Gunstar Super Heroes
- Sequel to Gunstar Heroes, the critically acclaimed 2D game
Rating: 5 of 5
Treasure! I Love You!
This game rocks. Its not as good as its Sega console big brother but its still on of the best 2D portable games. This game is developed by a independant Japanese developer named Treasure that is know 4 hard-core shooters with extreme difficulty. This game lives up 2 the reputation. Its hard, but will still have you crawling back 4 more. The bright colorful graphics are great & the sound is top notch. Control are tight wich is a must have 4 these games. This game finds its way into my DS alot even though Ive beat it at least a hundred times. Any fans of Contra out there just go ahead & buy this game now. Its money well spent.
Rating: 4 of 5
Unsung Heroes
In the 90's gaming companies Treasure & Sega created "Gunstar Heroes," a superb but low-key title 4 the 16-bit Sega Genesis. Now both companies are at it again with "Gunstar Super Heroes," the part-sequel/part-remake of the cult classic, 4 the GBA.
You play as either Red or Blue, two different warriors with basically the same techniques & weaponry. With the help of pretty assistant Yellow, you must stop the nefarious General Gray from unleashing an unspeakable evil. While this game obviously doesn't have a flair 4 names, the story is more interesting with each level of difficulty. While it seems like your average sidescrolling shoot 'em up, reminiscent of titles like "Metal Slug" & "R-Type," the challenges players face in GSH range from the fairly easy 2 the freakishly hard. So you have the option of either lowering the difficulty or skipping levels. But with only 6 levels of play (2 which are inaccessible through skipping), there isn't much 2 skip in this game. Bottom line: if you're a gamer who's easily frustrated, forget it!
Aside from the 3 inexhaustible weapons at your disposal, you can raise their firepower with the R button & perform fighting moves with the D-Pad & jump button, adding some alternatives 2 simply holding the shoot button. But besides that, not much else is added, not even the two-player co-op mode that came real handy in the original game. But what is probably GSH's biggest setback is that not many players bought the game despite the rave reviews, condemning it 2 the same fate as its predecessor. So if by any chance you still own a GBA & you come across this game, grab it! You will thank yourself later.
This game is rated E10+ 4 ages 10 & up: Violence.
You play as either Red or Blue, two different warriors with basically the same techniques & weaponry. With the help of pretty assistant Yellow, you must stop the nefarious General Gray from unleashing an unspeakable evil. While this game obviously doesn't have a flair 4 names, the story is more interesting with each level of difficulty. While it seems like your average sidescrolling shoot 'em up, reminiscent of titles like "Metal Slug" & "R-Type," the challenges players face in GSH range from the fairly easy 2 the freakishly hard. So you have the option of either lowering the difficulty or skipping levels. But with only 6 levels of play (2 which are inaccessible through skipping), there isn't much 2 skip in this game. Bottom line: if you're a gamer who's easily frustrated, forget it!
Aside from the 3 inexhaustible weapons at your disposal, you can raise their firepower with the R button & perform fighting moves with the D-Pad & jump button, adding some alternatives 2 simply holding the shoot button. But besides that, not much else is added, not even the two-player co-op mode that came real handy in the original game. But what is probably GSH's biggest setback is that not many players bought the game despite the rave reviews, condemning it 2 the same fate as its predecessor. So if by any chance you still own a GBA & you come across this game, grab it! You will thank yourself later.
This game is rated E10+ 4 ages 10 & up: Violence.
Rating: 5 of 5
Another Treasure Gem
This is a sort of single player remix of the seminal Gunstar Heroes 4 the Sega Genesis (recently re-released on the Wii's Virtual Console). Every real gamer should give this a shot just 2 see what these guys managed 2 do on the GBA hardware. The original Gunstar Heroes made a big splash because Treasure managed 2 do in software what the SNES was doing in hardware - massive sprite rotation & scaling with no framerate hit. With the GBA's beefed up processor & hardware routines, these guys really go wild - massive pseudo-3d full-screen bosses, super-fast scrolling, highspeed chase fights from the top of an airplane - the action is blistering & non-stop. Aside from being single player only, fans of the old game may be slightly disappointed in the new weapons system, as they have dropped the old random, combo-based system 4 a fixed selection of 3 weapons, a la Contra: Shattered Soldier. However, this change does not really hurt the game much; it's still a blast 2 slide, kick, shoot, punch, & jump through the widest variety of environments & gameplay that have ever been smushed into the shooter format.
