Thunder Force V

Thunder Force V (サンダーフォースV, Sandā Fōsu V) is a 1997 Japanese side-scrolling shooter video game developed by Technosoft for the Sega Saturn. It is the fifth game in the Thunder Force series. Unlike previous games in the series, Thunder Force V uses polygons to model the larger enemy ships and some of the scenery, in addition to sprites.^[ In 1998, Thunder Force V was ported to the PlayStation as Thunder Force V: Perfect System.

Gameplay

As in Thunder Force IV, the player can choose the play order of the starting stages, but now only for the first three stages. The same speed gauge from Thunder Force IV is used, and is operated the same way. There are no longer any items to enhance the player’s default weapons. Instead, they are automatically enhanced, and the enhanced versions become new defaults. All the weapons have appeared in previous Thunder Force games, but a few have been changed radically.

The CLAWs (now referred to as CRAWs – Constitutional Ray Art Weapon units) have a few changes from previous games. They still rotate around the player’s ship, absorb enemy fire, and act as extra turrets, but now a maximum of three CRAWs can be used. In addition, they remain on screen for a finite period of time upon ship destruction, giving the player a chance to recollect them. A new feature in Thunder Force V involving the CRAWs is the use of the “Over Weapon”. By pressing the appropriate button, the player’s CRAWs combine with the currently selected weapon to create a more powerful version of that weapon. Over Weapons can only be sustained for a limited period of time by using CRAW energy. As an Over Weapon is used, the CRAW’s energy is depleted. CRAWs recharge their energy automatically over time when not being used for firing the Over Weapon. Collecting new CRAWs replaces the player’s existing CRAWs if they are depleted.

Release

Thunder Force V was released in Japan for the Sega Saturn on July 11, 1997. There were two retail versions, the normal pack, and a special pack which contained a remix music CD of various Thunder Force music entitled Best of Thunder Force, which was later released separately.^{[citation needed]} The Saturn version was never released outside Japan. Sega Europe took a preproduction version under consideration, and decided against publishing the game. Electronic Gaming Monthly urged readers to tell Sega of America to release the game in the United States, but it was never released there either.

Thunder Force V was ported to the PlayStation and released in 1998 as Thunder Force V: Perfect System. It was published in North America by Working Designs under the SPAZ label.^{[citation needed]} The PlayStation version features additional levels, high-resolution artwork, CG rendered movie sequences, and a time attack mode.

Reception

The PlayStation version received “average” reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. Next Generation said of the game: “If there is a saving grace here, then it is this: Thunderforce [sic] takes you back to a time when games weren’t as good as they are now”. In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 28 out of 40 for the Saturn version, and 31 out of 40 for the PlayStation version.

Retrospectively in 2007, Rob Fahey of Eurogamer said that while it wasn’t nearly as refined or “utterly fantastic” as Einhänder or Radiant Silvergun, Thunder Force V was still a good shooter with well-implemented mechanics. Fahey particularly praised the CRAW for being the game’s “hook”, and also liked its level design and “perfectly-tuned” boss fights. He described it as being: “A very solid shooter, in other words, which deserved far more credit than it received – not least because any shooter with bosses called Deep Purple and Iron Maiden is alright in our book”. In 2010, Hardcore Gaming 101‘s Paul Brownlee said that Thunder Force V had a great soundtrack and good gameplay, but was slightly hindered by visuals and 3D models that didn’t age well. He argued that one of the game’s strong points was its boss fights for their cool-looking designs and accompanying music tracks, some of which are based on those from previous Thunder Force games. Brownlee compared the two versions of the game, and claimed that neither of them were better than the other; he said that while the Saturn version had more detailed backdrops and the PlayStation version had better textures, neither of them had good graphics in the long run.