Welcome to VC Weekly, N-Europe’s guide to the wonderful world of Nintendo’s download service. Written by Sam C Gittins

If you like shmups then we've got you more than covered with these releases as we have three titles which are all shooting-based to keep your trigger finger happy. Anyway enough from me and on with the games!
 
Available for download this week we have...     

Summer Carnival '92 RECCA
Star Soldier
NAM-1975

Price: GB £4.49, EU €4.99
Publisher: Naxat Soft
Developer: KID
Released: 1992
System: NES

I have never before witnessed such an amazingly crazy shmup in all my life, over the years I've played a fair few thanks to the Virtual Console but Summer Carnival '92 RECCA is certainly the most mental in every sense of the word, you start off with a basic ship called 'Recca' and that's the calmest moment you'll find in the game as mere seconds in you're shooting down the hordes that come towards your ship all the while avoiding bullets from every angle as you navigate your way to the 'safest' or least hectic part of the screen in an attempt to survive. This may sound extreme but it's really not that much of an exaggeration, perhaps the intensity of this shmup doesn't seem quite as far-fetched when you consider that it was designed specifically for a competition that was held only in Japan way back in 1992, so because it was designed purely with shoot-em-up experts in mind you can almost start to understand why it's so chaotic in its nature; I'm genuinely surprised that such an example of the genre has finally got a release over here but as someone who loves these types of games I am certainly not complaining as this is a prime example of why the Virtual Console exists.

Upon destroying a wave of enemies in addition to the 'winged gems' you collect to boost your score, there are also blue plus red power ups which regularly float down the screen, those in blue alter your primary weapon changing it to either an arc shot, laser, multi-beam, scatter-shot or homing missiles; the ones in red change your secondary weapon which can become a pod that either fires forward, backward, opposite to your ship, rotating around or one that's proximity based, firing on the nearest enemy... the last two in each respective list are for Normal Mode only. Other modes include Time Attack plus Score attack which are reasonably self-explanatory as they offer extra replay value though you will likely fine it challenging just to clear the standard mode, if you opt not to fire your primary weapon for a few seconds you will build up a large ball of plasma in front of your ship which can 'eat' blue enemy bullets in addition to letting you unleash a bomb attack which can be quite devastating, as you inevitably reply sections you'll most likely learn various tricks which will help you to survive for longer including picking up those 1-up's which are incredibly elusive during the games various stages.

Controls are spot-on thanks to the 3DS d-pad, as you become quicker you may wish to increase the speed of your ship which you can do at any time by pressing the 'select' button, this can be especially useful during the many amazing boss encounters you will face frequently throughout the game but remember which speed setting you're on as during these battles the HUD comepletely vanishes leaving it with just you and the boss on the screen just as it should be, making for some particularly impressive fights. If you manage to make it to the end of all four main stages this title has to offer then you will be greeted with an end screen which shows a boss that you have yet to face along with the words 'to be continued...' it's at this point that you can opt to reset the game which will gain you access to the 'second loop' which allows you to play harder versions of the first four stages with random boss encounters plus a further three stages; it's important to remember that there is a counter which is always ticking away, on my first basic playthrough I managed to complete the game in just a little under forty minutes but try as I might it has only been possible for me thus far to reach the end of the seventh stage before the timer reaches one hour initiating a 'Time Over' screen, so beating the second loop is definitely considered a challenge that will likely keep even the most hardcore shmup fan coming back for more.

For a NES game the standard of the visuals is nothing short of stunning as this is a title which really pushed the 8-bit machine to its limits even causing the action to slowdown at times just because there is so much going on at once, the colour palette is sublime, backgrounds a nicely detailed at times, the sprites a beautiful including the bosses which are always particularly impressive. Aurally there is a very up-tempo feeling to the soundtrack which has been expertly composed by Nobuyuki Shioda who has worked on a fair few other classic NES games in his time; the tracks always suit the on-screen action making for some genuinely mesmerising moments especially when you couple this with the well sampled sound effects which further enhance the experience.

This is most definitely a game which will pique the interest of any long-term fan of the shoot-em-up genre, the difficulty level can be brutal at times but the feeling of reward when you beat a level is one of the greatest feelings in gaming, this is one that you will want to stick with as it really deserves to take its place alongside other great examples of the genre. If you're merely casually interested then you might wish to find a simpler shmup which is less intense in comparison but if you genuinely like the sound of this title then you really owe it to yourself to download this piece of brilliance, as quite simply you will never get another game quite like this ever again as it's uniquely brilliant, even if it is crushingly hard... you'll want to keep playing, save states aren't only recommended for this one; they're required!    

Verdict : One of the finest shmups you're ever likely to play.

Price: GB £4.49, EU €4.99
Publisher: Hudson
Developer: Hudson
Released: 1989
System: NES

This may have been one of the first scrolling shooters to appear on the NES, perhaps one of the most popular at the time but decades have passed since then, we have had many superior sequels including Soldier Blade plus the stunning Super Star Soldier both of which have been available on the Wii VC for some time now; it should definitely be considered as rather odd that the original Star Soldier is only now getting released on the 3DS particularly in Europe which missed out on a Wii VC release for whatever reason. More importantly though is the question, is it still worth playing? In a word yes but only if you're a fan, read on to find out why.

