Like a system’s pack-in game, console launch titles are also really important in demonstrating the power of a new system and what it offers to players. For the SEGA Genesis, one of them was Super Thunder Blade, a sequel to their visually distinctive super scalar helicopter shooting game.
Gameplay
Super Thunder Blade is played in two different perspectives, the first being from behind the helicopter as you fly through the level, attacking different enemies on the ground and in the air with your machine gun and rockets. Many foes include other helicopters, jets, and tanks, among others. While blowing them away, you also have to avoid their bullets, missiles, and environmental hazards. The latter of which include high-rise buildings and trees in the first stage.
The last part of the stage has the view change to over your chopper as you attack a huge boss that is larger than the screen itself. For the first level, it is an aircraft carrier with guns on both sides as you fly over the water. Disappointingly, this is where the gameplay flaws really begin to show themselves. You may want to move your helicopter up and down the screen like a traditional shooter, but you can’t! Basically, your “advanced” attack helicopter can only stay on the very bottom of the screen all the time as you slowly and timidly fly up to the boss. When you finally get there, just from one side of the screen to the other to avoid the attacks. While doing so, the enemy’s shots have like 4 frames of animation, which looks really poor. Eventually, you’ll reach the end of the boss, and once you do that, it explodes in bunch of rows of repeating small explosion sprites that are repeated to cover the body of the boss. It’s really not impressive!
Perhaps the worst thing about the whole experience is the sheer monotony of it all. When flying through the first level, you see the same enemies repeatedly throughout. Along with their missile animations, your machine guns’ bullets and rockets, and the buildings on the side. Everything in the first stage just comes up over and over again. Eventually you face a sub-boss that tries to take you out. It’s a little interesting, but the strategy to beat all the mid-bosses is to just circle the screen, keep firing your guns and rockets, and wait for it to explode. There’s no limit on your ammo, fuel, or time.
The only thing that I feel is interesting gameplay wise is your hover ability. It allows you to move around the screen without advancing further down the stage. It’s basically brakes for your helicopter, and particularly useful when you are about to crash into an object (especially important on stage two). The same button can be used to go backward when fighting an end level boss.
Graphics
Like Altered Beast, the game may be somewhat impressive at first glance. The number of enemies on the screen are a lot more numerous than 8-bit titles of the previous generation. In the first level alone, you could have six or more helicopters on screen at once, along with multiple tanks, and some buildings. All at the same time. It was pretty neat to see back in the day! Sadly, the one thing that has not aged well is the incredible choppiness of the sprite scaling. It’s no where near as smooth as the arcade predecessor! This is due to the SEGA Genesis not having hardware scaling. Even though Super Thunder Blade has an appearance of sprites looking similar to the arcade game, the choppiness of the scrolling and scaling is much worse. It’s such a shame, too! The animations that play before each level show off a well-designed sprite for your attack chopper, but the game falls apart once it starts moving!
Frustration From Stage 2
Now honestly, in the gameplay section above, I’d understand if some readers would think I never had fun with this game. That is not true. I had some enjoyment with the first and third levels of Super Thunder Blade, but the even numbered levels are just frustrating as all get out! There are only four stages in the game, but half of them make me consider rage quitting! I personally think that most people will stop at the second stage. It’s because you have to fly through openings in cliff walls as you go into and out of caverns over half a dozen times in the level. These are super frustrating, and the only way I could figure them out was to use the aforementioned hover command to keep myself from crashing into them over half the time. You may also be able to figure out the 25% of the screen that is safe to fly through, but that takes some significant practice to do regularly. It is exciting when you can make it through the opening a few times in a row. Yet, if you can make your way into the cavern without dying, you then have to take on more tanks and helicopters in a place with tons of stalactites everywhere! They reach from the top to the bottom of the screen, and the only way I could avoid them was to fly on the far side of the area, and only go straight up and down to avoid the enemies’ attacks. I only moved to the left or right when I needed to escape from the cavern yet again.
After playing through these sections repeatedly, for like an hour, I was emotionally done with the game’s trash, and resorted to save scumming to beat the level (and for stage 4). I’m not ashamed about this. If a game doesn’t respect my time, I don’t respect it. Plus, stage two took whatever fun I was having with the game and fired about a dozen missiles at it! This was the point where I decided that Super Thunder Blade game was going to get a negative review. Although, my favorite level in the game is the third, with the first being the second best. I pretty much despise stages two and four.
Music and Sound Effects
Anyway, even though I don’t like this game anymore (I did as a kid), the music is all right at times. I really enjoy the menu music when you are putting in your name on the high-score table. Like the gameplay, the sound effects are really repetitive, with your gun and missile sounds firing off about every three seconds. Those get old eventually. As do the sounds of enemy attacks and you crashing to the ground for the umpteenth time.
Conclusion
I wanted to like this game, but it was too frustrating and cheap for me to enjoy much from it. Using the hover effectively is the best thing about the game; it is extremely satisfying to pull off well! Yet, I don’t think it is worth the time investment to get super proficient at this game when other super scaler titles come out later that are better than this one.
If you’re going to play this, I recommend going to the options menu and change your number of lives from 3 to 7. That will make stage 2 more bearable. You’ll be able to practice avoiding the cavern walls more efficiently. Oh, and like the menu music, I also really like the font in this game. Specifically in the menu screen. I think it looks cool. It makes me want to play the game (for like 2 seconds). But once I put this review up, I don’t think I will bother. It’ll be great to move on to something else!
Feel free to play this if you have nostalgia for it, like the music, or the menu fonts. Otherwise, my recommendation is to just play something else.
Review Overview
Summary: A sequel to a cool super scaler arcade game, but this one is extremely choppy, repetitively, and frustrating to play. I didn’t think stage two was bad as a kid, but now I can’t stand it. Nice music and menu fonts, though!
Title: Super Thunder Blade
Genre: Rail Shooter
Year Released: 1989
Developer: SEGA
Played On: Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection on Xbox 360 through Xenia.
Price Paid: $0.14, or $6.84 for the collection.
Remember, we can have different opinions about the games we play. If you like something more (or less) than I do, both of our perspectives are valid.
Cheap Retro Gaming 
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