Vortex (SNES)

Of all the shiny gold titles I've seen so far, that's probably one of the best.

Hey I get to drive a big walker! Hmmm... I think I'll go straight to 'Game'.

Those are the kind of orders I like.

Cool, this reminds me of Star Fox so far. The music is very different though, much more chilled out. Still good though.

But this robot is pretty slow. You know, I don't really see the point in having a walker in space.

Ah, that's better. It seems that I can transform into a number of different forms in this game. Walker, Sonic Jet, Land Burner and Hard Shell. Each has their advantages and disadvantages.

Right now I'm sticking with Sonic Jet because it has the advantage of moving relatively fast and looking like a space fighter.

Hey it's a ring. I don't know what it does, but Star Fox games have taught me that rings are good and must always be flown through.

Finally something with flashing polygons, now it's definitely got the Star Fox style. I hope I'm supposed to be shooting these things, because I'm a little lost to be honest.

Perhaps I should have stayed with the Walker mode? Actually I know exactly where I went wrong here. I picked 'Game' instead of 'Training'.

Okay, Training Mode. I've familiarised myself with the controls and I'm ready to learn how to play.

My mission: Destroy 30 alien craft in 600 seconds.

Now this is the right kind of environment for a walker, it has ground and everything. This still isn't the nimblest of vehicles though, I'm able to turn fast enough hit my targets but they're having no trouble hitting me back.

Well crap. I blew up during a training mission. This probably won't look good on my record.

Okay, I'll try using land burner mode. Maybe in this form I'll be fast enough to stay out of their sights.

Damn! I lasted 39 seconds longer this time, but it's still nowhere near good enough. I feel like I'm missing something really obvious here.

I'm starting to worry that it might be 'skill'.

Right, this time I'm going to... get stuck on a bloody wall. I hope this isn't causing me damage.

I switched to hard shell mode in the hope that it might recharge my health, but it doesn't seem to be helping. In this mode all I can is set off bombs and I only have three, so it seems pretty pointless.

Hey, I've got a map! It's totally useless to me right now, but I'll file that piece of knowledge away for later.

29 kills! And a tiny drip of health left in the tank. C'mon, just one more kill and I can leave this damn level.

Yes, I did it! I have zero health left, but my mothership drags me away by the head before I can explode so it STILL COUNTS.

Okay, now I'm fully trained and certified, it's time to replay the first level.

I knew this map would come in useful. So I guess I fly... forward then.

Okay, I've taken a little bit of damage, but you'd expect as much after such a long trip. All I need to do is keep this thing together a little longer and I'm sure I'll be reaching the end of the level any time now.

Well, fuck. I got much further than this on my first attempt before the training.

And then I respawn at the beginning of the level.


Yeah I think it's safe to say I'm through with this now. Next game.