As the last domestic Saturn game was released this past year, I came to reflect on my experiences with the Sega Saturn. I have enjoyed it immensely the past two years I have had it in my possession. Yet the time came for the system to be put to rest, closing the door on the most dogged and bashed system in recent memory. This is my review of Guardian Heroes.....my all-time favorite Saturn game.

Background:
Ever since I spied this game in GameFan, I knew it would be something special. You see, it just so happens my favorite game for the Genesis was Gunstar Heroes, which just happened to be developed by the same company....the godly, Treasure. Well, suffice to say I wasn’t exactly in the money at the time so I had to wait, and wait, and wait. Finally the day came when I could buy a Saturn, and I left immediately. I remembered finding Guardian Heroes at a local store for about $17 (only 4 months after release, mind you,) so I picked that up first thing, they didn’t even sell Saturns there anymore, so in fact I bought this game before I even had the system! Luckily, I was able to go to a local Sears, where they had the saturns with Sega Rally packed-in, but that racing game wasn’t going to get in the way of experiencing the ultimate Saturn experience; what the machine was originally made for, the ultimate 2D god!

Graphics/Sound:
Some have ridiculed the sometimes overly-pixel graphics when characters are close to the screen, but I feel it gave the game ability to put some major detail in the characters. The game can handle massive amounts of action on the screen, such as a 2 player, both doing spells, and about 6 enemies on the screen, with the slightest amount of slowdown (which helped me get my bearings.) All the characters are very well designed, from the mighty Randy down to a lowly soldier. The last things to be said about the graphics is that if you think the Saturn can’t do transparencies, check out Nicole’s cape....pretty clear if I do say so myself!

Sound in this game also puts out a very majestic feel, from the anime intro.’s soundtrack to the final area’s mass orchestration, the sounds puts you in that medieval mood. Sound effects put those multi-50-hit combos through your whole room....from Lasers to Randy’s Nando speaking his mind to whomever he’s pummeling, the games exudes audio excellence. Although the one notch I can give this otherwise flawless game is one of the final bosses, Super Zur, who let’s out this very annoying laugh the whole 15 minutes you battle him, (but it just makes you kick his butt even harder!)

Replay:
This game screams replay value, just like it’s older brother Gunstar Heroes. There are many branching paths, where you choose where you want to go, altering the story every time. Even 2 years later, I found a level I hadn’t played yet, very cool! The only nick in this department is the text, which can’t be skipped, just fast-forwarded through a certain button combination. No need to mention the 6-Player fighter mode (unbalanced, but a riot!)
- Michael Lynch