HyperZone
System: SNES
Release Date: September 1991
Developer: HAL Laboratory
Publisher: HAL Laboratory
Genre: Shoot ‘em Up
Speed forward at breakneck speeds while blasting everything in your path in HyperZone! The human race is never very good at learning lessons from the past. All the waste created has left Earth mostly uninhabitable and battles over the good spots wage on. The head honchos decide it’s time to blast off into space to find a new rock to call our own. They set their gaze on the asteroid belt, but a combination of chemical, biological, and nuclear leftovers have mingled together to create a new breed of half synthetic, half organic beings hellbent on our destruction. It’s up to you to race through eight levels of terror. Do you have what it takes?
You are in a behind the back view of your ship with a track above and below you. Staying between these tracks is important, because veering off of them will begin to sap at your power. Your movements are controlled left and right, as well as up and down. You’ll have to line yourself up properly with your enemies to blast them with your weapons. Despite six buttons at your disposal, there are only two things you can really do, shoot and brake. Shoot is mapped to the A, Y, and R Buttons, while brake is mapped to the B, X, and L Buttons. I think this was nice, allowing people to hold the controller how they wish. I used the shoulder buttons to control my ship.
Some enemies are stationary blocks. Others will shoot projectiles at you, which you must avoid, while still defeating them. Other enemies will be very mobile, trying their darnedest to drain your power and make you go splodey. If you find yourself low on that health bar, keep an eye open for regeneration lines. These look just like in F-Zero, but blue. If you want more time to heal, you can brake, but if you stay at too low of a speed, you start to take damage, negating your healing. These pit zones are strategically placed and should show up right when you need them.
Points are very important to gain in HyperZone. Passing certain thresholds not only give you an extra life, but it upgrades your ship at the beginning of the next level. New ships don’t go any faster (they all top out at 448 parsects), but they do increase your firepower. Upgrading the first time gives you access to a charge shot. If you hold the shoot button, you’ll power up the charge and can realease it for a devastating blast.
The end of each level has a boss enemy. These guys aren’t too difficult in the grand scheme of things. The plan here is watch the pattern, avoid the projectiles, and shoot at appropriate times. You fight robot beasts, flying snake looking things, and even a SNES controller! The final level is a gauntlet of bosses, which shouldn’t really give you too much trouble because you know their patterns. Then things finish off with a giant brain baby encased in a sphere. If you have plenty of lives at this point, you’ll be fine, otherwise, you need to be adept at avoiding projectiles. But blowing this guy up saves the day and takes you to the credits.
Graphics: 3.0
The mode 7 is pretty good. The scenery is quite varied, but it moves fast, so you don’t get to enjoy it.
Sound: 3.0
Music slaps overall, and the sound effects aren’t too overpowering, but the low power warning buzzer is annoying.
Gameplay: 3.0
Movement works well, some enemies are a bit too strong, but overall designed well.
Difficulty: 2.5
There are some spots where I’m not sure how you get through without taking a lot of damage. The game is definitely beatable, though.
Fun Factor: 3.0
Quite enjoyable. I made it pretty far on my first attempt, and felt compelled to try again, so I did.
Overall Rating: 2.9
HyperZone earns a B. I had this one in my collection for a long time, but never played it. I kind of wish I had.