Burai Fighter
System: NES
Release Date: March 1990
Developer: KID
Publisher: Taxan
Genre: Shoot ‘em Up
Get ready for some scrolling shoot ‘em up action with Burai Fighter! The super intelligent Burai race has been pumping out robo-mutants and are intent on taking over the universe. Equipped with a laser cannon and the ability to grab some special weapons, you must destroy seven bases of the Burai.
Choose from one of three difficulty levels to start and head into side scrolling action. Your weapon is activated with the B Button and shoots in the direction you’re moving. If you hold the B Button, you can change the direction of movement, but keep shooting where you started. To change the direction you’re shooting, you must release the B Button momentarily. This game wanted to be a twin stick shooter without twin sticks.
Killing enemies will often drop small red shards, which can be collected to give you the ability to drop a Cobalt Bomb, which destroys all enemies on screen. You can store up to seven at a time, which then allows you to get free guys by collecting even more. The Cobalt Bombs are worthless on bosses, so don’t waste them.
Scattered throughout the level are weapon and speed orbs. Orbs with an S on them will increase your speed, which, as always, is a blessing and a curse. Weapon orbs alternate between L for Laser, R for Ring, and M for Missile. You can collect up to 10 of each, seeing extra projectiles at levels 5 and 10. If you die, you start at level 0 for the weapon that was equipped at that moment. This can be a bit of an issue if you have collision issues as I occasionally did.
Levels 3 and 6 are a top down shooter. Enemies run at you, with a special enemy every few spawns that can be killed for a weapon orb. These are great places to level up all the weapons, as you seek out the base. At the end of the scrolling levels are bosses that soak up a lot of hits and require you to be precise with your shots. If you manage to defeat the final boss, you’re encouraged to play on Ace difficulty. This gives you a graphic ending and a message from legendary Goldeneye weapon, Ken Lobb to try Ultimate mode.
Graphics: 2.0
The graphics are alright. I didn’t notice any flickering that would make my life difficult. The backgrounds sometimes bugged me.
Sound: 2.5
The music and sounds are pretty decent, but the programmers didn’t get as much out of the system as they could have.
Gameplay: 2.5
Getting used to the aiming mechanic takes awhile, but at least you don’t lose all of your powerups when you die.
Difficulty: 3.0
It’s going to take a lot of memorization to get through this one. As long as you play conservatively, you should be fine.
Fun Factor: 2.5
I had a decent time playing and with more time may have taken the time to beat it on Ultimate.
Overall Grade: 2.5
Burai Fighter earns a B-. It’s an acceptable game that you could get away with enjoying for a little bit.