Air Fortress is one of those NES games that starts with a classic "aliens are wrecking everything" setup—except here, the invaders are these massive, floating fortresses that chew through planets like they're snacks. You play as Hal, the last hope of planet Farmel, who gets tossed into these death traps with just a spacesuit and a gun. The first level throws you right into it: you’re dodging weird alien turrets while trying to find the core to blow the place up. The controls take a second to get used to (that floaty jump still trips me up sometimes), but once you get the rhythm, weaving through tight corridors while enemies swarm you feels surprisingly tense.

What I love is how it mixes shoot-'em-up sections with these almost Metroid-like exploration bits inside the fortress. You’re low on energy, scrambling to find the next recharge spot before some floating eyeball zaps you. And the music? Weirdly haunting for an NES game—like someone made synthwave for a deep-space horror flick. It’s not perfect (good luck figuring out some of the later fortress layouts without a guide), but there’s something about the atmosphere that sticks with you. If you’re into retro games that don’t hold your hand, this one’s a hidden gem.