Submit |
Contests |
Top Rated |
Reviews |
Previews |
Guides |
Cheats |
Screens |
Scores |
Videos |
News |
Forums |
Blogs |
Register |
Login |
Users |
Staff |
Links |
Meta
3DS ::
Arcade ::
Dreamcast ::
DS ::
GameCube ::
iPad ::
iPhone/iPod ::
Mac ::
PC ::
PlayStation 2 ::
PlayStation 3 ::
PSP ::
Wii ::
Xbox ::
Xbox 360 ::
Retro & Import
Earn prizes and eliminate ads just by contributing content on your FREE user account. Click for details or register today!
|
Systems > Saturn > R > Radiant Silvergun > Staff Review
Sign into your user account to view or leave feedback for this review. Don't have an account yet? You can click here to open one. It only takes a minute, and it's free!
Review by Felix Arabia
August 22, 2007
“It’s yet another shooter review,” you’ll think to yourself. You may have already even glanced at your PC’s clock.
But if you’re expecting tiring tales of marauding steel vessels searing hulking space behemoths with blazing lasers, then I hope you won’t be too disappointed to find something a little different here. Radiant Silvergun, you see, isn’t like your typical shooter. While it may be intense and epic, it certainly contains one adjective that many others cannot claim.
Radiant Silvergun is stylish.
A quick look at its title will hint at its shining excellence, but you don’t even have to look too deep into the actual game to realize you’re experiencing something unlike anything you’ve probably ever experienced before in a shooter. With an overly destructive weapons system bordering on overkill and a sterling display of Saturn graphical prowess – not to mention there are five or six bosses per level – it’s certainly no wonder copies for Silvergun often run for hundreds of dollars on eBay. Plus, this beautiful, vertically scrolling shooter was designed by Treasure, and we know from the minimalist Ikaruga that they know a thing or two about the genre.
Unlike that game, however, they injected Radiant Silvergun with as much panache as possible. “Six main weapons aren’t enough,” they cried. “Let’s add a rotating, bullet-absorbing sword to the ship! Wait, let’s make an even deadlier set of screen-clearing power pincers!” And so they did.
What really makes this weapons system special, what really puts it above and beyond tired systems like those found in Gradius or even innovative systems like the one in Seirei Senshi Spriggan, is that you can use all seven main weapon types whenever you want as often as you want. Each type serves for a specific scenario. Heat-seeking jolts of virile plasma will quickly negate any weak swarm of ships, but they’ll more likely ruin any sort of scoring chain you’ve built up (like Ikaruga, Silvergun does feature a similar scoring system requiring you to kill three enemies of the same color to build a chain). Yet you will often find ravenous enemies growling at your flanks, so using your spread shot to turn them into flaming bits of debris only makes sense. The same is true for when you feel compelled to unleash your Vulcan cannon’s liquid hellfire into the mighty presence of an ominous boss figure.
The screen will display a flashing WARNING to prepare you for one the numerous, though always unique, bosses. Take, for example, this particular stretch during the third level:
There’s this giant caterpillar that discharges thick beams and slicing sickles. If you manage to dodge this hodgepodge of deadly weaponry, there’s a good chance you’ll get crushed under the massive bug’s bulky body as it tries to roll on top of you. Survive that, and you’ll be sent to a desolate wasteland where you must fight a possessed mothership called the PENTA. The PENTA, with its once shiny hull now rusting into a dilapidated carcass, possesses quite an array of cannon and even harbors its own zombified Silvergun spacecraft. If those Silverguns actually become operational, you must contend with their rotating swords while dodging the PENTA’s fire, too! This culminates into a titanic battle deep within a lush, grassy corridor against a rotating walker with flamethrowers on its legs. You must gnaw away at its ultra-thick armor, blasting off the many shells protecting its vulnerable underbelly from your ship’s steel-cutting sword. Only once its defenses are gone can you begin to sap away at the roaring beast’s unmitigated strength.
While that particular portion of the third level is indeed impressive, the rest of the game is just as INTENSE. Imagine a whole series of vexing enemy aircraft bursting through thick cloud coverage, splashing a beautiful bullet quilt upon your unsuspecting ship. Imagine, after ravaging those manic foes with ship’s electrifying laser bolts, having to then face a massive, flying mech capable of discharging giant fireballs supported by pinkish gobs of plasma. That’s what happens within the game’s opening seconds.
The whole time this enjoyable gallivant goes on, while you will notice the Saturn’s ability to create warped backgrounds of shimmering metallic psycho-dementia and glowing vector wireframes – while you’ll notice all the luxurious graphical tricks displayed here – you’ll likely under-appreciate Silvergun’s sterling soundtrack. It features uplifting tunes capable of lighting a burning passion within your soul. These stirring orchestrations will drive you to progress further into this highly dangerous world unmatched in enemy vigor.
Imagine what sort of onslaught must occur at the end of this adventure. You already know what happens in the very beginning and a bit that happens towards the middle. Think about what horrors your Silvergun spaceship must blast through in order to save mankind.
Just as you begin to slowly recover from the effects of epic battles past, that telltale WARNING will flash across the screen. Having just slain an angry warhawk capable of raining thunderous needles, you likely aren’t looking forward to this upcoming fight. This final boss isn’t going to be a pushover, and it certainly isn’t going to be like any other encounter you’ve experienced thus far. As with all boss battles, a sort of report will come up displaying your foe’s weaknesses. The report for XIGA, the final boss, reads like this:
ENCOUNTERED AN ASSAILANT.
XIGA
-----------------
BE ATTITUDE FOR GAINS...
1 : BE PRAYING
2 : BE PRAYING
3 : BE PRAYING
It won’t be easy, but then things rarely are in a world as deadly as the one found here That’s not to say the game is unfairly difficult, but it certainly won’t ever leave you bored. What with the variety of weapons and bosses, not to mention the beautiful aesthetics and stylish presentation, you’re unlikely to find a better shooter.
Be praying you get to play Radiant Silvergun.
|
|
|
|
| Well worth the money. | ||
| Read more about the review rating scale... | ||
Staff reviews represent the opinion of the individual staff member that wrote them and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the site staff as a whole. If you disagree with the contents of this review, you may click to leave feedback on our dedicated forum. Thank you!
|
||||||
|
|
|||||
|
Title: Unknown |
||||||
Do you own this game? Register for a free account to track it and other games in your collection!
Voice Your Opinion...
Average User Rating (3 ratings)
Only registered users can rate this game!
Panzer Dragoon II Zwei is another Saturn game in the Shooter genre that has been attracting activity lately, so you might want to check it out and see what all of the fuss is about!
|
© 1998-2010 HonestGamers None of the material contained within this site--from reviews, guides, cheats, fiction, and editorials to message board posts--may be reproduced in any conceivable fashion without permission from the author(s) of said material. This site is not sponsored or endorsed by Nintendo, Sega, Sony, Microsoft, or any other such party. Radiant Silvergun is a registered trademark of its copyright holder. This site makes no claim to Radiant Silvergun, its characters, screenshots, artwork, music, or any intellectual property contained within. No opinions expressed in any review, guide, cheat, fanfic, or editorial necessarily represent the opinion of the staff or any site sponsors. |
|
