircraft carriers to at least pull out a photon cannon on me. I enjoy me some bits of legitimate history to go along with my crazy video game shenanigans once in a while, and I'm proud to say I instantly recognized the name of "Rommel" that the fortress stage boss used and had full knowledge that The Flying Pancake was a real airplane. Sometimes little nods like that which trigger your little brain remembering coils are very nice, even if it doesn't exactly walk straight up to you and give you the sharpest body blow to the right kidney.
I quite like this second game in the trilogy, even if it doesn't get quite as ridiculous as the first one introducing space alien crabs or the third one utilizing insects from another dimension, but at least the final boss is a giant cyborg ballsack. My only big takeaway is that some of the patterns are straight up too evil in the last third, and the sub-boss in the final stage's usage of the aforementioned photon cannon is way too much of an instantaneous "fuck you" even if it's goddamn hilarious the first time you inevitably die to it. The third one's second half is far harder though, at least in my recent marathon!
Recommend all three, but don't 1cc the first one otherwise you'll get swatted by the FBI.
The way I feel about Strikers 1 and 2 is the same as how I feel about Gunbird 1 and 2: Even tho both sequels up the ante, they introduce cheap patterns and meter management mechanics that completely turn me off.