ININ was kind enough to send us a review code for their newest collection. The Over Horizon X Steel Empire collection offers up the PAL/JP exclusive Over Horizon, as well as several versions of the classic (and genre important) Steel Empire. ININ’s been doing great work with classic games (they notably put out those Cotton series remasters), so you know you’re getting a quality collection, here.
Notably, both games, united by a director and much the same staff, have a few things in common. The most notable, however, is the ability to fire both ahead and behind your ship. There are many, many sidescrolling shoot ’em ups that just toss enemies at you from behind; indeed, that is part of the reason both games let you shoot in both directions.
The game’s director, Satake Yoshinori, wasn’t fond of the fact that most shooters would force the player to defend themselves solely by dodging enemies attacking from behind. He also wasn’t much for difficult shoot ’em up titles like R-Type and Gradius II, so the game is a bit easier by design, though it still offers some excellent challenge.
Over Horizon also gives the player to customize the parameters of their ship, leaving players to choose where to place up to 5 points into the ship’s weaponry. They also give you the ability, during play, to alter the positions of any Options you pick up, which definitely makes hitting certain enemies a bit easier.
Despite the fact that Over Horizon released first, though, it is described as a spiritual successor to Steel Empire (I’m not sure of the timeline, though as Over Horizon is an NES/Famicom game, it may have been started later with a shorter development cycle).
And Steel Empire makes up the bulk of the collection. They not only give you both the Genesis and GBA versions of Steel Empire, but also original Japanese versions of each. A nice touch, as there are usually a few differences (at minimum) between the Western release and the Japanese original.
Steel Empire doesn’t have the customization of Over Horizon, but it does have a number of innovations for the time. Aside from some powerups that might have never been seen again, its biggest innovation is that of leveling your ship. Every three powerups collected increase your ship’s firepower by one level, and this not only persists between lives, but also continues.
There are considerable differences between the Genesis and GBA versions of Steel Empire, though both are great games. In translating the game to the much smaller GBA screen, a number of changes were made, including a smaller play area, larger sprites, and the ability for your shots to cancel out some enemy fire.
Overall, the GBA version is much easier than the Genesis version, though at least some of that is down to compromises made to get the game to be both fun and playable on a smaller screen. And if, like me, your skill with these types of games has waned over the years, there are things that the collection provides that can tip things in your favor.
Every game in the collection has remappable controls. You also get a number of display options to tailor things to your liking. That said, they also offer actual cheats for all games in the collection: infinite lives, invincibility, max firepower, and the like. If you’re less than the world’s best shmup player, you have ways to play and enjoy these games.
Over Horizon X Steel Empire is available right now on the Nintendo Switch for $14.99. And, honestly, it’s worth your money. If not for the steampunk setting, then definitely for the action. If the Switch isn’t your jam, though, a PS4 release is coming soon.
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