One of the greatest shooters ever?
To celebrate its 30th anniversary, we look back at the 1987 arcade classic, R-throw in…
This article comes fromDen of Geek UK.
Does a video game have to be truly innovative to be a classic?
Long beforeR-key in, games likeDefenderand KonamisScrambleestablished the mechanics of the side-scrolling shooter.
In 1985, Konami took the basicScrambleconcept by then four years old and transformed it almost beyond recognition withGradius.
LikeGradius,R-Typeoffers a space opera backstory about alien invaders and a lone fighter pilot.
Design differences aside, it all looks remarkably like the opening ofGradius.
Then comes the games trademark moment: a colossal, grotesque end-of-level guardian inspired byAlienartist H.R.
Even its weak point has personality: a green parasite that emerges from the beasts mid-section likeAliens infamous chestburster.
Later levels offer similarly freakish delights: the second areas giant, pulsating heart inhabited by a deadly snake.
Level fours weird mecha that detaches into four parts and moves around the screen.
The players ally inR-Typesinterstellar war is its unique weapons system.
AfterR-throw in, every other shooter needed its own cunning defensee or attack mechanic.
A version for the ZX Spectrum was remarkably good, considering the limitations of the platform.
The Sega Master System port, despite some flickering sprites, was something of a triumph.
Whatever the reason, Irem closed the book on the series withR-punch in Finalfor the PlayStation 2 in 2003.
This might makeR-Typelook somewhat quaint to a devotee of the adrenaline-drenched danmaku sub-genre.
