TAITO Milestones review for Nintendo Switch

In the 1980s and early ’90s, TAITO was a staple in Arcades across the globe. Most of their games are timeless classics that are super easy to learn but also fun to play. United Games and Hamster have compiled a selection of Arcade Archive TAITO titles into one convenient package with TAITO Milestones. Since this is a bare bones release with no extras and most of these games have been released separately on the eShop, I’ll be looking at each game included with short reviews.

ALPINE SKI (Available on eShop) Race down the mountain avoiding trees, rocks, other skiers and a variety of other harsh obstacles to reach the goal. Some stages have you skiing through flags for bonus points. The challenge is high here, as it takes a level of memorization and quick reflexes to make it through each level. Simple design but very fun to play.

WILD WESTERN (Available on eShop) A Strange game where you need to save a train from bandits trying to rob it. It’s extremely difficult to line up shots due to the strange overhead/isometric style used here. The enemy bullets are sometimes hard to see and your shots seem to pass through some targets. It’s a challenging game, but not one you’ll want to spent too much time with. Not bad, but not great.

FRONT LINE (Available on eShop) A strange vertical shooter where you are shooting enemy soldiers to reach the end of a level. The original Arcade machine had a dial control to aim your gun, but for this release, the aiming is handled by the Trigger buttons. It works well, but the aiming of the gun in general is far from perfect. Everyone seems to have a charley horse in their legs and behave very strangely making the animations look goofy. It’s not a horrible game, but it might take a few plays before is really grows on you.

QIX (Available on eShop) Draw lines to cover enough of the screen to capture the QIX spinning around erratically. If the QIX touches you or your line as you are drawing, you lose a life. Random sparks follow you on your drawn lines and can also kill you if they touch you. This is a classic and challenging game that makes you want to keep trying even after failing many times. Try it once and you’ll be hooked!

SPACE SEEKER (TAITO Milestones ONLY) The first game in this collection to not be offered on the eShop. You begin on a sort of overview map and fly one of your ships to an area where enemies are shown. From there, you either enter a Horizontal shooter, taking on hoards or fast moving enemies, or a cockpit view where you take down enemy ships that fly into your crosshairs. Not a great looking game, and a little confusing at first, this is one of the weaker titles on the collection.

ELEVATOR ACTION (Available on eShop) One of the better titles on this collection, you are a secret agent trying to steal all of the documents from the Red Doors of an elevator filled building. Enemy agents are searching and hiding on every floor and they will not hesitate to shot you dead if they see you. Make it to the bottom floor with all the documents and you complete the stage. This one is fun and challenging and will keep you coming back for more. A true classic!

CHACK’N POP (TAITO Milestones ONLY) The second Collection only game is also the worst. You lob bombs at enemies while trying to open cages that contain hearts. It’s difficult aim your attacks and also position yourself anywhere since your character sticks to every wall, including the ceiling. The enemy patterns are also hard to avoid and your own attacks can kill you. Frustrating and not fun to play at all.

THE FAIRYLAND STORY (Available on eShop) You are a little witch that can turn enemies into cakes. You then push cakes off off the ledges to destroy them and anything else they hit on the way down or landing. This game is played in the style of Bubble Bobble, Snow Bros and other games in the single screen genre. it’s fun for a while, but not a huge attention grabble. If you like Bubble Bobble style games, then you’ll be right at home here!

HALLEY’S COMET (Available on eShop) A vertical shooter where you are tasked with not letting a single enemy pass by you. The more enemies and comets that you don’t shoot, the more damage the earth suffers until it’s no more. The added challenge of not letting any target sneak by you is really cool, and you want to keep trying even after multiple failed attempts. This game is as difficult as it is fun. A very good balance of design and challenge!

THE NINJA WARRIORS (Available on eShop) A classic side scrolling experience where you are a robot ninja, mowing down military soldiers, gangsters and other robo-ninjas all trying to stop you from advancing. You can use your katana and pick up ninja stars to hit destroy anything that tries to get close to you. The original Machine had a giant spanning screen and it’s represented here in a large 21.3:9 widescreen format. Looks a bit odd, and the game visuals aren’t the best, but Ninja Warriors is definitely one of the best games in the Collection.

If you have all of the games here that are already available on the eShop then you can completely skip this collection as it will bring you nothing you need to play. The two games that are exclusive are not worth the price at all. But if you don’t have any of these titles in your library or are missing a few, then this is a cost effective collection that can provide a lot of fun! As I stated before, there are no extras or exclusive modes or options included with this release. It is a strictly barebones presentation made up of mostly previously released titles. Not a bad collection for some, but a waste of time for others. All in all, a somewhat lazy and underwhelming release.

Note: TAITO provided us with a TAITO Milestones Switch code for review purposes.