IREM Collection Volume 3 review for PlayStation, Xbox, Switch

ININ and IREM are back with yet another collection of classic arcade games (see volumes 1 and 2 reviews, here). This time though, they’ve included 2 games that did not have home releases and stayed prominently in the arcade. Every game presented here is largely unknown to many gamers as they were mostly overshadowed by bigger, more popular releases at the time. That does not mean these games are bad by any means –in fact, all three games in this collection are fun horizontal shooters that you really should check out.

First up is Mystic Riders, a game that I originally mistook for a Capcom game called 3 Wonders (Specifically Chariot). In this game, you are a wizard riding a broom, shooting down countless enemies and collecting powerups. The action can get intense as it does come close to bullet hell status, especially in the later levels. This one is difficult since it’s one hit and you lose a life, so it will definitely challenge even the most seasoned players. Fight your way to the end of each level and destroy the boss. This is a fun ride, even if you don’t do very well at it at first, you always want to try again. You have options to make the game slightly easier (or harder if you like), also some interesting visual modes like RGB and RBG and CRT scanlines. You can also add CRT Bloom to the screen to give it a more authentic arcade look. There are also options for rewinding and fast forwarding, but these options will prevent you from earning trophies or achievements.

Next, we have the quirky Mr. Heli. I’ve never even heard of this game until I played it in this collection. You are a cute little helicopter, and your objective is to destroy all the bad guys you see and collect as many crystals as you can uncover. You start out with a small weapon that can fire up and straight, you can then upgrade to bombs and heavy lasers with the money you’ve collected. Make your way to the boss of the stage and it’s off to the next. This is a really fun title that is cute but challenging at the same time. This is the only game on the collection that made it to a home console on the PC Engine. That version is also included and is largely exact to the original in terms of visuals. It’s somewhat reminiscent of Fantasy Zone and other cute shooters like it. Definitely one I will keep coming back to. Most of the same visual and difficulty options found with Mystic Riders are also available here as well.

And lastly, we have Dragon Breed. This is a really awesome shooter where you ride on the back of a large dragon to take out your foes. The dragon cannot take damage and also damages any creature that it comes in contact with, giving you a wider range of attack and also defense. Even though you as the rider are the only target that can take damage, you will still get hit a lot, as the enemies all seem to home in on your exact position. the amount of shots you need to dodge is massive and while it seems like your dragon will protect you, you will find yourself steering into a path of an enemy shot more than often. You can powerup your shots and also power up your dragon’s fire for more protection and offence, but you still have to be careful while moving through the levels. This one feels easy at first, but you will learn quickly how challenging and unforgiving it is the longer you play. Overall, an awesome game that demands a lot of practice. As before, the same difficulty and visual options from the other games are available for you to use here.

Once again, ININ have released another great collection of classic IREM games at a decent price. I do like how these collections are keeping with a theme of what type of games they include for each volume. I am, however, a little skeptical that future volumes can feature the same presentation moving forward if they are to release future volumes, and I would like to see more massive collections of games similar to the Taito Milestones with future volumes if possible.  Overall, I am happy that these classic games can reach a new generation of gamers no matter how they are delivered. Perhaps a complete IREM Collection is in the cards? We’ll have to wait and see what ININ cooks up for the next release. I can’t wait to see what they bring out.

Note: ININ provided us with a IREM Collection Volume 3 code for review purposes.