UN Squadron was one of the games growing up that I remember playing a LOT. This game, though simple, is one of the best side-scrolling flying shoot em up type games that I've played. It is difficult without being insane like some of the similar NES versions of these types of games. I also loved a lot of the variability that this game provides. I also liked the fact that this game doesn’t take place on an alien planet or in the future. It stays in the “present” and much of what you see and experience seems more or less real and possible. Obviously some of the weapons and bosses are exaggerated but it is a video game after all and things like that almost always are.

The game itself is quite well done. The controls are simple but function well and make the game easy to play as a beginner or expert.

Graphics - 8/10

I think the graphics in this game are quite good. The level design is unique from level to level. The planes weren't amazingly well designed but they were unique enough that you could tell one from the other and there was a fair bit of variability in the enemy plane and helicopter design. Add to that the backgrounds and ambient visuals that were included in the game and it made for a pretty nice visual experience.

The one problem I have visually is when lots of enemies and projectiles are on the screen the entire game slows down quite a bit. This is obviously useful because you have a lot more stuff to deal with coming at you but it does make the game feel really choppy at times during the level. It's not enough to ruin the rating but it does take away from the intensity that the visuals have otherwise. Quite often this happens during a boss fight because the boss fights involve a LOT more guns and projectiles than the average part in any level. Like I said before though, this is quite a big advantage to the player a lot of the time because it allows you extra time to think and prepare for your next move.

Sound - 8/10

The music for this game fit it so well. Each level has it's own unique track that fits the environment and intensity of the level well. The music itself is pretty standard fare for the SNES so there is no problem there. The music is pretty catchy and the upbeat almost frantic pace that some of the tracks take mirrors the intensity of the fighting going on in the game.

I also really like the way the music changes to become darker every time the boss shows up in the game. It's like the game itself has a feel and then the boss shows up and you know the game is about to go to a new level.

However, as good as the music is it isn't like Zelda or Mario where the song is stuck in your head for extended periods of time. I don't know if I could hum any tune of the game except for the victory screen song. That one is pretty catchy and memorable.


Addictiveness - 9/10

This was a tough rating for me to give because I personally LOVE this game and have played it over and over again. However, I don't know if other people would agree that it is worth playing 10 times over. Once you've beaten the game there is very little variability to how the game plays out if you play again. Obviously the order of the levels can be changed up so that it isn't exactly the same level as you progress. There are also 6 different planes to choose from in the game and which plane you choose can affect how the game goes if you choose the wrong plane at the wrong time in the game. There are also 3 characters to choose from and that also affects the difficulty of the game depending on your play style.

I will stick with my high rating because I think this game is great and while the levels are exactly the same with each play through the challenge of beating the game doesn't go down much simply because you've played it before. I could sit down and play it again right now and possibly not beat the game.

Story - 3/10

Honestly, I'm not really sure what the story of this game is. I've played it a ton of times but what exactly is going on isn't clear. The premise is something like this: terrorist organization is plotting to destroy the world or take it over or something equally nefarious and it is your job as the pilot to fly around to all their bases and what not and take them out. That's it. I don't think there is really any back story on the pilots or the organization you work for or the terrorist group you are taking out. No new information is revealed as the game goes on as to who the group is or why you need to defeat them.

It is a scrolling shooter game after all so the story is secondary to the action and UN Squadron is another case of this. The action more than makes up for the lack of story. So while the story is really weak the game is so much fun that it doesn't matter.

Depth - 5/10

This is another rating that I feel was tough to give. While the game itself has lots of variety (3 pilots, 6 planes, 10 levels or so that you can play in various orders, and about 16 special weapons) it also is a pretty short and straightforward game. Speed runs for this game go at about an hour and I imagine most people could beat it in under 2 hours. Not a ton of game play really. The game does give you the chance to do mini-missions (green trucks) that give you a small amount of cash so you can save up to the next plane if you need to which does add another element to the game. The mission is always the same (bombing 3 supply trucks of the enemies) but it does help relieve some of the stress of the game because you don’t have to have a perfect run through the game in order to get the next plane you need.

However, the game is challenging and doesn't get old when you play it for a 2nd, 3rd or 4th time so that's the main reason why I left the rating a bit higher.

Difficulty - 9/10

I rated this game as high as I did because even though I've played it a hundred times there are plenty of days that I run out of continues and have to start over. I have most of the levels memorized to the point that I could likely write a walkthrough of the game without playing the game very much at all and I would have it figured out pretty well. Still, even after all that I still manage to die on a regular basis. This one is easier because you have an energy bar which allows you to get hit multiple times before you die whereas most NES games in this genre would kill you with 1 hit. Although when you do get hit you go into a sort of crisis mode where you are damaged and if you get hit again then you die instantly so it is only slightly different. Still, this game is similar to most of those old style scrolling shooters in that there is quite often a million things on the screen at the same time and avoiding them and the environment in order to simply survive can be a huge challenge.

Another element I liked was the power of your planes main weapon. As you progressed through the game your main weapon slowly gets upgraded by collecting power ups that drop from enemy planes. If you are having trouble with a level these upgrades don’t go away even after you die so 2-3 attempts of a level can quite often result in an upgraded main weapon making your stronger and resulting in an easier time defeating a level. This matters more in the early levels than on the last 2 or 3 so it doesn’t relieve the difficulty a lot but it is a nice bridge to get through the early levels if you have some bad luck on them.

Overall – 9.5/10

This is by far one of my favorite games from the SNES. I’ve spent hours playing it as a kid and probably even more as an adult. I think this game took the side scrolling shooter and did it nearly perfectly. Obvious additions like more levels and more planes, pilots, special weapons would have made the game even more fun but I can’t fault the game for those things. What they did do was very near perfect.

The 1 thing I honestly wish this game had that it doesn’t that I think would have made it even better would have been a 2 player mode. I think this would have made the game even more appealing. However, as it stands this is still one of the best games for the SNES and one of my favorite console games of all time.

Great review man. I wanted to do a review for this game a long time ago, just haven't found the time to do so.

Honestly, this is one of the rare occasions where the PORT of the game is better than the arcade original. One of my VERY FAVORITE games on the SNES and one of my favorite Shmups of all time.

I look forward to reading more reviews form you!(Fingers crossed) lol

Jordanv78 : well, to be honest I've started actually reading reviews and some of them are pretty bad.

Even the featured reviews are average in a lot of cases. I quite often write, re-write and edit my reviews over the course of 3 or 4 hours as I think about the game and remember things. I even play and watch videos to recall as much information as I can before posting it. I wish other people put that kind of effort in but I can see that a lot don't.

geeogree : Yeah, I hear ya on the reviews man. I used to comment on each one and give critiques regarding them, but I got kinda burnt out because it's more common for the reviews to be bad or mediocre than to have them be good.

Thanks for doing a great review on a great game.