"A Fitting Ending to a Great Shooter Series"

INTRODUCTION

The R-Type series has been a solid shooter and R-Type Final is no exception. Appeared on many systems, IREM has finally brought it over to the PS2. This is the grand finale, also known as Operation Last Dance, between mankind and the Bydo Empire. You are mankind's last hope and you get to pilot the coolest space ships in the galaxy. This game is also the last R-Type by IREM. So, welcome to the last ride on R-Type Final.

GRAPHICS - 9/10

Shooter fans' dream come true. Even if you're not into Shoot 'em Up games, the graphics are sure a feast for your eyes. Truly gorgeous. A lot of details are put into the ships. The backgrounds are superbly done. I only wish they'd concentrate more on the story, but that's the way shooters are, I guess.

SOUNDS - 8/10

Not to my surprise, the sound effects are your typical shooter game. Music is just the same as well. Does well to keep your adrenaline at a high level, especially when you're going up against the bosses. What I am quite disappointed is the lack of voice-over's in the game. They should have at least included some audio alerts, which I think gives some more depth to the game.

GAMEPLAY - 10/10

What is the key element for a shooter game to succeed? Great weapons. And R-Type Final excels in this. You've got your primary weapon, which is the usual machine gun type weapon, the secondary Beam charge-up weapon, which can be released at any level. The longer you hold, the more powerful the weapon. Then, there is the energy-ball like power-up, known as force, which can be attached to the front or the rear of your ship, which adds additional attack besides your primary weapon and firepower to your secondary weapon. It also absorbs the enemies laser attacks, but only minor ones. This absorbed energy, known as ''Dose''. The percentage of ''Dose'' will affect your score. The higher the ''Dose'', more points you can score. Also, once fully charged, it can be used as a desperation maneuver, where energy bursts is released. The force can be detached/released as well, where it will roam freely to hunt down enemies, but your firepower is reduced. Red, Yellow and Blue power-ups are available which determines the direction of fire of the weapon, and can be powered up to three levels.
Next, you've got missile/bomb power-ups, depending on your type of ship, which can be upgrade to two levels.
Finally, there is the protecting spheres known as ''bils'', which act like a shield for your ship.
Controls are spot on and easy to adapt. The ship's maneuvering rate can be controlled as well, which means you can control your ship's speed up to 4 Speeds. Maneuvering through tight spots is much easier now.
As always, R-Type Final is one tough nut to crack. Thank goodness, the game has 5 difficulties to choose from, ranging from Baby to R-Typer.
The modes are available are Story Mode and Time Attack.

REPLAY VALUE - 9/10

Lot's of hidden aircrafts in this game to win. Even the levels are variable. The only missing, which I feel is important for a shooter game, where R-Type series seems to miss out from day one, is the Two-Player feature. If not, it would have scored a 10. Oh, well. Nobody is perfect, I guess.

OVERALL - 9/10

A brilliant ending to the series. A definite must-have for any shooter fan. Get it. For the average player, I suggest renting it first, but I'm telling you, you won't be disappointed. Great job, IREM. And thank you very much for R-Type.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 04/06/04