Retro Games
Lightning Swords, known in Japan as Ken-Go, is an action arcade game released in 1991. During a desperate flight through feudal Japan, a young princess is hunted down and brutally slain. The samurai Blue Dragon arrives just in time to witness it, but too late to save her, and sets out on a path of vengeance.
Curse is a side-scrolling shoot ‘em up released in 1989 for the Sega Genesis. In a distant alien solar system, two planets lived in harmony for centuries, until one of them mysteriously fell silent. Your mission is to investigate what happened and restore order.
Ginga Fukei Densetsu Sapphire is a vertical-scrolling shoot ‘em up released in 1995 for the PC Engine Arcade CD-ROM². Set in the year 2092, your mission is to travel through time to investigate and eliminate a dangerous terrorist who moves through different historical periods committing crimes.
Trouble Shooter, known as Battle Mania in Japan, is a shoot ‘em up released in 1991 for the Sega Genesis. A pair of young heroines are called upon to rescue the prince, who has been kidnapped by a wicked and powerful villainess.
Scramble is the pioneering title that laid the groundwork for the horizontal scrolling shoot ‘em up genre in arcades. Among its many ports, we put together a comparison of the most notable versions released for the Commodore 64, showcasing the system’s technical capabilities.
Steam-Heart’s is a shoot ‘em up game released in 1998 for the Sega Saturn. The young adventurer protagonist is naturally immune to the virus ravaging the world. His mission is to transfer his antibodies to save humanity and take down those responsible.
God-Fighter Zeroigar is a 2D vertical-scrolling shoot ‘em up game released in 1997 for the PC-FX. After Emperor Zemu spreads destruction across multiple planets throughout the universe, a remorseful scientist creates a robot to give humanity one last chance to fight back.
Spriggan Powered is a 2D side-scrolling shoot ‘em up game released in 1996 for the Super Nintendo. What sets it apart is its use of pre-rendered graphics, similar to those used in Donkey Kong Country. Because it was released late in the console’s lifecycle, it was able to take full advantage of the Super Nintendo’s technical capabilities. It was the third game in the Spriggan franchise trilogy, though it has no connection to the previous titles.
Armalyte: The Final Run is a side-scrolling shoot ‘em up game released in 1991 for the Commodore Amiga computer. Aliens are invading and conquering planets across the galaxy. The people of Earth, fearing they’ll be the next target, launch a preemptive strike that gets defeated, leaving only one survivor. You become humanity’s last hope to stop them from reaching our planet.
