Drakojan Skies Acolytes

As many of my readers and friends may know, I’m a huge fan of RaidenX, a fan made flash tribute to the Raiden series.  There is however, another great game of it’s type, one that I enjoy just as much, if not more than RaidenX, that game is Drakojan Skies Acolytes.

Drakojan Skies Acolytes is a horizontal arcade shooter that rivals even the best of which arcades have seen. It has amazing graphics, an upbeat soundtrack, and very challenging, yet enjoyable gameplay. The game offers many characters and ships to choose from, and has 7 missions to play through. The game offers a Star Fox 64 style level layout, meaning you can beat mission one and go to either 2 or 3, and then branch again from there, ultimately ending up at mission 7. The missions range in difficulty greatly, and there is enough challenge for even the most hardcore arcade shooter fans out there, believe me, I just died on mission 6 after playing for a half hour. As you encounter enemies within the fast paced action, you can attack with your primary weapon, your secondary weapon which is a small bomb that explodes mid air below you when dropped, and lastly your special weapon. Both your primary and secondary weapon can be upgraded during gameplay as you encounter power-ups, and your special weapon can be upgraded between stages in the workshop using the points you’ve earned by defeating enemies. On top of all these great features, the game even comes complete with a few unlockables such as a new character, new ship, and some extra modes to play your favorite levels.

This game is admittedly not entirely suited for the flash game audience, that however means nothing on the quality of the game. It is significantly too hard for the average flash gamer out there, but I believe the developers simply stayed true to their original image and never eased on the difficulty just to please the majority. This is perhaps what hurt the game from becoming the next big flash hit on the internet, on the other hand those who appreciate it for what it is truly enjoy every moment of it.

The game excels in a number of ways, graphics definitely being one of those. Drakojan Skies Acolytes has some of the most impressive flash game graphics I’ve encountered to date. The characters are beautifully drawn, the textures and images professionally done, and the effects look spectacular. With very little additional work the graphics could definitely be suitable for an arcade cabinet launch. Aside from graphics, the game is very action oriented. There is never a slow moment or dull boss battle you can let your guard down on, the entire game is fast paced and loaded with activity. In addition to the great graphics and fast paced action, the music is definitely a plus as well. The music although scarce at times, is very suiting. The genres range from epic, to metal, which may sound odd at first, but amidst the action it certainly plays it’s role.

If you are in any way a fan of arcade shooters and haven’t played this yet, I strongly encourage you to give it a fair play through. If you happen to like the game enough, you can play Drakojan Skies Missions 1-3 for a bit more of the same great action. Overall I can’t really see anything to improve upon in this game, it’s perfect for what it is and has everything I look for when trying to go back and get the feeling that great arcade shooters have to offer.

RaidenX

There’s been a ton of great flash games as of late, but something people often forget about are the classic gems of the flash world. RaidenX is an amazing game that was created as a tribute to the Raiden series. The original Raiden games can be found all over arcades around the world (or once could be, curse the decline of great arcade games, Street Fighter 4 aside) and was also ported for the Play Station 1.

RaidenX was created in mid 2005 and sponsored by CrazyMonkeyGames, (lucky them!) Since that day it has received over 11.5 million plays on CMG’s site alone, and continues to get attention as one of the greatest flash games of its time.

This game is all about quick action, something most people on the net need in order to stay entertained these days. From the moment you press play on the main menu you’re immediately tossed into the battle zone as Stage 1 starts. The controls are simple, “Z” to shoot and “X” to use your special. This kind of quick action is something that really adds to the value of a flash game. Most players are looking for casual play, something to jump into and play on a lunch break or during class at school when nobody’s looking; RaidenX is a perfect example of quick pick up and play action, yet still offers a save feature so you can complete the game over time if not in one sitting.

Aside from its easy controls and fast paced action, the game offers an expansive game-play with a decent number of levels and a nice twist that will catch some players off guard towards the end. The game offers nearly everything the original game offered: great weapons, awesome bosses, fast-paced action, and awesome music that brings back memories of many peoples’ childhoods. It also offers the ability to change difficulty between easy, normal, and hard, yet again keeping a large number of players happy.

Although the graphics may be considered only decent in current times, they still offer their own style and get the job done. We also have to keep in mind that the game was created using AS2 and optimization back then could only do so much. The visual effects on weapons and specials are still pretty impressive and give the player a feeling of accomplishment as everything on the screen is demolished. Bosses are animated, backgrounds scroll, and everything moves fast enough to stop you from focusing on the lack of detail on any given piece of art. Overall the art is still impressive and stays true to the feel of the original game.

The music in this game is something that really brings it to life. Although the quality lacks a bit due to file size restrictions, the songs are memorable and full of atmosphere. Sound effects can be found for every action you do, from menu selection to bosses exploding; it’s all there. With the large array of sound effects and music found in this game, I think it’s safe to say that the audio portion of this game is covered.

Overall RaidenX can easily be seen as a classic flash gem of 2005. It offers great game-play, awesome weapons, an amazing soundtrack, difficulty adjusting, and basically everything else a good game needs. If you’re one of the many who haven’t checked this out previously, and/or the 11.5 million views on one site alone haven’t yet convinced you that this game is great, go give it a play yourself; you won’t be dissatisfied.