A review of 'Taito Milestone 2,' which includes 10 classic arcade games from the 80s and 90s, such as Darius II (3-screen version) and Metal Black
Taito, known for games such as the 'Darius' and 'Densha De Go!' series, provided us with ' Taito Milestone 2 ,' a collection of 10 classic arcade games released in the 1980s and 1990s, for
TAITO MILESTONES 2 | TAITO Corporation
https://www.taito.co.jp/taitomilestones/vol_02
' Benberobee ' launched in 1984
This is an action game in which you control the main character, Dami-chan, using a four-way lever to guide her to Nao-chan, who is at the bottom waiting for help.
A fire breaks out along the way, so we pour fire extinguishing fluid on it to put it out.
If you can rush to Nao-chan's side, you clear the stage. However, you will make a mistake if you touch fire or explosions, or if you collide with falling rubble, fluorescent lights hanging from the ceiling, or mysterious creatures running around. The system is simple, but the difficulty is high. However, you can add credits as many times as you want, so you can try again and again.
' Legend of Shadows ' launched in 1985
In order to rescue the kidnapped Kirihime, players control a ninja's 'shadow' and progress through the stages. Using two actions, 'swinging a sword' and 'throwing shuriken,' players run through the stages while defeating approaching enemies.
If you are hit by an enemy attack, it will be an instant miss, but you can nullify the enemy attack by swinging your sword. To jump, you input the upward lever, and you can jump several times your height, so it is difficult to avoid enemy bullets, and the operation is somewhat addictive.
' Kiki Kaikai ' launched in 1986
An action game in which you control the shrine maiden Sayo and defeat approaching monsters in order to rescue the kidnapped Seven Lucky Gods.
By controlling the eight-way lever, you can defeat monsters with two attacks: Oharaikusa (close-range attack) and Ofuda (long-range attack) while progressing through the stages.
In addition, the game 'Kiki Kaikai' included in Taito Milestone 2 comes in both the Japanese and overseas versions, so you can play both.
' New Zealand Story ' launched in 1988
The main character is a
The controls are 8-way movement, jumping and shooting. Kiwis can't fly, so they can only jump.
The early stages are very simple, but as the game progresses, enemy patterns and stage structures become more complex.
Sometimes you can move to higher places by using the footholds of defeated enemies. Each stage is quite long, so it takes a lot of effort to clear, but in Taito Milestone 2 you can add as many credits as you want, so you can aim to clear the game without worrying about the money you have.
This is ' Darius II ' which was released in 1989. The original version has two screens, but the version included in Taito Milestone 2 is the same three-screen version as the original Darius. However,
All Darius II games ported to home consoles in the past were two-screen versions. Taito Milestone 2 is the first game to have a three-screen version ported to home consoles. You can see what it actually looks like in the movie below.
Darius II seems to be much more difficult than the original Darius. In the original, if you were defeated, you would have to start over from a specified point, but in this game, you will have to start over on the spot, but the power-ups you have accumulated with the items you can get when you defeat an enemy will be reset to their initial values, except for your arms. Furthermore, there are very few items you can get, and the enemy's placement and movements are quite tricky, so I felt that the difficulty was quite high, especially in the early stages.
Defeat the boss
The stage selection system is a familiar feature of the Darius series. Stages and bosses change significantly depending on the route you take, so you can have fun finding your own route and trying to beat it.
' The Great Adventure of Mizubaku ' launched in 1990
In this action game, you control Hippo, a water magician, to protect the world from Fire Satan. You control him with an 8-way lever, jumps, and throws water bombs called Mizubaku. However, if you hit an enemy, you're out.
When Mizubaku hits the ground or an enemy, water flows out. Enemies hit by this water will become solid, so by touching an enemy in this state, you can make them slide and blow them away.
The stage will be cleared if you reach under Tamasun at the end of the stage.
However, Tamasun is taken away by Fire Satan again.
' Gun Frontier ' is a vertical scrolling shooter released in 1990.
