Sonic Wings 2

In 1992 developer Video Systems released the first game in the Sonic Wings series in arcades, known as Aero Fighters in Western territories. Developed on bespoke hardware at the time (using the popular Motorolla 68000 processor), Sonic Wings saw enough success to warrant a sequel. Rather than using their prior hardware configuration, Video Systems chose the Neo-Geo as the platform of choice for their next two games in the series. While uncommon in today's market on both the AES and MVS platforms, Sonic Wings 2 is one of the best classic vertical shooters on the Neo-Geo and is lauded by many fans to be the best of the five vertical shooters available on the platform. 

While sales data and other metrics for this game is sparse, one can assume it sold relatively well considering Video Systems went on to produce three more sequels: Sonic Wings 3 on the Neo-Geo, Sonic Wings Special on Sega Saturn and Sony Playstation, and Sonic Wings Assault on the Nintendo 64. Ardent SHUMP fans may recognize hints of gameplay from Psikyo, another popular arcade developer from the 90's, as they were an offshoot of the team that developed the original Sonic Wings. 

When you boot up the game you can choose from eight different pilots who's planes all have their own unique speed, shot spread, and bombs. Part of the strategy of the game is figuring out which plane works best with your play style, and also how hard you want the game to be outside of the (almost pointless) difficulty setting. Some characters are fast but have low power, which can be great for maneuvering through the almost bullet-hell like boss encounters. On the other side you have high power characters with lower speed making the levels a bit easier as you can destroy large enemy crafts quickly before they become a problem amidst the swarms of smaller craft. Unlike many other shooters with multiple characters, you are stuck with the character you chose at the beginning of the game when you continue rather than being able to select a different plane.

The 10 stages are extremely short and can be beat in as little as 5 minutes each, with the boss encounters taking up the majority of your playtime. Every few levels there are bonus areas that give you a bit of a breather, but you can still die in these stages, so be careful! The stages vary in variety with locals from all over the world. At the outset, all characters begin their journey in Japan, but the order of the next four stages will be dictated by your score. The third stage is always the first bonus area regardless of your score. Beginning with stage 6, the rest of the levels play out in the same order.

While this is a difficult game by today's standards, it is not insurmountable and you will see yourself getting better and better each time you play. Much like Capcom's Ghosts and Goblins series, though, once you think you have the game mastered and you run the last boss into the ground, the game makes you play through the entire game again in order to get the true ending. While this doesn't sound too bad, the difficulty is cranked to 11 and even some new bosses show up that are much harder than what came before. It's not impossible to 1cc the game, but it will test your metal like few other games in the genre due to the two gameplay loops you must complete in order to get the true ending. 

The moment to moment gameplay is standard fair if you've played other Video Systems or Psikyo games. Your plane can power up through collecting P icons that float around the screen. All characters can enhance their guns up to three times, but the third power-up only lasts for about 30 seconds as it kind of acts like a berserker mode. You can also collect B icons to increase your bomb stocks. All character's bombs produce different effects that range from screen clearing explosions, to being able to stop time for a few seconds. There are also score icons you can collect after defeating certain enemies or when certain pieces of the background are destroyed. 

Sonic Wings 2 is a beautiful work of pixel art, no denying that. The levels are intricately detailed and a lot of care was put into making sure you recognize various real world landmarks as you travel to each country. In New York, for example, you'll see the Statue of Liberty, the Met Life (Pan Am) building, and even Coney Island. The stages are vibrant and full of details and destructible pieces that help to solidify the fact that the city you are in has turned into a war zone. There are too many unique flourishes to mention here, but each stage is jam packed with goodies to uncover, so shoot everything in sight!

The music is great, fits the game well, and is quite catchy in the moment. It won't get stuck in your head like a King of Fighters soundtrack, but it gets the job done and puts to the Neo-Geo's Yamaha 2610 to good use. That said, the music in each stage is only as long as what it should take you to get to the boss, so if you pause the game in the middle of the stage the main melody will complete and the final few bars of the music track will loop (rather than the entire track) until you get to the boss. It's kind of weird. Sound effects are great, though, and the explosion effects really "boom" if you have a good enough sound system. 

Sonic Wings 2 isn't going to win many awards for originality, but it is a solid, tightly designed, and supremely satisfying shooter made by masters of their craft. Many fans like this game over its sequel, but I think they are pretty much on par. What isn't on par is the price. While both games are prohibitively expensive on the AES for most collectors, Sonic Wings 2 (the Japanese version) typically sells for $800 or more, while the US/Euro release sells for $3000 or more! 

As usual, the MVS and Neo CD editions are much cheaper but still command a higher price than other releases of the day. Sonic Wings 2 was never ported to another console during the 90's, and has had very few ways to play it at home if you didn't own an SNK console over the last 25 years or so. Thankfully, Hamster has released it as part of their Arcade Archives series so you can get it on modern platforms for $8. Video Systems did release a game called Sonic Wings Special in 1996 for the Sega Saturn and Sony Playstation that takes elements, stages, and characters from the first three games to create a remixed edition of the entire series. Special can also be picked up as a PS1 Classic on the PS3 (in both the US and Japan even though it never got a US release in the 90's). Sonic Wings Special was eventually ported to the arcade in the form of Sonic Wings Limited that includes a few additional changes from the home versions. 

Should you buy it? Well, that depends on your love of vertical shooters. If you want a solid vertical shooter on the Neo, you can't do much better than this. That said, it is quite expensive and I think there are other games more worth the price of admission on AES if you don't already have an established collection. Basically, if you are just getting into AES collecting, there are other games you should go after well before this - unless SHUMPS are your favorite genre then this should be one of the first games on your list. If on Neo CD or MVS, Sonic Wings 2 is a no brainer. Regardless, this is a stellar game that will give you a tough, but fair challenge.