IKARUGA

Jap Dreamcast | Treasure 2002

One of the very last titles to grace the Dreamcast, Ikaruga, released 5th September 2002 in Japan, is from the legendary hardcore games developer Treasure who on many occasions seem to go with earning the respect of gamers rather than following market trends. Originally released in the arcades on the Naomi board in 2000(?), Dreamcast fans were hopeful for a port - and here it is.

Ikaruga is the unofficial follow up to Radiant Silvergun on the Saturn, again one of the last titles for that machine and now a highly sought after item. It is a vertical shooter at it’s core with taxing gameplay plus a mega difficulty level cranking up the replay value and lastability.

Simply put - this game is awesome! It is only fitting to see the Dreamcast - a fantastic console receive such an excellent send off title. Thank you Treasure.

SUPER MONKEY BALL

Game Cube Pal | Sega 2002

A platform puzzler from Sega developed by Amusement Vision primarily an arcade game department. Super Monkey Ball incorporates simple yet additive gameplay. It’s success has also lead to the almost instantaneous development and release of Super Monkey Ball 2.

You have a monkey in a ball (why monkey’s ?) and you must rolling him/her to the goal on a gameboard. The difficulty of the gameboards in beginner mode should not pose to much of a problem yet on expert prepare for some nail biting manoeuvring our your homosapian dare devil.

What really makes Monkey Ball is the extra games available. The more levels you complete the more games that open. These are excellent for multiplayer.

TIP: Play monkey fight with a load of mates after a few pints. Excellent

PANZER DRAGOON

Saturn Pal | Sega 1995

Panzer Dragoon was one of the Saturn’s first ever games created by the now despanded Team Andromeda who were known for getting outstanding results out of Sega’s 32-Bitter. At the time of it release in 95 it’s graphics were unparalleled with it’s detailed environments and sported a unique gameplay which is largely unrivalled to this day.

The game takes place thousands of years in the future. You take control of an armoured blue dragon on a mission to stop the Dark Dragon, a bioweapon, from returning to an ancient tower of immense power.

The game is a 3D polygon shooter. A 360o viewable area is segmented in 4 parts of 90o. Enemies approach at all angles and you must switch between the segments, target and destroy. You, the rider, can target enemies and shoot whilst the dragon itself and target enemies and destroy them with powerful blasts. Enemies are both manufactured ships and freaks of nature.

A follow up to the Panzer Dragoon Series, entitled Panzer Dragoon Orta is scheduled for release on the X-Box in January 2003. Panzer Dragoon was also released on PC.