Spriggan Powered (SNES, 1996)
Graphics-7 Sound-7.5 Control-8 Challenge-7.5
Level Design-6.5 Frustration-7.5 Fun-6.5 Originality-5
Overall Score-6.5
+
Some good bosses (stage 2, stage 5, stage 6 pre-final)
Mini-bosses
Some nice background effects
Interesting points system (bullet grazing - gain bonus points for flying close to enemy bullets) - risk/reward mechanic
Temporary manual shield which has its own energy bar (one problem is that you'll often die because you failed to dodge or simply didn't see a bullet so it's less useful than a constant shield)
Respawn on the spot (a weapon power up also spawns when dying)
Pretty intense final level
Multiple endings? (pretty lame ending on Normal)
+/-
Very limited auto-fire
Somewhat confusing ranking system (odd terms)
Only 3 credits and 3 lives per credit
Code given after completion on normal just lets you increase your lives to 9
Odd mode 7 effect in stage 1 (why is it scrolling downwards?)
-
Pretty basic levels overall (stage 1 is especially lame, dark cavern and final stage are the exceptions)
No weapon inventory (green weapon doesn't work against some enemies, some parts are much harder without the right weapon)
No manual speed adjustment by default (sometimes forces you to use the shield, final boss can even slow you down so dodging is impossible)
Slowdown
Trial & error (cavern stage - dead end paths and limited sight, boss patterns, enemies attacking from behind, traps in final level),
Somewhat short
Inconsistent hit detection (usually forgiving but some boss attacks have overly large hit boxes)
No smart bombs or alternate attacks
The mini-boss fights with the final boss (a rival mecha) are pretty dull
Hard to distinguish between some enemy bullets and your own/some of the backgrounds
Can't switch forms (only mecha form available) - see Bari Arm, Arrow Flash, Macross SNES
Most weapons are pretty much the same
Mostly generic looking enemies (small pre-rendered sprites)
Level Design-6.5 Frustration-7.5 Fun-6.5 Originality-5
Overall Score-6.5
+
Some good bosses (stage 2, stage 5, stage 6 pre-final)
Mini-bosses
Some nice background effects
Interesting points system (bullet grazing - gain bonus points for flying close to enemy bullets) - risk/reward mechanic
Temporary manual shield which has its own energy bar (one problem is that you'll often die because you failed to dodge or simply didn't see a bullet so it's less useful than a constant shield)
Respawn on the spot (a weapon power up also spawns when dying)
Pretty intense final level
Multiple endings? (pretty lame ending on Normal)
+/-
Very limited auto-fire
Somewhat confusing ranking system (odd terms)
Only 3 credits and 3 lives per credit
Code given after completion on normal just lets you increase your lives to 9
Odd mode 7 effect in stage 1 (why is it scrolling downwards?)
-
Pretty basic levels overall (stage 1 is especially lame, dark cavern and final stage are the exceptions)
No weapon inventory (green weapon doesn't work against some enemies, some parts are much harder without the right weapon)
No manual speed adjustment by default (sometimes forces you to use the shield, final boss can even slow you down so dodging is impossible)
Slowdown
Trial & error (cavern stage - dead end paths and limited sight, boss patterns, enemies attacking from behind, traps in final level),
Somewhat short
Inconsistent hit detection (usually forgiving but some boss attacks have overly large hit boxes)
No smart bombs or alternate attacks
The mini-boss fights with the final boss (a rival mecha) are pretty dull
Hard to distinguish between some enemy bullets and your own/some of the backgrounds
Can't switch forms (only mecha form available) - see Bari Arm, Arrow Flash, Macross SNES
Most weapons are pretty much the same
Mostly generic looking enemies (small pre-rendered sprites)