Some video game companies are great at making IPs that solidify themselves as classic, while others barely hit the mark and fade into obscurity with their games. Irem Games is a company that’s done a little bit of both. Despite having some absolute bangers to its name, Irem has also churned out some lackluster titles that failed to grab people’s attention.
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The company has been around for decades, ever since video games started becoming a thing, so it deserves to get some slack for it. Especially since it managed to produce some titles that are still fondly remembered and played to this day.
9Metal Storm
A game where you control gravity whilefighting evil in a mechadesigned to cause mass destruction sounds like an instant hit, and, at the time, Metal Storm garnered a lot of attention for itself with its unique level design and trippy textures.
The game did tend to get slightly confusing with its backgrounds and foreground meshing together far too well, but once you got the hang of it, the layout isn’t as bad as you’d initially think, especially for it being a relic of its time. The boss battles were unique and challenging, but not in a frustrating way either.
8In The Hunt
Stunning pixilated graphics andsubmersibles are a huge drawfor In The Hunt, since it’s such a unique concept to throw at any player base. Piloting a submarine engaged in maritime war felt like a fresh take on classics like Metal Slug. Playing this in an arcade definitely felt like a rush.
The background, the explosion animations, the sound design — everything was just so exhilarating and engaging. The game was inarguably tough and featured some unique boss designs and mechanics that made the title stand out against its rivals.
7Superior Soldiers
Superior Soldiers was a fighting game that was perhaps on par with the likes of whatStreet Fighterhad to offer at the time, but lacking the kind of whimsy and charm the latter was famous for. Be that as it may, Superior Soldiers was a solid fighting title with decent combos and no unfair hitboxes to exploit.
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Superior Soldiers had clever character designs and bops that would keep you engaged during your battles. It featured a story to keep along with as you beat up a whole roster of diverse characters left and right. The pixilated graphics and backgrounds were top-tier as well.
6Dream Soccer ‘94
If you ever thought 1993’sFIFAInternational Soccer was ahead of its time, then you’ve never had the luxury of trying out just how fun Dream Soccer ‘94 was. The gameplay is more or less the same, but the heart put into this game is clearly visible.
From the celebrations to the sprites, the vibrant colors of the pitch to the cartoonish antics of the players trying to tackle each other, this game is a visual treat. It features some fast-paced soccer gameplay with its own unique takes on shooting and dribbling. It’s one of the best arcade games of the time.
5Ninja Baseball Bat Man
He’s a ninja, but also a baseballer who uses his bats to bash in alien heads. Ninja Baseball Bat Man is an acid trip and a half with its zany premise and even weirder collection of villains and enemies.
The game features some tight controls for abeat ‘em-up game, and the story is good too. The backgrounds are polished, and the gameplay is just about hard yet fun enough to yank a couple of coins out of your pocket without making you rage-quit.
4Blade Master
If you prefer side-scrollers with visually enticing sprites and colorful backgrounds, complex gameplay mechanics, and engaging yet simple combat, then Blade Master was made for you. The story was pretty captivating too, despite how short the game was.
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Blade Master is a visual oddity that stood out at the time from the other games at the arcade since the bosses were so creative and felt like a love letter to the fantasy genre. It wasn’t easy to beat either, since you had hordes of enemies thrown at you at a time.
3Ninja Spirit
If you’re familiar withNinja Gaiden, then this title will feel just as tough to master. The fast-paced enthralling side-scrolling action tends to get overwhelming pretty fast with everything literally flying at you.
The difficulty ramps up quickly and the background scrolls past so fast that you barely pay attention to the amount of detail put into it. The video game also featured a killer soundtrack that meshed well with each boss stage. You even had different types of weapons to mow down enemies with.
2Gekibo 2
Imagine working with a newspaper and getting hired to get the latest scoops but the world around you is far too distracting and everything happens way too fast. Well, that’s Gekibo 2 for you, a video game full of chaos and madness. Unfortunately, you only get a limited amount of opportunities to snap anything since you rely on film you can only get from powerups.
The game is all over the place with all kinds of fun references and the gameplay mechanics are very easy to get used to. Every location is chock-full of oddities to take pictures of, and nabbing the right photo is definitely harder than it sounds too, so it’s challenging enough to keep you playing each stage again and again.
1Raw Danger
Surviving a natural disaster is tough enough as is, but also maintaining your body heat as this crisis unfolds is pretty agonizing. Raw Danger! is aPS2classic, not only for its engaging storyline and somewhat likable characters, but also for the premise and how imaginative the execution was.
The controls and angles can get a little janky sometimes, but the game is a retro console gem that still feels fresh as a concept compared to other survival thriller video games. Managing resources was only a part of the adventure — what made it harder was making the tough choices when it came to allotting them.
