X-Multiply and Image Fight
on one CD? That's, like, two of the best
shoot 'em ups of all time presented in one
convenient package.
It's a laser-based dream in software format! Make
no mistake..
 What
a lovely looking pack! Two of Irem's
finest are what we have here. This review
is again taken from now-gone (sniff!)
Sega Saturn Magazine UK - which seemed to
be staffed by real shooter-fans, unlike
some official publications for another,
greyer, console I can think of :). I love
these two games myself, which can be
enjoyed in the M72
Irem emulator on PC
if you like the look of them.
Unfortunately my own 'puter has probs
with joystick recognition in M72, so I
have to play 'em with the keys (hard! -
which is why there are but limited
screenshots), though I've been trying to
track this scarce Saturn import down for
quite a while now.. Mike
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X-Multiply: Here's
the impressive and creepy giant alien boss from
stage 2, a kind
of R-Type Mothership with scales.. Click on the
pic for an even larger scale view.
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X-Multiply
carries on in the tradition of many
classic Irem titles like R-Type and Dragon Breed,
with its bio-organic graphical style.
One of the reasons
why these older shooters always seem so much
harder than their modern counterparts is their
use of the old restart point,
which has been phased-out in newer blasters. Even
the mighty Radiant Silvergun -
the best shooter in years - may be completed by
virtue of infinite continues and simple
perseverence, whereas the notion of forcing the
player to replay the section they've just died on
(often restarting way behind as a 'punishment'
for the error) makes it downright essential to
master every inch, every attack wave and every
boss in these old blasters (which is of
course the way it should be.. ;)). Both
X-Multiply and Image Fight use this restart point
philosophy to make players redo areas they've
messed up (usually without those hard-earned
weapons too!), and it's the reason why modern
shooters will never compare to these classic
blasters (though thankfully Irem's new baby, R-Type Delta retains the use of
restart points.) It's also probably the
reason why they're so ingrained in our memories
as well..
History will probably record R-Type as being
Irem's finest hour, but connoisseurs may argue
that the innovation-packed X-Multiply, or
mega-tough Image Fight are both equally worthy of
a place in the blaster hall of fame.
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There have been some truly magical
moments in the large and dusty archives of gaming
history, and a company with more than its fair
share of classics is Japanese 2D specialist, Irem.
You'll know Irem as the company behind the
rightly beloved R-Type, as well as the stunning
X-Multiply and the not-bad Image
Fight. Now, Irem has bundled its two
second-best titles onto a single Saturn disc.
We're in Heaven!
The gameplay in X-Multiply
(1989) is more advanced (Hmm, not totally
convinced about this myself.. Mike)
than R-Type, mainly due to the fact that your
ship
comes equipped with two massive and free-moving tentacles
bolted onto the top and bottom. This opens up
more possibilities for attack and defence, as
they act as a shield from enemy shots and smaller
enemies themselves. A quick press of the D-pad
flings these protective barriers wherever you
like. These tentacles also become significant
offensive weapons, as dragging them across huge
motherships causes massive damage (leaving
players
free to attack whatever's coming from above), and
the collection of power ups, like forward lasers
and heavy-artillery bombs, further adds to the
experience.
R-Type Delta players may be
familiar with these ship mounted 'tentacles'
which can be manoeuvered in all directions around
your ship and are dead useful for wacking aliens
and shielding you from bullets.
Image
Fight (1988) is an altogether different
kettle of tech-no-organic fish. Punishing use of
the restart points make this 2D shoot 'em up even
tougher than its X-prefixed soul mate, and the
simple fact that it's over a year older than
X-Multiply leads to an all-round less-impressive
display of visuals. Still, if R-Type and
X-Multiply were all about style and design, Image
Fight was more of an all-out test of survival and
weapon accumulation, with unique (at the time)
features, such as being able to set the ship's
speed manually, along with free-floating
drone-weapons which fire in the opposite
direction to the ship's movement (the bit I
especially liked!), Image Fight does boast
an excellent array of power-ups but the
super-tough nature of the game makes it a massive
struggle to see the more advanced weapons.
Image Fight: One
of the most difficult vertical shooters ever
created, with scores of enemies, lethal
collidable scenery and
punishing restart points.. but still a classic in
my book..
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