Gunstar Super Heroes (GBA)

[THATinkjar]

Oh God, I am so looking forward to this game! It is out in the US today (or yesterday), I believe, and is due out in Europe next Friday on the 4th of November (Civilization IV day).

GameSpot put their review up for the game yesterday, and it sounds like an instant classic! Though, as they remark, the game does sound very short: for the experienced player, it'll take about an hour to play through. That is pretty short, but with two characters and several difficulty settings, I guess there is more to enjoy.

Who'll be buying this? Anyone already have it, and can share their impressions?

[poloplayr]

Yay! Will pick this up next friday then here in Great Britain! Treasure needs your support!

[DTJAAAAMJSLM]

Just a few more hours until I can finally own a copy...

[Sosage]

Had this pre-oredered at Gamestop. Finally received my phone call. Picking it up this afternoon. Can't wait. =)

[Austin]

Can't wait to get back to the states and grab it. I've been playing the original Gunstar Heroes over and over in preparation.

[segagamer4life]

picking up my copy today.. man this game is gonna rock... woooo hooo!!!!

[THATinkjar]

I've just pre-ordered from Play.com for £17.99 - that is a sweet, sweet price!

[klausien]

Picking up my preorder this afternoon as well. Can't wait to play it on my Classic NES SP2!

I will admit that I cheated with this one. Actually, I cheated with Astro Boy & Advance Guardian Heroes too. Downloaded the Jp rom because I was impatient. It is pretty f****** amazing. Different than the original (in a good way) and full of cool little touches. Don't want to spoil anything for anyone, so I'll shut up. It is a given that this game is worth a purchase.

I still think the US version of Astro Boy is Treasure's greatest moment though. Everything is just right.

[segagamer4life]

I still think the US version of Astro Boy is Treasure's greatest moment though. Everything is just right.

Hell yeah, I am currently on level 4, and this game is BEAUTIFUL.... a must own for any GBA owner.

[davidleeroth]

I've had the Japanese version for about a week now and I've played the game through on easy and normal levels. The controls are definitely a step up from the original with the choice of fixed and free shot modes on the fly and more variety on close-range battle moves.
I've been playing it with GC controller which is a bit ackward but not entirely impossible. I really gotta get that DS soon. :/

My only gripe would be the short vertical helicopter section. The helicopter and the bullets are huge, maybe because of the small GBA screen, and as a whole manouvering the ship between the buildings wasn't really fun.

Some people have said it's a bit on the easy side but for a crap player like me, the hard mode is quite challenging. Overall, a very fun game and definitely worth getting.

[Xexyz]

Picked it up at 12 noon at my local EB (along with some more NES titles). I must say I was worried at first. The new release section didn't have a GSH box on display so I asked the worker about the game, luckily it was in!

I must say, my expectations were a bit too high for this game. I've given it a half hour so far on Normal, only beating Pink and Orange's stages, but I do have complaints.
First off, I have nothing against the difficulty. It is on the easy side, but I've never critisized a game just because it wasn't difficult. I'll try my best not to give out any spoilers.

My first complaint are the sprites. Yes, the graphics are beautiful, but the sprites are just way to big. I like how they're nice and detailed, but I think there could have been room for more action and crazyness ala the origional GH had they been sized smaller. I'm not talking Bangai-O small, but with smaller sprites, the games feel could have been imrpoved. It just seems too cramped the way it is.

The music is decent, and I don't mind all the remixes, but some of it is bad. This is really a nit pick complaint, but with all the remixes, why couldn't they remix the origionals intro music? It's just god awful in this game. It sounds like something from Astro Boy, only bad.

The fight against Pink is a joke... I'm not kidding, it really is a big disappointment.

And my last complaint involves the first half of Orange's stage. Why Treasure? You've shown us so far that you're 3 for 3 at making wonderful shmups. Why couldn't you make this a more traditional shmup stage? This helicopter segment is very awkward, with oversized enemy bullets. And also, the ground attack missles are kind of crappy.

I guess I really sound like a negative nelly here, but don't get me wrong, I still like the game. It's just that it's not even close to the origional's level of enjoyability.

[colonel_chambers]

I've just pre-ordered from Play.com for £17.99 - that is a sweet, sweet price!

That is a sweet, sweet price indeed. I really really want this game i've been waiting forever. for it!

[segagamer4life]

I just got back from gamestop w/ this and metroid pinball for the DS.... man oh man, is GSH, GREAT... it is a visual masterpeice, to all who got it, ENJOY.. I know I am.

[Crush Crawfish]

I'm a bit torn on this one. On one hand, IT'S THE FREAKING SEQUEL TO GUNSTAR HEROES. And on the other hand, I realize that with the exception of Astro Boy, I've been pretty dissapointed in most of treasure's more recent works. So I think I might just wait until I can get a copy for $20 or less.

[joshnickerson]

Crap. ANOTHER game I want this week.

[Sotenga]

HOLY SHIT!!! I cannot believe it! I almost forgot that GSH AND Soul Calibur 3 were both released recently! Geez oh man... how did that slip past? I'm definitely picking GSH up as soon as I can. Being a HUGE fan of the Genesis classic, it'd be a sin not to support Treasure, who I now love more than ever thanks to Bangai-O. I look forward to a carnival... nay, an amusement park of explosions! Heh...

[CYRiX]

Crap. ANOTHER game I want this week.

Took the words outta my mouth.

[GaijinPunch]

Got it a few weeks ago. Not bad, but nothing amazing. Glad I got it...that's it though.

[2Dskillz]

The game is wonderful so far, just finished the first stage.

New controls are different, but work well. Good bit of Hardcore gaming to be had here.

[Daniel Thomas]

I've been playing with GSH for a couple days now, not too much, but enough to get my shooter fix. Right now, I'm feeling very slightly...disappointed? Is that possible? I wonder if my expectations are unreasonably high.

The small size of the GBA screen really stands out. I'm reminded of those old Gameboy versions of Mega Man, where the screen really just felt like a closeup of the original TV screen.

I think GSH looks about as good as it can on this handheld, and it's a great looking game. But I'm very aware of how much has to be scaled down in order to fit on that screen. That doesn't bother me too much.

What's bothering me right now - and, again, this may change over the next few days - is that the bulk of this game is rehashed material from the original Gunstar Heroes. This feels more like a slightly scaled-down Gunstar Heroes than a full-blown sequel. The new sections are, surprisingly, tributes to old Sega arcade games like Afterburner, Flicky, and Thunder Blade.

Hmm...not to sound sour, as this new game offers endless cool explosions and is actually pretty challenging. And I consider Gunstar Heroes to be one of the very best videogames ever made. I'm waiting to see how it all comes together in the end.