4/5 ★ – RawMetal's review of Steel Gunner.

System: Arcade Started: April 13, 2023 Ended: April 13, 2023 Free Play Arcade Session - April 13, 2023: 6/12 Several years ago, I played this one arcade shooter by Namco called Steel Gunner 2 at the Retro City Festival in Southern California and I was impressed with its early 90’s anime style graphics as a Light Gun Shooter. Sadly, I left that game in my ‘Arcade’ backlog due to the game having a one-shot Ending that if you failed the final objective during Endgame, you will get a Bad End and start the game over from the very beginning. A personal pet peeve of mine for early to mid 90’s Arcade games these days and I’ve encountered a few lately that have that. Present day at Galloping Ghost, they have both Steel Gunner 1 and 2 operable and I have to play both and finish them for the Good Ending as it counts for a Completed game. Since there were not many people this time compared to my time at the Retro City Festival, I can now have my chance to fully play this game without worrying about people wanting to play this game behind my back. Starting with the first game. A brief history of Steel Gunner, Released in 1990 in Japan and a year later overseas, this is Namco’s first Light Gun Arcade game. Set in a Semi-Futuristic Urban City, You play as two buddy cops named Garcia and Cliff and try to stop an organized Terrorist Group by equipping Police Mech Suits and every level, you mow them down with Machine Guns and Grenades. Every stage, you point and shoot and throw a limited amount of Missiles in case enemy cyborgs and mech-users overrun you. There are innocent bystanders running around and obviously try not to shoot them or else you lose health. Since this game is Co-op, it can also be a competitive playthrough as you are graded with accuracy and the final score result has a funny scene between the two characters after rescuing the hostages. Aside from the early 90’s anime artstyle, it reminds me of Appleseed with its setting and humor, especially the Final Act of the game where you fight the Secret Weapon. Steel Gunner has a really awesome soundtrack that matches the early 90’s shoot 'em up carnage. Even the Arcade Cabinet looks pretty cool since the Stationary Light Gun has a special reaction as you pull the trigger. The Barrel of the gun moves at a rapid fire pace as if you are firing your machine gun at the screen. Comparing this and the Sequel, The first Steel Gunner is a solid, linear light gun game and I like this. Unexpectedly short game though since you can beat this between 25-30 minutes and it's just right for a Light Gun Arcade game if it requires money to play it. If you had your fill with House of the Dead and Time Crisis and want to expand on obscure Light Gun Shooters, Steel Gunner is one of them to try out. But be wary of the Finale segment that you are most likely to get the bad ending if your health is very low. I got the Bad Ending once and played through this game again the second time and got the good ending this time. But at least this is easier to get this good ending than the second installment. Find this game at your local arcade or emulate it and try this out.