I don’t know how many of you remember video rental stores like Blockbuster and Hollywood video. But they were awesome. At a time where new games cost $50-$80 for a few bucks you got to spend a weekend with the latest games. Ideally. In reality the best games were scooped up quick leaving the scraps. While most had the common sense to avoid crap like Home Alone or Crystal’s Pony Tale when you’re hard up for entertainment anything will suffice. Strike Gunner: S.T.G. was one such unfortunate rental. It isn’t as bad as the previously mentioned titles but within an hour I was done with it and felt like I wasted my money. The worst crime a game can commit aside from being terrible is to be boring and Strike Gunner does both.
The game’s story is kind of funny in retrospect. In 2008 Earth has dismantled all of its nuclear weapons. While this brings an era of peace it also leaves us vulnerable. When aliens invade the Earth’s fate is left in the hands of the experimental Strike Gunner aircraft. Ah yes, the distant year of 2008. Obviously things didn’t pan out the way the developers had hoped. At least Strike Gunner was more optimistic than Street Fighter 2010.
Strike Gunner has the same weapon setup as Super Earth Defense Force. There are 15 weapons in total as the home port expands on the arcade. Once a weapon has been used once it is unavailable for the rest of the game. The usual suspects such as a laser beam and homing missiles are covered but there are a number of creative weapons in the bunch. The anti-air mines are small but explode on contact, inflicting further damage in the process. The Sonic Wave is your typical wave beam except it can destroy bullets here. Depending on the weapon the special meter depletes differently. The megabeam cannon uses up the entire bar while homing missiles can be spammed almost endlessly. I like the system overall and it is the most interesting aspect of the game.
And that is the problem. The weapon system deserves to be in a better game. Strike Gunner isn’t bad so much as it is boring. The game is very routine and predictable when it comes to its enemy waves. When a group spawns from the left another will come from the right like clockwork. The game rarely deviates and is predictable as a result. It continues like this for almost the entirety of the game too. It picks up somewhat once you head into space but only slightly. The meandering pace will probably kill any enthusiasm you might have had to even bother seeing this through to the end.
The game’s length is also an issue. At eight stages this was already long for a shooter. But for whatever reason the levels were made longer for the home release. It makes an already rote game even more of a grind. Fighting the same three or four enemies in stages that last close to seven or eight levels is mind numbingly boring. I suppose the expanded weapon set is supposed to be incentive to go back and play the game again. But honestly I can’t see anyone bothering.
The difficulty is very uneven. Obviously your choice of special weapon plays a factor but the majority of the game is dead simple due to the slow pacing. For the first half the enemy waves are slow and measured and you can even predict when they’ll come. Once you reach space they appear in greater number and attack more “aggressively”. The boss battles are uneven, with some following the most rudimentary pattern while others possess elements that result in cheap deaths. There are five difficulty levels and if you want even a basic challenge you’ll have to use the highest setting. My advice: don’t bother. It’s not as if this becomes a more exciting game.
The lazy production values won’t entice you into playing the game either. The UI for both players takes up a portion of the left and right sides of the screen. It makes the playing field even smaller. The backgrounds are incredibly repetitive and lack detail. The drab forest backdrop lasts nearly two levels before there is a change in scenery. The game uses very few colors and is bland to look at. At least there isn’t any slowdown but I’ll give you two guesses as to why.
In Closing
Strike Gunner: S.T.G is far from the worst shooter on the system. But it is also only average. A good weapon system can’t help it rise above mediocrity. There is a reason why the game is all but forgotten today.
