![]() There's one more game for me to check out from last month's Switch Online emulator update, and it's the singular NES game of the bunch. BACKGROUND:
This is another blind playthrough of a game I've never heard of before, so there's nothing to say here. SUMMARY: Special Cybernetic Attack Team is a shmup where you control a cyborg person and destroy shit to save the world (or something). It would seem that this isn't any different from other games in the genre, but there are quite a few things that set it apart. For one, you're controlling a person instead of a ship, which is rather uncommon for a shmup (for this time period, at least). Secondly, the movement of the game isn't locked, as the scrolling switches between horizontal and vertical perspectives regularly. In contrast, most other shmups are fixed to only one of these options (Gradius scrolls horizontally, while Ikaruga is vertical, for example). Next, you have a health bar, so you take more hits than the usual "die immediately" that's the usual standard for shmups. Lastly, you can aim behind you, which, again, is not a thing you can usually do in games like this. Though fundamentally the same to most other shmups, these elements come together to give the game a unique feel. I had a greater sense of control of the game, I thought controlling a person on a jetpack was cool, and I enjoyed how the levels constantly changed from horizontal to vertical according to the location. Other than the aforementioned differences, the game has all the usual shmup trappings. Various enemies with hectic attack patterns, power-ups that change up your primary attacks or heal you up, huge-ass bosses that take a lot of hits.... they're all here. There are a few interesting enemy designs and a couple of neat level mechanics here and there, but for the most part, it's pretty standard stuff. The sprites are decent, but given the volume of sci-fi games that came out for the NES that I've seen, the designs are nothing I haven't already seen in other games. I will say that the backgrounds are particularly well done, however. SUMMARY: As of this writing, there are four shmups on the NES Online emulator, and SCAT does enough to stand out from the iconic Gradius, the colorful TwinBee, and the decent Star Soldier. I liked all the things it did differently, even if the rest of the game is stuff I've already encountered elsewhere. Though I'd say Gradius is still the best place to start if you haven't played a shmup before, this game isn't a bad starting point, either. It's definitely much easier than the other shmups given its more lenient health system, so people who have difficulty with this genre may find this less daunting to get into. If you've played shmups before, the gameplay twists may not be enough to hold your interest for long. - end -
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June 2024
Derryck
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