 In the few years that I've been doing this channel, I've mentioned Super R-Type a few times and I've always been pretty harsh. I admit it took me a long, long time to get into shoot-em-ups in general, and even after I gained a rudimentary understanding of the genre, Super R-Type remains, uh, not my favorite. But I figure rather than rail on the game's flaws, like I always seem to, let's start by talking about the strengths of Super R-Type. First it should be mentioned that this is of course an arcade port of R-Type 2. Well, sort of. It's got seven total levels, four of which are from the original arcade game, three levels are brand new. I'm not sure exactly which to be honest, I know the first level of the arcade version doesn't show up until halfway through the first SNES level, and the third level of the SNES game is the second level in the arcade game, and after that the levels are just kinda mixed around a bit. As you can see, the backgrounds, weapons, projectiles, enemies, just about everything looks frickin' fantastic. Super R-Type is a great looking game without question. The music is also really good, featuring one of the most instantly recognizable songs in any SNES game right from the get-go in the first level. Bear in mind the music in the Super Nintendo port is completely different from the arcade game, but I really think the SNES music is much better. So yeah, everything looks and sounds nice, that only leaves, uh, the most important part, playing the frickin' game. Now, I kind of like in a game like Super R-Type 2, a platformer like Super Ghouls and Ghosts that, on the surface, it's easy to treat the game like a ball to the wall run and gun game. Eh, go as fast as you can and destroy everything kind of a game. You don't do that with Super R-Type, or you're gonna have a bad time. See how slow the background moves in each level? That might as well be a big bright neon sign saying, Slow down, don't bother killing everything, just try and survive. Really that's all you can do, if you try and dash all around the screen shooting everything you'll hate this game. Slow down, stay back, and let stuff come to you. Another big part of the gameplay in Super R-Type that tends to be a bit understated is how you use your pod extension thingy. Not sure what its official name is, so that's what I'm calling it. This pod acts as an extension of your ship. You can attach it to the front or back of your ship as well as detach it and let it hang out by itself. As all sorts of lasers and projectiles or whatever power-ups you happen to have equipped, shoot out of it on its own. You have to learn to take advantage of this thing. This pod is the difference between you getting somewhat far in this game, or quitting by the time you dive for the 14th time in the middle of the second level. Yeah, haven't mentioned how hard this game is. The first level is fine. You just cruise right along until you get about halfway through and then hold onto your butts. Things really get crazy when you come across these ships or fish or whatever they are. They go flying in the direction they're facing when you hit them. And they come from all over the freaking place. Then there's levels like this where the background shifts around and this boss where you have to dodge is firepower and the background coming at you. Come on! Still, once you get the hang of how to use your pod, this game is doable. You can make some decent progress. Alright, having acknowledged all that, there's still two gigantic flaws in Super Art Type. Number one, the gameplay slowdown is probably the worst of any SNES game out there. Yeah, some people say it actually helps you dodge stuff because you're essentially playing in slow motion, but I always saw that as a flimsy rationalization. Number two, there are no checkpoints anywhere in the game. If you die, even if you make it all the way to a boss, you start all the way back at the beginning of the level. This is the extra kick in the nuts that makes Super Art Type so brutally unforgiving. So yeah, while Super Art Type has its strengths, it has big time problems that make this game really annoying to play, like throw your controller kind of annoying. Thankfully, there was another Art Type game, Art Type 3, The Third Lightning. This one was not in an arcade port, made exclusively for the Super Famicom and eventually localized for the Super Nintendo in 1994. Aversion also made its way to the Game Boy Advance 10 years later. Now this is absolutely one of the best sequels on the Super Nintendo that I don't hear talked about enough. Art Type 3 does exactly what a proper sequel should. It fixes the two major flaws in Super Art Type, and it adds more to its best qualities. So yeah, Art Type 3 looks and sounds even better than its predecessor, but without the crippling slowdown, and get this, there's checkpoints. Hooray! That makes all the difference in the world in making this game way less of a chore, so eliminating those two huge flaws already make this an improvement. But Art Type 3 is so much more than that. The soundtrack is every bit as good, if not better, with memorable tracks, especially the opening level track. Even the visuals here take full advantage of everything the Super Nintendo can do. You see some clever use of the Mode 7 capability right from the get-go. The level design throughout the entire game is clever and arguably the best of any Super Nintendo shoot-em-up. It presents one unique challenge after another, and it keeps things fresh and keeps you on your toes throughout. Like this part here with the acid melting through, and enemies ready to crawl through, or this level here where you fly forward as you normally would, beat the boss, and then fly backwards to get out, or this part here is just pure chaos. And some of the bosses, oh god, just so many creative ideas crammed into this game. Again I want to make the comparison to Super Ghouls and Ghosts. Art Type 3 is the kind of game you have to play at its pace, not your own. Again, like Super Art Type, just take it slow and let stuff come to you, and you will die a lot. But don't see it as a bad thing, just keep pushing forward a little bit further than the last time, and remember what to expect and adjust accordingly. If you think you can just throw this game into your SNES and start flying all around the screen and wrecking shop, guess what, it's not going to work that way. So yeah, there you go, the two Art Type games for Super Nintendo. I can't say I'd recommend Super Art Type, it's just too flawed, and the lack of checkpoints is a major problem. I don't think it's unplayable or anything, but just realize what you're getting yourself into when you sit down and play it, and try not to break any controllers. Art Type 3 is a different story, it's the perfect sequel, and it captures what the entire Art Type series sets out to do. Great visuals, clever level design, and brutal but fair difficulty. Yeah, it's a game that makes you play by its rules, but it's still really fun and a substantial challenge.