Rating: 4 of 5
Great if you have the gameboy adapter 4 Gamecube
It would receive a 5 out of 5 if the hand held play felt as good as playing it on the adapter. The 360 degree shooting is less fun with a directional pad.
Rating: 5 of 5
The greatest game of 12 years ago finally gets a sequel...
In 1993, disatisfied game programmers from companies like Konami grew tired of making endless sequels & being told what 2 do. These programmers split off into the independant developer known as "Treasure" & 4 a while became a 2nd party developer 4 Sega.
Using what they learned as programmers & the freedom 2 create whatever they wanted 2 without being tied down by the wishes of some corporation they spawned Gunstar Heroes, a Contra clone with 500 times the fun & 1000 times the sheer awesomeness. They bent the Genesis hardware 2 their will,doing things like 3D rendering which people said were impossible on the genesis & creating the smoothest, funnest gameplay 2 grace the system, all while giving the game a sketchy sense of humor that would become their trademark. The original Gunstar Heroes became one of the greatest games of all time, however it was unfortunately a sleeper played by few & worshipped by the hardest of the hardcore.
A dozen years & dozens of original twists on oldschool, hardcore, gameplay later & Treasure has become the hardcore gamer's company, offering original features & excellent gameplay in old style games. Orginally they planned 2 release their first sequel ever, a new Gunstar Heroes 4 their tenth anniversary. Unfortunately the game was pushed back & a sequel 2 their Saturn Game "Guardian Heroes" came first & it's now their twelth anniversary.
In any case, "Gunstar Super Heroes" is the long overdue sequel 2 Treasure's first game, Gunstar Heroes. The game takes place in the future of the original, the moon which was destroyed in the original game is now split into four different moons (which become the game's four main levels). General Gray, or a decendent of the original General Gray, has returned 2 once again try 2 resurrect the God of Ruin, Golden Silver, & destroy the Earth 4 their Tyrrany against the four moons & 2 accomplish this goal he's built a fifth artificial moon & recruited who are generally the same boss characters from the original game. It's up 2 the new generation of Gunstar's Red & Blue, the Gunstar Super Heroes, 2 stop them.
The gameplay is simple run & gun action but the control is so tight & fantastic, like the original game, that you just can't stop playing. Thought not as wide open as the original there's still so much carnage going on at any given time that it's almost unbelievable, but then again this is a Treasure game (Bangai-O anyone?). The two characters play generally the same & instead of the weapons system from the first game you have three set weapons. The only difference being one unique weapon 4 each character which are almost the same weapon anyway. Although the original Gunstar Heroes' weapon system simply rocked, these set weapon armaments work well enough. All the melee attacks are intact including the slide however the throw has been replaced with a Metal Slug style knifeing. As an added bonus each weapon has super attacks which aren't neccessary but are a blast 2 use & make the bosses a bit easier. Sometimes the game will also derail completely (in a good, WarioWare esque way) & it will have you different tasks that keeps things fresh & keeps you awake. Some of these segments are genius & some of them are barely passable however.
I didn't even mention the graphics yet which are downright spectacular. Every trick in the book of 2D has been used here & even some 3D. The GBA is truly pushed 2 its limits without going over them, something that Treasure is a master at doing. The bosses are big & are built out of multiple sprites, including the return of the incredible Seven Force battle from the first game which is worth the price of this cartridge alone.
Unfortunately the game is short like the original, & it even feels shorter but that's a good thing or it would risk becomming monotonous like Alien Hominid (Awesome game but it's so long 4 a shooter of its type). This really doesn't effect the longevity as you'll definately play it again & again & Treasure realized they were making this game 4 an "on the run" portable experience. Hardcore gamers will certainly not rest until they've mastered all the difficulty levels with both cahracters. This brings me 2 a major problem, lack of multiplayer support. Part of the fun of the original game was tackling it with a friend but I suppose the screen is so small & busy that a two player mode might've been detrimental.
In conclusion this is one of the funnest games on the Game Boy Advance & definately the best shooter in years. It's Gunstar Heroes, what else can I say that would be higher praise than that? It's not as good or as classic as the original but some of the fun has rubbed off & statically clinged itself into this little cartridge. This whole review could be summed up in two words 4 the Hardcore Gamer... "GUNSTAR HEROES."