The game features a worldview reminiscent of hardcore science fiction and a setting reminiscent of a Western movie. The opening movie is very elaborately produced, and compared to Benberobee, which was released in 1984, it shows the evolution of arcade games.
You control an 8-way lever, shots, and bombs. When you defeat certain enemies, silver coins will appear.
If you get this coin, your shot will level up.
However, as your shot rate increases or your play score increases, the game's difficulty level increases. In Taito Milestone 2, you can set button rapid-fire, but be careful not to make the rapid-fire speed too fast, as this will increase the difficulty level.
' Solitary Fighter ', which was released in 1991, is an upgraded version of the 2D fighting game 'Violence Fight' released in 1989. However, Solitary Fighter was not released in Japan. This Solitary Fighter was first ported to home consoles in the Taito Milestone 2.
In Solitary Fighter, you can move not only forward and backward, but also forward and backward, allowing you to move your character more like a belt-scrolling action game than a 2D fighting game.
The following movie summarizes what kind of game Solitary Fighter is.
There are three types of buttons: punch, kick, and jump. By repeatedly pressing punches and kicks, the pattern will change. Also, by pressing punch and kick at the same time, you can perform powerful techniques.
However, the attack judgment is very difficult to understand, and the pattern changes with successive hits, so it seems quite difficult to perform the desired technique. Since you can move not only forward and backward, but also in front and behind you, it is quite unstable whether there is an enemy in the position where your attack will hit, and even whether you can perform your own attack.
In addition, your punches and kicks can be strengthened by defeating bears in the bonus stage.
' Metal Black ' is a 2D shooting game released in 1991.
You can see how Metal Black actually plays in the movie below.
It is written as 'PROJECT GUN FRONTIER 2' and is presented as if it is a sequel to Gun Frontier, but it is simply the name of the game production project, and the content of the game itself is not a sequel.
The OP movie's production has evolved even further from Gun Frontier, with impressive synchronization of the background music and the movie, as well as intricately detailed animation.
A fake moon appears, and in a large-scale scene, a boss appears from within, smashing through the fake moon.
You control an 8-way lever, a shot, and a beam. The shot can be powered up by collecting the mysterious substance 'New Alone' that appears during the stage.
By pressing the beam button, you can release the power you've gained by collecting New Alones and fire a powerful beam. Depending on the timing of when you fire this beam, you can deal massive damage to the boss.
' Dinorex ' started operation in 1992
It is said to be part of the Gun Frontier trilogy, following Gun Frontier and Metal Black, but the game content is completely unrelated. Completely different from Gun Frontier and Metal Black, which were hardcore sci-fi shooting games, this is a unique '2D fighting action game where dinosaurs fight'.
The controllable characters are dinosaurs, and you will fight against Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, and other dinosaurs.
The controls are an 8-way lever and punch/kick. Also, if you press up during the game, you can look up at the sky and let out a roar while building up power, but be careful because the dinosaur's voice is very loud at this time.
You can see how noisy Dinorex is by watching the movie below. Basically, you accumulate power, jump on the opponent, and chase them down. The commands and performance vary greatly depending on the dinosaur, so it is recommended that you try out various dinosaurs and choose the one that is easy to use.
2D fighting game 'Dino Rex' in which dinosaurs go wild and make a loud roar anyway - YouTube
Taito Milestone 2 is available in two versions, a packaged version and a downloadable version, and the downloadable version can be purchased for 5,720 yen including tax. However, at the time of writing, it can be purchased for 4,576 yen including tax, a 20% discount, until January 5, 2024.
Taito Milestone 2 Download Version | My Nintendo Store
https://store-jp.nintendo.com/list/software/70010000060119.html
The packaged version can also be purchased from Amazon.co.jp for 5,720 yen including tax.
Amazon.co.jp: Taito Milestone 2 -Switch [Amazon.co.jp Ebiten Limited Bonus] Special CD & Original Sticker: Games
