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R-Type Final ps2 Game Reviews
R-Type Final
Critic Score
Metascore: 79 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
9.5 out of 10
based on 50 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 12 votes
Read user comments
Rate this game

It all began in 1987 with a revolutionary arcade shooter called R-Type. Now the classic shooter is back for a final appearance with new features and the same exciting, revolutionary gameplay that started it all. Use the unique Force System to power-up your ship as you choose and send it into battle against the evil Bydo. With over 100 ships to choose from and an almost unlimited amount of customization options, R-Type Final is the definitive shooter on the PlayStation2. [Eidos Interactive]

PUBLISHER: Eidos Interactive
DEVELOPER: Irem
GENRE(S): Action, Shooter
PLAYERS: 1
ESRB RATING: E (Everyone)
RELEASE DATE: February 3, 2004

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

95
GameReviewer
Its flawless execution combined with the sheer amount of unlockable features and variety of gameplay makes this the pinnacle of the shooter genre today. A first class game and the perfect swan song for this much loved series.
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90
GamingTrend
With a whopping 101 ships (most performing vastly different from one another), 7 stages (most with drastically different versions of the same stage), 5 difficulty levels, and a myriad of secondary options, you’ll invest a ton of time in this title if you want to see it all.
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90
eToychest
For a shooter, the visuals in R-Type Final are nothing short of stunning. The environments are crisp, colorful, and many varied.
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90
GMR Magazine
Intensely beautiful, highly playable, and downright inspired, R-Type Final is a somber but fitting end to a legendary series. A stellar combination of style, substance, and class.
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90
netjak
While most shooters nowadays have you dodging through a hailstorm of bullets, the enemies in R-Type make you think a bit more. There a definitive patterns and ways to dispatch every creature in the game, learn them, and you don't find yourself in tight situations.
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89
TotalGames.net
Beautiful lighting effects, crisp beam weaponry and crystal clear ordinance illuminate your way through to the heart of the Bydo Empire while Delta’s intense soundtrack has been replaced with a calmer and more mature score that settles well with both the game’s landscapes, and its pedigree.
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89
Game Chronicles
The ultimate tribute to nearly 20 years of platform shooters. The action if fierce, the graphics dazzling, and the difficulty is guaranteed to challenge even the most skilled veterans.
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85
TotalPlayStation
Irem has, possibly more than any game they've made in recent memory, crafted a shooter that is at once faithful to the challenge of the original shooters that came before it, and utterly accessible to anyone experiencing it for the first time, and they've thrown in a remarkable amount of depth and just plain fun to keep both sides equally true to the source material. R-Type Final is a blast, plain and simple.
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85
Deeko
Completes the R-Type legacy and does so with an incredible mixture of graphics, sound and gameplay… and if that’s not enough, how does unlocking over 100 different playable ships grab you?
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85
PGNx Media
If you don’t particularly care for the series, R-Type Final is still a solid shooter. The only problem is the slowdown, and well, shooters seem to have that quite frequently.
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85
Armchair Empire
Despite R-Type Final’s high level of difficulty’s ability to bring out the masochist in all of us, this title is a wonderful close to an amazing series.
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85
Next Level Gaming
My only gripe is a lack of multiplayer mode. It's fun, but not as fun as you and a friend taking the Bydo head on. Still, Fresh Games, Eidos, and Irem get kudos for giving us one more memory of R-Type, and the excellence it maintained all this time.
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84
Game Over Online
A shooting game for absolute perfectionists. R-Type Final is all about getting things right the first time, because you probably won't get a second chance. I'm honestly surprised the game even offers extra lives.
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82
Loaded Inc
Frustratingly hard at times, and very unforgiving. If you aren’t the type of person who can resist the urge to break your PS2 controller if you have to play the same 20 minutes of a level over and over because the boss kills you right before he’s about to die, you may want to stay clear of this one.
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82
Inside Gamer Online
Swamp filled jungles and ruined cities have never looked so good in a space shooter.
