Super Aleste review - Super Nintendo
The Space Megaforce is the last word in airborne and orbital defence craft. It boasts tough hyper-alloy molecular shielding to protect it from enemy fire and a sophisticated variable weapons system allowing it to adapt to any combat situation. It is the scourge of Earth's enemies throughout the known universe.
However, an unknown galactic power has made a determined bid for conquest of Earth, destroying all but one of the Space Fleet's Megaforce craft. In this game, you are cast as the last remaining pilot, seeking to defend Earth by destroying the invasion mothership. This perilous journey takes you into the depths of space, from where only the toughest pilots return alive.
Super Aleste is one of the few vertically scrolling shoot 'em ups on the SNES. Your craft traverses the screen in its entirety, allowing maximum potential to manoeuvre. There are twelve stages to blast your way through. Certain stages offer a departure from the standard up the screen action, with the boss following your ship around from the beginning and requiring hits to many different areas before biting the dust. If all this sounds a bit too much for you, there is also a short game configuration for gunners with no time to spare! You begin the game with three lives, and once all these are lost it's game over. However, there are unlimited continues for those who think the challenge is beyond them.
What the Mean Machines staff thought
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Super Aleste is one of the most exciting shoot 'em ups I've seen in a long time. The graphics are superb, from the excellent sprites and colourful, detailed backgrounds right through to the many special effects, such as the warping boss who stretches and distorts his merry way around the screen. The sound compliments things perfectly, with some great tunew and booming effects. The mixture of full-on blasting and simultaneously avoiding the manifold traps and barriers placed in your path keeps the action at a manic level, and the speed at which your ship moves leaves you with little time to think. Super Aleste is very tough too, there are five difficulty levels and even the easy level is quite a challenge. If it's apocalyptic japes you're after, Super Aleste is for you.
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Retrospective comments
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Compile's shooters have always been excellent and this is no exception. Although the graphics are stunning when compared to other SNES shooters, the gameplay is fantastic and the programmers have really pushed the machine to produce some brilliant set-pieces. The featured Mode 7 effects are good too, and the music is decent enough. I'd still say that Gunhed on the PC Engine is a better shooter, but this can be gotten for less cash so you'd be daft to ignore it. |
Have your say about this review
Richy Girth - 03 Dec 2008, 15:27 GMT
Love it. From the pace of play, the sexy graphics, ripping sounds and music designs of the enemies to the varied and powerful weapons systems like we saw in Gunhed and Power Strike 2.
The orchestral sounds of the score are particularly 1992 with their string samples and pseudo techno beats etc
After bumping in to it again a few years back, I'd forgotten how good it was, and what a real rush it was playing this, and when ever I have a go these days, Im still there for hours at a time on it.
Still highly recommendable.
Dan - 08 Apr 2009, 12:42 GMT
Didn't like it one bit, weird weapons n borin levels + enemies meant that as soon as my intrevenus horse spunk injection had worn off I'd rip it out of my Famicom n de-crust the fust from my anus with the cart.
Steve - 07 Sep 2009, 18:01 GMT
How did the above comment get past the moderator? It's sick.
Ryan - 10 Dec 2009, 17:37 GMT
An under-appreciated gem. The gameplay is furious and exciting, the graphics are flashy for 1992, and the sound is pretty solid, too.
This game will draw you in!
James - 12 Sep 2010, 11:59 GMT
The best shooter of its type that I have played bar none. Great music, smooth and detailed graphics and manic action. Really addictive with challenging levels and satisfying and varied weapons. Getting any of the weapons to level 8 is immensely gratifying. Lets hope it comes to Wii Virtual Console sometime soon...
JDRicardi - 13 Feb 2013, 21:30 GMT
This is the best shooter I've ever played (though Axelay is a close runner-up!)
The mode-7 is fantastic, especially on stage 2. This game blew me away when I first played it (extensively, at that) in 1995 and it blew me away when I played it again this past week.
Devoted an entire blog post to it at: http://www.coronajumper.com/2013/02/space-megaforce-super-nes-1992.html
Tens - 17 Apr 2013, 13:11 GMT
Excellent shooter for the snes this one, Loaded with a good variation of power ups and the ability to control the speed of the ship.
Next to no slow down, Decent bosses and a decent amount of levels (12).
Might be seen as a bit to easy on the normal setting but the amount of weapons and gameplay will keep you coming back for more.
9/10 I give this one.
