Aw man, let me tell you about this… thing I stumbled upon. Or maybe it found me? Who knows. Anyway, it’s this Irem Collection Volume 3—crazy name, huh? So they’ve gone and taken these wild arcade shoot ’em ups from the late 80s and 90s and slapped ’em onto our screens again. You know, when games were all about eating up your quarters? Good times.
Kicking it off with Mr. Heli from ’87, which apparently is a big deal in the “cute ’em up” scene. Sounds adorable, right? But don’t let it fool ya. Mystic Riders came out in ’92, where brooms aren’t just for witches—they’re weapons too. And then there’s Dragon Breed, where your buddy’s a massive, fire-spittin’ dragon. I mean, who even thought of this stuff?
Now, they say each one of these games has a vibe, a sort of personality. I guess that’s true. Back in their arcade glory days, they were tough as nails, like a test of endurance—you’d throw your pocket change at them until your fingers cramped up. Anyway, fast-forward to now, they’ve added fancy features for those who didn’t grow up in dark arcade corners. You can fiddle with controls and adjust stuff like lives and difficulty. They even threw in an autofire option—essential for saving thumbs in these rapid-fire scenarios.
Another thing, they’ve jazzed up the looks with display filters. You can make it look like ye olde CRT screens, which is kinda cool if you’re nostalgic. Oh, and leaderboards—because why not let people worldwide beat your high scores and crush your dreams?
Honestly, these games are gems hidden away until now, shining like a new coin on Xbox One and Series X|S. Makes me wonder how many times I’ve walked by these machines in the past without giving them a thought. But here they are, ready to steal hours from your life again. And don’t forget Volumes 1 and 2 are out there too. Gaming history, right at your fingertips. Go figure.