Under Defeat

"Grev is back with another must-have shooter!"

Yet another shmup is released for Dreamcast. Before being ported to the Dreamcast, Under Defeat was well received in Japanese arcades for its intense and challenging style.

Gameplay
At its core, Under Defeat is a very straight forward shooter without any gimmicks. It supports standard and tate screen modes. There are also no specific bullet patterns you need to memorize and maneuver through, but instead almost all enemy fire is aimed at your gunship directly. Because of this, in order to avoid gunfire, and retaliate accordingly, there are two control options for your helicopter. Normal style allows you to pivot and move the copter towards the enemy's fire, but also giving you a chance to take down an enemy quickly. This is the best option if you prefer an offensive approach. Reverse style, however, allows you to pivot your helicopter so that you are moving to the side, away from enemy fire, while still allowing you to attack. This is obviously the best option for defensive play. Either way you decide to play, the control system is very intuitive.

Unlike many other shooters, in Under Defeat, there are no upgrades for your main guns. Instead, you may pick up additional options in which you may deploy to fight alongside your ship. These only last for a short amount of time, but prove to be very useful. The different options include Vulcan which constantly fires many shots at a fast rate. A single Rocket which is incredibly powerful against bosses. There is even a miniature Cannon that fires very fast, yet powerful shells at enemies. The player is also able to deploy these options directly into an enemy, which explode on impact and cause damage.

Your helicopter also comes equipped with a special bomb which can be used to save yourself in bad situations. Upon activating it, all enemy fire on screen is blown away, and multiple explosions cover the entire screen soon after. It's definitely one of the most satisfying bombs in a shooter. Especially when you see how much damage it does to a battleship or part of a fortress.

Sound
Grev has done an incredible job in terms of sound design that really brings the environments to life. During the stages, there is so much activity going on, it's impressive to be able to almost hear all of it. For ambient effects, you can hear radio chatter, ally planes flying overhead, sirens, and even emergency announcements ordering enemy units to get to their battle stations or to abandon ship. It really is incredible for a game of this type. As for sounds caused by your actions, gunfire, deploying option weapons, and explosions all sound very nice.

Music-wise, what you hear is definitely not average or generic thanks to the amazing composer Shinji Hosoe. His style of synth rock is very dynamic sounding and and full of melodies which keep the game's music from sounding boring and repetitive. I felt that this really added to the excitement of the game. In the options menu, you may switch between the original arcade soundtrack, and arranged soundtrack which was composed for the home release.

Graphics
It's clear that the explosions were one of the top priorities in terms of designing the visuals. They have an effect on almost everything in the environment. Destroying ground enemies will leave small craters and will cause nearby units or objects to explode. Each explosion emits realistic looking clouds of black smoke. These explosions come across as being incredibly forceful. For example, if you destroy a tank nearby a group of trees, the force of the explosion will cause the trees to sway and any surrounding smoke to be blown away a short distance. Animals in the area such as cows and birds can also be killed by explosions. Other convincing environmental effects include snow, lightning, and even a shaking effect for when large aircraft fly by overhead.

Thanks to reflective water puddles on the ground, you can see that a great amount of effort was put into making sure the models have as much detail as possible.Your main helicopter along with enemy units are stunningly detailed with nice effects for spinning propellers, turrets, and even watch towers. There's one particular scene in the game which I liked where you're fighting a large battleship. After taking out all of its main cannons, as a last resort, soldiers fire at your ship from inside the main bridge, shattering the windows.

The graphics for enemy fire and your own are different colors which will hopefully keep you from becoming confused during hectic situations. In a lot of other shooters, sometimes when your ship is destroyed, it's hard to tell what exactly hit you. One little effect in Under Defeat that I found to be interesting, was a very slight pause whenever your ship is destroyed. I believe this was added to show you what exactly you were hit by.

Replay Value
The player is rewarded for playing the game a lot. As with many other shooters, for each hour you play, you are given an additional credit and eventually will unlock free play. Upon completing the game, you unlock extra replays and even an additional play mode of the game. Other unlockables include art galleries for concept sketches, promotional art, enemy unit renders, and more. The rewards are nice, but with shooters you find your self playing more and more in order to increase your skill and scores. It's very enjoyable to do with a game this good. You'll quickly start seeing the playtime hours add up.

Overall, Under Defeat is one incredibly solid title. The gameplay is nice and responsive. The exciting music will keep you entertained while looking at the incredibly detailed visuals. Then there are those of you who really enjoy increasing your scores to add even more playtime. I honestly could not find a single thing I disliked about this game. It simply is one of the best Dreamcast games to have come out over the past 7 years the console has existed. If you enjoy shmups or just action games in general, Under Defeat is a must buy.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 04/03/06