Sylphia

~ SYLPHIA ~

Compile / Tonkin House

Super CD-ROM

1993

This was one of my most highly anticipated PCE games. I'd found out about it just as it was becoming extremely expensive and hard to find, so I had to wait a really long time before coming across a good deal for it. By the time I got it, I basically felt so relieved that I didn't even care if it was a particularly amazing game, but it ended up being a very good shooter.

Its greatest asset is definitely its varied enemy cast. There are so many different types of adversaries to do battle with here; this isn't one of those shooters where you face most of the same fools in the fifth level as you do in the first. Cool new creatures pop up every step of the way, with some of the most memorable appearing in the sky stage:

The techno soundtrack is very cool, highlighted by the melancholy title screen theme. Sadly, this is one of those games where the volume of the in-game music is very low, but the tunes still make a good impression.

I also dig the ending. It's short and nothing special, but it appeals to me for whatever reason. Considering that many PCE shooters skimped on ending sequences, I'll take a neat one when I can get it. Prior to that point, "stage clear" screens offer stylish previews of what's to come in the next level.

The weapons are Compile-style all the way, but the game doesn't feel like the other 16-bit Compile verts (such as Blazing Lazers and Spriggan). This isn't an unwelcome change, as there were plenty enough of those "Aleste-style" shooters during the 16-bit era. There's still lots of action here. The highest difficulty mode feels particularly hectic in the manner that a good, solid challenge should (in other words, it's not a mess of projectiles). And the bosses and midbosses are huge mythological monstrosities.

I suppose the only thing that really disappointed me about Sylphia is the background art. Some stages are simply bland and boring, while others feature hideous color combinations. There are some cool moments visually (the underwater stretch in Stage 3, the clouds in Stage 7, the aqueduct shown in the following screen), but not enough.

Sylphia won't blow you away. Keep that in mind if you're thinking about spending a lot of cash on it. And it isn't as good as some other PCE CD verticals. (Spriggan, Sapphire, and Nexzr are all superior.) But it's still a very good game, one worth purchasing if you find a good deal or consider money to be no object.