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After completing Steel Saviour on the PC, it’s obvious that the game serves as a graphical show-case of the excellent scaling & rotation, anti-aliasing and immense layers of parallax scrolling modern 2D PC shooter are capable of.
It also features Dynamic lighting and weather conditions including fog, rain, mist, and lighting/firestorms. One of the cool treats of the graphics engine, is that this one of the few 2D horizontal Shooters (If not the only) where the levels actually tilt, rotate & scale, giving the illusion of multidirectional scrolling and Depth! This features in incorporated very nicely at the 1st aquatic stage.
The graphics theme and level lay out bares great resemblance to various classic AMIGA shooters like: Project X, Disposable Hero and T-Zero, so yes I would say this is what an AMIGA shooter would have looked like in a alternate parallel universe where AMIGA ruled over the PC and 3D console market and 2D Euro shooters continued to flourish! Also, some in-game level structures look similar to what you would see in Pulstar.
What I can surely say is that Steel Saviour along with the following shooters has the most incredible 2D and hand drawn graphics I’ve ever witnessed on a shooter:
Agony (AMIGA)
Apidya (AMIGA)
Axelay (SNES)
Blazing Star (NEO GEO)
Disposable Hero (AMIGA)
Gradius V (PS-2)
Project-X (AMIGA)
Pulstar (NEO GEO)
R-Type Final (PS-2)
Soldner-X (PC)
Steel Saviour (PC)
T-Zero (AMIGA)
X-2 (Project X-2) (PSX)
Here is an interview with one of the creators, where he mentions that he was influenced by AMIGA & Team 17 gaming, as well as various 2D shooters, like T-Zero, Project X, X2, Einhander, R-Type, RayStorm.
The game also features a cool intro and a dark/sinister post-apocalyptic story-line, similar to Steel Empire and Miyazaki’s Warriors of The Wind world theme.
The cut-scenes and briefing text at the beginning of each level, is what you would remember from Project X on the AMIGA back in 1992, so fans should feel right at home!
The difficulty level is quite high that even excels the Project X (Amiga) standards to say the least! I had to use an invincibility trainer to complete it!
The weapon system (as well as the ship it self) is very similar to Einhander, but not as powerful, so it wont be a rare occasion where you’ll feel defenceless against the swarms of enemy waves charging against you!
The Co-Op 2P mode is a welcomed treat that adds quite a lot to the gameplay and fan factor.
Finally, I would say that Steel Saviour is a very solid shooter (Especially in the graphics department!) and along side Baryon, Kamui, Raptor and Tyrian, is one of the better PC-Only shoot em ups.
Notice the Greek letters on the Nautilus submarine Mid-Boss
Its European heritage is evident
Here are some pics of T-Zero (AMIGA) for graphics comparison & similarities to Steel Saviour:
Early production shot of Steel Saviour:
Yes, the Einhander similarities are evident!
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Blimey, it was years ago, too! I should be feeling the upgrade itch soon....
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