R-Type III on the GBA is one of those shooters that makes you realize how brutal old-school arcade games could be. You start off with this tiny ship that feels way too fragile for the chaos ahead—alien swarms, screen-filling bosses, and those damn homing bullets that always seem to find you. But then you grab the Force pod, this little drone that orbits your ship and can block shots or turn into a battering ram, and suddenly you feel unstoppable… until the next stage humbles you again.

The pixel art holds up surprisingly well—those chunky GBA sprites give the alien bio-mechs this gross, fleshy detail, and the soundtrack’s all crunchy synth beats that somehow make dying 20 times in a row less painful. Pro tip: The wave cannon’s charge shot is your best friend when you’re pinned in a corner. Just don’t expect the game to go easy on you.