I do appreciate it when we see re-releases of classic games that they’re compiled into mini collections rather than as stand-alone titles. With both Over Horizon and Steel Empire being more classic side-scrolling shooters, their pairing also feels appropriate, and given the titles span 3 different systems this is also an interesting window into how differently titles could play on them.

Starting with Over Horizon, originally released on the NES, I think it was actually my favorite of the bunch. Feeling inspired by the likes of Gradius and R-Type, I got off to a rough start but quickly adapted once I understood I could cycle between my weapons, and started to get comfortable with which were best in different situations. If anything, what I found astonishing is how polished this felt for an NES release, though I suppose since that was approaching the end of the system’s lifespan it’s less surprising. This is a title I walked away a bit upset that I’d missed, though since it never got a US release that would explain why. It was absolutely a missed opportunity in my mind.

In the case of Steel Empire, both the Gameboy and the Mega Drive releases are included, with both English and Japanese versions represented for the sake of thoroughness. I’ve played an upconverted version of it on Switch already in the form of The Legend of Steel Empire, so these did feel more familiar. The closest to that experience is the Mega Drive version, sporting a somewhat washed out color scheme and pretty challenging action where you’ll need to keep an eye on enemies coming from both the left and the right. Weirdly, even though the Gameboy version of the game is decidedly more primitive, as you’d expect, I also found that I liked it more for some reason, likely just coming down to the general feel of play.

For hardcore shooter fans, or simply people interested in video game preservation efforts, I think this is a pretty cool release. Not so much for including 2 pretty different titles as much as the fact that they span 3 different systems, resulting in each of them looking and playing quite differently from one another. Throw in the fact that Over Horizon wasn’t released in the US originally, and this is an opportunity to check out what I’d consider to be an impressive shooter that seems to have been a victim of coming along so late in the lifespan of the NES. If you’re a big genre fan this is well worth a look.