Metascore
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No score yet - based on 2 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 2
  2. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. Feb 15, 2020
    80
    Super Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo contains an impressive variety of modes and each one poses an enjoyable level of challenge.
  2. Feb 13, 2020
    60
    Super Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo on Xbox One does a lot of things well, especially given the price point, but ultimately those great things are sullied by strange design choices and weak design.
User Score
8.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 21 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 21
  3. Negative: 1 out of 21
  1. Feb 12, 2020
    8
    Super Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo is a 2D Single Screen Shmup by Bare Knuckle Development. The Earth is a polluted Wasteland and MankindSuper Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo is a 2D Single Screen Shmup by Bare Knuckle Development. The Earth is a polluted Wasteland and Mankind has looked at the stars for a new home. One of the massive drones known as a mother, has found an inhabitable planet and has come under attack from its inhabitants. Armed with remote drones called Space Blasters, this is where you come in. You are tasked with remotely controlling one of these drones, to protect the Mother. This sounds like a challenge! And it is. Super Mega Frustration Blaster Special Turbo Rage is what the title should be. Off the break, the controls are unintuitive. It doesn't feel like a conventional controller was in mind when the button layout was designed. Once you get used to the crazy button layout you're ready for battle. You're tasked with destroying everything on screen to prevent damage to the Mother. Debris has drifts randomly, and most of the time towards the edge of the screen, where your penalized for letting things "escape". The Edge of the screen is deadly to your ship. Some shops have a turret and you can turn it with the right thumbstick... but this just seems to further the inability to get the bullets where you want them fast enough. Your ammo is limited, but everything you destroy drops a bullet, sometimes more. The art definitely feels hand drawn, and the music satisfies for the retro stylings within. Super Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo at times in certain modes can be frustrating. Fanatic Shmup players may fond this title to their liking, but being a casual shmup player I found all the game modes to be difficult but retro hand drawn art is inspiring in its own retro way, so if you're looking for a real challenge with a magnificent retro feel and difficulty curve For the price, it’s a no-brainer if you’re up for a classic shooter in the modern mould of an Asteroids styled game. There aren’t any gimmicks here, just quality gameplay mechanics that will have you coming back for repeat plays on your Xbox One for about the cost of a small lunch. Do yourself a favor and head on over to the Xbox store and add it to your library. Full Review »
  2. Feb 12, 2020
    9
    Super Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo is one of the best retro shmups I've played and at under 5 bucks you're going to be hard pressed toSuper Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo is one of the best retro shmups I've played and at under 5 bucks you're going to be hard pressed to find a better arena shooter. There are 5 modes each with their own mechanics. My favorite was Save the Colony, a mode in which you have to rescue astronauts and fight of the alien space scum. This miode is a little easier than the others as you don't die on contact with the edge of the screen. Another mode is survival mode where you must make sure you don't run out of ammo and fuel while fight your way to the boss. This mode is challenging but a lot of fun too. The other mode is a mode where you must protect your mother-ship. You get rewarded for combos and again it's quite hard because of the insta-death screen edges. All these modes can be played in 2-player local coop which is loads of fun. There are 2 more local multiplayer modes which are fun but feel a little tagged on.

    In all the modes there are loads of power-up weapons to collect each of which can be upgraded in the shop. My favourites are the laser which is like a light-saber and the homing missiles. There are loads of ships to choose from once unlocked each with different handling and stats. There is a warp-engine that can be unlocked in the shop for 50 credits which removes the screen-edge walls of death and makes the game a lot easier. Ships and upgrades are unlocked via credit which you collect from destroyed enemies and from completing challenges. These challeges add real longevity to the game and give you a sense of purpose. Challenges like surviving for 3 minutes without shooting or destroying 100 nemies while stationary are really fun to complete.

    The soundtrack by Electric Fan Death is awesome, the style reminds me of Depeche Mode and goes way beyond the usual chip-tunes heard in many smallish shmup. The hand-drawn graphics do the trick and have a hidden layer of detail that can be hard to see at first. This game is difficult like retro games were, but if you put in a little time you will find an amzing game that is a lot of fun and provides hours of entertainment.

    Summary: Great retro space shooter. Lots of fun modes and coop fun with a friend. Like the variety of ships and weapons. Really challenging gameplay but so much fun, you just have to put in the time initially to learn how to play. Cool retro soundtrack too. (PS4 & Xbox One versions played)
    Full Review »
  3. Feb 17, 2020
    10
    "Super Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo Review"
    By Johnny Mero
    Developed by Bare Knuckle Entertainment Available on Xbox One, PlayStation
    "Super Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo Review"
    By Johnny Mero
    Developed by Bare Knuckle Entertainment
    Available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Steam
    Release Date: 2/12/2020
    Price 4.99

    With a name like Super Mega Space Blaster Special Turbo, I really wanted to use this opportunity to advert this game as heavy metal as possible but I suck at editing and I don’t have a metal voice so you’ll have to selling for my usual fun normal voice. SMSBST is a modern take on the retro arcade shooter that used to litter arcades many years ago with that same addicting fast paced gameplay that many of you all know and love. It’s got enough story like the older titles so you have an excuse to be in space and shoot a bunch of Alien Ships and Meteors. What’s really important about this game is the gameplay. The game itself contains 5 different game modes with 2 Turbo Edition modes. I was only able to play 3 of them due to being only one person sadly. There is your standard survival mode in which you must survive as long as you can, gathering power to keep your ship working without stopping, Protect Mother in which you must protect the mothership as long as possible without you or the mothership dying, save the colony in which you must collect survivors of a destroyed ship to a warp engine, One Shot which is a 2 player dog fight starting with one shot each, and To The Death which is a competitive take of Save the Mothership. The controls feel quite well while you play these modes as well which means you can’t blame the game if you suck. There had been multiple times I had gotten myself killed because I accidentally turned into a meteor fragment or into the barrier itself as tend to lose exact track of where I am and go by approximates. This is why I tend to suck a lot bullet hell shmups like this. But there are ways to help better yourself through getting more ships that each have their own attributes and extra functions. For instance the ships: Lunavi and Cherub, have rotating turrets so you can turn this game into a twin stick shooter. Otherwise, it plays more like you’re dogfighting in space. The only thing that bugs me about the rotating turret is you still have to maneuver the same as before and there are no ships that truly make it feel like a twin stick shooter like geometry wars for example but more like a hybrid of the two. Achievement wise, this may take you a bit but you can easily get lost in the game if you let yourself. It’s definitely one of those games you can play passively if you wanted to. I couldn’t say How long it would take for you to get 100% though.

    Pros:
    fine tuned controls
    good music and sound effects
    fun gameplay that isn’t annoyingly repetitive

    Cons:
    the twin stick shooting doesn’t feel Like true twin stick shooting but this is more a minor issue.

    Overall, this game is perfect example of bringing an old formula back into a new audience. It’s very fun and addicting. You all should definitely pick this up if you want to add a quick arcade style title to your collection. This game is a worthy 10/10.
    Full Review »