Blazing Star
Encyclopedia
is a scrolling shooter video game for the Neo Geo
home game system. It is the sequel to the acclaimed Neo Geo shooter Pulstar
, which was itself a close cousin to the R-Type
franchise. A typically hefty Neo Geo ROM
at 346 Mb
, the game makes extensive use of pseudo-3D prerendered sprites, brief anime
and CGI
cutscene
s (mostly during the intro sequence), and frequent Engrish
voice samples and captions. While Blazing Star was superior in many respects to previous shooter games, some fans compare it unfavorably with Pulstar on the basis that Blazing Star was overly easy and there are those that prefer the simpler 2D sprite look over the prerendered sprites that came to dominate many of the more recent shoot-em-ups.
Yet, once they were assimilated, they found no other purpose in life but to continue fighting each other. After a while, six of the assimilated fighter pilots regained their consciousness and remembered their pasts. Upon discovering their humanity, the pilots were conflicted with following Brawshella's orders or fighting it to fully regain their independence. The pilots finally turn against the machine in a battle to rediscover themselves and reclaim their planets.
The joystick and two buttons are used to play Blazing Star. The joystick moves the ship around, while button A fires the normal shot. If A is tapped rapidly, then a variation on the normal shot is used. If A is held down, then the ship stores energy for a charged shot, which is fired when A is released. The charged-shot attacks have a duration based on how long the A button is held for, and pressing B during the attack will split the projectile in some way, greatly increasing the range.
Power-ups can increase the strength of the player's guns, while also increasing the maximum power of the charged shot. The types of shots, charge-up attacks, and split shots used are dependent on the ship the player selects. For instance, the ship seen in the screenshot above has small energy waves as its normal shot. The charged shot, seen in action here, releases a continuous stream of large fireballs. By pressing B, every fireball onscreen splits into numerous smaller shots, spreading to cover a much wider range.
According to an August 7, 2009 New York Times article by Ben Zimmer, the popular expression FAIL came from this game:"This punchy stand-alone fail most likely originated as a shortened form of “You fail” or, more fully, “You fail it,” the taunting “game over” message in the late-’90s Japanese video game Blazing Star, notorious for its fractured English."
Neo Geo (console)
The is a cartridge-based arcade and home video game system released on July 1, 1991 by Japanese game company SNK. Being in the Fourth generation of Gaming, it was the first console in the former Neo Geo family, which only lived through the 1990s...
home game system. It is the sequel to the acclaimed Neo Geo shooter Pulstar
Pulstar (video game)
is a shoot 'em up developed by now defunct Aicom Co. Ltd and published by SNK for the Neo Geo, Neo Geo CD and arcade; it is the prequel of Blazing Star. Pulstar, as well as its sequel, are often regarded as among the best-looking shoot 'em up games for the Neo Geo.-Story:In the year 2248, the first...
, which was itself a close cousin to the R-Type
R-Type
is a side scrolling shoot-em-up arcade game produced by Irem in 1987. The player controls a space fighter named R-9a "Arrowhead" to defend humanity against a mysterious but powerful alien life-form known as "Bydo", which was later discovered to be not entirely alien in origin...
franchise. A typically hefty Neo Geo ROM
Read-only memory
Read-only memory is a class of storage medium used in computers and other electronic devices. Data stored in ROM cannot be modified, or can be modified only slowly or with difficulty, so it is mainly used to distribute firmware .In its strictest sense, ROM refers only...
at 346 Mb
Megabit
The megabit is a multiple of the unit bit for digital information or computer storage. The prefix mega is defined in the International System of Units as a multiplier of 106 , and therefore...
, the game makes extensive use of pseudo-3D prerendered sprites, brief anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
and CGI
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
cutscene
Cutscene
A cutscene is a sequence in a video game over which the player has no or only limited control, breaking up the gameplay and used to advance the plot, strengthen the main character's development, introduces enemy characters, and provide background information, atmosphere, dialogue, and clues...
s (mostly during the intro sequence), and frequent Engrish
Engrish
refers to unusual forms of English language usage by native speakers of some East Asian languages. The term itself relates to Japanese speakers' tendency to inadvertently substitute the English phonemes "R" and "L" for one another, because the Japanese language has one alveolar consonant in place...
voice samples and captions. While Blazing Star was superior in many respects to previous shooter games, some fans compare it unfavorably with Pulstar on the basis that Blazing Star was overly easy and there are those that prefer the simpler 2D sprite look over the prerendered sprites that came to dominate many of the more recent shoot-em-ups.
Story
Sometime in their past, the planets Remuria and Mutras started an interplanetary war that showed no sign of ending. The endless fight between the human-like inhabitants of the two planets had gone so long that weapon development moved into dangerous territory: Organic Weapon Production combined with alien technology. Soon, a sentient weapon - Brawshella - was born. Brawshella gathered all animal life on both planets and forced them to do its bidding and attack the humans. In a week, the humans were assimilated by Brawshella.Yet, once they were assimilated, they found no other purpose in life but to continue fighting each other. After a while, six of the assimilated fighter pilots regained their consciousness and remembered their pasts. Upon discovering their humanity, the pilots were conflicted with following Brawshella's orders or fighting it to fully regain their independence. The pilots finally turn against the machine in a battle to rediscover themselves and reclaim their planets.
Gameplay
Power-ups can increase the strength of the player's guns, while also increasing the maximum power of the charged shot. The types of shots, charge-up attacks, and split shots used are dependent on the ship the player selects. For instance, the ship seen in the screenshot above has small energy waves as its normal shot. The charged shot, seen in action here, releases a continuous stream of large fireballs. By pressing B, every fireball onscreen splits into numerous smaller shots, spreading to cover a much wider range.
Internet culture
One of the mangled translations in game, "You fail it! Your skill is not enough, see you next time, bye-bye!", has become a famous Internet catchphrase (see Engrish), often abbreviated to FAIL.According to an August 7, 2009 New York Times article by Ben Zimmer, the popular expression FAIL came from this game:"This punchy stand-alone fail most likely originated as a shortened form of “You fail” or, more fully, “You fail it,” the taunting “game over” message in the late-’90s Japanese video game Blazing Star, notorious for its fractured English."