Air Assault

The Good
Air Assault is yet another excellent vertically-scrolling shooter from Irem that didn’t make its way to home systems. The European flyer for the game would have you believe the game consists of eight stages. Actually, it is 24, because, like a lot of games made by the Japanese company, the first ending – and second, in this case - is a red herring designed to help you achieve a spot in the high score table. What is unique about the game is that it had tricked me into believing I didn’t have to play the “Special Games”, given that there are credits after the initial one.

Gameplay involves shooting down huge planes and tanks, then defeating a guardian at the end of each stage before proceeding to the next one. You can move the joystick far left or far right to see more of the stage. The action is intense, but you can get one of four weapon upgrades that act like the ones in the R-Type series; they are color-coded and each serve a different function. Red upgrades are rapid-fire Balgan Guns, green delivers Wing Guns that scatters shells within a wide range, yellow hurls grenades in all directions, and blue delivers the all-powerful Graviton Laser. There are also two types of missiles and bombs, with the bombs proving effective against the guardians.

The graphics are nothing short of spectacular, with you flying over hangars, oceans, deserts, and canyons. The enemies and guardians look great, and the explosions when you shoot down enemy planes look fantastic. I enjoyed watching the little bits of animations here and there: the shadow of the first boss flying above the clouds, the submarine boss going in and out of water at the end of the fourth stage, and the touchdown towards the grassy fields in the final stage, to name a few. Sound-wise, there is nice background music throughout the game, easy memorable due to the two “Special Games”. Explosions sound similar to other Irem shoot-em-ups.

The Bad
Can’t think of a thing.

The Bottom Line
This is another excellent shoot-em-up from Irem that can only be found in arcades. It is also overlooked because not one home system had received an official port. The graphics and sound are nothing short of excellent. The animations are also impressive. R-Type fanatics will definitely enjoy this one.