The first Taito Milestones title was released about a year ago; in his review, Matt complained that it was missing classics like Space Invaders, Bubble Bobble, Arkanoid, and Darius. He also described it as a woeful excuse for a compilation. Now there’s a sequel in the works, which actually does include a Darius game this time (though the others are still completely absent). While it remains to be seen whether that effects review scores at all, there are some other great games on the list this time around, like The NewZealand Story.
Relive the spirit of ten classic action games in this compilation. Titles include The NewZealand Story, Kiki Kaikai, Darius II (3 Screen Arcade Version), Gun Frontier, Ben Bero Beh, The Legend of Kage, Liquid Kids (Mizabaku Adventure), Solitary Fighter, Dinorex, and Metal Black. The games all originally launched between 1984 and 1992.
Here’s a trailer:
Ten games are a lot to describe, so I’ll stick to the three standouts for me:
- The NewZealand Story first launched in 1988, and follows Tiki as he attempts to save his lover and his friends who have been kidnapped. Strategize using various balloons and weapons to complete colourful mazes by defeating enemies and using balloons to float.
- Kiki Kaikai first launched in 1986; it is the precursor to Pocky & Rocky. Play as a Shinto shrine maiden and fight against Yokai across the countryside in attempt to save the seven gods of fortune.
- Darius II (3 Screen Arcade Version) first launched in 1989; this is the first port of the special 3 Screen Arcade Edition of the game. Mysterious, intelligent creatures (Belser) once attacked the planet Darius, and have now begun to attack the solar system. The Silver Hawk pilots to the rescue! They’ll travel through the stars, across planets, and beyond in this arcade shooter.
Developed by Taito and published by ININ Games, Taito Milestones 2 will launch for Nintendo Switch in Japan and worldwide on August 31.
