Overview – originally developed by Taito with emulation powered by Hamster through the Arcade Archives engine, Taito Milestones 2 is a collection of 10 more classic Taito titles from the arcade. This collection has been published by ININ Games, with digital and physical editions exclusively for Nintendo Switch (while stocks last). There will be links to all versions of this release available at the bottom of the review.
Disclaimer: before I get into the review, I would like to thank PR Hound for providing the copy of Taito Milestones 2 that was used for this piece. The provision of this software has not influenced the contents of this review, all thoughts and opinions contained within are my own.
Now with the introductions out of the way, let’s get into the review. As this is a collection of games, I will be covering each of the titles with a summary of the game in order of release by year. I have also previously covered the first Taito Milestones release, which you can find (HERE).
Ben Bero Beh – 1984
As the superhero Dami-chan, players must navigate their way through a series of burning apartment buildings, extinguishing the flames to save the hero’s girlfriend Nao-chan. This is an action platformer, where the player must reach the bottom of the stage to save the girl. In order to accomplish this, the player must avoid the many hazards that will fill the stage. These hazards include fire that can be extinguished, falling debris and gas explosions.
This game is very challenging, with random elements that will make it tough to progress through the stages. An example of this is the way that fire behaves, as it can spawn on the edge of a set of stairs, making it very difficult to put out and avoid since the extinguisher can’t be used on stairs. When the stage is cleared, the player will get a bonus based on performance. Great care must be taken however, as there are no continues if the player gets a game over.
The Legend of Kage – 1985
The player takes the role of the ninja named Kage, who is on a quest to save the princess Kirihime, who has been captured by a powerful warlord. Kage must now fight his way through the defenses of the warlord, battling enemy samurai, ninjas and monks in order to reach the princess. To save the princess, the player must make their way through five different locations, taking down all who stand in their way as they make their way to the warlords castle.
This title is a side scrolling action title, where the player moves around the different stages killing enemy ninjas and monks while trying to avoid their attacks. In these stages, the player uses shuriken for ranged attacks and a sword for close combat battles, with the ability to deflect enemy some enemy attacks. Once the objective for the current stage is complete, the player can then move onto the next, repeating endlessly until getting a game over. Players have limited lives and no continues.
Kiki Kaikai – 1986
Sayo-Chan, the shrine maiden was fanning a ceremonial fire, when she was visited by the seven lucky gods. As she was communicating with these deities, a group of yokai appear and kidnap them, taking them away. Now Sayo-Chan is determined to rescue the gods and battle the spirits responsible. In her quest to free the seven gods, the shrine maiden uses her purification rod and talismans to battle the spirits, fighting her way through the mischievous yokai.
This is a top down, multi directional shooter, where players can fire talismans in 8 different directions and use the rod to bat enemies away. The player must make their way through each stage, which is separated into different zones, fighting the yokai that will appear in all directions. The talismans have a moderate range, but can be powered up by collecting items that are hidden in the stages. The stages are separated into individual zones.
During the course of the game, there are boss areas, where Sayo-Chan must battle against a fairly large enemy spirit. These are very challenging and probably the toughest part of the game, as the boss monsters take a lot of hits before they are defeated. If the player is defeated, they will be sent back to the last checkpoint to continue. There are no continues when getting a game over, but if the last three digits of the players score match the lucky number, the player will get an extra chance.
The NewZealand Story – 1988
In the land of NewZealand, the Kiwis were living peacefully, but one day a leopard seal appeared and kidnapped them with only one of the chicks escaping. The lone escapee Tiki, sets off to rescue his girlfriend Phee Phee and his other chick friends, navigating the different parts of the island on the adventure of a lifetime. Armed with his trusty bow and hot air balloon, Tiki will fight a variety of enemies, including an Ice Whale and a rock octopus.
