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In ASCII's R-Types collection, you get two classic 16-bit shooters, R-Type and R-Type II. Kindly, both games let you enter as many "coins" as you want, for endless continues, which you'll surely need. Simply getting past the first level is a challenge, and anyone who can witness the end of either of these games can truly consider himself a hard-core gamer. Pixel for pixel, the games are faithful reproductions of the originals, with extra enhancements thrown in for good measure. As usual with the R-Type control setup, there's a rapid-fire button (presumably to save your thumbs) and a single-fire button, which can be held down longer to charge up a power shot. Lastly, there's something called the force button, which lets you summon or release your force ball once you've attained it by destroying the appropriate enemy. The force ball is the great equalizer in R-Types, as it acts as both an independent satellite when released and a partial shield that absorbs enemy shots. Throughout the game are other power-ups that increase your speed, add missile-firing capabilities, power up your force ball, and equip you with shields. Good thing, because you'll need everything you can get. Should you get blown out of the sky (and you will), you won't continue as you would in other shooters. Instead, whenever you die, you must restart from the beginning of whatever section you were playing, making the challenge even harder than usual. This is the true definition of hard-core. For greater success, try playing with a friend.
As far as appearances go, this R-Type collection does no one any favors. It came from the old school and it looks old school. A nicely rendered CG intro aside, this is as basic as you get. Fortunately, there are some additions for the R-Type fan, such as a history chart, ship details, and schematics. There's even a polygonal gallery of all the ships in R-Types.
The downside is that, aside from R-Type fans, the casual gamer might find this game too hard and with not enough reward. For the collector, this is simply OK. Sadly missing is the inclusion of the Super Nintendo classic, Super R-Type. Surely there was enough space on the CD, no? In any case, while thin on the options (Dual-Shock compatibility not withstanding), R-Types offers plenty of gaming time, considering the sheer difficulty. For gamers less enamored of the past, you'll definitely want to rent before you buy. Those very same gamers may want to skip the process entirely and wait, instead, for the upcoming R-Type Delta, to be published by ASCII later this year. --James Mielke
--Copyright ©1999 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited. GameSpot and the GameSpot logo are trademarks of GameSpot Inc.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Greatest Shooter of All Time,
By A Customer
= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars
This review is from: R-Types (Video Game)
Though I missed R-Type in the arcade, the R-Types compilation is definitely the best game I've played in the past 8 years, stomping flat all competition, from RPG super-cult-favorite Chrono Trigger, to NES classics like Legend of Zelda and Ninja Gaiden (yeah, I missed those when I was younger but am catching up with the used game market), to multimillion dollar budgeted games like Metal Gear Solid, to pop cultural phenomena like Pokemon. Every game was left it in its wake. If I could only have bought one game over the past few years, and that game was R-Types, it would be satisfying. Not only has it reminded me of why I started becoming a gamer to begin with, easily harkening back to old classics like Super Mario Bros. and Crystalis (though, after playing more SMB lately, I would say R-Type has aged much better than SMB, actually. Granted I haven't owned R-Type as long, but it is nearly as old). Prior to playing R-Type I hadn't played too many space shooters, despite playing a wide variety of other games. This wasn't because I wasn't interested, I suppose, although the systems I had, the NES and SNES, weren't as much shooter systems as the systems I didn't own. But my purchase of R-Types, partially a bargin impulse buy, partially bought because of good word of mouth, partially bought because of some fondness of mine for arcade compilations, totally changed my view of games and has influenced me to pick up other games faster than I would have otherwise. Axelay for the Super NES, Einhander for the Playstation, Thunderforce 4 for the Genesis - all these and more I bought because R-Types influenced me to look for other games of its style and quality. I even bought R-Type Delta the week it was released due to a fever pitch of excitement over the prospect of buying the sequel to the game which has set off a renaissance of gaming of sorts for me. But, keep this mind, none of the games that I was inspired to buy after playing R-Types has exhibited the impeccible degree of perfection that R-Types exemplifies. As for the game itself, R-Types is almost certainly the hardest game I've ever played, and this challenge is derived from the canny level design. You'll need to master every aspect of your ship to finish this game. Though early levels require a bit of memorization of enemy patterns, higher levels have all sorts of challenges, including the final boss of R-Type, which is based on pure reflexes, concentration and skill as enemies pour in from all sides, to the stage 4 boss of R-type 2, which is a fast scrolling, action-packed chase, to the final stage of R-Type 2, which requires moving your ship through the tighest of spaces, and doing elaborate manoeuvres with your pod. Other stages are just plain cool, such as the assault against a massive mothership. For these reasons and more, I consider R-Types to be unquestionably one of the very greatest games of all time.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Classic.,
= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
This review is from: R-Types (Video Game)
I loved R-Type in the arcade when I was in college, so the chance to play both versions as much as I wanted was impossible to resist.
The variety of impressive weapons and ship add-ons is one of the things that makes this game so fun. The variety and complexity of the levels, and the bosses, are also a blast. This is one of my favorite games of all time... and a PS1 Classic must have for any collector, or just anyone who wants a good old fashioned side-scrolling shoot-em-up.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pure Video Game Perfection!,
= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
This review is from: R-Types (Video Game)
Video games are not made this good anymore.
"R-type" (1987) is eight levels of shoot-em-up fun. If you have never played this game before you will be amazed at its level of difficulty. Luckily, the beautiful graphic, awesome music and addictive game play make starting over, over and over agian more digestible. "R-type II" (1990) offers six levels of shooting entertainment. Three new powers ups have been added and your main beam weapon's capability has been increased. This a must have collection if you can still find a copy. To play these games in their orginal arcade version is a dream come true. There have been other R-type games, but none of them have reached the level of perfection of the first two games.
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