Einhander

"This is a SHOOTER?! I thought Square made it! They did, and it's a shooter at the same time."

Wooooooaaaahhhhaaa yes my friends Square made a shooter, and might I say that they're good at makin shooters. Einhander, meaning one handed, is another of Square's German-named masterpieces that never got justice.

Graphics: 8
Yes my friends... good graphics on a shooter. Everything flows VERY smoothly. The beginning movie obviously looks great (remember, this game was made by Square.) The enemies and environments are both detailed very well and seems to go well together. The bosses are nicely designed and colored wonderfully. Every single one of the many weapons you can find throughout the game are easily recognizable, (which is important, as in many games weapons look similar when you pick them up) especially when fired, heh heh heh... heh.

Sound: 9
Ah yes... the sound the sound the sound. Gotta love the music in this game. As with nearly every other Square game, the music goes great with whatever situation or environment you're in. Besides that, they're just plain awesome tracks, something you can actually listen to even when you're not playing the game.

Ooohh... and the sound effects. The voices and sound effects are just great. Each weapon's sound is like... POW! or.. EXPLODE! or... ELECTRIC SHOCK!! And there are some voices too. They sound good... but... you can't really understand what they're sayin. Maybe it's Japanese or something. But anyhow, the sound is good

Control: 10
The controls in the game are great. They are set up PERFECTLY (in my opinion at least) Every function is set up on the controller perfectly. Your ship is easy to maneuver around the hoards of enemies you'll encounter, and comes with several speed settings (wow! now I don't have to get a little floating S to move faster!) And, unlike most shooter, you can fire basically as much you want. No annoying 1 or 2 shot limits (except for a 4 or 5 shot limit on your normal gun)

Gameplay: 10
You fly around, you shoot stuff. Doesn't sound very fun. Sometimes it's not, but Square manages to bring out the best in shooters (well... shooter.) You start off with a choice of three ships, each with their own special capabilities. One can hold two weapons at once, one can hold three weapons but only have one out, and the other has two main cannons. Throughout the game, you will be able to find a large variety of weapons to add onto your ship. Many of the weapons, like riot cannon, WASP, and Rail Gun or very very useful. Others, like the spread and grenade are almost useless. However they are all fun to play around with. And once you get a weapon, you can choose to start with it at any time.

Besides being just fun, this game can be an incredible challenge. Trying to beat the game on hard mode with no continues to receive one of the bonus ships is something I still haven't been able to pull off. There is also a gallery of 99 (maybe 100) pictures, whether they be hand drawn or CG, they are fun to try and collect.

OVERALL: 10
Yes... a 10. I could play this game for months (actually years). It's not as good as say... Ehrgeiz (which isn't a shooter) but it is loads of fun. Better than most of the stuff you'll find today. If you can find it cheap (it's hard to find at all, let alone cheap) pick it up, take it to the counter, give the guy money, then go home and lock yourself in your room with a Sam's Club size pack of ramen noodles. You won't be disappointed.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 06/14/03, Updated 06/14/03