Ikaruga is probably the best shmup ever. It is stunningly well made. It is a near-perfect shooter. It is also unbelievably hard. All the mechanics are intertwined, and the level design is orchestrated with striking precision. There is a symmetry to it that is hypnotic and possessive. It is an elegant, mesmerizing, and grueling game. It actually kind of terrifies me. It makes most other shmups-no, most other games pale in comparison.

This game starts out feeling like one of the most difficult games I've ever played. It feels like they were trying everything in their power to push the Genesis controller to its limit. And you know what? It melts. It melts SO hard. It takes a while to get used to it, but it truly is a sublime action game, with a soundtrack that truly owns bones, some of the best music on the Genesis. God, this absolutely melts.

The first Treasure game I played. It's quite an introduction to the team, loaded with a lot of the classic Treasure stylings. The controls are a little funky if you're not playing on an N64 controller (I first played it on the VC). But it's an absolute romp from start to finish. Super awesome soundtrack, too! I have a special attachment to this one because of my history with it.

Silhouette Mirage is just so unrelentingly Treasure. It's so weird and creative and goofy. The writing is silly, the plot is absurd, the art is cartoonish, the design is constantly inventive. It's a kind of mechanics soup; there are so many mechanics and systems in this game that it's kind of overwhelming. Is it elegant? No. Can I see why someone would dislike it? Sure. Do I love it anyway? Absolutely. It's just so ambitious and creative. But most of all, the game is just fun. The game is just unbelievably, aggressively, and consistently FUN. What an absolute joy.

The FIRST GAME these folks made is also one of the best games on the Genesis. Even though it's their first game, you can already see many of their tropes show up. Epic bosses, corny story, a rival character, a surprisingly sad ending, it's all here! A truly consummate run'n'gun, a benchmark of the genre.

One of Treasure's most ingenious games, Mischief Makers is entirely focused on throwing. There's an extremely small set of verbs in this game: jumping, dashing, grabbing, and throwing. Yet it constantly manages to surprise you and totally recontextualize those actions through great level design and killer boss battles. Brilliant game!

Radiant Silvergun is probably too long, too complex, and too difficult for its own good. I like it anyway. You can see where Ikaruga started here. I love a lot of the ideas in this game, like destructible bosses and the lack of power-ups in exchange for the weapon scheme. It's also loaded with cool boss fights. Incredible soundtrack, too! This game is absolutely brutal, though. It's just going to be impossible for many people on standard difficulties. Its difficulty is its biggest flaw by far, but I suppose that’s what you’re signing up for.

Bangai-O Spirits is a great follow up to Bangai-O, adding new mechanics and really honing in on what made the first game great. The problem is that, by focusing on the more puzzle-y, problem-solve-y aspects of the game, the game lacks a good build up to that that can leave new players feeling without a paddle. An incredibly cool game, that I enjoy more than the first, but I really recommend playing it after Bangai-O!

decapattack whomst

Pretty good! It's mostly just an evolution of the first game. I probably would have liked it more had I not played it so soon after the original. There's less big bombastic moments until the back half and a few lackluster sections. It doesn't really add anything worth writing home about; full of cool expansions of the first. EXCEPT FOR RED, who is GOOD and i LOVE her.

Bangai-O kinda feels like a game that shouldn't exist. It's a hyper-niche style of game, that combining bullet hell with mazes. It's really cool and strange, but I'm mostly kinda baffled it exists.

This a weird one, and the controls are a little awkward, but I think once you get past them, this is a really cool boss rush game with a lot of neat ideas and a really unique style.

Very old school, and probably too hard, but damn it, it's Gradius, it's just sick.

Sorta interesting to see them take on the Wario Land formula, make it 3D, and still manage to pretty much nail it

An evolution of Buster's Bad Dream, this game is far more polished and interesting. A cool and fun take on a beat-em-up. Other people like this game a lot more than me, so more power to them. It gets pretty wacky by the end, tying all of Tezuka's universe together.

Guardian Heroes is a fun but messy sidescrolling beat-'em-up. There are multiple playable characters, unlockable ones too, with their own unique move sets. There's a magic system and a LOAD of branching paths for multiple playthroughs! The combat system is wickedly complex, but unfortunately, I think enemy design can be frustrating, as it often results in long periods of blocking or chip damage. Maybe I'm just bad at it!

Cute arena fighter! Dodgeball doodle time! Marina is in it! I wasn't able to play with anyone, but I bet it would be really fun with friends.

Basically a more complex and more anime version of Punch Out. Some of the mechanics aren't conveyed very well, but goddamn are some of these fights tense.

This game is probably the most distinctive of all the Treasure games, partially because it is so run of the mill on the surface. It's a pretty standard dungeon crawler aesthetically, but it has the addition of a weird physics system and a combinatorial magic system. It seems to go off the rails in back half, too. Some cool boss designs, and decent puzzles, but the combat is a little frustrating.

It's okay, but the slowdown can be unforgivable, and its sort of repetitive.

Even Treasure's licensed games that seem like they would be throwaway trash have something interesting going on. It would be more fun if it wasn't so repetitive. Essentially, it's a prelude to Astro Boy: Omega Factor, a much better game.

Treasure's worst game is..... completely average. Anyway FUCK RONALD MCDONALD

It seems like a good fighter, but I don't know enough about them. I don't know about Bleach either. So I'm withholding opinion on where this ranks (hence why it's at the end).

As above, I don't really play fighting games, nor have I watched much Yuu Yuu Hakusho, so I don't really feel qualified to talk about whether this is good (which is why it's at the end).