Buy it, play it, Treasure it.
Using what they learned as programmers & the freedom 2 create whatever they wanted 2 without being tied down by the wishes of some corporation they spawned Gunstar Heroes, a Contra clone with 500 times the fun & 1000 times the sheer awesomeness. They bent the Genesis hardware 2 their will,doing things like 3D rendering which people said were impossible on the genesis & creating the smoothest, funnest gameplay 2 grace the system, all while giving the game a sketchy sense of humor that would become their trademark. The original Gunstar Heroes became one of the greatest games of all time, however it was unfortunately a sleeper played by few & worshipped by the hardest of the hardcore.
A dozen years & dozens of original twists on oldschool, hardcore, gameplay later & Treasure has become the hardcore gamer's company, offering original features & excellent gameplay in old style games. Orginally they planned 2 release their first sequel ever, a new Gunstar Heroes 4 their tenth anniversary. Unfortunately the game was pushed back & a sequel 2 their Saturn Game "Guardian Heroes" came first & it's now their twelth anniversary.
In any case, "Gunstar Super Heroes" is the long overdue sequel 2 Treasure's first game, Gunstar Heroes. The game takes place in the future of the original, the moon which was destroyed in the original game is now split into four different moons (which become the game's four main levels). General Gray, or a decendent of the original General Gray, has returned 2 once again try 2 resurrect the God of Ruin, Golden Silver, & destroy the Earth 4 their Tyrrany against the four moons & 2 accomplish this goal he's built a fifth artificial moon & recruited who are generally the same boss characters from the original game. It's up 2 the new generation of Gunstar's Red & Blue, the Gunstar Super Heroes, 2 stop them.
The gameplay is simple run & gun action but the control is so tight & fantastic, like the original game, that you just can't stop playing. Thought not as wide open as the original there's still so much carnage going on at any given time that it's almost unbelievable, but then again this is a Treasure game (Bangai-O anyone?). The two characters play generally the same & instead of the weapons system from the first game you have three set weapons. The only difference being one unique weapon 4 each character which are almost the same weapon anyway. Although the original Gunstar Heroes' weapon system simply rocked, these set weapon armaments work well enough. All the melee attacks are intact including the slide however the throw has been replaced with a Metal Slug style knifeing. As an added bonus each weapon has super attacks which aren't neccessary but are a blast 2 use & make the bosses a bit easier. Sometimes the game will also derail completely (in a good, WarioWare esque way) & it will have you different tasks that keeps things fresh & keeps you awake. Some of these segments are genius & some of them are barely passable however.
I didn't even mention the graphics yet which are downright spectacular. Every trick in the book of 2D has been used here & even some 3D. The GBA is truly pushed 2 its limits without going over them, something that Treasure is a master at doing. The bosses are big & are built out of multiple sprites, including the return of the incredible Seven Force battle from the first game which is worth the price of this cartridge alone.
Unfortunately the game is short like the original, & it even feels shorter but that's a good thing or it would risk becomming monotonous like Alien Hominid (Awesome game but it's so long 4 a shooter of its type). This really doesn't effect the longevity as you'll definately play it again & again & Treasure realized they were making this game 4 an "on the run" portable experience. Hardcore gamers will certainly not rest until they've mastered all the difficulty levels with both cahracters. This brings me 2 a major problem, lack of multiplayer support. Part of the fun of the original game was tackling it with a friend but I suppose the screen is so small & busy that a two player mode might've been detrimental.
In conclusion this is one of the funnest games on the Game Boy Advance & definately the best shooter in years. It's Gunstar Heroes, what else can I say that would be higher praise than that? It's not as good or as classic as the original but some of the fun has rubbed off & statically clinged itself into this little cartridge. This whole review could be summed up in two words 4 the Hardcore Gamer... "GUNSTAR HEROES."
Buy it, play it, Treasure it.
Gunstar Super Heroes is 2D action & adventure done right. The Gunstar world expands with all-new levels, bosses, & weapons. Take characters, Blue & Red, on different paths 2 reveal an incredible adventure story. Precision gunplay & brilliant visuals, & all-new levels, bosses, & weapons.
($11.01)
Buy Gunstar Super Heroes Now!
