Throughout the history of shooting games we've faced a hell of a lot of alien rebels and futuristic baddies. The 2D shooter seems to lend itself to these situations - but it's always nice to see a company try something fresh and new. The PC Engine/TG-16 blast-a-thon Dragon Spirit is one such example. Namco had clearly had enough of the traditional 'kill the aliens' plotline and took it upon themselves to break the trend.
Playing in a similar fashion to Phelios (also a Namco title), you assume the role of a fire-breathing dragon with a fierce sense of justice. Your task is to rid your mythical homeland of evil forces which happen to be making all sorts of mischief - dropping litter, scaring old ladies and knocking on doors before running away - that kind of thing. As you might expect this is done by tackling a series of vertically scrolling levels and defeating the big bad boss at the end. The concept may be original, but the execution is pretty standard.
Dragon Spirit looks quite average when compared to the likes of Super Star Soldier and Soldier Blade. The graphics aren't exactly going to set the world alight (this is from 1988 after all) but they're nice enough, with some decent thought going into the design. The trouble is that there's a lot of bare space and things never really get that exciting. The music is worthy of note however, making the (usually poor) PC Engine really sing.
Much like Xevious the action takes place on two plains. You not only have to contend with aerial assaults but also bomb enemies firing at you from the ground. Your dragon can acquire a pleasing range of power ups one of which involves him growing an extra head. The action never gets too frantic but that is not to say Dragon Spirit is not difficult, the large hit-area your dragon has sometimes makes it very tricky to avoid being hit.
For 600 points there are much better TurboGrafx on the Virtual Console, so only purchase this if you're a massive shoot-em-up fan. Everyone else is better off saving their points or trying one of the better examples currently available.
1. Jazzem
07 Jun 2007, 19:03 GMT
...Another TG-16 shooter!?
Good grief! Still, as long as they're great games =)
2. Dazza
07 Jun 2007, 19:12 GMT
lol you've got to remember that about 80% of the TG-16 library are probably shmups!
3. Thomas
19 Jun 2007, 06:39 GMT
I remember playing this game on the NES a long time ago. While it wasn't my favorite, it wasn't a bad title to kill some time with.
4. Yoshi175
20 Jun 2007, 19:54 GMT
This game looks cool
5. Parallax Abstraction
02 Jul 2007, 20:19 GMT
This game isn't bad but it's very unforgiving and you'll find yourself getting frequently frustrated with it. Back when I actually owned a TG-16, I played this game for hours and only got to the end of the second stage. It requires a lot of memorization to get through and combined with the slow movement speed of your dragon, it can be frustrating. But definitely not to be missed if you're a hardcore shooter fan and in particular, if you like shooters that take a while to master.
6. Mighty Sash
02 Jul 2007, 23:55 GMT
Does anyone else think it is lame that Dragon Spirit also came out on NES but because Nintendo wants to make an extra buck from each buyer that they are releasing it as a TG-16 game?
For one who did love this game as a kid I almost want to boycott it so Nintendo won't continue to release games under the system that gives them the extra $. Besides, few of these virtual consol games get much play time. We get them but after a few days won't play them again for quite some time.
7. Dazza
03 Jul 2007, 08:45 GMT
@Mighty Sash - I think we should just be happy that Nintendo allowed the better version on to the VC. The improved colour palette and soundtrack alone is worth the extra 100 Wii points.
8. Bass X0
07 Jul 2007, 23:14 GMT
I agree with Daz. Never played either version of the game but checking out pics of both, the TG-16 version looks to be the superior. The NES game just looks really poor in comparison.
9. Seth
08 Jul 2007, 00:15 GMT
I absolutely loved this game as a kid. Well, not this game exactly, but the NES spinoff. As for which is better, thats a matter of taste. The TG16 version has graphics and sound much closer to the arcade original, but the NES version has some added material including an introduction story and an easy mode (activated automatically if you die on the tutorial level).
