Kyokugen is a game very similar to the popular MSX games Aleste and Zanac. While controlling a small aircraft, the player will have to destroy as many enemies as possible, dodging their attacks. During the game, the weapons of the aircraft will get stronger and several boss-monsters have to be defeated.

First impressions
The full-colour box and manual already reveal with how much care this game was created. The manual clearly explains all aspects of the game, including the story and some fighting tactics. My expectations have risen to a high level so I decide to boot the game.

     After the M-kai logo, a small intro demo is shown. A very fast animation visualises the story in the manual. Everything goes very smooth and the music is well-timed. The intro demo ends in the main menu, which has a stunning multi layer-effect. After a while, a small demonstration of the game is given and the intro demo starts again.

Adventure
In adventure mode, we see how the story continues. First we have to choose which pilot we want to be. Each pilot has his own ship, each ship has different weapons. All ships also differ in speed and defensive power. There are no less than twelve different pilots, so it might take some time to figure out which ship suits you the best.

     You follow the rest of the story by reading diaries of the crew-members. The English used in the diaries is sometimes a bit hard to follow, but it is a lot better than Japanese. After two diary entries the first stage begins. Our ship is launched from a ship and we are thrown into the action almost immediately. Every enemy that is destroyed, leaves a power-up. Catching these power-ups will increase the experience points. In the right top of the screen is a gauge which represents your experience. Once the gauge is full, your ship will increase a level. Meanwhile, you can catch other options that increase the strength of your weapons or the speed of your ship.

     The game contains a lot of small jokes. For instance, one of the enemies seems to be unbeatable, until he flies into a large wall himself. When a level is finished, we get to read one or more diary entries again. This way, the story continues while playing the game. You actually know what you are doing and why you are doing it.

Time attack
There are also two time attack modes in the game. In three or five minutes your only mission is to gain as many points as possible. Unfortunately, you cannot choose your own ship here. The time attack mode is a great place to improve your skills or to have a small competition with some friends. Both the time attack modes and the adventure mode have their own high score lists.

Graphics and music
When first playing the game, I had a bit of difficulty of understanding what was actually going on. Everything on the screen moves very, very fast and the enemies are sometimes a bit blocky. It is a bit in contrast with the very well drawn backgrounds and boss-monsters. Very soon, however, I got used to the style of the game and its graphics. Some of the graphical effects in the game are really well done, and make a very good impression. The game music is made for MSX-MUSIC. Each level has its own soundtrack which represents the atmosphere of the level very well.

Game play
When you see someone play Kyokugen, you would think it is a miracle that he is able to play it. The entire screen is filled with enemies, bullets and options. Enemies keep coming in at high speed. When you play the game yourself, though, you will discover the game has an incredible game play, something I missed in D.A.S.S. The game play is increased even more by the selections you can make in the main menu. You can double the size of the sprites, you can increase the amount of ships you have from three to five and there are seven different difficulty levels. Some of the enemies do entirely different things when the difficulty level is increased. They move faster, they shoot more bullets or they aim better at your ship. This option guarantees many hours of gaming fun for the novice as well as the advanced gamer.

Conclusion
Kyokugen is a very entertaining game. You need to adjust a bit to the graphics first, but when you are used to the game you will be amazed by the game play of this addictive game. Especially if you like games like Aleste, this game can not be missed in your collection. Kyokugen can easily compete with all games of its genre.

     A short note from the editors:

     The article you read here is based on the first draft that we recieved from Sander and was not finished entirely...