But, as noted, it was dirt cheap and I did NOT get hit with the HIV 
Hm. Well, first of all, Sonia is front-and-center on the dash with her cute little blush and lovely boobs
but the loading image cuts to boring old glowering Dennis Quaid, so immediate points docked there. Good job I kept that PS2 Psikyo Shooting Series flyer, I suppose!Moving on, seems like there are no practice options what-so-ever. And no savestates what-so-ever, either. I'm not fussed about the former, but the latter is a cruel thing for starter players, DB being balls-hard and balls-technical. My musty Ian 1ALL is but a distant memory, so I got caned hard, as expected! Forget anything like stage ordering, either. :/
The input response, with a quick comparison to ShotTriggers Mahou Daisakusen and ACA Thunder Dragon 2 (using Ian/Miyamoto/2P aka "The Fast Ships" in each), is actually not too bad. While not as pinprick-sharp as M2's work, nor as comfortably airtight as Hamster's, it's not at the red flag threshold where I'd hesitate to even try learning the game.
I'd like to hear from a properly-qualified player like Jaimers on the input response. For now, I'd file it just ahead of CAS1 - quite playable. I'm on a Bluetooth DS4 with BenQ low-latency HDMI monitor, and planning to sort out a Brook UFB stick shortly. I'd be interested to revisit this and Capcom Arcade Stadium, then, hoping it might flatten out that last bit of perceptible input delay (that monitor is by no means cutting-edge either, though it most definitely does M2/Hamster and other appropriately-responsive works well).
As noted though, for practice modes and other features, this is barren. You're looking at oldschool superplay viewing, self-recording, RQ threads and the like. Might not be the worst thing? ;3 Nah, even one savestate - an unimaginable luxury for we old codgers
- would've made all the difference there. Obviously, supplementing with MAME practice is an option, if you prefer recording runs+scores on official Hard Ports.No idea how PCB-accurate it is - given the Strikers 1945 II and Gunbird 2 fiascos (PS1/PS2 discs respectively?), I'm assuming it's based on the PS2 port - which was always well-regarded, though I can't remember any hardcore 1:1 showdowns.
TLDR: Feature-barren, but reasonably responsive. Might work for vets wanting a quick n' dirty port, although anyone balls-out enough to master DB probably has a PCB or zero-latency MAME setup. Psikyo remain the under-served third men of the 90s/2000s STG triple crown.
