DoDonPachi Dai-Oujou (Import)

THE GOOD:
Spectacular hard core flak evasion for the true shmup fan (or those who like pain). Excellent music in places. Endless replay.

THE BAD:
Missed chance with the explosions, short. Can seem unfair and insubstantial for a while (doesn't last).

SUMMARY:
Before I get into the meat, I think it best to explain where I am coming from, and why perhaps you should, or shouldn't take note of what I say. Shmups would be, and always have been since R-type and Salamander, my favourite genre, whilst the former would also be my favourite videogame franchise of all time. I also prefer the horizontally moving variety to the vertical, because the addition of landscape affects gameplay greatly, being both another obstacle for death and interaction, as well as setting up another level of traps and tactics to make/avoid. Having said this, even an average vertically moving game such as Raiden 2 can offer welcome relief from the...