Trounced by an 15-year old game. I didn't believe it. Me, the saviour of the known universe, pulped silly by Flying Shark, and it was set on EASY!!! (Must be getting old I think)..

Reviewed by Malc!

Let me take you back in time... cue wooh wooh Dr.Who types noises... to a place filled with smoke and bleeps, and teenagers spending their pocket-money bashing the hell out of expensive machines. You're in my favourite arcade in Glasgow, Scotland, circa 1987, a place called the Treasure Island. Flying Shark sat in between Terra Cresta and UFO Robo Dangar and this trio constituted my favourite games at the time. These games had something that very few since have managed to embody - an addictive playability that demanded total concentration - it was either that or die horribly. I actually got pick-pocketed playing Dangar, it was that mind-consuming!

Flying Shark is extremely fine tuned, there are no flashy extra bits to distract. Take the powerups - the bombs appear exactly at the point you've run out and are desperate for them, and the weapon upgrades are modest, yet pleasingly welcome when they appear. Compare Batsugun to Flying Shark - they're at opposite ends of the shooter spectrum... where Batsugun has got SO much firepower it almost spoils the game, Flying Shark has got so little you need total skill to get through it. The powerups swirl about, teasing you to catch them through the myriads of fast-shooting planes whirling around the screen, often leading the unsuspecting player to their death.

The enemies are equally fine tuned. There isn't much variety in them, but they always surprise - they have the uncanny knack of shooting right where you're plane is going to be in 2 seconds. I don't know how many times I've flown right into a speeding bullet! The bosses are generally small tanks and battleships, bristling with gun emplacements, and pose a serious threat to your survival, as the normal planes and tanks don't go away when they're about, unlike other shooters I could mention. Other surprises are the way you blow buildings up and accidentally reveal hidden tanks inside just as you're about to fly over it (nasty!) and large bomber planes flying from behind you, making you zoom up the screen to get away from the bullets you know are going to follow, and crashing right into a squadron coming from the side. Tanks also hide in the trees so you can barely see them, meaning you become very wary of wooded areas. Downright evil these designers;)

Once you put your money in, apart from the refuelling points, there was not a single chance to take a break throughout - one slip and you were history. Many gamers used to the contemporary style of shootemup - overloaded with frequent weapons, confusingly complex graphics and continue-where-you-died points will not like this game at all. They're used to fast progression through the levels without having to work at it. But old-school shmuppers who like a big, big challenge and no-nonsense in-your-face constant action will find plenty to admire in Flying Shark.

LEFT: SHIPPY SHIPPY BANG BANG?
See how the game throws everything at you at once? Small ships, big ships, small planes, big bombers... the whole lot unforgivingly flung at your ship without a break. The only breaks you will get are when you die and have to restart!