On the face of it you have a rather basic shmup in which you advance through the stages shooting down anything that moves, grabbing power ups etc all while trying to boost your score in addition to avoiding sudden death, enemy patterns of fire are somewhat standard... perhaps even predictable at times though they do offer some resistance in the later stages even though the difficulty never really seems to increase at all from the first stage. Keeping things semi-interesting is the ability to sake cover behind certain parts of the stage though you should also take care not to crash at the same time but it can prove useful in certain situations.

Sadly though there really isn't that much left to say about the experience other than it's very lacking these days particularly when you compare it to the aforementioned sublime example of the genre that is Summer Carnival '92 RECCA which quite simply eclipses this once innovative title in almost every way imaginable. Even the stages themselves play out at a very pedestrian pace, never really becoming any more excting than the last as it can be quite difficult to tell them apart; there is still a sense of progression as you make your way through but it's really not that noticable at all.

Even the visuals are rather subdued though this could be due to the rather limited colour palette of the NES, even so though if games like 'RECCA' can look consistently interesting with its continually changing backgrounds then you can't help but wonder why Star Soldier looks so plain apart from the obvious fact that it was released before. On the sudio side things are a bit better as the main theme which changes slightly with each stage is rather jovial as it spurs you on, though it can be quite repetitive after a while as the only time it's broken up is either during boss encounters - which are always brief - or why your ship is fully powered up; there's a nice selection of sound effects though which
help things along.

It's not hard to admit now that the original Star Soldier has definitely seen better days especially in direct comparison to it's superior sequels both of which are easily obtainable if you have a Wii so I really can't see why anyone would want to purchase this if they already have either of those games unless they are a really hardcore fan of the series, in which case go ahead. For everyone else though I would advise picking up RECCA instead as it's simply the superior game, it's available for the same price and is a real gem that deserves to be enjoyed by many whereas this rather basic shmup should stay in the past but be remembered for the fun that it once provided to many.   

Verdict : Star Soldier is no longer the sure-shot that it once was.

Points: 900
Publisher: D4 Enterprise
Developer: SNK
Released: 1990
System: Neo Geo

Released relatively early on the Neo Geo NAM-1975 is a simple yet enjoyable shooting experience where you take on the role of an American Special Forces soldier as you fight your way through the battlefied taking out any enemies who stand in your way, a simple premise which serves only as an excuse to pick up loads of different weapons so that you can wreak havoc across multiple stages. In many ways it's quite similar to Operation Wolf but played from a slightly different perspective as your character is visible, you move your character and targeting reticule simultaneously which might sound complicated but it really couldn't be any simpler or any more satisfying.

As you happily gun your way through the stages you will be able to obtain various power-ups dropped from enemies which simply increases your firepower significantly, this is just as well because you will be attacked almost all the time so you'll be keeping your finger on the trigger more often than not; fortunately you do have a combat roll move which will allow you to avoid most shots fired at you providing you time it right. There are boss battles throughout which will provide you with a reasonable challenge, it's all very fun for the most-part even if it can wear thin after a while as it's just action all the time, which you think wouldn't get boring but when the repeated scenarios become predictable this is where the game starts to grate a little so it's best played sparingly.

The controls are absolutely spot-on which is a good thing for a game with such a heavy emphasis on shooting, this means that you can just lose yourself in the action for a while rather than concerning yourself with what buttons does what as you've never left wondering because the controls are simple and instinctive just like they always used to be. While it's fun to play alone you can also have a blast in the two-player mode as it's one of those games which becomes more enjoyable in this scenario, if you can find anyone else willing to play it alongside you then I'd advise giving it a go.

You shouldn't be expecting too much from the visuals but for what it's worth they are pretty decent overall, definitely a good few notches up from being merely functional in any case as the areas have a certain amount of depth to them just as the sprite animations will likely make you smile, there are some nice touches here along with a good deal of theme variation. It's soundtrack it nothing short of spectacular though featuring a quality selection of amazingly upbeat chiptunes which really set the scene very nicely as you're pumping everything in your sights with lead; likewise the sound effects carry a decent amount of weight to them, there are even a few brief voice-overs at certain times which are quite charming.

Very much a 'by-the-book' military themed shooting experience which will take you on a pretty decent thrill-ride while it lasts, just don't try to play too much of it at a time or you could easilly tire of it rather quickly, played in short bursts though this is a very decent game when judged on its own merits. NAM-1975 is very good at what it does so if you know that you're going to enjoy this kind of game based on past experiences then I would suggest that you pick it up, if you're at all unsure though just leave it as there will likely be better examples to come on the Wii U VC instead, but it's not a bad last ditch addition to the Wii's library.

Verdict : Run 'n gun fun which is enjoyable while it lasts.

That's it for another installment of VC Weekly which will return again soon. So until then, enjoy the rest of the week and Game On!