PLAYING WITH THE (ARCADE ARCHIVES) BOYS
Hamster this time takes us by surprise with their latest release: Arcade Archives Thunder Dragon 2.
For a deeper analysis of gameplay, read the review of Thunder Dragon 2.
Thank God for allowing us to switch the starting player.
Believe it or not, Thunder Dragon 2 finally gets its release in the Arcade Archives like its predecessor. Unlike most shmups released there (like Xexex and Salamander), this one lacks of the option of selecting between the Japanese or the International versions for Original Mode, ignoring its localization as Big Bang: Power Shooting.
Now, one of the main aspects of Thunder Dragon 2 is that Player 2 has a better ship than Player 1. At first that means you would be stucked as Player 1 forever unless you're playing on someone else's console who has the game too, right? Fortunately, this is one of those games in the series where you are allowed to switch players in the "Settings" without adding additional controls. For instance, In Arcade Archives Raiden, you can switch between Player 1 or 2, if you want to play as the blue ship. In Thunder Dragon 2's case, being able to access Player 2 eases the game and allows you to rack up the high scores with an incredible speed due to the ship's fire rate, and in a twist of fate, makes the game fun and more enjoyable as it was intended to be unlike when its played with Player 1's ship. Also, selecting the player switch option will be carried in the other modes, allowing you to play as Player 2 in Hi Score and Caravan Modes as well.
It's good to be at home.
Speaking of scoring, as a release for modern consoles like the PlayStation 4 and the Nintendo Switch, this means one thing: "Trophies for All!" A fun trophy boost despite its reduced number of 6 trophies. Along with the already mentioned Hi Score and Caravan Modes. As for the home porting, it makes me wonder "Why the game wasn't released back in 1993?" It was the days of the Super Nintendo on its finest moments on Coin-op conversions (Street Fighter II: The World Warrior, Mortal Kombat and Art of Fighting), and I'm sure the SNES or the Neo-Geo Home System (AES) would be able to recreate this, since the color palette and frame rate are very similar to those used by SNK's behemoth, even with all the fancy voice samples that made the game look and sound "Totally Rad, dude", while the SNES might needed a good developer for the task (Capcom or Jaleco would do the job).
ARCADE ARCHIVED CURIOSITIES
- This is the fourth NMK shmup in the library
- It is also the fifth NMK game released in the collection.
Can't wait to see what's next in the list, Nina.
After 29 years, Hamster finally gives the obscure sequel to Thunder Dragon a well deserved home port, and completing the home release of the series as well.
If you hadn't played this game before, then go ahead and give it a try, it is worth the time, and remember: Being Player 2 is better in this game.
When words can't say enough for a great game, pics do the job.