SILPHEED:The Lost Planet

Blast through eight levels of intense combo-driven gameplay, utilizing nine blazing weapon types that are unlocked as the player reaches new scoring plateaus.

The design deities at Game Arts and Treasure (the of Guardian Heroes, LUNAR: Silver Star Story Complete, and Radiant Silvergun) have come up with the perfect combination of deep, flexible gameplay and dazzling visual imagery.

Destroy the terrifying invaders before they devour Mother Earth!

Rated: TEEN, Animated Violence, Mild Language. 1 Player. Digital Control, Analog Control and Vibration Function Compatible. Memory Card (for PS2): 70 KB.

Silpheed: The Lost Planet offers the same method of play. You still can't move up and down, though some enemies may shoot at you from above or below. Like most shooters, the game isn't about exploration and navigation, but rather it's all about dexterity and shooting as rapidly as your fingers will allow.

In this game you pilot a SA-77 craft that has gun slots on its left and right. You can put a different weapon on each side of the ship, and you can even fire them both simultaneously. You start off with two versions of the Vulcan cannon. As you make your way through the game, you will earn more weapons.

The storyline involves an alien race appearing just outside a planet colonized by humans. The aliens have taken over, and the retreating humans are followed back to our solar system by the pesky creatures. The entire story is told through wonderful full-motion video sequences, which, for some reason, were not done in the higher-resolution DVD format.

The sound effects are your standard shooter fare, so they're good. The music is a letdown, though. Nostalgic Sega fans will recognize the previous game's theme in one of the FMV sequences, but other than that, the music is completely forgettable.

The main problem with Silpheed is that it looks great, but it only plays and feels like an average shooter from an older game system. Nothing about the gameplay will get your adrenaline pumping--and that's exactly what a good shooter is supposed to do. --Todd Mowatt

Pros:

• Great graphics

• Unimaginative weapons
• Graphics slowdown often hinders the gameplay

The reason behind the allure of this game isn't because its some new thing being tried out on the screen. In fact, its been done many a time before and the storyline isn't all that unique. Its simply Nintendo's Lifeforce on steroids, with everything working like a head-on fighter would. You, of course, have the only ship fighting for your side of a struggle - when you could at least use a little back-up, a weapon on each side that lets you choose different weapon option (mostly worthless), and there are lots of enemies. Everything from the little ships that fly in heavy numbers to smallest, faster ships to mini-bosses and then stage bosses. Within those struggles the sky fills with lots of shells, allowing you to show how skilled you are by dodging and dancing through these, knowing that you have a limited bit of shielding and are the only hope for you people.
Yes, its always good to face a challenge.

Interestingly attached to this is a way to approach points and extra lives, with a bonus given to you for killing something closer to you ship. Also, the more bonuses, the faster the other weapons come up. I'd played some games that have ways to garner quickly through bonuses, but in Slipheed all things have a modifier on them. The multipliers go as high as sixteen times the points, feeding your lives fast, but facing the big point carriers - the bosses - head on is a challenge. So, it never really gets tiring.
And did I mention that the graphics are beautiful, especially in depiction of the scenery?

The only problem I really had with was the weapons.
It was the fact that the guns, while interesting, weren't very functional. Bombs that pulse out are too slow, guns with beams that wobble are nice but don't always go forward, and so on. Sometimes, when playing, I simply stick to the primary cannon given and one accessory - not the way I like to have to play.
It was the way they were earned, allowing a change at the beginning of a mission and somewhere at a "checkpoint" refueling on the board.

For anyone that's into this type of shooter, with a ship that you fly "up" the television screen and with combat remnant of Lifeforce of Gradius, then this is a must have. I had honestly written this release off, thinking it to be just another game from an already dead group of games, but I bought it anyway. And then, playing it, I noticed how wrong I really was. The missions, the creative bosses, the backgrounds meshing it all together, it's a sight to see and a challenge to beat. If you've never tried a game like this before, I would have to say that playing it will be fun because your skills will impress you. At first it'll be hard, dodging multiple shots, but soon you'll notice you're good, then better, and finally showing off for your friends amidst a stunning array of action. And what's the life of the party without you?


Star Soldier and Gradius fans: Rejoice!   August 15, 2002
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Someone once asked if the top-scrolling flight-sim/shooter is dead. I suppose the answer to this is yes...and no. True, very few of these games are being made, those that are made are good enough (though rarely fantastic) to keep the genre alive, if only for a little while. I suppose they will go the way of drive-in theaters: With people missing them, but with no one really going out of their way to keep them alive.

