If you have never played this game there might be a good reason why. First off this little gem is over 10 years old and was made for a system that never really gathered a whole lot of support from gamers. Except for the small blips in gaming magazines that praised how well the game was, Lords of Thunder went almost entirely unnoticed.
Well now it's almost 2004 and I have finally had the chance to play the game and all I can say is that it is fantastic. First off the game is a old school straight shooter. Think gradius or R-TYPE. In a sense that really is not all too exciting but there are some features that were implemented to make the game a great one. Before even taking to a stage you must first select your armor. Choose from one of the 4 elements: earth, wind, water, fire and next choose a stage, each with it's own elemental theme. Finally before the mayhem ensues go to the shop and buy some items. It really comes together nicely making you actually kill enemies since it's your source for income, rather than just dodging them.
Finally the moment we have been all waiting for. Actually playing the game. You get some energy so no one hit wonders here. Thank goodness since this game can be one tough cookie at times. Enemies drop powerups, to make you gunfire much more powerful so long as you don't get hit since it will weaken your firepower, and money.
Now all in all this sounds like your basic monotone shooter that really does nothing innovative like Radiant silvergun, and you would be right. There are just some minor tweaks to the standard shooter formula and thats about it. However the presentation is what sets it apart from not only other shooters, but other games in general.
This is the perfect game to pump up your stereo surround sound system for. Remember this game is over 10 years old but the sound is still amazing. The only complaint would be that sometimes the sound may be overshadowed by the spectacular soundtrack. A heavy rock soundtrack really does wonders and goes perfectly with the insane action on the screen.
Overall the controls are good standard controls, hard to screw controls up for a shooter. But like stated above the thing that sets this game apart is the presentation. The only thing that hampers the score is the lack of anything truly original in the game, but hey life is not perfect. This game is awesome so if you have a DUO or are planning to get one may I suggest you pick this one up!
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