Batsugun

Developed by Bitwave Games in collaboration with Toaplan and published by Clear River Games, Batsugun is a carefully restored edition of one of the most celebrated vertical shoot 'em ups from the arcade era. Originally released during the final years of Toaplan's history, the game occupies an important place in the evolution of the genre, bridging traditional arcade shooters with the more elaborate bullet-heavy experiences that followed. Rather than offering a simple re-release, this modern version combines faithful preservation with numerous enhancements, giving both longtime fans and newcomers an opportunity to experience a true classic under the best possible conditions. The game's premise is simple but effective, placing players in control of elite fighter pilots determined to overthrow the tyrannical rule of King Renoselva A. Gladebaran VII. While the story exists mainly to support the action, it provides enough context to tie together an exciting campaign filled with enemy fleets, heavily armed fortresses, and towering mechanical bosses. Players can select from six pilots operating three different aircraft, each with distinct characteristics that encourage experimentation. E…

Solid port of a great game. Good jumping in point for genre newcomers - make sure to change it to special version in the options.

Pretty much the best version of Batsugun/Special around. No noticeable input lag, it has saves, rewinds etc. Otherwise it is still Batsugun Sp. and I still can't get through loop 3 XD.

Just for sprite-work its worth to check out the game

Kill everything as soon as you see it, or you will regret it - classic

This is a good game. The sp. version in particular feels great to play, and I picked up a 1-ALL today. Many shmups create a cycle of resource management that feels like it always punishes you no matter what, but Batsugun's shield mechanic is incredible. Whenever the shield is up you can preserve your bombs and focus on dodging, or you can pre-emptively bomb to set yourself up for a difficult section with your shield intact. Fun to play just for my clear, and fun to play for score too. Music is great, visuals are great, I love the classic spritework. Hitboxes are quite good here, I felt like I was able to dodge the impossible regularly, and frequently came out of bullet swarms in disbelief I'd lived. Very solid pacing as well, I'm just about mentally exhausted by the time stage 5 ends. Is it the best shmup ever? Probably not, but it's easily the best one I've ever picked up under 10$, and competing with games 30 years newer and 10-20$ more costly.