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Strikers 1945 Plus Portable Review
Written by Robert Workman on Saturday, August 22, 2009
Old-school bullet dodging, doesn't look too shabby, a moderate selection of ships to choose from.
Only lasts about an hour, no online leaderboards, unlimited continues.
A few weeks ago, we reviewed the quirky but entertaining Holy Privacy, Badman! What Did I Do To Deserve This?, and now we have the latest in hardcore shooting action, Strikers 1945 Plus Portable. In it, you shoot enemies from the sky using a variety of World War II aircraft. Bad guys come at you from all sides, both in the air and on the ground. You'll need to avoid their incoming bullets while dropping the occasional super bomb. The game features a wide assortment of ships to choose from, each with their own specific abilities.
Sadly, there's not much else to the game. There are no modes, just the "start" option and a miniscule options screen. You can't even adjust the difficulty. You're not going to need to anyway, since the game features unlimited continues. That guarantees you'll fly through all eight stages in one sitting.
We know it's just a shooter, but Arc System Works should've thrown in some bonus content to make Strikers 1945 a bargain. Online leaderboards would've been great, adding a competitive angle to compare your skills with others around the world. Alas, they're not here. There's also no two-player option, so you're stuck bringing down these threats on your own.
As for presentation, you won't be amazed, just merely satisfied. There are plenty of enemies and bullets flying around the screen, with little to no slowdown. The explosions are pretty to look at, and it's easy to keep tabs on your ship. However, it would've been nice to have a vertical screen option, where you could turn the PSP on its side for true arcade play.
Although its developers didn't bring anything new to the table, Strikers 1945 Plus Portable is a satisfying shooter. At $12, however, we wish there was more bang for the buck.
