Darius II: The sequel! MAT YEO dons his cringing cap (so what else is new?) and prepares for a bloodbath!

I wasn’t exactly waiting with baited breath for Sagaia to arrive on my desk. I must have been a nasty piece of work in a former life to deserve this!

Here’s the lowdown: distant race has been decimated by an alien attack and it’s up to our two heroes to give the beggars a stiff talking to!

Take control of a Silverhawk attack craft and travel across the galaxy to your home planet, getting shot of any nasties along the way. A Starmap shows the way and you can choose between two pilots. Each has different weapons so decide who’s best equipped for the job.

Stupid but speedy

Fly over the usual mean-looking terrain, blasting away at anything that moves. Pick up extra weapons, shields and avoid getting your tail burned. The aliens come thick and fast and it’s nearly impossible not to lose a life on even the simplest levels. If you make it to the end of a stage in one piece, there’s the usual big creep to dispose of.

Each has to be killed in a certain way and some are easier than others. Blow up the floating energy core and watch those suckers squirm!

There goes my ear wax!

Forget collision detection. If your ship comes within a mile of another ship, it’s had it. You sometimes blow up even without the ‘aid’ of enemies!

Main gripes aside, Sagaia hasn’t got much in the way of entertainment. The sprites are basic, to say the least, and movement’s very jerky. The sound’s dire and will have you cultivating that ear wax!

Sagaia is unoriginal, far too challenging and guaranteed to send you to sleep smartish!

We’ve seen it all before — the extra weapons, end-of-level guardians, high bodycount. Forget this sci-fi saddo, put your feet up and get the kettle on. It’ll be a lot more fun, believe me!

MAT

Well, what can you say? Seen it, done it and been there before. This really does sum up Sagaia. Graphically it’s good. Animation suffers from a little flicker from time to time but the ship moves well and the baddies are clearly defined. But — and it’s a big but — Sagaia is SOOOO bland. There are no inspiring power-ups, and while the end-of-level fiends are big and impressive, their range of movement is very limited. Die-hard shootie fans will find this unexciting and quite easy. Stay away if you know what’s good for you (and your machine).

PAUL

Producer
Taito
GG
N/A
MD
N/A
Memory
256K
Players
1
Price
£32.99

SF Rating

Presentation
56% - Option screens, continues
Visuals
50% - Good end-of-level baddies
Sonics
44% - Dismal tunes, dull effects
Playability
41% - Jerky movement, crowded screens
Lastability
59% - Not enough variation, tough levels

51%

A basic, repetitive shoot-‘em-up. An uninspiring challenge.

Rating
51
Reviewer
Sega Force magazine
Region
UK
Scans
Sega Force - Issue 07

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