Rayxanber III

[Low]

Looks can be deceiving, witness Rayxanber III for the Turbo Duo/ PCE Super CD. I sat on a sealed copy of this game for close to a decade before opening it, a side effect of way too many quality Turbo shooters, bad memories of the punishing Rayxanber II, and some frankly bland screen shots. After a single play through it was evident I'd ended saving one of the best for last.

After repelling the invasions of part 1 and 2, Earth apparently decides to take the fight to the Zoul (ick) Empire's home world. After a brief battle around your transport ship, you enter a cavern, which pretty much lays out the level design for the rest of the game. The guys at Data West made a conscious choice to rely on natural colors and vaguely realistic environments for their title, toeing a line that player's attentions would hold through similar levels. This isn't NES Life Force where a cell stage gives way to ancient ruins and an Egyptian themed boss then snaps you back to a giant space skeleton. Instead Rayxanber III is cold and dark, a singular march to the core of a nearly vanquished foe, not unlike the last plunge into the heart of R-Type Final's Bydo. A soft jazzy soundtrack adds to the atmosphere, only becoming urgent with the approach of one of the game's amorphous bosses.

Graphically, this is some of the best art in a PCE title. Everything from the rocky backdrops to the bio-metallic bosses are riddled with detail and great use of color. Sadly Data West opted to forego any background scrolling, a stark contrast to part II's multi-layer environments. Instead the team focused on color cycling (arguably some of the best ever seen) and enemy animation. Enemy design and animation is exquisite, forming some genuinely convincing alien creatures....or Paleozoic Era crustaceans. Flicker and slowdown are a rarity even on the most sprite choked screen.

Gameplay-wise, Rayxanber has held up shockingly well. The well endowed ships of the Bullet Hell era have definitely tarnished titles like Gradius and R-type with their reliance on power-ups and speed icons...and not dying once you've gotten a healthy stash of each. Versatility is the key to Rayxanber's power-ups, being able to choose which direction you're firing becomes important completion of later stages and dealing with bosses effectively. More importantly your stock ship is more than capable of handling things, leveled up or no. Along with the return of the speed boost button, you now have a Border Down-style homing weapon to competent the standard pea shooter. Comforting considering enemies assault you from all sides and definitely keep the game on the side of twitch instead of memorization.

Aside from an underwhelming final boss and ending all too soon, Rayxanber III has all the necessary ingredients for a top-tier shooter and manages to bring a few new quirks to a crowded Turbo shooting line-up. Designed to wrap-up the series, it did so fitfully and is the crowning achievement of the now retired Data West.

[Nick]

This looks like a great way to spend an hour or two. I hadn't even heard of this series before, besides maybe a mention; I'm so ashamed. I'm more of a vertical shooter fan, but you say this game is more twitch than R-Type-style memorization, so it might be the best of both worlds.

[Vasteel]

This looks like a great way to spend an hour or two. I hadn't even heard of this series before, besides maybe a mention; I'm so ashamed. I'm more of a vertical shooter fan, but you say this game is more twitch than R-Type-style memorization, so it might be the best of both worlds.

That's exactly what it is in my opinion- it's the halfway point between Thunderforce and R-Type.

My only real complaint about it is the color palette used seems repeated over and over again- each stage has the same red and brown look, but the designs are still very nice.

The coolest thing is the way the music seamlessly segues into the badass boss theme, more games should mimic this. It's hard to describe, but it's really cool and gives the boss fight a sense of gravity.