Thunder Dragon 2 (Arcade)

What have the same amount as war-themed games that involve Nazi or bad comments on Youtube? I mostly certain the answer is vertical shooter games. You can find them on arcade, home console, PC, even Iphone. It's because of their simple concept: you control (most of the case) a ship, shoot enemies, and avoid being shot. Some of them have twist or unique feature. While the other are approximately generic. This time, i show you one of them: NMK's "Thunder Dragon 2" (1993).  

 The title suggests that it has prequel but i won't bother with it. TD 2 is certainly step-up from TD 1, right?! I may be wrong. Though i won't push my luck/my effort to find it out. Probably not worth to know. Through google translate, i know that left Japanese symbol (kanji) means thunder and is pronounced "Kaminari". While the right ones is definitely not pronounced "Doragon". So i just trust the English title on that ones. That's my Japanese literacy, reader. As high as bonsai's height.       

There is no backstory in attraction mode also no mission briefing when i start the game. As soon as i start the game, i'm greeted with "battle is begun. Good Luck" text here. You have the inkling about the gameplay, right? directional button/joystick to move, one button to fire plane's standard shoot, and another button to unleash screen-clearing bomb. Also the plane will be destroyed with single collision of enemies or their attacks. The usual stuff, man. But, here's novelty feature: that words can be shot! It doesn't make the stage starts quicker than if you leave them alone. But NMK clearly put this feature on purpose, so it's kind of bad if you don't shoot them. Also if you're really trigger-happy or shooting-maniac, this is treat for you.

 

The common things from average vertical-shooter arcade game is Chinook helicopter or any tandem-rotor sky vessel that contains Power-up if you destroy it like here for instance. Another that i like to mention is my plane's standard shoot is this twin shoot that flies diagonally in small degree that different from other game with same genre (which is usually either single shoot or straight twin shoot). This may confuse/upset OCD vertical-shooter gamer for this uniqueness. In my opinion, this shoot pattern allow me to shoot enemy not directly behind/in front of it which is fantastic. Let's be frank, any pilot who shoots face-to-face with his/her enemy in airplane-fight is dumb. Brave, but dumb. In video games, i mean.

 

Another trivial thing in vertical-shooter arcade game is score-up item like those shiny purple thing over there. The bigger the item, the higher score you get if you pick it up. Bigger coins are more valuable than smaller ones, right?! That's make sense.

 

Yet another things that common in TD 2 with its peer: Boss stage warning. Moreover, it can't be shot like the starting-stage words. Engineer_autodejectedtie01.wav.

 

The boss stage 1 is big plane that shoot bullets and rockets backward. It's busy fly forward and not facing me directly. Look at me when you shoot me, you git! My strategy: shoot the big plane and the destroyable rockets, avoid its bullet, rinse and repeat.

 

Stage 2 takes place in jungle where there is many aircraft and tanks to destroy. Backward-shooting enemies are quite common in TD 2 but this bastard is on new level. It fly slowly at the bottom try to ram you from behind then he start shooting at you. I really hate this kind of enemy also jealous to them, wishing i can shoot backward too.

 

Then i storm a camp which makes the game more interesting a bit. Actually, what i like to show you is that military scissor-type bridge at the bottom part. I'm quickly recognize that bridge which is set by M601 Armoured Launched-Vehicle Bridge (AVLB) thanks to my fondness on reading my book about tank knowledge when i was elementary schooler. Also since that day, i favorite ADATS for its awesome missile launchers. Sorry for me being out-of-topic. (*sweat drop*). Beyond this point there is 2 guard towers that are more durable to my shooting than any tanks that i encountered. I think the reason is: the tanks are using mass-production technology thus they have durability of compacted garbage-bins.  

 

Boss stage 2 is quite the same like Boss stage 1. Only much bigger (even more, it can't be contained within whole screen!) and flies plane instead of shooting destroyable rocket. So the strategy is pretty much the same with previous one.

Now this is what i call "Desert Strike". Suck it, EA!

