Battle Bakraid, the sequel to Battle Garegga, made by
Raizing/8ing, is one hell of a SHMUP. It apparently takes place in the
1940's (that's my guess) and you have to shoot your way through six (or
eight) stages, each one more difficult than the last. This game gives you
the option of choosing your difficulty mode. There's Training, Normal,
Advance, (which you should play in order to see all eight stages) and a very
nifty "Only Boss" difficulty, which has you go up against all the bosses in
a row, as the name implies. The graphics are luscious, colorful, and there are loads of huge sprites. The bosses, composed of titanic war machines, look impressive. The backgrounds are very pleasing to the eye. One thing I like about them is the multiple layers of depth you can see. Three, maybe even four different levels of the ground can be visible at the same time.
The music is pretty good, but nothing really stands out for me. The tunes can best be described as a fusion of techno and war-like themes. It's not bad, but it could be better. The sound FX are also quite good. You'll hear the explosion sound very often. That's something I can't complain about, as I love explosions.
You can choose from nine different ships. Yep, nine. That's a pretty big selection. Each different ship has their own method of main weapons, and all ships can obtain the assistance of options a la Gradius. You can have up to six of them at a time, and if you find a special power-up, they'll even follow you around EXACTLY like the Gradius options! Each ship can launch bombs that become stronger as you collect more bomb power-ups.
Heh... speaking of power-ups, the enemies literally bleed power-ups that benefit your main weapon, your side weapon, your bombs, and more options. Believe it or not, there are more bullets from the enemies than there are power-ups. Yes, this is a manic SHMUP. Maybe not as manic as Dodonpachi or Mars Matrix, but it does get very intense at times. The bosses churn out projectiles like Rush churns out great albums. Fortunately, you have infinite continues, and you can pick up on the exact spot that you die. If you're trying to one-credit this game, loads of luck to you!
Overall, Battle Bakraid is a top-notch SHMUP. Then again, there aren't a lot of shmups that I even remotely dislike, so maybe my positive opinion is a little biased. If you like Battle Bakraid, check out it's prequel, Battle Garegga, and another great SHMUP by Raizing/8ing, Armed Police Batrider. SHMUP ON!
