Weird names, great games.

There are so many classic game collections these days it is near impossible to keep track of them all. Taito is, if nothing else, great at putting out their games over and over. I can still remember checking out their collections on PS2, and now Switch is getting the same treatment. We are once again graced with a collection of games that range from “I remember that!” to “WTF is this game?!” Still it is fun to revisit these classic titles and see some truly outrageous games that existed back then. Let’s dive into the weird and wonderful world of classic Taito.

MSRP: $39.99
Platforms: Switch
Price I’d Pay: $29.99

So let’s kick off with what is included in this package. Taito Milestones 2 is packed with ten more games including:

• The Legend of Kage
• Kiki Kaikai
• Metal Black
• The NewZealand Story
• Ben Bero Beh
• Darius II
• Dinorex
• Solitary Fighter
• Liquid Kids
• Gun Frontier

As I said there is a wide variety of games here. Everyone knows Legend of Kage, we all pronounced it “cage” growing up. It is a solid action game that is brief and fun to play. Ben Bero Beh is similar to Elevator Action, just not as polished. The NewZealand Story is a classic that no one talks about. One of the best platformers ever to come from Taito and an excellent addition to the collection. Liquid Kids is a Bubble Bobble inspired platformer with some wacky bosses and great platforming.

Gun Frontier is a vertical shooter with some unique ideas, but doesn’t stand out from the pack. The next shooter is Metal Black and it is the highlight of the three shooters in the package. It was originally supposed to be a Darius title and feels great to play. To round out the shooters we have Darius II which is as stellar as it has always been. With only three shooters in this collection it is nice that all of them are good and worthy of picking this up.

Rounding out the collection we have Kiki Kaikai which is known as Pocky and Rocky to most people. A solid scrolling shooter. Solitary Fighter, which was released around the same time as Street Fighter II and one of the only games not already available separately via the ACA collections. Finally we have Dinorex which is another fighting game as well as the other game that has not been released separately. It is a dinosaur fighting game with nice sprite work, but feels a little shallow.

As far as the presentation goes this is exactly like every ACA release. They work with a standard template and the extras are minimal. The main menu is very simple without much flair. The graphics options are standard and not that exciting. I do wish there was a bit more to showcase the history of these games, but this feels like just a standard compilation of a bunch of the games that are already available. It is more about value than presentation.

This collection doesn’t really have a game that misses. While not all household names, I guarantee if you enjoy classic titles there is plenty here to enjoy. I love revisiting stuff like Kiki Kaikai and Liquid Kids and checking out two obscure fighting games. The shooters are always fun and who doesn’t love Legend of Kage? Definitely recommended for us old folks who grew up with the greatness that is Taito.

Review copy of game provided by publisher.