Developer: Jorudan Publisher: Vik Tokai Released: 1992 Genre: Shooter
I’m pretty sure all of us old school gamers have been in this situation before. You go to your local rental store looking for some weekend entertainment. But all of the good games are gone and you’re left with ….questionable options. Imperium was a game that I avoided for a number of reasons. The reviews I read were not exactly favorable. And despite my curiosity I left it on the shelf. Until one final day where I asked myself “is it really that bad?” The answer is no. But it isn’t that good either.
It would be easy to assume at first glance that Imperium is part of the Aleste series. A lot of the mech designs are similar, especially the protagonists. I thought maybe the story and name were changed in localization but that isn’t the case. Although they may look similar in terms of gameplay there is a massive gulf. Imperium is a poor man’s version of M.U.S.H.A and is a pretty average SNES shooter.
Imperium handles its weapons a little differently than most. Aside from the occasional bomb item there are no other power-ups. You have all four weapons available from the start. These include the wave beam, Vulcan shot, reverse star, and laser. You can switch at any time as the situation demands, and it will. You gain experience rather than points which goes toward leveling up your weapons. It is very similar to Radiant Silvergun in that regard although not as deep. Each weapon has three levels and changes pretty dramatically; the Vulcan covers a sizable chunk of the screen and it’s the same with the wave beam. The caveat here is that taking a hit will drop the current weapon down a level.
It’s an interesting system that I both like and dislike. Leveling up like a role playing game is a pretty cool feature. But at the same time I don’t like how easily your weapons downgrade. On the one hand it keeps experience points relevant, especially as they also restore a point of health. But you’ll take hits so frequently that you will never spend that long at full power. And you need that firepower so that boss battles don’t drag on. Despite my misgivings it works, albeit not as well as it should.
The pacing of Imperium is all over the place and inconsistent. The game does its best to be a fast paced action extravaganza and somewhat succeeds. In its best moments it is pretty intense. But it suffers from incredibly bad slowdown, especially when your weapons are at full power. It is embarrassing and on the same level as Super R-Type. Imperium is also a game where the further you progress it becomes less impressive. The game’s final three levels are generic battles and space that lack the punch of the planet side levels. The one area that it doesn’t fail is its mid and end level bosses which are always exciting match ups.
Imperium is a tough one even on the normal setting for a variety of reasons. Even though you have a five hit life bar it drains quickly. Enemy waves are frequent and it isn’t all too uncommon to see the screen filled with bullets. Although you have a life bar the only way to recover health is to level up. If you manage to max out every weapon that is no longer an option. The weapon degradation is a real kick in the nuts during boss battles and makes the already tough fights brutal. You only have a single life and limited continues which gives the game some longevity. Completing the game on the hardest difficulty setting awards the best ending. But I doubt most will either care or have the fortitude to even bother.
Vik Tokai made a number of significant changes to Imperium from its original Japanese release, Kidou Soukou Dion. Most of these changes unfortunately are not for the better. The wave beam replaces the homing laser which is not a fair trade. While the wave beam covers the majority of the screen at full power it also causes significant slowdown at points. Enemy placement and waves have been changed around although it doesn’t make much difference. What does are the graphics; Kidou Soukou Dion has vastly better presentation. Vik Tokai removed many of the game’s scrolling backgrounds which destroys the illusion of depth. Most of the game’s backdrops are flat and lifeless as a result. While all of these changes are notable they aren’t enough that I would suggest tracking down the import version. At best they make an average game slightly better.
In Closing
Imperium is adequate at best. It has decent action and is far from the worst shooter on the system. But there are better games to spend your money on. Leave this one alone and seek your action thrills elsewhere.
