Overview – originally developed by Telenet Japan and Wolf Team, with Edia Co bringing them to new audiences, the Telenet Shooting Collection is a selection of classic retro shooters from the 90s. Players can enjoy four classic shooter titles, from the PC-Engine Super CD Rom and SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis, with some of the games never officially leaving Japan. This collection is available on Steam, with a link to the game at the bottom of the review.
Disclaimer: before I get into the review, I would like to thank the rep for Edia Co who provided the Telenet Shooting Collection for review. 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. Please note, this is a collection of games, so I will be covering each title with some details on gameplay and story where possible, before talking about the package as a whole. Additional note, the collection consists of a launcher, with the games being sold individually.
Granada – SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis (1990)
Granada is a unique mission based multi directional shooter, where the player controls a tank that can move in all directions. In this game, the player takes the role of Leon Todo, a mercenary that has been hired to take down occupying forces in Africa. To take down the enemy forces, the player controls the Maneuver Cepter Tank Unit, a powerful military vehicle that can cover any terrain. There are 8 missions to take on, across varied settings.
The missions require the player to travel across relatively large maps, destroying the enemy forces that are located in the different areas. These foes show up as little red icons on the HUD map, disappearing when each are destroyed. There are two weapons that the player can use, with a standard shot that has rapid fire capabilities, as well as a power shot that will has recoil. The player can also use the strafe button, locking the gun in position for targeted shots.
As the enemies are wiped off the map, the blips on the map will disappear. This gives a sense of progress during the battles, with the last icon being the boss of the stage. The battles with the boss, as well as the ground forces will be challenging, so the player will need to use the various power-ups that are on the map. These provide increased power, with mounted rockets as well as trailing support drones that will assist the player.
The player has a limited number of lives, with the energy depleting when making contact with enemies or bullets. It is also possible to fall off of some of the stages, leading to a sudden death. When all of the lives lost, the player will be able to continue a limited number of times. However, the player can adjust the settings, changing the number of lives available and other aspects of the game, modifying the overall experience.
Avenger – PC-Engine Super CD-Rom (1990)
In Avenger, the player takes control of the Neo Assualt Helecopter AVENGER, an advanced military craft that has been deployed to recover VOLOS, a superweapon of great power. Humanity is at stake with the theft of VOLOS, as the weapon can destroy everything and devastate the globe with its power. This recovery operation takes place across several missions, with the ability to select the objective players want to challenge (but this is in Japanese).
During each of the missions, the player will encounter deadly forces that attack from all directions, attacking with heavy fire. To navigate these hazards and take down enemies, the player will be able to fire back with their own weapons. They start off with a basic set of options, including the Vulcan shot and ECM bomb special attack. But as the player makes their way through the missions, new weapons and special attacks will be made available.
The action is fast paced, with the player needing to dodge and weave through the hail of fire from enemies, while fighting back with their own attacks. As the player moves, their attack angle will also change with the craft, firing in the direction that it points in. This is where the fix system comes into play, as the player will be able to lock the direction they face, allowing for more precise shooting. This comes in very handy during some missions.
While moving and shooting through the stages, the player will be able to pick up weapon upgrades, increasing the power that they can unleash against their foes. These are dropped by item carriers, which will leave behind a power-up pod. It is important to try and get these items, as they will also be able to restore lost energy, as the AVENGER craft can only take so much damage before failing. The Item pod will rotate through recovery and weapon upgrades.
Through the game, the player will encounter powerful bosses, which will fill up a large part of the screen. These are remisniscent of bullet hell bosses, as they will provide heavy fire patterns that can easily take the player down. When the boss is defeated, the player will be able to progress through to their next mission. After all of the missions are completed, if the player chooses to wait, there is a special surprise at the end of the game.
Gaiares – Mega Drive/Genesis (1990)
In the year 3008, the Earth has become heavily polluted and led to humanity abandoning it for the expanses of space. The remaining people live on space colonies, teetering on the brink of extinction. The space pirate Gulfer group want to invade earth, harvesting the pollution and create weapons of mass destruction. If this happens, the sun will be detonated and the earth vaporised, but if the brave pilot Diaz can stop them, the earth will be restored and reborn anew.
The action for this game plays out in traditional horizontal shooter fashion, with the player controlling the ship and blasting enemies. However, there is a unique system that makes this stand out. Instead of using the traditional weapon capsule system, with power-ups being granted by collecting boxes on screen, the player has the WOZ system. This lets the player launch the option at enemies, absorbing energy and copying their weapon.
The WOZ system is invincible, which allows it to block enemy attacks as well as power up, making it an essential tool for battle against the Gulfer space pirates. The WOZ system power has three levels, designated by colors from blue to red. There are many weapons that can be collected, but the WOZ system will be able to power up the standard shots. The stronger the weapon that is collected, the more shots they can be fired at once from the ship and WOZ.
