Game #1343: Steel Assault

 Try not to get hooked.

 I've been interested in Steel Assault pretty much since the game was announced, and it's been a long wait, but finally it got a physical release. This is a 16-bit-esque 2-D sidescrolling action game that feels like a cross between Ninja Gaiden and Contra with a dash of Bionic Commando.

 As Taro you get three actions: Whip, Jump and Hook. Your whip doesn't have a lot of range but it can destroy most bullets coming your way. The jump is self explanatory, but you can also use it to slide while crouching in order to perform a slide with invincibility frames. The hook is not as fun to use as it looks, but it doesn't work as you'd expect it to. When you shoot it, it shoots both in front and behind you, and it needs to connect both ends onto something in order for it to stick. If only one end touches a surface then it will break and do you no good. You can aim it in diagonal angles too, and some obstacles require inventive use of this mechanic.

 The game itself is quite fun, and I enjoyed the fast pace.... but even in the normal difficulty it's quite hard. Thankfully it has a Journalist mode so that you can finish the game no matter how bad you are at it. That said.... it's probably so tough because it's very brief. The game itself can be beaten in under an hour and once you are done that's it. No secret character, no unlockable anything, no nothing, which is kind of a shame. A game like this could've benefited so much from, say, an unlockable character with similar but different properties than the main character.

 Steel Assault is a pretty good game, but a bit unremarkable. The 16-bit sprite work is gorgeous, but the game is over before you know it and I didn't feel as if it was very replayable. But hey, it's really good... while it lasts.

 6.5