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82
Electronic Gaming Monthly
Underwater flying, several sweet detachable gun bits, a traditional stage-long battleship enounter...Final is an R-Type fanatic's dream and the best thing to happen to side-scrolling shooters since "G-Darius" (PS1) [March 2004, p.119]
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81
IGN
From the game's alternate paths and armada of ships, to its in-depth information gallery and bizarre CPU vs. mode., shooting fans have just about everything they're looking for.
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81
Siliconera
Fans of old school shooters should rejoice... However, it doesn't have as much shelf life as many other games unless you're up for the challenge of unlocking all the ships. [JPN Import]
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81
GameSpot
But if R-Type must end, at least it's going out on a high note--rest assured that Final lives up to the classic R-Type name in every way.
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81
GameZone
It is a great diversionary title, rife with action and some minor strategic game play. If you want to relive the days of yore, when you gathered around the huge arcade machines and frantically pounded fire buttons and slammed the joystick around like a jackhammer, then this game is perfect.
Read Full Review
80
Official U.S. Playstation Magazine
Its combination of great level design and gameplay mechanics challenges your reflexes as well as your mind.
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80
Cheat Code Central
It's a sharp looking game loaded with action from the get-go. The range of difficulty settings ensures that hardcore gamers will get the workout that they crave while remaining totally accessible to all but the most feeble of players.
80
PSX Nation
While R-Type Final is the hardest of the hardcore shooters, most gamers may find it too hardcore. However, for the series' already steady fanbase, Final provides a solid, exciting, and most of all... fun, experience that's well worth the $29.99 price tag.
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80
GamePro
Final is a difficult game, even with its multiple skill settings, and it relies on a gamer’s patience for trial-and-error and memorization as it does deft skill and trigger-finger firing.
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80
G4 TV
So many excellent ideas are incorporated into this last outing, you'll be feeling the title's influence on similar products years hence.
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80
GameSpot AU
It's not for everybody -- the difficulty level will see most off, and the lack of third dimensional movement will probably remove a fair chunk of the rest of its prospective audience -- but if you like your shooting action hard, heavy and repetitive, then you really need to add R-Type Final to your collection.
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80
Gamestyle
The definitive version of an all-time classic. There is nothing else that could have been added to make this title feel any more complete or (pardon the pun) ‘Final’.
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80
Village Voice
There are only six levels—some in space, others that involve going underwater—but many difficult-to-find paths through each. Up the difficulty setting and you'll be glad you don't have to drop in a quarter for every life. Then again, what'll that buy you these days?
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80
Stuff
The only problem is that unlocking each of the available spacecrafts is sort of like ripping off your big toenails with a pair of pliers. Well within the realm of possibility, but in the end, it just doesn’t make much sense.
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80
Thunderbolt
I will easily endure the boring bits in a quest to unlock my now third favourite ship, from R-Type Leo. I will continue to work at Final's most elusive ending and its more elusive unlockable campaign 'awards'. Indeed, after ten hours of play, there's still plenty of game left.
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80
GamingWorld X
We get a game that pays tribute to its legacy by going out with a bang. It does so not by trying to add too much or expand too deeply, but by mastering the style it has become known for.
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80
Edge Magazine
To those who treat mould-breaking games as life's milestones; those who can still smell the silver coins on their fingers ... this is dangerously close to the best in the genre. [Oct 2003, p.94]
80
Worth Playing
A fun, good-looking game that challenges all comers, and still isn't as sickeningly masochistic as, say, "Contra: Shattered Soldier."
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80
Yahoo! Games
Anyone who's ever sunk more pocketfuls of coins into an arcade machine than they'd care to admit will be incapable of resisting the game's charms.
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78
GameShark
Delivers a great graphical and audio punch as well as retaining good gameplay. While new players may feel a little lost, those who have followed the series will likely enjoy the level of customization and the great environments.