This is one of my all-time favorite shooters, though I admit I'm not a huge fan of the genre in general. Its theme and presentation really make it a lot more interesting for me, playing as a dragon is just really cool no matter how you slice it.
If you're not super-amazing at playing shooters, I highly recommend playing through this one with the turbo keys. It makes the game a lot less frustrating without being overly easy either. It also seems to play a lot easier with an analog stick instead of a D-pad, which is weird since it was never designed with that in mind.
I recommend this game for anyone who enjoys playing as a dragon, since that is really this game's main draw. As you power up, you grow extra heads. Doesn't get much better than that. If they release the NES spinoff in the future, I'll download that version too.
10. Sektor
11 Jul 2007, 16:09 GMT
This game looks sexy, i am going to buy it XD
11. geoff
08 Aug 2007, 05:53 GMT
You will die on stage 8 many, many, times. Use the cheat code for 90 continues.
Stage 8 is next to impossible. This version of the game is definitely an arcade style version due to the intense difficulty.
Other than that, a very challenging shooter with classic music.
12. Phillip
14 Aug 2007, 00:24 GMT
I loved the NES version of Dragon Spirit, and when I bought this I was expecting a prettier version of that. Unfortunately, I realized that the TG-16 version of this game is a direct port from the arcade, and was lacking features I was expecting from the NES version including an introduction level to decide your difficulty, story sequences in between stages, and different endings. If you died on the first level, you played as a gold dragon with double health, but got a crappy ending. I never did beat it as the blue dragon, but assumed the ending was better.
The gameplay is the same, the graphics are a little better, the soundtrack is still great, but anyone expecting a graphically enhanced version of the NES game should beware. I really miss the sequences.
13. Merlin
23 Jan 2008, 13:40 GMT
I played the TG16 version of this game back in the day, and i had some trouble with it. It's a decent enough shooter, but the real issue is that the main player sprite - the dragon - is friggin' huge. It's tough to dodge hails of bullets and multiple enemies, maneuvering all over the place on the screen, with a gigantic dragon.
That makes the game difficult. It's passable as a shooter, and the concept/artwork is pretty nice, but overall it's not as good as many of the other shooters of the console.
14. MarkyVigoroth
11 Sep 2008, 04:04 GMT
I think that I would download this only because the protagonist is a dragon.
Then again, I would spend my hypothetical 600 remaining Wii Points on My Aquarium, instead, even though not only I dislike having leftover Wii Points left but also I go back to the actual ammount I have now...
15. AgentSpalko
05 Oct 2008, 19:20 GMT
I used to play this on the PC Engine we had imported from Japan in the early 90s. Dragon Spirit was always one of my favourites, even back then I loved the music on this game. Even in its flat, basic tone the music is brilliant.
The dragon's size isn't overally big, but big enough that dodging it a task - but it is part of the challenge. The cost of having 3 heads with strong fire power is a larger target in yourelf. This game is bascially about remembering enemy locations.
I have only ever finished this about twice in my life. The hardest part of this, is the last 2 levels, but the most unforgiving section is the final corridor before the boss - a narrow corridor with sharp spears jutting in and out quickly towards you, as smaller enemies shoot at you. Being a small dragon(a power up) would help you get through - but you lack firepower for the end boss, which sucks you towards it with its weapon.
A great game, overlooked and and underated. Easy to understand, but those who got to play it years ago, will realise why it is a treasure.
16. Mr. Cheez
15 Nov 2008, 04:02 GMT
I have the arcade original of this game on the Namco Anniversary Collection, and I never really got into it. For one, I suck majorly at it. The dragon's massive size and hitbox makes it incredibly hard to dodge enemies and bullets, and even when I set the health bar to three units, I always wound up with a game over by the time I hit level 2.
The music is pretty good though, and the game's unique in that it lets you play as a guy that transforms into a dragon, which is a lot cooler than playing as some generic space ship. Gameplay wise, it's basically just a medieval Xevious with power-ups.
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