The gameplay style for this title is that of a side scrolling run ‘n’ gun platformer, with the player taking the role of Tiki, bouncing through the stages and blasting enemies with his bow. The goal of each stage is to get to the end of each stage, shooting enemies, collecting pick-ups and saving the Kiwi from the cage they are in. what makes this game unique is the way exploration works, where flying vehicles allow players to move around the maze like stages with ease.
This is a rather tough title, with boss battles in the fourth stage of each zone where the player is pitted against big bosses. Scattered throughout the stages are letters that spell EXTEND, which will give an extra life when all letters are collected. There are many pitfalls, hazards and enemies that will spawn into the stages, with a hidden timer that will add more pressure. But have no fear as the player can continue infinitely in this title.
Darius II (3 Screen Arcade Version) – 1989
In the distant future, the colonized planet Darius is recovering from an invasion from an alien army, with the help of Proco and Tiat. The inhabitants are now on Olga during the rebuilding process, when suddenly an SOS signal is picked up from earth. In response to this, Proco Jr and Tiat Young are dispatched to investigate this signal. Heading through the solar system in their ships, they encounter alien forces who they must battle as they make their way to the signal.
This is a horizontal scrolling shooter, where the player must blast enemies with bombs and lasers, collecting power-ups and fighting the end of stage bosses. During each of the stages, there will be wave after wave of enemies that will appear in the path of the player, along with different environmental hazards that can lead to disaster. At the end of each stage, the player can choose their next destination, allowing for a non-linear approach to progress.
The power-up system featured in this shooter gives the player stronger lasers, more bombs and even shields to prevent damage. These boosters are dropped randomly by enemies, with the increases based upon the color collected. If the player is defeated, the power-ups will be lost with the player needing to continue if all lives are used up. There is also simultaneous multiplayer, allowing players to work together through the game.
Gun Frontier – 1990
In the 22nd century, the planet Gloria has been overtaken by space pirates, who have enslaved the inhabitants for their own nefarious means. Now a group of settlers take to the skies in their ships, with the goal to overthrow the pirates and save their planet. In this space western, the desperado ships take on the wild lizards in battle to save their colonies and the future of the planet. There is simultaneous multiplayer co-op where two players can work together.
This is a vertical scrolling shooter, taking place over 6 stages where players must blast their way through the enemy forces. The player ships are armed with dual machine guns and bombs, which can be powered up by collecting coins and gold bars that appear on the stages. The bombs can be used to clear away enemy fire with the direction based on their on screen position. If the player ship is taken down, the weapons they have will be weakened.
There is a fairly solid challenge present in this title, with the amount of enemies and bullets that can appear on screen. To make the game a little easier to get through, there is a checkpoint system where the player will be sent back a little when defeated. This allows players to collect power-ups and gold to strengthen their ships. The checkpoint isn’t used during boss battles as players will respawn immediately at that point.
Liquid Kids (Mizubaku Adventure) – 1990
Take the role of Hipopo, a hippopotamus who lives in the land of Woody-Lake. One day his girlfriend Tamasun was kidnapped by the Fire Demon, who has brought his forces to the peaceful land. Armed with water bombs, Hipopo sets out on a quest to save his girlfriend and the other hippos, while battling the forces of the Fire Demon. This is an action platformer where players make their way through the stages, soaking the monsters and putting out their flames.
During the stages, the player must platform through the different areas putting out fires, soaking enemies and kicking them across the screen. The weapon that the player can use is the water bombs, which can be thrown in an arc and powered up if the player holds the button down. If multiple enemies are soaked, the player can hit them in a chain, giving bonus points and the chance of spawning different items to collect on screen.
There is a variety of power-ups that can be picked up, including water guns, buckets and lightning bolts, which have affects that help the player. At different points there will be a boss that players must fight, opening up the next area with two doors to select, taking the player to different stages. These doors also appear during regular stages. This can be a tough title, but the player is able to continue endlessly which will let players make it to the end.
Metal Black – 1991
Set in the year 2052, a rogue pilot has taken command of the Black Fly fighter, on a mission to fight an alien race who wishes to destroy humanity. The pilot must battle their way through six locations, fighting the alien beasts that are intent on annihilating humanity. This is a challenging horizontal shooter, where the player battles hordes of alien enemies alone or with a friend. But the player has unlimited continues that they can use for this.