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78
GameBiz
Its addictive gameplay and good visuals pay tribute to its predecessors by holding onto the values of its old creation. R-Type Final really allows the R-Type series to go out on a big high.
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76
Gamer's Pulse
Best suited for experienced players searching for a serious challenge, R-Type Final is a beautiful game meant only for the hardcore.
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75
Game Revolution
The simplistic nature of the game doesn't leave a ton of staying power, but with an MSRP of $29.99, it's a great way to go out.
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75
Gaming Age
A glorious sendoff for the venerable series, and an absolute must-own for any serious fan. While it ultimately fails to match up the strongest entries in the series – the original "R-Type" and the fantastic "R-Type Delta" – in terms of stage design and challenge, it compensates with the vast wealth of playable craft and subtle nods to its own spectacular lineage. [Import]
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75
Play Magazine
The background periodically moves out of synch with the action (like a movie playing behind the left-to-right flow) and the music could be a bit more charged, but otherwise I cherished every moment returning to a genre embedded in my DNA. [Feb 2004, p.46]
75
GameSpy
While the large ship selection is a fun idea, it's no substitute for the essential elements of good level design, consistent game speed, gameplay originality and a smokin' soundtrack.
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70
GamerArchive
The combination of quality visuals, excellent game play, and the mass of unlock able content makes R-Type Final a truly pleasurable experience.
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70
Boomtown
Far from disappointing, it’s just not the best in its series and not the innovation that some people might have hoped for.
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70
PSM Magazine
A solid, if somewhat slow-paced, shooter that offers up loads of ship variety and a good amount of challenge. [Mar 2004, p.37]
70
NTSC-uk
There will undoubtedly be those who, having cut their teeth on onslaughts such as "GigaWing" and "Mars Matrix," will feel somewhat let down by the sparse, reheated level design on offer here. For those with a passion for the series, however, there is a huge amount to enjoy. [Japan Import]
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70
GameCritics
Sure, the slowdown is an unfortunate negative, but the rest of the game is overwhelmingly solid. R-Type Final might not bring any new tricks to the table, but it certainly takes what it does best and enhances it ever-so-slightly for a new generation of gamers.
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70
Total Video Games
This 2D shooter in a 3D environment may look slightly frayed around the edges and dated in many respects but with so few proper video shooters that go back to the real roots of arcade blasting this is a nice short fix.
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70
GamerFeed
This PS2 monster is insanely difficult and action-packed, full of bizarre monsters, both robotic and organic and you have a plethora of weapons to destroy them with.
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68
Game Informer
On the easier levels, I usually just died of boredom, on the harder difficulties I swore in anger at the title's merciless assault. [Mar 2004, p.107]
Read Full Review
60
Gamenikki
Perhaps worth a rental to R-Type junkies and those who love a solid 2D shooter, but nothing is really new here... and maybe that's the point.
Read Full Review

What Our Users Said

Vote Now! The average user rating for this game is 9.5 (out of 10) based on 12 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Fighter17 L gave it an8:
Over 100 ships to unlock, Very high replay value!! The only major problem with this game was the slowdowns, my god. Anyway, if you are a R-Type fan, BUT IT NOW!

Mr T. gave it an 8:
A beautiful looking, almost laid back shootemup (compared to others) with lots of play time. I have not played a game like this for years - i enjoyed it so much that i went and got Ikaruga for my GC (after numerous recomendations) and have a copy of Gradius V on order. Old school game play values still thrive! If you liked the old R-types, you will love this.

Dean S. gave it a 9:
A perfect marriage of 2D gameplay with stunning 3D graphics and particle effects. It recaptures the somewhat lost art of thrilling arcade gameplay on the modern console. Must own.

Srinu V. gave it a 10:
To those who treat mould-breaking games as life's milestones; those who can still smell the silver coins on their fingers ... this is dangerously close to the best in the genre.

Rocker N. gave it a 9:
i dont care if this game dont bring nothing new , i will play it until i drop dead! enjoy !

Susana Serra M. gave it a 10:
It enchants...best game to me, very entertained.

Luigui the third gave it a 10:
1 of the best shoot-'em up games.

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