This game was only ported to one Japan-only system that wasn't exactly a household name back in the day. So seeing it show up here on Steam was long overdue. Like Bit Wave's other ports, this game is a solid port that started life a bit rough. The gameplay was like the arcade, as were the visuals, but the audio was... not good. The music felt harsh and unbalanced volume-wise, but the patch as of April 18, 2024 has made the audio much better. The music is far closer to the arcade now, fixing the main area this port needed work on.
The game itself is typical Toaplan quality. Great visuals for the time, catchy music, solid controls and a tough challenge. The stages are longer than the typical shmup, taking 5-7 minutes to get through them. Along the way, you'll have enemies that get more aggressive as the game progresses, and they'll come at you from all sides at times. You've got a bomb to drop to clear the screen of weaker enemies and bullets, and there are three weapons to choose from and powerup. The bosses offer up a good challenge, and they're able to be picked apart, which leads to variations of their attacks as you destroy those areas. And to top it all off, the longer you stay alive without losing a ship, the harder the game will get (gradually, more bullets are fired from everything, and those bullets move faster).
As for the extras, what you got in the other 15 Toaplan ports by Bit Wave, is what you get here. A rewind feature, a sound test for the music and SFX, a save feature, difficulty select, region select, various pixel aspect ratios, screen rotation, windowed/fullscreen modes, assistance features (like rapid fire speeds, hitbox visibility, health options, etc.)... there's a lot to play with. And like the other 15 Toaplan shmups that Bit Wave ported, having ways to make the game easier if you're new to Toaplan's brand of shmups, is something that's welcome.
In the end, if you like quality shmups that offer a good challenge, get this game (and the other 15 in the Bit Wave set). It was made by one of the masters of the craft back in the day, and it's now been ported well to Steam.