I like Working Designs. The attention they give to their projects rivals motion picture distributors, their localizations often resembling "director's cuts" and "Special Editions" of films. Even if the game is a rather obscure little pet project (Sihlouette Mirage) or a grand-scale epic (Lunar), Working Designs always wants to give their games that little bit of special treatment. Here, in addition to the chrome-glossy packaging, we are treated to "Translator's Notes," outlining the Silpheed History. It really gives you an appreciation for what went into developing the game.

It is almost enough, in fact, to make you ignore the fact that, on the whole, Silpheed is not a great game. The weapons are dull by comparison to any other game in the genre (My all-time favorite is Star Soldier: Vanishing Earth for N64), and the story is really rather boring; its attempt at creating an epic political/war drama falls flat on its face.

Anyway, as for the gameplay itself (which is all these games really seem to offer anyway): The graphics are first rate, easily leaving all others in its dust. The game models are fantastic and amazingly detailed, worthy of Playstation 2. PSOne Gradius fans need not worry about gritty, pixelated textures, and N64 Star Soldier fans need not worry about smoothed-over, washed out ones. There may a little bit of slowdown here and there, but it is not enough to be frustrating or even annoying really (it is normally during explosions, which actually helps to give the game a more cinematic feel.) The level designs are in league with Star Soldier (the notes tell of how the backgrounds were originally pre-rendered streaming videos) making you not feel as though you are simply moving a cursor over an eye-candy-laden screen, and the learning curve is just challenging enough to not be discouraging.
While this is ultimately not a fantastic game, it should certainly not be ignored and is at least worth a rental. Put simply, if you are a fan of top-scrollers, it is a good buy. If you are not that big of a fan, you could probably take or leave it.


Who doesn't love the old blow-'em-up?   May 5, 2002
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

I purchased this game with my new PS2, about a year ago. I was definitely surprised that a game with such an old gameplay concept had come out on an advanced system like the PS2. I figured the shooter had died out with the arcade-heyday. Was I ever wrong! The graphics in this game are absolutely stunning, and the explosions, despite not being obnoxious fireballs of death, are smooth and colorful, especially when they temporarily white-out the screen. The cinemas really fit in with the sci-fi feel of this game; it actually looks like something in a movie (You'll definitely find out what the PS2 can do after watching the intro...) The weapons are very cool, and its fun to mix and match combinations to obliterate the aliens. Oh, and no,"Bail-you-out-at-the-last-second nukes here, all you've got is your guns and your skill, making this a very difficult game (The second stage took me several tries to beat!)

I give this game five stars because its a refreshing look at a genre that doesn't get as much attention as it used to, compared with all of the simulation, shoot-everything games that seem to abound in today's market. Makes you feel like your in an arcade again, and the graphics are fabulous.


Refreshing shooter for the retro taste   July 23, 2001
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

I recommend this masterpiece to anyone who likes games such as Einhander, Contra Hard Core, Daruis, R-type, or Gradius. The actions, graphics and sounds are all intense. Backgrounds are well designed and detailed. This game is 2D but the background shifts at times to bring you into the action. A lot of work must have gone into making Silpheed. The normal challenge setting is not absurdly difficult; most players should be able to complete all the missions without resorting to cheat codes. More importantly, to keep you on your toes, some bosses vary their attack with each encounter(similiar to Einhander and Contra Hard Core). Though most shooters don't provide much insight into the story as the game progresses, I was blown away by the incredible animation sequences between each stage. Not often do I find a game that is as enjoyable to watch from the sidelines as is to play.


$... down the drain (MINUS one star!)   June 18, 2001
 8 out of 18 found this review helpful

A Father's Day gift, otherwise I would not even have touched it. Why anybody would knowingly pay... for a 1970's vintage scrolling shooter game for the PS2 is beyond me! What a waste of code and processor power! Nothing original here, nothing exciting, nothing new in the two-dimensional arcade-style scrolling shooter. And the packaging is somewhat deceptive in leading one to believe it is a modern PS2 sort of game.

Yeah, it does take advantage of the additional polygons the PS2 can generate to bolster the images as they scroll by, but why bother? I was bored after 10 minutes and disappointed that there wasn't a three dimensional environment to explore instead of repetitive Galaga-style bugs streaming past you. There are far better and more modern space shooters available, like Starwars Starfighter, which really takes advantage of the PS2's power.

For Working Designs to charge... for re-releasing this ancient technology with slightly updated graphics is a pure ripoff.