In the lore of classic gaming there are few games that are held in higher fashion than Gunstar Heroes. Some gamers consider Gunstar Heroes to be the best side-scrolling 2D game ever created. The action was relentless and the gameplay was classic side-scrolling madness. With Gunstar Super Heroes gamers are finally treated to a sequel that surprisingly doesn’t disappoint.

The storyline of Gunstar Super Heroes is a direct sequel to the original game. The original Gunstar game revolved around two heroes that stood against the God of Ruin, known as Golden Silver. The God of Ruin was destroyed but during his destruction four new moons were created that soon began orbiting Earth. Several years after the destruction of the God of Ruin the four new moons were colonized. But soon a fifth, mechanical, moon was discovered that was created by a group called the Empire. The Empire’s ulterior motive is the resurrection of the God of Ruin. On Earth the 3YE group has created a new elite force to combat the Empire and the group has been given the codename of Gunstar Super Heroes.

Honestly the story is secondary to the gameplay and thankfully the gameplay is oozing in Gunstar Super Heroes. When you read or hear the term “classic 2D side scrolling” this is the description that fits Gunstar Super Heroes perfectly. The majority of the game has you moving from one side of the stage to another side of the stage while blowing up enemies along the way. But what makes a game fit the “classic 2D side-scrolling” moniker is the action never gets boring. Sometimes you get a side-scrolling game that just falls flat because the action is just too repetitive without any variety to keep you entertained. Gunstar Super Heroes avoids this trap by keeping you, the gamer, on the edge of your controller by keeping you guessing as to what will happen next in the game.

Each stage plays out almost exactly the same in which you move through the levels to ultimately fight a boss. Gunstar Super Heroes throws some surprises at you frequently by changing the core gameplay from just a standard 2D side-scrolling game. One stage has you rescuing baby chickens and another stage has you riding on top of an aircraft while avoiding fire from enemy aircraft. Then another level has you playing as a top-down-view shooter and another level plays out similar to a board game where the dice roll determines which section you will play. Almost every level can play out as a different game and all of these changes help to create a great sense of personality for the game. I caught myself smiling and saying how cool these gameplay changes were during certain parts of the game. You never knew what to expect on the next level but finding out never made the game seem like a chore.

The developers, Treasure, even kept the gun-blasting gameplay interesting by including three different weapons to use during the game. Each weapon has its own strength and weaknesses to exploit during the game. Besides multiple weapons your characters have several different regular attacks you can use during the game. You can perform a jumping uppercut, a jump kick, a slide kick and a side kick. Of course you can just forget about all of the kicks and just blow things up by shooting everything in sight with your guns. It’s your choice but the game is a blast to play either way.

The graphics in the game are tremendous. Just the first boss fight left me in awe wondering just how powerful is the GameBoy Advance? The rest of the graphics in the game offer some amazing effects ranging from 3D zooming and scaling to intense 2D sprite action. The developers, Treasure, have proven to me that the GameBoy Advance has plenty of juice remaining waiting to be discovered. For me the only drawback for the graphics was the repetition in the character models for the enemies. You will see the same looking enemies coming after you repeatedly.   

Probably the only downside to the game is the length of the gameplay. You will probably blow through most of the levels very quickly and have the game completed within a day or two (if not sooner). But one could argue that for this type of game it’s necessary to keep the game short. Most portable games have to be flexible enough to allow short “bursts” of gameplay that might last just a few minutes. I’m all for having a 2D side-scrolling game that has a level that lasts for 10 to 15 minutes but sometimes we only have a few minutes of time when playing a portable system. The levels are short in Gunstar Super Heroes but all of the levels are packed with some of the best action available for the GameBoy Advance.

Gunstar Super Heroes is as a great game that shouldn’t be overlooked for GameBoy Advance owners. The great graphics and excellent gameplay will be enough to warm your heart for many a night. But the short levels will probably have you playing the game more than once. The game does offer the choice of playing as two different characters but the game doesn’t change depending on the character (red or blue). Regardless of the length Gunstar Super Heroes proves that the GameBoy Advance is still a viable platform that is capable of producing top tier software. Thanks to Sega, Treasure and all of the Gunstar Hero fans around the world for keeping the dream alive. Now some of you can finally sleep at night knowing that a true sequel was developed and released for the classic Gunstar Hero game. Sleep tight because Gunstar Super Heroes will not disappoint and will require your full attention when you awake.

Gameplay: 9.0
This is a great side scrolling action game that will not disappoint fans of the first game. For gamers looking for some variety in their side scrolling games shouldn’t overlook all of the variety found in Gunstar Super Heroes. Almost every stage plays out like a new game.

Graphics: 9.1
Once again the GameBoy Advance is proving itself to be one of the kings of 2D gaming and Gunstar Super Heroes is leading the way. Sometimes the screen is filled with tons of explosions and large characters but I never noticed any slowdown in the game.

Sound: 9.0
All of the sound effects in the game sounded great with some excellent effects for the different weapons and explosions. The game includes some great voice samples for the different boss characters you encounter during the game.

Difficulty: Easy/Medium
I mentioned that the game is short but that still doesn’t mean that there isn’t a challenge. The game offers three levels of difficulty; easy, normal and hard. In typical Treasure fashion don’t expect a walk through the park as you bump up the difficulty.

Concept: 8.7
Sometimes we get caught off guard by certain games. I was hoping that Gunstar Super Heroes was going to be this good but after the last sequel I played developed by Treasure (Guardian Heroes Advance) I wasn’t expecting too much. Thankfully my expectations were exceeded because of the amount of variety with the gameplay in the game. Almost every stage offers something new and unique not found in the previous stage. However Gunstar Super Heroes is still a 2D game that will still have the 2D stigma attached too it that is unfairly not accepted by some gamers.  Remember gang there is no school like the old school.

Overall: 9.0
Once again Gunstar Super Heroes is a great game for the GameBoy Advance. Fans of the original game will not be disappointed with this game. Gamers looking for something to insert into their GBA slot on their Nintendo DS or something to play with their shiny new GameBoy Micro, Gunstar Super Heroes is a great game to try. The great gameplay and the amount of variety of the gameplay are sure to please almost everyone.  The graphics will probably have a few of you dumbfounded wondering just how powerful GameBoy Advance really is. But regardless of the tricks or special features used in creating the game, you the gamer, are the ones rewarded with this great game.

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