Firestriker for SNES
Review #188
Firestriker
Arkanoid meets 7th Saga
Gameplay
It's Breakout, but with two paddles and enemies to avoid. The first paddle stays at the bottom, hits automatically, and you can move him using L and R. The second paddle can move around freely and you control his attacks.
Like all Breakout clones you have very little control over the ball. Unlike most clones, you really need control in this game because there is so much to do on each screen and nearly everything is moving. As a result most of the game is avoiding enemies and hoping the ball goes to the right spot. It's maddening. To compound the problem the ball nearly always goes straight up when you hit it. I tried to hit it at different angles and with different timing but no matter what I did it would either go straight up or directly to the right or left. Again, no control.
Level Design
The levels themselves are ok and have interesting elements like breakable blocks, water hazards, enemy spawn generators, etc, but the poor controls make these more frustrating than interesting.
A major annoyance is the SMB3-style overworld map. It's interesting that you can choose your path but insanely stupid that 1) there's no indication of which areas you've completed, and 2) you can revisit areas. There is nothing to be gained by revisiting an area and once you pick it the only way to leave is to complete it. So, pick an area by accident and you have a 10 minute chore ahead of you before you can get back to the overworld. Super weird.
Theme
Generic medieval fantasy setting which is novel for this genre but overdone in the adventure and action genres that this game tries to tie in.
Art Style
Really simple graphics. Looks like a 1991 title rather than a mid-gen game.
Audio
The music is peppy and modern. It doesn't match the fantasy setting. Sounds are very basic and uninteresting.
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