The first two Taito Milestones collection were a bit of a
mixed bag. The first collection had ten games on it but lacked for the price
that was being asked. The second collection fared better, having The New
Zealand Story and a unique version of Darius 2 on it. While still limited to
ten games, the third collection is arguably the strongest set of games so far.
Before we get into what’s on here it’s important to say that
you now get all the expected game-based bells and whistles retro collections
have started to accumulate. Save states, display settings, the ability to tweak
in game options and online rankings are all here along with in game manuals.
There isn’t much in the way of museum or archive material though.
Headlining this collection are the classics of Bubble Bobble and Rainbow Islands. Both are highly regarded arcade games that you’ll no doubt have heard of. They both play as excellently as you remember as well with their different takes on platforming still feeling fresh and fun, while also influencing so much that came after them.
The Rastan games are also here. The impressive
Conan the Barbarian inspired sprites still hold up and the arcade style hack
and slash will keep you playing longer than most arcade games have a right to.
The second game is even more visually impressive with some excellent set pieces
and huge graphics, but it lacks in terms of how it plays and will likely be
skipped over after the initial wow factor has warn off.
The rare, third game in the Rastan Saga has also been included.
Warrior Blade is Taito’s attempt at producing something like Golden Axe. It’s
not been the easiest game to get hold of so it’s nice to see it here and it
does a good job at creating a swords and sorcery hack and slash game. It has a pretty
wide range of moves as well and three different characters to pick from so if
you get tired of just hammering the attack button there are options to mix
things up.
Championship Wrestling is an interesting choice, it’s a
relatively fun take on the sport which looks great but lacks a few moves. It
runs at a decent speed and all the different characters are visually different.
They also have a few unique moves between them. As there’s a real lack of
decent wrestling games on the Switch it could gain a bit of a cult following.
It’s certainly fun in small bursts.
RPG/ Hack and Slash crossover Cadash has made the cut as well. You start
by picking from one of four characters and then must press on against the
clock in a side on adventure. Occasionally you’ll level up and have to continually
find gold. It’s not a game that has aged massively well and will likely just become
a curio as players look for something a bit easier to deal with. The same can
be said for Runark (otherwise known as Growl), which is a fairly average belt
fighter with a few cool elements and an interesting theme.
Luckily, Thunder Fox is much more interesting. It plays like
a sort of cross between an updated version of Rush ‘n’ Attack and the arcade
version of Shinobi. Levels are varied and it’s responsive and good fun. It has
the basic structure of walking through levels and hitting enemies but the
bosses are decent and occasionally you get to drive vehicles and blast things in
jets. As an arcade experience it works well.
The collection is rounded off with Dead Connection a cool
action game set across a single screen where you break into gangsters’ dens and
shoot everyone. Levels are set up like a club or a restaurant and you must eliminate
a certain number of targets to progress. Much of the environment is destructible
and interactive as well which adds to the chaos. It’s a continual good time and
a much-welcomed addition.
Overall, The third Taito collection is the strongest in
terms of overall selection of games yet. There’s a good mix of well recognised
titles and curios and most of them are at least fun to play in small amounts.
There are of course always things we would have liked to see added. In this instance
we would have loved to have more of the Bubble Bobble games on here, Bubble Symphony
seems to never want to come out on anything again. The price may still be too much
for some but in terms of quality you can’t really argue.
Overall 8/10
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