Sapphire
銀河婦警伝説サファイア1995Sapphire
銀河婦警伝説サファイアFour pilots battle through five levels set across time.
Sapphire is a vertical shooter released late in the PC Engine's life. It needs the Arcade Card expansion, and it was the last game made for that add-on.
| RELEASED IN JAPAN | 24 November 1995 |
|---|---|
| RELEASED OUTSIDE JAPAN | No |
| DEVELOPER | CAProduction |
| PUBLISHER | Hudson Soft |
| REQUIRED HARDWARE | Arcade Card RAM expansion |
| PLAYERS | One, or two in co-operative mode |
The game has five levels, and each level is short, while the boss fights are long. You pick one of four women, and each has a different ship, speed and three unique weapons.
The basic weapons are a straight shot, a wide shot and a rear shot. Colored items power them up. When fully powered, two pods fly beside the ship, and they absorb enemy fire and shoot back.
In 2092, time travel is common, and terrorists hide weapons and contraband in the past. An all-women police force chases one elusive enemy through time. The levels move through a futuristic city, the Middle Ages, ancient Egypt, Japan and outer space.
Hudson approached CAProduction, which had been working on a third Thunder game. Hudson also wanted to pair the studio with Mika Akitaka, who wrote the Galaxy Fräulein Yuna games. Animation was done by J.C.Staff, and T's Music composed the soundtrack, as it did for Lords of Thunder.
The game came out when 32-bit consoles already existed, and few copies were printed, so it became a rare collector's item. Hardcore Gamer reported used copies at about 300 US dollars in 2008. A PSP compilation released it in Japan on 31 July 2008.
Critics say its visuals and sound make up for average gameplay. IGN lists it among the most important PC Engine shooters.
- Some sprites were pre-rendered to look like 3D polygons.
- Counterfeit copies appeared around 2005.
- NEC built the Arcade Card to compete with the Super NES and Mega Drive.
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