Released by ININ and Tozai Games, IREM Collection Volume 3 is their latest retro compilation composed of neglected shooters. Similar to IREM Collection Volume 1 and IREM Collection Volume 2, this third edition features quirky, forgotten arcade and console ports outfitted with the same quality emulation options and overall interface.
The three included fantasy-based shmups are creative, control well, and offer a steep challenge. Like the other compilations, there is lack of history surrounding each title, which is a little disappointing. Meaning, it would have been cool if cabinet art, concept designs, or things like developer interviews were included.
The first game is Mr. HELI, also known as Battle Chopper, and three versions of this 1987 release are included: the world arcade version, the Japan arcade version, and the PCE port.
This multidirectional shooter reminds me a bit of Fantasy Zone as you play as this little, cute vessel that shoots in the direction the ship is facing. In addition to shooting in both directions, the other gimmick comes from the powering mechanic. Gems can be collected, often by destroying bricks, then can be spent by flying through stores spread throughout each stage. No shooter would be complete without firepower upgrades but this system gives the player choice. Do you put yourself in the way of harm to potentially grab that pricey gem to spend on a future upgrade, or do you play it safe and possibly wait for the next one? It also would have been nice if there was an explanation of what each weapon symbol/store means.
Be warned, however, as this horizontal shooter is tough. Even though you can take a few hits before dying, I wasn’t able to beat the first stage without using the built-in cheat system. Just like the other compilations, the game includes several welcomed options. Cheats, rewind, save states… all the emulation options you want are here. However, if you want access to Achievements and online Leaderboard rankings, you need to play the game as originally intended. So Mr. HELI is a quality shooter, but it is one that was designed to originally steal all your quarters and then some. The PCE version is a little more manageable, I was able to reach level 2, but it doesn’t mess around when it comes to difficulty. Do not let the cutesy visual style deceive you. And one other detail I need to mention, the ship doesn’t take damage from bumping into the environment and walks on the ground when low enough. I always think it is cheap to die when contacting environmental walls and barriers in shooters. You don’t need to worry about this here, but you still won’t survive beyond the first stage.
The next game is Mystic Riders, a horizontal shooter. If I had to sum up this game quickly, I would say it is a male Cotton clone as you play as a dude witch who shoots stars but can also toss out this flying broom for more damage. Uniquely, if you twirl the analog stick, the witch performs a short-range melee attack. It doesn’t really make sense, especially at first, but cool that it is there.
Mystic Riders is the only beatable game in this compilation thanks to the continue system. Instead of restarting at the latest checkpoint, like the other included games, the player is allowed to instantly restart at the point of death and continue like nothing happened. However, do not be fooled as this is another hard game. Boss battles are especially cheap and annoying, forcing the player to take damage literally the second the respawn invincibility expires. Constantly taking damage to steal quarters was the arcade mentality of the time but it cranked up to 10 here.
Also, in order to get all the Achievements for Mystic Riders, the player needs to replay the campaign twice in one sitting. Not having access to a save feature in this mode is unfortunate and there is an oversight that can prevent the player from actually finishing the game. Before the final Achievement can pop, the player gets stuck on the high score initial entering screen. Even if you played through solo, the game doesn’t allow the player to submit the scores until Player 2 enters initials. If you do not have a second controller, there is no way to enter “AAA” and finish the game. Not sure if this is an oversight or an unfortunate bug. So if you only have one controller, you are screwed, you literally cannot finish the game.
The final game is Dragon Breed and holy hekk is this game awesome. This side scrolling shooter puts you in control of a kid who shoots a crossbow while riding a badass dragon. Not only can the crossbow be upgraded, the dragon powers up too, shooting stronger fire breath and can even take out enemies that bump into it.
Unfortunately, Dragon Breed is impossibly hard and suffers horribly from R-Type syndrome. Meaning, one hit and you need to restart at the very beginning. This is the quintessential example of a great game that becomes unplayable due to unfair and cheap difficulty. This game is too hard to actually enjoy despite controlling well and just being all around badass. I mean, you are riding on a dragon that fills the entire screen. For something so powerful, it is a shame to see it all fall apart with a single shot. Sure, this game can be played with the invincibility cheat active but then no cheevos and no leaderboards. I would say Dragon Breed is easily the best game in this compilation but the impossibly high difficulty drastically drops the enjoyment level. Also, at the time of this article, this game has been available for a few weeks and last time I played, I was able to crack the Top 10 on the online leaderboard. All the other scores were very close to mine, meaning, no one else on the planet was able to clear the first stage.
Even though Mystic Riders is really the only “playable” game, meaning, the only game where you won’t get smoked in four seconds, it is still an interesting compilation. Nothing here screams “must play” but where else are you going to find a bundle of neglected shooters like this? These IREM Collections are important and serve as gaming history lessons. So it doesn’t matter if these games are good or not, or whether or not you like them, they stand for something bigger – they are serving game perseveration and give players a way to experience these forgotten titles on modern platforms. With that said, I hope there are more Volumes in the works so we can all acknowledge and respect IREM’s history… and Dragon Breed. Man, this game would be so awesome if the one-hit respawning at the beginning was modded to continue at the point of the death.
Not As Good As: Gun Force II in IREM Collection Volume 2
Also Play: some of the recent Cotton re-releases
Wait For It: more Dreamcast shooters to be ported to modern consoles
By: Zachary Gasiorowski, Editor in Chief myGamer.com
X/Twitter: @ZackGaz
Please consider supporting me on Patreon or BuyMeACoffee.
RATING
OUR SCORE - 7
7
SCORE
The third Volume of the IREM Collection series is interesting and definitely welcomed, but two of the three included games are so difficult, it is impossible to clear the first stage (unless the non-leaderboard activating cheats are enabled).
Editor in Chief - been writing for mygamer,com for 20+ years. Gaming enthusiast. Hater of pants. Publisher of obscure gaming content on my YT channel.
- Twitter @ZackGaz
- youtube.com/@ZackGaz
- Personal blog at: https://squallsnake.com/
- BuyMeACoffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/zackgaz
- Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/squallsnake
- Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/squallsnake7
- I am the EiC of: https://www.MyGamer.com/
Leave a Reply