I normally hate the "Space-Harrier" subgenre of shoot-em-ups but this one hit different. The grind to getting good at it felt right, and I was able to clear it on hard difficulty with just enough struggle for it to have felt like a real accomplishment.

The music is good, but has some repetitive notes, the designs make good use of the Mega Drive's abilities, but by the same coin feel like they want to burst free from those limitations, making this version feel like it's missing that special something visually.

The primary reason it isn't rated higher is the lack of variety and impact in enemy design and placement. The most interesting levels have two enemy designs unique to them in function and appearance, but the remainder are flooded with the same turrets and ships that you've been dodging since planet one, and you can feel the drag created by that repetition. Once combined with the nothing of a final level / enemy encounter, the game wastes it's otherwise high stakes and frenetic pacing.

It has some perspective jank, some drawbacks, but outside of Star Fox, this has been my favorite shmup in this style thus far. I'd still recommend it, especially to folks who want to love the subgenre but haven't found their fit yet.