Game review: Toaplan Arcade Garage: Flying Fire Shark (Nintendo Switch 2)

I've said this many times, but I miss when arcades featured actual video games you could play. Back in my day, arcades were full of shooters, fighting games, tennis games, and more.

Fast forward to today, and arcades are way different now. There are more scam claw machines and other games designed to steal the money of children. Thankfully, consoles exist so we can play arcade games from the past.

One of the games that you can revisit is the old-school '80s shooters from Japanese developer Toaplan. Toaplan released Flying Shark in 1987, and followed this up with a direct sequel called Fire Shark in 1989. Find out what else is included in this collection in our full review.

Games included

Toaplan Arcade Garage: Flying Fire Shark is generous because six games are available to play. The list of games included is below.

• Flying Shark(Worldwide arcade version)
• Sky Shark(US arcade version)
• Hisho Same(JP arcade version)
• Fire Shark(Worldwide arcade version)
• Same! Same! Same! (JP arcade version)
• Same! Same! Same! (JP 2-player arcade version)

That said, Flying Shark, Sky Shark, and Hisho Same are the same games; it's just that there are regional differences. Fire Shark and Same! Same! Same! is the sequel, and they are the same game, too.

As an added bonus, you also get access to a special puzzle game called Teki Paki. Toaplan Arcade Garage: Flying Fire Shark is priced at $48.95 NZD on the New Zealand eShop.

If you buy the DLC for this collection, you get even more games and their console versions. The DLC games are listed below.

• Sky Shark (NES version 1989)
• Same! Same! Same! (JP SEGA Mega Drive version 1990)Fire Shark(SEGA Genesis version 1990)
• Wardner (Worldwide arcade version 1987)
• Wardner no Mori (JP arcade version 1987)
• Pyros (US arcade version 1987)
• Wardner no Mori (FDS version 1988 - JP language only)

Gameplay

Aside from the random puzzle game, the base game includes games where you can control a biplane from the World War II era. Flying Shark is the first game in the collection, and you control a blue biplane.

In Flying Shark, the screen scrolls vertically as you shoot your way through multiple enemy military vehicles. You are only armed with a machine gun and bombs on your plane, and you also have to avoid enemy fire because one hit makes you lose your precious lives.

If you collect an S icon floating around the levels, you increase the firepower of the machine gun. The more S icons you collect, the more powerful your machine guns will be. If you see a B icon, this allows you to collect more bombs.

Surprisingly, Flying Shark does not have any huge bosses, although you do have to take out large ships and enemy airplanes along the way. The game itself is pretty short, though, because there are only five levels, and I managed to finish the game in less than 20 minutes.

Fire Shark is more of the same, but you now control a red biplane, and you get access to more weapons such as a heavy flame spreader and wide-beam lasers. If you play Same! Same! Same!, you also get access to the Japanese 2-player arcade version.

New features

What I like most about Toplan Arcade Garage: Flying Fire Shark is that the screen is divided into three different sections. On the left side of the screen, you can see how many lives you have, the number of bombs you have, your high score, and the difficulty setting.

In the middle is the actual game itself, and the game looks good playing it on a 10-inch Nintendo Switch 2 screen. You can even set the screen on its side to get a better vertical view of the action.

On the right side of the screen, you see a map of your location, and this alerts you to the enemy's direction. It also gives you locations when you see any power-ups that are floating around near you.

If you find the games too hard to play, you can set it to a 'Super Easy Mode'. Not only are the enemies not as relentless, but bombs will automatically detonate if you get hit by a projectile, so it saves you.

The game also has quick saves and quick loads so you don't have to start from the beginning all over again if you manage to lose all your lives. It also has online leaderboards so you can compare your high scores to the rest of the world.

Closing thoughts

Toplan Arcade Garage: Flying Fire Shark includes some great shoot-em-ups, but it's hard to recommend right now thanks to its relatively high price and its inclusion of only two games with minuscule regional differences. If you like old-school arcade games, this might only be worth it if it goes on sale in the near future.