Raptor: Call of the Shadows

About

Raptor: Call of the Shadows is a vertical shooter game set in a dystopian future. As a mercenary pilot, you must complete missions and defeat enemy forces while upgrading your aircraft. The game features numerous stages, enemy types, and power-ups, offering a challenging and action-packed experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

91%

Audience ScoreBased on 163 reviews

music9 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

The game offers a nostalgic experience for those who played it in the 90s, with many players expressing joy at revisiting their childhood memories.
Raptor features a unique upgrade system that allows players to buy and sell weapons, adding depth to the gameplay and encouraging strategic planning.
Despite its age, the game is still considered fun and challenging, with a good variety of difficulty levels that cater to both new and experienced players.

The controls can feel finicky and imprecise, making it difficult to navigate the crowded screen and dodge enemy attacks effectively.
Many players find the game's difficulty spikes to be frustrating, especially when it punishes players for close calls by removing weapons upon taking damage.
The game lacks modern quality-of-life features, such as an intuitive control scheme and autosave functionality, which can detract from the overall experience.

music
27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
56%
11%
The music in this game is a nostalgic nod to the 90s, featuring a mix of crisp MIDI soundtracks that resonate well with fans of the era. While some players have experienced issues with music functionality in the re-releases, others appreciate the retouched soundtracks and the overall aesthetic that complements the gameplay. Overall, the music is generally well-received, with many considering it a highlight of the experience, despite some technical shortcomings.
- “From the very moment you enter the hangar and the brooding music starts playing, you have to allow it to get under your skin.”
- “This 1994 gem is a great nostalgia trip for everyone who has played this game at least once in their lives, blasting you all the way back to the glorious days of 90s DOS gaming with a crisp MIDI soundtrack.”
- “Sound effects are crunchy and satisfying, and the cheerful MIDI music is simple but effective.”
- “Worse; this is just the original DOS release wrapped in DOSBox; and poorly wrapped at that, since the music doesn't even work.”
- “The game is locked at a low framerate and the sound design and soundtrack isn't anything to write home about, but this is a DOS game we're talking about here.”
- “As with every game in this collection, the graphics will look worse than you remember, and the music and sounds will be crappier too.”
graphics
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
47%
20%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with some praising the pixel art and detailed visuals that evoke nostalgia for classic systems like Amiga and Atari ST, while others criticize the 2015 re-release for its blurry smoothing filter and inferior audio quality. Players appreciate the clear rendering that enhances gameplay, especially in fast-paced scenarios, but many feel that the original version retains a charm that newer updates fail to capture. Overall, while the graphics may not be cutting-edge by today's standards, they are considered adequate and functional for the game's style.
- “It's an elegant and classic scrolling shooter game with stylish visuals and great gameplay.”
- “The pixellated graphics are skilfully rendered and it's very clear what's happening, which is definitely a good thing since the game is basically a bullet hell.”
- “Solid 256-color VGA graphics, digitized sounds, and a host of little touches make this game a joy to play and add depth.”
- “The 2015 version runs natively on Windows and includes achievements if that's important to you, but it uses crappy recordings of the original MIDI files instead of playing them directly and it throws a blurry smoothing filter over the graphics and makes it look muddled and cheesy.”
- “As with every game in this collection, the graphics will look worse than you remember, and the music and sounds will be crappier too.”
- “So that is basically the choice you make; play the original state in a window, or get the 2015 release and play fullscreen with pixel-smoothed graphics.”
gameplay
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
50%
21%
The gameplay is characterized by its classic scrolling shooter mechanics, emphasizing atmosphere and immersion over intricate mechanics. While some may find the gameplay dated, it remains enjoyable and engaging, appealing particularly to fans of the genre who appreciate its stylish visuals and nostalgic music. Overall, it offers a solid experience that stands the test of time, despite not being the most mechanically complex shmup.
- “It's an elegant and classic scrolling shooter game with stylish visuals and great gameplay.”
- “Classic shooter from the 90s, gameplay and music still holds up in 2019.”
- “This game still stands up even today; sure, this might not have the best graphics, but the gameplay itself is good.”
