Strider 2
Reviewed by Jeremy Peeples
This review will cover Strider 1 and 2 for Playstation, I will
review Strider 1 first, then Strider 2. This particular
version of the orignal Strider came packed-in with Strider
2, my scores will be based on other PSX games (with the
exception of graphics, those will be compared to the arcade
version.) This is a very hard game, you will definitely need
to spend some time with it in order to beat it, in the PSX
version unlimited continues have been added to alleviate the
difficulty, you can also choose to have the original music
or remixes play through the game. Stider was originally an
arcade game released in about 1988 and was praised for its
gameplay, thankfully, everything that made this game a
classic in the arcades has been carried over, this is a
perfect port of the arcade game (BTW, this is the first time
the game has been ported over to a home system perfectly,
the Genesis version came close, but the graphics in this
version are better (only because of the arcade perfect color
and the characters are sharper.)
Graphics-10/10-Great animation, the graphics are arcade
perfect, the game features large bosses that fill up half
the screen (I'm mentioning this because few modern PSX have
had this, and they don't add a bit of slowdown to the game,
the level design is amazing, every level is original and
exciting. Even today, the graphics are amazing.
Pros- Great level and character design.
Cons- None.
Sound-10/10- The music is excellent, almost all of the songs
are memorable (my favorite is the level 2 song, it's sheer
beauty in my opinion), the sound effects are also great, the
sword slashes sound realistic as does the speech.
Pros- Excellent music that adds to the mood.
Cons- None.
Story-6/10- Strider Hiryu must overcome a horrible dictator,
the story is rather basic and isn't too original, but it
doesn't matter, this game is all about action.
Control-10/10- Perfect, the control is very responsive
making every attack easy to execute. The PSX version allows
for rapid-fire sword slashes, that is the only difference
between this and other version of the game. Overall,
excellent, few games have better control than this game.
Pros- Super-responsive controls.
Cons- None.
Gameplay-10/10-Undoubtably the best feature of this game,
excellent level design, great bosses, crisp control, tough
levels, and memorable attacks help make this game a classic,
the only downside is that the game is very short (it can
normally be beaten in about 2 hours), unfortunately, the
addition of unlimited continues doesn't help the game's
longevity, it cuts the time to complete the game in half
(don't think that they make this game a cakewalk, it's still
very hard to beat.) It's a classic game, it may be a short
one, but it's a classic.
Pros- Everything from the arcade version is retained.
Cons- None.
Replay Value-9/10- The classic gameplay will keep most
people hooked, unfortunately, game's the difficulty may turn
off some.
Pros- Classic gameplay makes the game a joy to play anytime.
Cons- No secrets. High difficuly level.
Presentation-10/10- It is arcade perfect, everything from
the menus to the bosses, everything looks like it belongs in
the game, utter perfection.
Pros- Arcade-perfect. Everything fits the game's theme.
Cons- None.
Overall-10/10- The crisp, clear graphics, beautiful sound,
innovative gameplay and perect control equal a legendary
game that is unforgettable to many gamers.
Strider 2 was released by Capcom in July of 2000. Many fans
of the original game wondered if the sequel would retain the
classic gameplay and innovative level design that helped to
make the original game so popular. I'm glad to report that,
for the most part, it did.
Graphics-9/10- The graphics in this game are marvelous, very
vibrant and colorful. The new lighting effects are well done
as are the transparencies (the homing sword slash is a prime
example of this). The characters in this game look great,
the excellent character design is back (the mammoth is
great), they even included some of the original game's
bosses as a nice little throwback to the orignal game (i. e.
the dragon from level 1 of the first game is back.)
Pros- Excellent character design, nice lighting effects.
Cons- Some of the larger characters (namely the mammoth) are
a little too pixellated.
Sound-7/10- The sound is a mixed bag, the sound effects are
great, they're crystal clear and match the actions that they
represent, but the music is nowhere near as good as the
original's, it's good, but it just doesn't live up to the
classic music of the first game. Overall, it's still great,
it just doesn't live up to my expectations.
Pros- Great sound effects, good music.
Cons- Music isn't as good as the original's .
Gameplay-9/10- Almost identical to the original, it is still
the best feature of the game, great level design (most of
the levels are great, some are just too generic though),
great bosses, crisp control, tough levels, and memorable
attacks (especially the homing sword slash) help make this
game a classic, the only downside is that the game is very
short (it can normally be beaten in about 1 hour),
unfortunately, the addition of unlimited continues doesn't
help the game's longevity, it cuts the time to complete the
game in half. It's still a great game though. You can also
choose which levels you want to go to in any order, you
still have to beat them all. This is a nice addition to the
series.
Pros- Old-school gameplay at it's finest.
Cons- Too short.
Control-10/10- The best control I've seen in an original PSX
game is here, they are very smooth, everything is easy to do
and the controls are never sluggish. The addition of the
rapid-fire sword slash fits the game perfectly and really
helps out with the bosses, it's very functional (especially
when used with the homing sword slash.)
Pros- Super-responsive.
Cons- None
Replay Value-8/10- Don't think that just because the game is
too easy that it shouldn't be replayed. For starters, the
game gives you a secret character if you beat the game, and
you can always strive to improve your grade (from A to E,
this is a very welcome addition to the game.) It shouldn?t
take secret stuff to make you replay the game, it's a joy to
play and is a welcome addition to any gamer's library.
Pros- It's a joy to play anytime.
Cons- Secrets are few and far between.
Presentation-10/10- Everything fits this game like a glove,
the loading screens are beautiful, (there's something I
never thought I?d say) as are the title screens and the
between level cutscenes. Overall, perfect, the character art
is tremendous.
Pros- Excellent character design. Beautiful cutscenes.
Cons- None.
Overall-9/10- The great graphics, good music, and perfect
controls combine to make a game that be remembered for years
to come. If you are a fan of Strider, buy this game, it's a
great addition to the Strider series and retains much of the
original game's feel. Here's to hoping it doesn't take 10
more years for this game to get a sequel.
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