This demo version of R-Type has some differences from the full game.

Developed by Irem, the same folks behind the rest of the R-Type games, the R-Type Command demo begins with a pre-rendered cutscene featuring the good ol’ R-9 and HR Giger inspired Bydo, followed by a drop into the main menu to start a new game and christen your commander. From there, the demo limits you to three single player skirmish missons, an adhoc multiplayer mode map, and a fairly extensive help system slash R-type encyclopedia.

Once deployed and into a mission, gameplay is very much your standard tactics genre fare. Move units, attack nearby enemies, watch as opponent does the same, rinse, repeat. There’s a healthy assortment of ships to deploy, and most vessels have a variety of weapons and abilities to choose from. While the full game will allow you to mix up your forces and armament a bit, there’s no customization in the demo; you’re stuck with the units they’ve given you. Fortunately, the full release looks like it will have this in spades: you’ll be able to recruit new pilots, design and outfit ships, and even change the background image on the main menu.

In addition to main guns and missiles, most frontline attack craft are outfitted with a Wave Cannon, a powerful weapon charged over time that when unleashed, inflicts heavy damage to everything in its path (including allies). Like the individually deployable Force spheres, it’s a standard R-Type feature that has translated nicely into the turn-based format.

A minor aside here… I dug the use of Decide and Commence within the menus in place of the more standard Select and Start. It’s like Wells Fargo ATMs asking for your secret code rather than PIN; it just sounds more exciting. I want to think it was a conscious intention as opposed to a wonky byproduct of dictionary-based translation.

The three skirmish maps should give you a well-rounded view of the variety of environments you’ll see in the full game. The first is a simple space location divided into two areas by debris, the second a much more interesting water/air location, including some unique vessels that are limited to one or the other. The final map is an infested satellite base, reminiscent of the interior spaces known to players of the series.

While there isn’t much groundbreaking to be found in R-Type Command, it does do the grid-based tactics genre well. If you’re a fan of the Advance Wars series or Final Fantasy Tactics, I’m fairly confident you’ll enjoy this game as well. If turn-based isn’t your cup of tea, stick with the shmup versions, there’s plenty of em out there. Is it worth the $40? Based solely on the demo, I’d normally wait until it dropped by ten bucks or so, but with the inclusion of the figurine bonus and knowing traditional Atlus print numbers, I’ve put my pre-order in.

Any of you try the demo yet? What’d ya think?