It took a long time for one of the best classic shooter franchises in history to finally make a comeback . And it has done so thanks to Granzella (an independent studio made up of several former Irem members, the original creators of R-Type ) and, above all, to crowdfunding. A Kickstarter initiative that obviously went ahead and that, with a little more delay than expected, has finally ended up giving birth to the game at hand: R-Type Final 2 . A sequel to the PS2 title that strictly follows the canons of the genre and the original saga and that, we say it right now, without being the best of the series, it seems to us a more than worthy representative.
Therefore, we are facing a shoot’em up with side scrolling and relatively slow development (at least for a shooter ) that invites us to overcome several missions in which, basically, we have to stay alive to give the boss what he deserves. end of shift. It’s that simple … but not that simple, we can assure you that. And is that as a good traditional shooter and, also, as a representative of the R-Type series , the level of difficulty of the game is very high. Yes, there are several eligible levels of difficulty (we are even allowed to practice), but even in the easiest one (called Kids, by the way), it is not easy to pass the third or fourth level. A challenge that the most expert users will be able to feast on because, in addition, it is a very replayable and mostly rewarding experience .
After many years of silence at last ‘R-Type’ returns after being successfully financed on Kickstarter, keeping all its essence intact.
Very spectacular galactic shots
If this production stands out for something, it is for offering a very striking visual finish, something that is perceived from the intro itself, which is one of the best that we remember lately in terms of shooter . But we’ll talk about that later, because the first thing is to analyze everything that our galactic trip gives of itself. At the beginning, we can choose between three different ships, each one significantly different, which modify their weapons and basic characteristics . And beware, depending on the level that we have to overcome, the choice of one and the other is very important. But the best of all in this sense is that, as we move forward, it is possible to enable a tremendous amount of new aircraft, which we can slightly customize using a simple editor.
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Even at the lowest level of difficulty, we assure you that we are facing a fairly demanding game and that it does not forgive the slightest mistake or deconcentration.
The development is what we all expected, without any relevant basic modification, something that purists will like a lot but which, also, can be criticized for its lack of innovation and ambition in this regard. We simply have to kill every living being that can be seen on the screen with the weapons that we are attaching to our ship, from laser beams that bounce off the walls to missiles, satellites that fire secondary fire, etc. And above all is our Strength, one of the hallmarks of this sagaand that, obviously, returns in this new installment. This device (very variable in shapes and characteristics, by the way) we can control it and leave it loose on the screen as well as decorate it to the rear or front of our ship to enhance our shots (or shoot backwards) and act as a shield. And, as has always happened in this saga, this versatility that the Force gives us brings a lot of life to each game as well as a tactical touch that is much appreciated.
The confrontations against the final bosses have left us a bit cold, being one of the least achieved points of this production.
As for the development itself, the title invites us to overcome various routes, three exactly. And as you may already be thinking, to see everything that the title offers us and unlock all the missions, it is necessary to take several passes. Replayability has always been one of the main values of this type of game and, of course, this work by Granzella is no exception … rather the opposite. The amount of additional content is incrediblewho has this title, and we assure you that you have to spend many hours to enable everything. But the best thing is that according to the developers, during the next two years they will continue to provide new content to their work, something that, if confirmed, seems very plausible to us. For all this and beyond the general lack of innovation that we previously echoed, it is difficult to criticize any aspect of the title … except for a couple of details. The first is the design of some levels, which we found too basic. But the worst thing is the confrontations against the bosses, very irregular, which in some cases have left us quite cold. But, we insist, in everything else (control, replayability, rhythm of the game …) it seems to us a very good title , including its audiovisual aspect.
We can slightly customize our ship as we see fit thanks to a simple but functional editor.
As we mentioned at the beginning, one of the most attractive aspects of this production lies in its technical finish. Without a doubt, we are facing the most advanced and spectacular game in the saga, especially in what has to do with the effects of lights and particles , which we have found especially impressive, especially at certain levels. Nor can we put any fault to how fluid its development is at all times, something vital in this type of titles, and we have not noticed any problem even in the hottest moments. And if graphically it looks really good, the soundtrack is not far behind, with a sensational introductory melody and effects that are perceived with the necessary thunder.
Technically it is a very attractive title and makes good use of the Unreal Engine, especially in terms of light and particle effects.
A classic shooter in every way
If this new edition of the famous shooter originally created by Irem cannot boast of something, it is to offer a varied game scheme and, even less, endowed with certain innovations in relation to what was exposed in the previous editions. But leaving the scarce originality in the approach aside, we are facing a very good title within this genre as veteran as, currently, quite marginal. A proposal that enjoys improper production values for a game of its style (at least in our days) and that offers exactly what was expected of it. We would have liked to find better profiled and riskier levels in its design and, even more if possible, with more memorable final confrontations. But despite these drawbacks, we are delighted to be able to enjoy a new title in the R-Type franchise .
