Our hero, Billy, is the wielder of a powerful gun that can focus energy known as "Gunforce" into special attacks. The Gunforce is normally obtained simply by killing enemies who drop orbs that refill your meter, and it can be used with a variety of methods.

By making Billy run, a high jump can be performed, which will allow him to hover in mid-air and begin shooting forward or directly down, à la Devil May Cry. The run can also be cancelled into diving onto the ground, causing any bullets fired at him to pass right over, or he can even slide-dash. There are lots of little animations going on during these, as Billy does cartwheels while dashing and flips during high-jumps. An attacking dash that plows right through enemies and an overhead 180-degree spread attack round out the list of regular offense features. Throughout levels special bullets are hidden, which can be collected, up to a maximum of five. Each of these counts as an extra-powerful special attack that deals massive damage. This varies from a laser beam to homing missiles depending on the equipment being used.

Unfortunately, not quite as much work seems to have gone into enemy design, so prepare to see the same few basic types throughout the entire game. This wouldn’t be such a bad thing straight off, but most of the bad guys outside of the bosses do not seem to fit. Billy looks standard anime (and very Capcom-ish), but he goes up against primarily machete-wielding mohawked mutants and slouched cowboys that seemed to have been designed for a different kind of western game. It is very odd, but presents no problem in terms of gameplay so it can be overlooked. The bosses however, are good old classic pattern-based fights against overly powerful creatures that can kill you in a couple hits. These are clearly the shining point of the game’s opposition, and I began wishing for some mid-bosses as well. Ranging from a simple play on the typical enemy design to giant robots to weird fusions of demon-like creatures, these guys were the products of a lot of work.

The levels themselves do not vary that much in look, unfortunately, and you will be seeing the same sort of yellow canyon backgrounds and floors for much of the game. It is very easy to confuse which level is which because of this, but they are still wonderful in terms of design. If only there were more personality to each level, it would have made playing through them more of a joy to the eyes, but at least your hands will not be complaining.

Each level is larger then it seems to be at first, thanks to the hidden bounties. Every stage is typically broken up into four levels, and within those levels are wanted criminals in some off-the-beaten-path part of the stage. Entering one of the areas these men are in will trigger a change in music, the cue that they are here in waiting and will try to escape while firing off shots every once in a while. Once Billy succeeds in killing one, he obtains a purple cube, and four of these will increase the health bar by another star. However, not all the stages are traditional run-and-gun, as one level in every stage gets you a special speeder bike ride. Billy’s partner will drive along at high speeds as enemies pour in from the sides and from above for a short-lived pure action sequence. While not insanely great, they provide a nice break from the typical levels and are cool to play once in a while.

Breaking up the levels are plenty of cutscenes, which all feature gorgeous art and are a great look into the character designs. It is amazing how much large art they packed into here, and all of it looks awesome, especially the bosses. Unfortunately, I cannot understand a lick of what they are talking about, but at least there is something pretty to look at while skimming conversations. This is far more pleasing than the music, though, which is nowhere near as nice as the visuals. Aside from the opening theme and a couple of other tracks interspersed throughout, the music retains a high-pitched annoying midi sound with any sort of good melody. I felt like they were almost trying to capture a twangy guitar sound due to the high nature but also attempted a more techno-like feel because of the technical constraints. In any case, it doesn’t sound very good and the volume needs to be kept decently low.

Again, I am hoping this game is already being considered by an American publisher, because it simply screams to be played by an audience over here. While not terribly long (a bit over three hours total to beat it, not counting deaths), it does allow you to revisit any stage whenever to search for any bounties you missed and try for a higher ranking. But what it lacks in flavor and length, it makes up for in good, solid design and in one of the more skilled heroes to ever come along. This was a damn fun ride, adding yet another notch to the GBA’s growing belt of great platformers.

. . . MechDeus