ININ Games was kind enough to send us a review code for Taito Milestones 3 on the Switch. And, as it just so happens, it contains some of Taito’s best and most interesting arcade games. I would be remiss not to be appreciative, I think you’ll agree.
As stated above, Taito Milestones 3 brings you nine of Taito’s biggest hit arcade games… and Rastan Saga 2. But really, you’re getting bang for your buck, here. and some of these games are still considered absolute classics to this day. What’s inside:
- Bubble Bobble
- Rainbow Islands
- Rastan Saga
- Rastan Saga 2
- Warrior Blade: Rastan Saga 3
- Champion Wrestler
- Cadash
- Thunder Fox
- Runark (a.k.a. Growl)
- Dead Connection
Bubble Bobble and Rainbow Islands are both well regarded to this day in the retro scene. As they’re the arcade versions, they’re also great value; This is regarded by some as the best version of the original Bubble Bobble. You’ll often see a lot more discussion on Rainbow Islands, but I’d still argue that the original arcade version here is the best.
Rastan Saga is a great game that I’m really bad at. It has all the barbarian fantasy that you could ask for from a 30+-year-old arcade game, with a few exceptions. It plays great and the sprites are good. Rastan Saga 2 is… not a very good game. I’m pretty sure it’s just here for completion’s sake. It was successful back in the day, but in retrospect, time has not been kind to it. Warrior Blade: Rastan Saga 3, though? This is one hell of a game. It’s from a point where developers were aware that presentation was important for this style of game. And man, it does not disappoint. Orginally presented in widescreen across two monitors, it’s available here in in the most optimal form on your widescreen/Switch screen. It was also ahead of the curve, offering cutscenes and even player-chosen branching paths. Damn good for 1991, and easily one of the showstoppers for this collection, in my opinion.
Champion Wrestler is a decent game. It’s very much an arcade wrestling game of the style at the time, so your milage may vary. Notable, it also features Rastan as a playable character, meaning 40% of the games in this collection feature Rastan.
Cadash is an interesting one. It’s an early example of a Platformer RPG; a style that in arcades and home consoles marry the platformer with an RPG-style experience system. I imagine most might identify them more as actin RPG’s nowadays, but still. It’s probably a great experience if you have a buddy to play it with.
Thunder Fox is a run and gun (or knife, as the case may be), and a good one. More importantly, the game moves at a breakneck pace. Oh, and it absolutely refuses to let you be bored. Every level feels like something different, they all seem to give you a new vehicle or something to play with. I genuinely had to peel myself away from it.
Runark (a.k.a. Growl) is a belt-scrolling beat-em-up. It is one of those games where they’re happy to chuck everything and the kitchen sink at you; I was legitimately surprised at the number of enemies they were putting on screen for a 1991 game, here. Related to that, this game lets you choose between the 2 or 4-player cabinet versions in the options. Good game, can only imagine what it’s like having 4 people in on this chaos.
Dead Connection is probably the most unique game in the collection. There are film references in these cutscenes, and it wears its love of film noir/detective story/crime story movies on its sleeve. The crime boss sort of looks like Don Vito Corleone, you’ve got a lady getting killed that may or may not be a reference to the ending of Chinatown (it’s not really the same, so I’m not certain), and your choice of 4 playable characters feature two that look suspiciously like Kevin Costner and Andy Garcia in The Untouchables. The game takes place on a single screen play field, though every one is detailed beautifully. It’s fast paced, you’re dodging bullets, things explode, it’s absolutely great.
Mentioned above, these games give you options where there may have been options for the machines (most notably for Runark, but still). Most importantly, however, all of these games let you input credits with a tap of the L button. These were all quarter munchers back in the day, so it’s great that you can give yourself the oppportunity to see the end, without shelling out $20 in quarters.
That said, while Taito Milestones 3 does offer you some great arcade bang for your buck, it is still a $40 purchase. It would be a difficult decision for me, given my churchmouse status, but you are getting your money’s worth, here. And if you preorder, you can get it for $35.99; a small discount, but every penny. Note, however, that this deal ends when the game launches on December 10th.
Putting it all together, however, Taito Milestones 3 is an instant recommendation for anyone that loves old arcade games. The selection is incredibly rich, and they’ve done a great job ensuring that each of these games is presented with its best foot forward, with little fiddling from the end user. If you’re in the market for it, give it a shot; you won’t be disappointed.
Final Score:
*Switch Key provided for review*
About Author
