Star Soldier: Vanishing Earth is one of those rare N64 shooters that actually feels like an arcade game crammed into a cartridge. You start off with this dinky little ship that barely survives the first wave, but after grabbing a few power-ups, suddenly you're melting alien swarms with spread shots and homing lasers. The levels get wild fast—one minute you're dodging asteroids, the next you're weaving through some biomechanical hive while the screen fills with neon bullets.

It's got that classic Star Soldier vibe but with chunky N64 polygons, which somehow works better than it should. The Japanese version runs smoother than the US release, and the music has this weirdly catchy techno thing going on. Just don't expect deep strategy—this is pure "hold down fire and try not to scream when the boss fills the screen" energy. Perfect for when you want that old-school adrenaline rush without digging out the arcade cabinet.