In each of the stages, the player will encounter powerful bosses, deadly hazards and wave after wave of enemy fighter craft. Each of the stages have branching patterns, with different enemy attack patterns, formations and hazards. At the end of a stage, a large scale boss will appear and attack the player, with each of the bosses having a unique attack. The player can be taken down by a single shot, but luckily there are checkpoints in each mission.
PsychicStorm – PC-Engine Super CD Rom (1992)
In 0092 S.C. (Stellar Century), Humanity faces its greatest threat, an alien force known as “the Thing”, which is absorbing the earth colonies. After attempts to stop the alien force, the final trump card is unleashed, a bio mechanical weapon called Stormbringer. The Stormbringer weapons connect to their pilots, allowing them to unleash devastating attacks and powerful transformations. This gives humanity a chance to take down “The Thing” and save humanity.
This title is a more traditional vertical scrolling shooter, with the one or two players taking on the alien hordes. The four playable ships have their own unique weapon, with each one having several levels to them. As the weapons level up, their size and power increases improving their destructive capabilities. By shooting down flashing enemies, they will drop power-ups and health recovery items, helping the player make it through each wave.
Throughout the stages, the player will charge up a bar as they destroy the enemies, which can be unleashed as an all-powerful super attack when fully charged. These attacks can clear away a bunch of enemies at once, making them very useful in a pinch. The last form of attack is the Psychic Storm, a limited time transformation that lays waste to all in its path. This powered up form can be extended by collecting energy dropped by enemies.
The Psychic Storm can be unleashed in two ways, with the first being manually via button press. This is most effective when fighting the deadly boss enemies, as they will require a lot of fire power to take down. The second way is to enable the automatic system, which will activate the Psychic Storm if the player falls below 25% health, making it helpful in a pinch. In 2 player mode, the character that activates Psychic Storm will have the other aid as an extra power weapon.
The game takes place over the course of 7 stages, with each stage being split into two sections. The first is the high altitude zone, where enemies will move around you as they try to attack. Then the player will enter the Low Altitude zone, which has more stationary enemies that will try to kill the player before reaching the boss. At a set point during the game, players will be able to select the stages in a set order.
Now with the game details out of the way, it is time to discuss the other aspects of this release, starting with the overall package.
General experience – This compilation is very similar to the Valis Collection that is also available from Edia Co, which I reviewed last year (HERE). The launcher that is available as a free download works as a front end for the games, letting the player launch the individual roms which are sold as DLC. This lets players select the games they want, with all of them having a story viewer, subtitles and soundtracks that can be picked up as an extra purchase.
There is also the inclusion of the manuals, both in the original Japanese, alongside brand new translated versions of them. These are a wonderful addition, as many retro collections lack an inclusion of manuals or they are separated using QR codes. There are also soundtracks that can be obtained as additional DLC, adding an extra level of content for players who appreciate the history of Telenet Japan and Wolf Team games.
Controls – as this is a PC release, there is mouse/Keyboard inputs as standard, with the option for controller support through some native inputs and Steam input. With the addition of steam inputs, players will be able to enjoy these games on Steam Deck, as well as other portable computer based gaming systems. There is thankfully no lag for this game collection, as there are some hiccups that can occur with emulation.
Difficulty – all of these games have varying amounts of challenge to them, with many of the challenges needing a few attempts to be able to get through them. Most of these games have checkpoints, alongside the ability to continue if all lives are lost. But for those who may struggle with these titles, there is the ability to rewind gameplay to fix any issues that occur. There is also a save/load system that stops the games from needing to be played in one shot.
Presentation – all of the games look just as they did on the original hardware, with no distortion or issues with the image on the screen. There are filters that can be applied, giving them a more vintage look by trying to replicate old displays. The option to alter the render resolution is also present, adjusting the look of the game. All of the sound has been emulated perfectly, with all music in the games and cutscene sound being clean and crisp.
Final Thoughts – I have seen these games here and there in the past, having played some of them through unofficial roms. So I was ready to jump into this game pack, diving right into each of them and having a pretty fun time. I found that all of the games included in this package were a fun challenge, with each of them offering something pretty different. The distinct game styles, mechanics and overall diversity were a real positive.
This is a pretty good collection of games, showcasing what made Telenet Japan and Wolf Team so distinct during the 90s, leading to them gaining a cult following. The emulation is of fairly high quality, with the additional quality of life improvements, with the only downside being a lack of translation for a couple of the Japanese Exclusives. That being said, I have no problem recommending this collection to everyone, just be aware it is sold in pieces.
In the end, I give the Telenet Shooting Collection a final score of 4.5/5. This is an almost perfect collection of retro shooters, offering players a diverse selection of shooting experiences, with some of these games being released outside of Japan for the first time on PC. If you want to check this package out for yourself, a link to the collection will be below.
Link to Steam version (HERE)
W.Kohaku Media 