 

Oh, i spoke too soon. It's "(Ruined) Urban Strike" now. As you can see, there are 2 quadruple-rotor enemies which are definitely tandem rotor enemy's elder brother. They are more dangerous than their little brother because 1) They shoot fiercer 2) They fly from bottom to catch you off guard.

 

There are no more things that i can say about the gameplay beside power-up pickup (that can upgrade your standard arsenal) and missile pickup (that add missiles beside your bullets). So, i just comment about enemies and stage design from this point. There is another insolent backfiring airplane which shoot fireballs at me. I bet that's spitfire. Because it spit(s) fire, get it?!

 

Here i kill these jeeps mother. It can fire some bullets but it still no match for me as it's still busy giving birth to those jeeps. R.I.P mother's jeep.    

 

Demoman_negativevocalization03.wav. This must be Jeep's father that serves as boss stage 3 and seeking revenge on me. Beside spews orbs, it can shoot twin super laser from its center turret. By the way this only its 1st phase.

 

Here is its 2nd phase, it reveals 4 flamethrowing pods. Sniper_autoonfire01.wav.

 

Next stage takes place in arctic region. How nice of NMK to put some whale in this stage's waters. You have to care about wildlife conservation, you know?!

 

But not only i meet whales but also these Fubuki-class destroyers and Jintsuu doing expedition. They're not happy to see me and start shooting at me. So i have to shoot back. It's self-defense, all right?!

In the middle of fierce air-Vs-ground battle, there is a husky run cheerfully around the other one. I mark them with red circle there though they're so small to see from this picture.

 

Don't run, Myōkō! I'm just greeting you with missiles and some bullets as reply for your fireball.

 

Now there's I-8 (Hachi) and Co. Maybe all KanColle shipgirls hate red airplane especially the one that shoots at anything including thin air.

 

The arctic stage boss is this abomination asymmetrical ship. Whether this boss has multi-phase like previous one or not is i can't tell because how fast it get wrecked probably because this missiles that i have is OP. And i can't provide you with screenshot as proof about it. I'm sorry.

 

Above stormy cloud at nighttime, an intense air battle takes place. I kind of surprised that one of backfiring bastard enemies manage to sneak from my backside also (even more surprising) my plane isn't destroyed as it just flies safely from bottom. This must be cunning psychological trap to make me careless next time other enemies fly behind me. -_-

 

The enemy organization realize that sending more airplane/tank/warship to stop me, is useless. Thus they try something new: launch mini-nuke missiles at me. Yes, they can be destroyed by rigorous shooting. And yes, they will blow into harmful explosion if you destroy them.  Nice try.

 

Here's the culprit behind that mini-nuke missile barrage also it's this stage boss. Once again i obliterate it swiftly thanks to my maximum-level firing power and my reflect to unleash a bomb whenever the boss's projectile almost reach me. That trick isn't death bomb that is distinctive feature in "Imperishable Night" but close enough. Near-death bomb, then?!

 

Stage 6 is another cloudy sky. Here i meet these Heli-carriers that probably created by using stolen S.H.I.E.L.D technology. So i'm doing S.H.I.E.L.D a favor by destroying them. Your welcome, Nick Fury.

 

This stage boss is look like a mass of various Hi-Tech junks. But it have deadly arsenal and durability of steel monolith. Its laser firing is contradict from other bosses (which fires at center of their body). This one fire lasers at those small thrusters (from left to right) and you are safe from them if you position your plane behind its center. But it shoots semi-tracking grey orbs and large blue orbs that can block your projectiles and travel in double-wave motion. 

 

Once it takes much damage. It begin to split into 3 parts: laser-firing part and 2 big thrusters. So this boss's shooting pattern is altered from previous phase.

