Fast Striker for the PS4 from NG:DEV.TEAM is a 1990’s retro arcade vertical shooter. To keep to the retro theme the game is played in a box which imitates the experience of an arcade machine. This is not a new game and was originally released for the NEO GEO and Sega Dreamcast. That said, it runs very smoothly on the PS4. I spotted no glitches and the game didn’t crash once. Being a PS4 games there are trophies and even a platinum to strive for.

The game has a number of characters which can be played, although this is inconsequential as there is no story to follow and there isn’t any real prizes on offer, apart for an even bigger score on your runs. There is also four different difficulty settings.

The controls are responsive, allowing you to control your rear and forward firing weapons as well as your shield. The game does punish you a little if you just hold down the fire button. Doing this not only slows your craft, but also negates you automatically picking up drops from enemies.

The design and colour scheme harken back to the original and little has been done to update the look and feel. Of course, if you’re into retro games you’d probably be appalled if the developers had chosen to go down this route and update it.

On the downside the experience is a bit repetitive and likewise the design of the enemies never moves much away from generic robots.

If you just want something to pick up where you can try and beat your own score by blowing the pogies out of robots, with a 1990’s vibe, then you may well enjoy Fast Striker.

5

Charles Packer