Burai Fighter

Gameplay screenshot of Stage 1

Burai Fighter is a singleplayer two-dimensional automatic sidescroller.[3] It has three difficulty levels to choose from. At the start, the screen moves from left to right, but it can move in any cardinal direction and change directions in the same level. The player is expected to keep up, as getting stuck on the edge means the player character dies. The player starts out with a basic gun that can fire in all eight directions. Holding down the fire button locks the player's firing direction. The player floats through space to destroy robots. At the end of a level they must defeat a boss to continue to the next level. At times the player may find a gap at the side of the screen. When the player moves into the gap with correct timing, the orientation of the screen changes and takes them into a secret room with some power-ups. Higher difficulty levels have fewer secret rooms and more precise timing is required. The game is fairly linear, but there are some forks in the path where the player can either travel on the left side or the right side of the screen for a little while. Some sides are more challenging than their counterparts.

Each level has a password that can be input to start at that level.

Weapons and power-ups

Power-ups can be collected during the game. The three guns that have unlimited ammo are the laser, the ring and the missile. Picking up a symbol will switch weapons and it will increase the player's counter of that weapon by one. If the counter hits five, that weapon reaches level two. Weapons can be boosted to level three. If the player loses a life they also lose the upgrade for the weapon they were using. The maxed out laser fires diagonally in four directions, the ring has a front spread and the missile fires vertically and horizontally. The ring can pierce through enemies, which makes it a handy weapon against hard to reach spots. Every boss is weak against a particular kind of weapon. With enough resources, the player can deploy cobalt bombs that inflict damage to all enemies on the screen; they do not damage bosses. Completely filling the cobalt meter gives the player an extra life at the cost of their whole supply. Speed can be upgraded with the S symbols, and the rotating shield can be upgraded by collecting the grey circle symbols.

Bosses

Giganticrab is the level one boss. He has three eyes on top of his head that must be destroyed before it corners the player with its body or antennae.

The level two boss is Jawispede, a big worm that splits into three pieces that must be destroyed.

Level three is an overview perspective level where the player must look for a base with many firing eyes. It has no automatic scrolling.

Fangskull is the level four boss.

The level five boss is a fire demon named Torchwing. It will launch fireballs at the player.

Level six is another overview perspective level with a slightly larger base the player needs to destroy.

Slimedragon is the end boss of the game. The player only fights his head. It fires massive homing projectiles at the player.

The Burai are an intelligent race bent on complete domination of the entire universe. They have seven facilities across the galaxy that produce their troops that are half-robot, half-animal. Only the unnamed protagonist can save the universe with his proton suit and laser gun.

Space Marauder (known as Burai Senshi Color in Japan) is a colorized version of the Game Boy version. It was developed and published by KID in Japan and Agetec in North America. It was released in Japan on July 23, 1999, and in North America on August 28, 2000. The game puts the player in the role an infantryman dropped into an alien base that is determined to enslave humanity.[4] There are three different power-ups, and the game allows you to shoot in eight different directions. However, due to the difficulty of switching the direction of fire during the midst of battle, it is regarded to be easier to just shoot in one direction.[4] The three power-ups are considered standard for the genre: a blue bullet, a lighter blue laser, and a pink laser.[4] The game uses a password system to continue progress.[4]

Burai Fighter received a mixture of opinions from reviewers on the Nintendo Entertainment System,[7] though a slight majority gave it a positive recommendation.[10] Electronic Gaming Monthly's four reviewers compared it with Section Z, describing it as a cross between Forgotten Worlds and Side Arms. They stated that the power-up build-up system was a welcomed change of pace and praised its frantic action, varied background graphics and smooth scrolling, regarding it as one of the better shooters for NES.[6] VideoGames & Computer Entertainment's B.W. felt that its visuals were adequate but did not help to convey an appropriate atmosphere. He commended the smooth scrolling but criticized the amount of flickering when too many enemies are present on-screen, as well as the sound design and lack of replay value after completing the game.[12] Mean Machines' Matt Regan and Julian Rignall criticized its presentation and sound, while both critics felt divided in regards to its challenge and difficulty. However, they gave positive remarks to the graphics, playability and longevity, with Rignall regarding it as a welcomed addition to the NES library.[13] Joystick's Sébastien Hamon gave positive commentary in regards to the audiovisual presentation, sprite animations, controls and precise action.[8]

Micro News' Sylvain Allain commended its graphics and sprite animations but criticized the sound.[14] Player One's Cyril Drevet praised the animated visuals, sound, varied difficulty, longevity and fun factor.[9] Aktueller Software Markt's Michael Suck stated that "Burai Fighter shines with high playability and variable, always surprising gameplay." Suck also gave positive remarks to the graphics but criticized its sound design.[5] Video Games' Andreas Knauf noted its high difficulty level, changing view perspectives and technical accomplishment. However, like B.W., Knauf criticized the amount of flickering and visuals due to the large sprites.[11]

• Burai Fighter at GameFAQs
• Burai Fighter at Giant Bomb
• Burai Fighter at MobyGames