GameSpot editors' review
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CNET editors' rating:
stars
Excellent
Detailed editors' rating
- Reviewed on: 11/12/2007
- Released on: 11/05/2007
- Originally published on GameSpot: Alien Soldier (Wii) Review
For Megadrive (aka Sega Genesis) owners living in Japan or Europe, Alien Soldier was their last hurrah before the 16-bit consoles gave way to the 32-bit Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation. And what a hurrah it was: a visually intense 2D action game made up almost entirely of boss battles. Sadly, players in North America weren't invited to the party. Now, some 12 years later, however, Sega has taken the necessary steps to correct that oversight by making Alien Soldier available as a download for the Wii's Virtual Console service.
Each of the game's 25 stages consists of a short area populated with scrubby enemies, followed by a set piece encounter with a large, often multisegmented beast that has multiple attacks and a massive health meter. The side-scrolling environments are lush and throw out every visual effect in the Genesis console's book of tricks. But you'll probably be too busy admiring (and fighting) the menagerie of mechanical or mutant spiders, birds, lobsters, and other monstrosities to gawk at the scenery. Meanwhile, the soundtrack for this intense trip consists of a bunch of high-tech sound effects, some encouraging vocal comments, and pulsing music similar in style to what Treasure, the game's developer, concocted for another seminal 16-bit thrill ride: Gunstar Heroes.
The Japanese version's title screen said it best: Now is time to the 68000 heart on fire.
Epsilon-Eagle is the name given to your birdlike hero. He can run, jump, hover in place, teleport across the screen, and make use of six different guns. You can only cycle through four of them at any given time, but you get to choose which four you want before the game starts. When your health is full, you can also press down+C to fly across the screen in a deliciously deadly burst of fire known as the "Phoenix Force." It takes a little time to adjust to the controls because you have to double-tap the buttons to switch weapons, hover, and make use of the counter ability. However, they soon become second nature. The Wii Remote works just fine, though you may want to use the Classic Controller if you're not comfortable tapping the A button--which is right next to the D pad--to change weapons.
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