Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Best Selling in Video Games
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I purchased this title last year shortly after coming into a 2-slot MVS and was impressed. There were approximately one gajillion side-scrolling shmups (that sit the PC in the cockpit of some Star Wars-ish aircraft) that were released into the world's arcades from the very early eighties until present. Having played hundreds of them, I have discovered what is and what isn't desirable in one of these button-mashers, and this is what I came up with for Blazing Star: Graphics: Excellent. This is no doubt due to its year of release and the graphical advances made at that point, but it seems like the developers went beyond the call of duty in theming the game in classic anime fashion. The frame rate holds well throughout the entire game and lends to the superb fluidity of the animation therein. There are prettier games of this genre, but not many for the MVS. Gameplay: Good. There is no issue with responsiveness, but I do take issue with one of the game mechanics. There are letters that appear every once and again when an enemy vessel is obliterated, and they spell "Lucky" after you've collected them all on a given level. Very Japanese, yes, but to what end does one collect these letters? As nearly as I can tell, there is no bonus, but reports have been flooding in about players feeling a little luckier in their daily interactions with others...whatever that means! In spite of the "lucky" thing, the bonuses and power-ups are pretty cool, and by "pretty cool" I mean that once any given ship is fully powered up, it is damn hard to die (at least until the final stage). Fun: This title is super-fun, but is fun squared in multiplayer mode. I guess that's just the essence of arcade games; they are good when you're alone, but a blast when you've got good company developing carpel tunnel syndrome right beside you!Read full review