 

Stage 7 is just another nighttime sky. It seems NMK begins to lose brilliant idea with stage design after jungle, desert, and arctic. With this screenshot, I will show you my screen-clearing bomb. It starts as group explosion near the plane then travels forward. Pretty neat, huh?! Another thing that i want to show you is this sub-boss that have 2nd-phase before it's explode. Though you can barely see it because of the bomb. Hint: big blue-flickering thing between 2 big explosion on top screen.

 

Here's its 2nd phase which makes it more thinner. It's the center thing by the way. So if you want to lose weight within 1-day, you must willing to receive barrage of this red plane's bullet. I won't guarantee your live, though.

 

The boss stage 7 is... wait! You two are the bosses here?

 

"Goddamn!" said both pilot and me. This stage boss is in fact this bastard squadron. They will show one by one once you shoot their comrade enough time and yes, some of them fly from bottom.

 

Here's the leader of bastard squadron. Once it get much damage. It will split into 2 parts: blue part and green ones.

The texts said "Last Battle. Best of Luck". Whatever, i'm shooting them anyway. Heavy_specialcompleted07.wav.

 

Inside the enemy's fortress, you will fight these spherical turrets. Lots of them. And they will be reinforced by unlimited waves of plane. I have no idea what's the purpose of that moat/pool though it's wonderful architectural feature.  

 

There will be time where you have to destroy big version of that spherical turrets along with its unlimited assistance of small plane and big ones. Twice, even. It goes without saying that the big spherical turret attacks player more fiercely than its smaller counterpart. Though they have certain firing pattern, my plane goes down quite frequently due to the fact that i'm not shmups expert. Luckily, TD 2 implement "revive from the point where you die" continue system not the "revive from checkpoint" ones. Which means you can finish this game at easy pace.

 

The final boss is this HQ with spiked plate protection and 4 small-version spherical turrets. Fortunate for us, they aren't the big version or else this final battle will be 4x harder.  

 

But once the turrets gone. Fireballs-throwing cylinder will suddenly pop-out from their position.

 

After the HQ's platting come off, the battle is still rough. Large airplane begin to dispatch to assist the final boss. I like how it got burned when it's moderately damaged through my intense shooting. This is much reasonable than building does that too when it got hacked/stabbed/pummeled in Warcraft 3 or Age of Empire games.

 

After the boss blows off. The plane flies forward a bit to show you beautiful evening view and texts come to greet you such as "mission completed" and "thank you for playing". Did i mention that you get score when you shoot these texts? Because yes, you do. If you're interested in making Hi-Score that is.

 

See you again?! Spy_no01.wav. You probably don't know that latter NMK's games have mental-altering feature, i mean like the one that makes you bit crazy. For example in "Explosive Breaker" which is space-themed vertical shooter game, you will face digitized photo of Apache Helicopter and Yacht as bosses. That's enough to stir my sanity. But, simple crazy thing like upside down maze in "Castlevania: Portrait of Ruins" can makes my mind stirred. Maybe i have weak mental. But again, i enjoy well "Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo" manga. Let's say that: the latter sample has same "frequency" with my mind and other samples don't. Fair, isn't?!

Before i draw my conclusion. I tell you that the 2nd plane is different from 1st ones surely not pure cosmetic only. As you can see that the blue plane (2nd player) shoots twin thin bullets, sucks to be 2nd player. Also its bomb are the huge explosion on center. Whether this is better or worse than what red plane has, beats me.

 

I have played some games that are better than TD 2. But i have played many that are worse. So in my opinion TD 2 is above-average vertical shooter that can be finished within 1 hour. It has text-shooting feature, some interesting stage design, and enemy design that later can be more engaging. Albeit TD 2 don't feature option/escort or arsenal diversity to make enemy-destroying more variable. I forget to mention that TD 2 has good digitized/synthetic speech of the pilot such as: "Goddamn" when you get hit, "Get out of my sight!" when you destroy certain enemy, and "I still can fight" when you revive. Also there is dragon-scream like when the game is in title screen. Combine it with number 2 that looks like red dragon, you get feature that proving the title's trueness. TD 2 is excellent for any shooter game player including the one with mediocre skill, like me.