Blade Eagle 3-D
System: SMS
Release Date: September 1988
Developer: Sega
Publisher: Sega
Genre: Shoot ‘em Up
Sega really wanted to push its 3D technology, so here’s Blade Eagle 3-D with another try. I’ll preface this with the admission that I’m sure the 3-D games don’t emulate properly. As in, I’m hoping that the goggles made it so you could differentiate the different planes that exist in these games. I’ve asked people that actually had the Master System back in the day, so hopefully I’ll get an answer.
You’re the last ship in the BLADE fleet after a surprise attack by the war-loving Arvians. It’s up to you to destroy an entire planet worth of bad guys single-handedly. Button 2 fires your lasers, which you want to be doing a lot. Button 1 switches your Z-plane from high altitude to low altitude and vice versa. You have to be on the same plane as your enemies to kill them, but some enemies can shoot between planes, which is bad for you!
Throughout the levels, there are bosses that you can kill to earn either a weapon powerup or a shadow. You can hold up to two shadows (options) at once and if you get hit, you become one of them, so also think of them as extra hits you can absorb. The weapon starts out as a little bullet, but the first upgrade turns it into a twin shot. If you’re lucky enough for another weapon powerup, you get a laser beam, which shoots through enemies, so can take out lines. The final powerup is the particle beam, which is a wide laser. This is the most powerful weapon.
Graphics: 1.0
The graphics are pretty poor, not much detail anywhere.
Sound: 1.0
Music and sound are below average.
Gameplay: 1.0
Switching between the Z-axis is the main gameplay element. It doesn’t work really well in practice.
Difficulty: 1.0
I’m hoping the 3-D goggles would have made it easier to differentiate between the planes.
Fun Factor: 1.0
I got over this one really quickly. It didn’t hold my attention for long.
Overall Grade: 1.0
Blade Eagle 3-D earns a D. I wouldn’t recommend playing this one, move along.