Review by: Brian Rowe

In the shmup community, Radiant Silvergun is royalty. After appearing on the ill-fated Sega Saturn in 1998 – the same year the system was discontinued in the US – Treasure's vertical shooter was elevated to such mythical levels of praise that even bootlegs could fetch unreasonable prices. Like me, you are probably wondering how good a 13-year old game can really be. Answer: better than most shmups since.

Unlike the bullet-hell shooters and their labyrinthine barrages of firepower that have surged in popularity, Treasure's masterpiece stems from a transitional period when new technologies produced some of the most menacing bosses and complex mechanics of the genre. Not only are there seven weapons to manage at all times, but the scoring system involves color-coded enemies that paved the way for another famous Treasure game, Ikaruga. Radiant Silvergun is a tactical juggernaut, even for experienced players. But really, what self-respecting shmup fan isn't a glutton for punishment?

The most striking difference between Radiant Silvergun and most other shmups is the lack of collectible weapon power-ups, pre-stage loadouts (eg Gradius), or selectable ships with unique attack patterns. Instead, there is one stock ship and constant access to seven weapons with distinct purposes. For example: one homing weapon has a long range, but at the expense of strength, while the other homing weapon is stronger and requires you to highlight enemies in a small targeting radius surrounding your ship.

There are so many sequences in tight quarters, with enemies firing at you from the rear and the sides, that I called shenanigans on numerous occasions. As my skills slowly improved – so very, very slowly – I realized that every death was due to my failure to use the proper weapon for the situation. Whereas other games might ask you to choose a particular style of play, Radiant Silvergun demands that you master all of them. Of course, no discussion would be complete without mentioning the Radiant Sword, a melee attack that also sucks up certain bullets to use as fuel for a super-attack. So, not only do you have to juggle a large arsenal, but one of your weapons asks you to put yourself directly in the line of fire.

After dying a few dozen times and coming to grips with the weaponry, you will still only be halfway to understanding the scope of Radiant Silvergun. Every enemy is color-coded. Kill three of the same color and you get a bonus. Kill three more of that same color and the bonus jumps again, but there is more to a combo than pure bragging rights. There are three classes of weaponry and combos yield XP towards leveling up the class used for the kill. You can beat the game through wanton killing, but the final fights are going to be extremely difficult.

To put this into a better perspective, killing everything on the screen is not the point. In fact, I'm not even sure that it's possible, which is a concept that flies in the face of every shmup that I can remember. Instead, Radiant Silvergun forces you restrain yourself, to choose which color of enemies to pursue and if you are willing to allow a powerful enemy to remain a threat for the sake of your combo. It's a method that takes some mental adjustment, but, as with the weapons, imbues Radiant Silvergun with unexpected depths of strategy.