Super Dimension Fortress Macross
Super Dimension Fortress Macross for the Sega Saturn is one of the 4 billion Macross games to have come out on every system from the Famicom through the PS3 and everything in between. Buying anime-licensed games can be a mixed bag without doing your diligence with research, as they can vary in genre from digital novels to strategy to shooters, and Macross games run the gamut. This two disc set is a (usually) horizontally-scrolling shooter based on the original TV series, and it's an interesting one.
The game opens with some excellent quality animation straight from the show, and it's a good portent for what's to come. Super Dimension Fortress Macross is filled to the brim with animation from the anime, and it's what really fills up the discs, so don't expect a lengthly campaign just because there's a second disc. What it does is set the tone for a very accurate re-telling of the Macross story and provide in-the-moment context for each stage, which replicates a Valkyrie skirmish from the program beginning with the escape from Macross Island and on into space to battle the Zentraedi. Essentially, you get to relive the story you know by playing the battles in context.
So, how are the actual gameplay segments? Fun, but brief. You control your Valkyrie in battle, swooping, firing, and transforming. You have machine guns, a few bombs, and the trademark Macross missile trails scorching the skies. The missiles work like a simplified Galactic Attack or Panzer Dragoon, where you hold down the button to lock on and release to fire, the difference being that the lock on is automatic with no cursor to run over your foes. So, you'll always be holding down the button until your missile meter fills and unleashing fury. Enemies appear on multiple planes, so your missiles will be your primary damage dealer. The result is the chaos of war unfolding in hectic fashion, yet the overall challenge being quite low.
Your ship is large, but has shields, and it's quite easy to stay alive. You can transform into all three forms in you Valkyrie Fighter, but some stages restrict you to specific forms. Hybrid form allows varying firing angles and more missiles, but gravity will pull at you if you're not in space. Battloid form can only fly in space, but can fire in the most directions and launch the most missiles. There are cool moments like where the fortress transforms, and your screen orientation switches direction to vertical and diagonal scrolling while you try to fend off Zentraedi invaders, or an enemy boss moving into the background while the view sweeps behind your back for a head-on firefight. The action keeps a great pace, but it rarely taxes the player with any real threat.
Super Dimension Fortress Macross is brief but fun, and sort of reminds me of the Ranma 1/2 PC Engine platformer with its staying true to its source material while being heavily imbalanced with more cutscene than gameplay. There is more substance here, but it's still more show than game. What game there is, though, is quite fun if a little pixelated. The production values saturate the game with atmosphere, but I feel like there are a few missed opportunities to mix things up... maybe a platforming segment when stranded with Minmay in the bowels of the fortress or something might have given some interactive flavor to the proceedings. Still, this Saturn edition is a great send up for fans of the show or people who enjoy shooters but find many of them to be too tough. I should also mention that with 2 discs, you'll need a modded or Japanese Saturn to play the second disc instead of just a cartridge. I like it a lot, especially for the inexpensive price tag.
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