Air Twister [Review]
Image: Ys Net / ININ
Air Twister, a spiritual successor to Space Harrier, is famed game designer Yu Suzuki’s return to the rail shooter genre. Suzuki worked with Sega from 1983 to 2011, when he left to work at his own studio, Ys Net. At Sega he worked as designer, director, or producer on classics Hang-On, Out Run, Virtua Fighter, Virtua Cop, Daytona USA, Shenmue, and of course, Space Harrier. Air Twister was originally released on Apple Arcade in June, 2022. It’s now available for consoles and PC; I played the PS5 version.
Air Twister’s story is thin. This doesn’t matter at all as it’s not the star of the show; it’s just an excuse to fly through the game’s acid trip levels. You play as Princess Arch, who must protect her homeland, AIR, from the invading Vanguard. Arch flies through the levels in third-person view, with the camera behind her, as wave after wave of robots, space squids, manta rays, bees, and more attacks. She must dodge their shots as well as obstacles, while firing at enemies directly or locking on to shoot guided blasts. During boss battles, she rides an armored swan, flying elephant, flying fish, and more. The whole thing is a fast paced hallucinatory experience.
Image: Ys Net / ININ
There are twelve levels, each with a unique environment and inventive boss fight, including one that’s a Giant Enemy Crab. On the surface, this sounds like a short arcade experience, but the game allows you to use stars you earn to buy health upgrades, cosmetics, new weapons, and new powers that change your gameplay as you try new runs. I quickly became addicted, and before I noticed I had played several hours past when I should have been sleeping. I don’t know if I’ll play enough to earn the “play 100 hours” achievement, but I’ll definitely rack up some playtime.
Aside from the main gameplay mode, there are also multiple challenge modes and minigames to try. I still need to dig deeper and play them all, since many must be unlocked. Even though the highlight is still the main game, I’m looking forward to exploring the extra material.
Last but not least, we have the game’s rock opera style soundtrack, 19 tracks by Valensia. I hadn’t heard Valensia before, so this was a treat. I was sold on the music from the first song on the title screen; it’s incredibly catchy and pumps the game full of an epic energy. The soundtrack—reminiscent of Queen, sometimes with a touch of Of Montreal—is part of what kept me starting new runs “just one more time.”
With Air Twister, Yu Suzuki was brought us a new arcade classic that feels pulled from another era. Now that I’m done writing this review, I can go play it again.
