R-Type Delta

Many people (including myself) consider R-Type to be the premiere side-scrolling shooter series in existence. When the 3D (OK, actually 2.5D) R-Type Delta was announced, I was skeptical. How could Delta live up to the 2D glory that was R-Type, or R-Type Leo?To say it did would be an understatement. Irem and Agetec have crafted the best side-scroller on the PSX, and perhaps the best modern side-scroller. You take your pick of three R-Type ships (with a fourth hidden), the R9, R13, or RX, each with its own unique Force Module and individual weapons, and invade seven levels of dark, bio-mechanical Bydo Empire-ridden evil. Enemies from previous R-Types are included, but in full menacing polygonal 3D, and even the level designs are from the old games, but again, redone for the 3D generation. Delta is more than a great-looking package, however - it succeeds in creating an immersive universe that sucks you heedlessly in, including a haunting soundtrack that shifts to reflect the on-screen events. Of particular note is the 5th level (dubbed by me as the "Sewer Level"), in which you must dodge your way among drifting pipes and other garbage, weird alien slugs firing on you the whole time. It's suitably murky and bubbly -- almost smelly. And the boss will be familiar to R-Type fans.... Gameplay, thankfully, remains 2D. You scroll from right to left, charging up your force module, and laying waste to the droves of semi-organic Bydo enemies that are an R-Type trademark. The R9 has a standard module, the RX's homes in on the enemy and fires remotely, and the R13's is connected to the ship by a deadly and fully manipulative stream of energy. Each ship has a Beam weapon and a screen-wasting Delta weapon, and the pyrotechnics involved are blissful creations, with no slowdown. The ships handle differently enough to make mastery of each a daunting, yet rewarding task. R-Type has never been a bullet-dodger, but relies strictly on patterns and memorization. And like the prior games, Delta is a very tough nut to crack, even on the Easy difficulty. A true Delta master will not be satisfied until Hard difficulty is conquered with all 3 (make that four!) ships. It's advisable to master control of your Force Module, as well as recognizing when to raise or lower your ship's speed (easily done with the shoulder buttons). Thankfully, Free Play can be obtained through a few hours of play, and trust me, you'll need it!R-Type Delta offers old-school gameplay in new-school clothes, a formula many have attempted, but few have succeeded to such a degree as this. Long-time fans of R-Type may be turned off by the 3D graphics, but rest assured, the gameplay is solid as ever. Hopefully Delta will win the series some new fans. You will not find a better side-scroller on the Playstation.

Alongside Einhander and Thunder Force V, R-Type Delta was another shmup during the PS1-era that opted to go for a more cinematic looking and approach to the genre. While the gameplay is still classic R-Type you'll see some immediate changes. The graphics are in full 3D and in all honesty, I'm very impressed by this game as of 2013. The textures and models are good enough to where the ideas are conveyed well enough to the player so that's definitely a plus. Fair warning for those who are faint of heart or lack patience. This game is a memorization shooter. R-Type always has and will be one so you will be restarting from checkpoints many times as frustrating as it sounds but hey, you got length/replayability out of your purchase so that means something.The game isn't too long but it does have a very deliberate pace to it. There is always something happening on screen but sometimes the scrolling starts to crawl and segments do unintentionally feel drawn out. Like I said before, many PSone-era Shooting Games went for a cinematic approach so it's similar to a movie but unlike contemporary games, you are in control of all of it. While the game isn't without it's flaws, it's by far the best entry in the R-Type series. Despite R-Type Final trying to have much more narrative conveyance, it was weaker than how it's conveyed here without pre-level text.I dig this game. Not too jazzed about how much I paid for it but everything was intact and in good shape so I'm happy with the purchase.

One of the best scrolling shooters ever, and if you like it then you should buy R-Type final, like its name says is the end of the series and dont forget also get Gradius V.

I was lucky enough to find an affordable copy of R-Type Delta online, which is not an easy task these days. After all these years of being an R-Type fan, I finally got to play this one and it was shockingly good. Everything I felt was wrong with R-Type Final was done right in this game, even though it's earlier in the series. The stage design was far better. The pace was faster and more intense; not boring like some of the game-play is in R-Type Final (sadly). Here you have 7 well imagined stages, full of all the R-Type difficulty and Bydo madness you have come to expect from this franchise. As others have mentioned, you start with three selectable ships that come armed with their own individual and unique force pod. Each one has very different characteristics between the three power-up modules (blue, yellow, red) and one ship may fit your style more than another! Personally, I found the R-9 and R-13 ships to be best. While you cannot switch ships mid game, you can give it a go with one ship and then select another on a different play through before you blast off. These ships reminded me a bit of R-Type III: Third Lightning, but while that game allowed three different pods, Delta actually offered individual ships.It was particularly great to see some of the old Bydo bad guys are back at it again in 3D. The Dobkeratops, the Gomander Cyst and the classic R-Type stage 3 battleship all make a return appearance and they are a welcome treat. I felt the pace of the game was intense, with a lot of action and very little slowdown. My only two small complaints with this game are the length of it and the resolution. Graphics are secondary to me, but the polygons definitely struggle from a low resolution on the PlayStation. Luckily the game is a bit on the dark side overall, which does a good job at hiding this and producing a more eerie feel overall. I have seen other PS shooters with more graphical polish but trust me, this doesn't detract from Delta at all. This shooter features only 7 stages, which seem to go by fairly quickly, unless you succumb to the challenge and spend hours on end stuck on a particular stage ;)Pros- Imaginative and creative stage design- Great triple ship and power-up options, including the new "Delta" weapon- Some familiar faces from classic R-Type titles- An incredible challenge w/different difficulty modes and cheat codes available- Pilot stats and unlockable gallery/ending sequence video bonusesCons- Fairly short- Somewhat muddled and low resolution graphicsAll things considered, this is a top notch R-Type entry among the best games of the entire series, if not the very best. For the small shortcomings, I would only knock off half of a star. Since that's not an option, this entry deserves the nod to 5 stars easily. If you can find an affordable copy (good luck on that) and haven't played it yet, definitely check it out!