The weapon that the player has in their arsenal is the Energy Disposal Beam, which can unleash devastating blasts when unleashed. To strengthen the beam, the player collects Newalone, made of R/B/Y balls that appear on the screen to be collected. The player can discharge this to deal massive damage to enemies, especially the end of stage bosses. When in battle with the bosses, there can be a clash with beams, causing utter chaos to occur on screen.
Solitary Fighter – 1991
During the 1950’s an underground fighting club arose, where the mafia, criminals and others would face off in combat. This gathered fighters from across the USA to fight for honor and cash in the “Violence Fight”. Solitary Fighter is a 1 on 1 brawler where players duke it out against the computer or other players, using punches, kicks and objects in the stage to deal damage. This is a non-traditional fighter, allowing for vertical movement in some stages.
The matches in this title are best of three, with the winner moving onto the next fight and participating in bonus stages every 2 fights. The move lists for the rather limited roster of 6 players consist of punches, kicks and some special attacks which are achieved by pressing different button combinations. This is one of the tougher games in the collection, as there are issues with depth perception and the overall flow of gameplay is clumsy.
Dinorex – 1992
Set in a world where humans and dinosaurs coexist, young men pit their dinosaurs against eachother in battle, with the winner gaining the title of King Dinorex. The one who is crowned king will be able to marry the queen of Amazonia, strengthening their position of power. This is a one-on-one competitive fighting game, where players must command their dinosaur champion as they engage in intense bloody battles. The first to down their opponent twice is the winner.
There is a playable roster of 7 different dinosaurs for the player to select from. The dinosaurs have simple move sets with high and low attacks, as well as special moves that use simple button inputs and simultaneous button presses to perform. After a set amount of matches, a bonus stage will activate where the player has to attack a city in modern times. The action of the title lacks refinement, which can lead to a frustrating single player experience, but there is also a 2 player battle option.
Now with the games covered, it is time to discuss the other aspects of this collection, starting with the Controls.
Controls – the controls for this title are emulated very well, with good responsive inputs for the majority of the games. Sadly there is some delay and sluggish control in a few games, but this is down to the games themselves. All of the buttons can be remapped to fit whatever controller the player is using, which makes it perfect for those who want to use retro pads and even arcade sticks. The games are all comfortable to play in either docked or handheld mode.
Presentation – the visuals and sound for the games run almost flawlessly through the Arcade Archives engine, which has provided solid fidelity to the original arcade experience. There is crisp pixel work, that can be augmented by the use of filters and there are multiple options for the 3 screen setup used by Darius II. The sound is clear for most titles and comes through nicely, but there are a couple that have a harsh edge to their sound which is how they were originally made.
Final Thoughts – I am a fan of the classic Taito library, so I was excited to get my hands on this collection of games as there were a few I had not seen before. This collection of games is a bit of a mixed bag, with some very obscure titles that most will not recognize. The standout titles in this collection are Darius II, Kiki KaiKai, The NewZealand Story and Liquid Kids, which showcase the best in sprite work, sound and gameplay that Taito has to offer from that era.
I can recommend this collection to fans of the classic arcade style of game, as the titles are all fairly straight forward with the main goal being to get the highest score possible. Some of the games have significant depth to them, with the branching paths of Darius II and the secrets hidden in NewZealand Story. This collection is perfect for a quiet night in or with friends for a competitive night of high score challenges, even if some of the games are less than stellar.
In the end, I give Taito Milestones 2 a final score of 4/5. This is a very good collection of classic arcade titles from the golden age of arcades, with some smash hits and hidden gems, that is rounded out with a couple of middling titles. If you want to check this title out for yourself, a link to each version of the game will be available below.
Link to Nintendo Switch version (HERE)
Link to Physical store page (HERE)
W.Kohaku Media 