Posted on: October 1, 2023

mdqp
Verified ownerGames: 1925 Reviews: 67
Somewhat Stiff Side-scrolling Shooter
As a side-scrolling shooter, Cyber Mission is competent enough, but it's a little too basic and the difficulty a bit uneven. I strongly recommend going in the option and changing the weapon setting, so you keep your upgrades after being hit (the game is much harder otherwise, because of the very large hitbox of your character and its slow movement). Having to handle the direction in which you are shooting (and the direction of your "satellites") is cool, with the option of locking/unlocking their position, as well as a "spray and pray" option (not very useful, given how many shots you need to kill anything and how big the gaps between bullets are in this mode). Other than that, however, you only get a handful of upgrades to break the monotony. A lot of the areas do not mix things up enough, given their length (although admittedly the game overall isn't very long). Some of the sections/bosses require you to trial and error + memorize the patterns, as they are effectively unreactable otherwise, and will lead to some damage despite your best efforts. Still, the bosses are fun, and are definitely challenging at first. The worst part is just how you are both slow, yet tiny adjustments seem impossible (the smallest touch still sends you quite far). The pixel art is overall very good, but there are a few parts which seem surprisingly lower quality (especially the generators at the end of each level look severely out of place). The music is generic, and won't have you complain about it or praise it too much. The story is uninspired (and I can't say for sure if it suffers from a not-so-perfect translation). It certainly doesn't get in the way, though, so it's hardly a minus. Cyber Mission can be fun, but the difficulty which never settles to an appropriate level and the stiffness of the movement prevent it from being a truly great example of the genre. If you ran out of shooters, this isn't bad, but otherwise I wouldn't go out of my way to get it immediately.
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