I can see how this game has shaped an entire genre and laid the groundwork for a lot of the games I love. Coming to this in 2022, and after just playing dread, it's surprising just how well this holds up.
The movement feels great in comparison to a lot of its contemporaries, and the shooting and combat is still enjoyable. The bosses are great and the overall game design is still one of the finest of its genre. In comparison to dread, I love the open, hands-off approach this game takes to progression. There is a lot of exploring and trial and error, which puts more onus on the player and feels more rewarding.
The exploration focus also puts a spotlight on the excellent atmosphere, music, sound, and visual design that this experience offers. This is one of the best-looking games on the SNES and the environments all feel unique and interesting even today.
The only thing I can even say badly of this game is the unintuitive wall-jump controls, but it's never really necessary to master so even that isn't too important.
The movement feels great in comparison to a lot of its contemporaries, and the shooting and combat is still enjoyable. The bosses are great and the overall game design is still one of the finest of its genre. In comparison to dread, I love the open, hands-off approach this game takes to progression. There is a lot of exploring and trial and error, which puts more onus on the player and feels more rewarding.
The exploration focus also puts a spotlight on the excellent atmosphere, music, sound, and visual design that this experience offers. This is one of the best-looking games on the SNES and the environments all feel unique and interesting even today.
The only thing I can even say badly of this game is the unintuitive wall-jump controls, but it's never really necessary to master so even that isn't too important.