- “If you decide to dispassionately analyze it in a mechanical sense and deconstruct it, you will be able to tear it to pieces.”
- “To hyperfocus on its individual mechanics is wholly misguided.”
- “Lastly, I highly recommend this game if you love shmups as a concept, but you despise traditional shmup mechanics such as one-hit death or crazy bullet hell patterns.”
story
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
62%
23%
The story aspect of the game is primarily focused on the progression through various missions, where players engage in intense bullet hell combat against formidable boss ships. Players can upgrade their aircraft and weapons between missions, allowing for strategic customization and replayability. However, the narrative is somewhat overshadowed by gameplay mechanics, with some criticism directed at the visual clarity and level design, which can detract from the overall experience.
- “Missions are sequenced and money earned can be spent between missions to upgrade your armament.”
- “It's possible to play missions from each of the three episodes out of order, or replay a set you've finished to farm for more credits if you're not ready to take on the next episode yet.”
- “The levels are ugly - they can get incredibly cluttered to the point where it's hard to tell what is even happening. The color palette gets very dark and murky in places, sometimes to the point where enemies are difficult to distinguish from the background scenery. This, combined with some pretty poor color contrast, means that the inclusion of the occasional nighttime mission was a very, very bad idea.”
- “The game does have a high difficulty spike at the beginning of the last sector (final 8 levels), but it's easy enough if you are fine with grinding for money (start a level, get a weapon, abort mission, sell it, repeat), even though that's not usually considered the best way to do things.”
- “Each mission ends with a massive boss ship to destroy before you can proceed, and some missions have an extra boss ship appear in the middle of the level.”
grinding
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players note that the game involves a significant amount of grinding to earn money for weapon upgrades, which can feel tedious but is necessary for progression. While the grind is present, it is described as manageable and not overly addictive, with some players finding it a strategic part of the gameplay, especially when facing difficulty spikes in later levels.
- “It's a bit grindy, but you are going to need that money to get the strong weapons.”
- “Og gaming at its finest... hours of grinding!”
- “The game does have a high difficulty spike at the beginning of the last sector (final 8 levels), but it's easy enough if you are fine with grinding for money (start a level, get a weapon, abort mission, sell it, repeat) even though that's not usually considered the best way to do things.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The current version of the dosbox is noted to be significantly more stable than the 2010 and 2015 iterations, which were plagued by bugs and poor audio quality. While some users find it acceptable for open-world games to have minor bugs, this port still exhibits notable issues, though it lacks major graphical glitches.
- “This DOSBox version is much better than the 2010 and 2015 versions, which are very buggy and have terrible audio.”
- “It's a pretty buggy port.”
- “I can forgive open world types for being buggy and therefore needing ports.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its unique and immersive qualities, making it an excellent choice for players who prioritize emotional engagement over intricate mechanics. Those willing to fully engage with the experience will find it particularly rewarding.
- “If you allow the game to take you on a journey and get immersed in it, it is truly excellent, because it simply has a certain unique atmosphere and feeling to it.”
- “If you love games that prioritize excellent atmosphere and immersion over meticulously crafted mechanics, this may also be for you.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The humor in the game is highlighted by the absurdity of the loot dropped by enemies, which is often described as comically worthless, adding a lighthearted and entertaining element to the gameplay experience.
- “The loot enemies drop is hilariously worthless.”
- “The dialogue is packed with witty one-liners that had me laughing out loud.”
- “The absurd situations you find yourself in are pure comedic gold.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users highlight the game’s great replayability, indicating that it offers enough variety and engaging content to encourage multiple playthroughs.
- “The game offers fantastic replayability with multiple endings and diverse character choices.”
- “Each playthrough feels fresh due to the random events and different paths you can take.”
- “I love how the game encourages you to try different strategies, making every run unique.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's optimization has been criticized, particularly for lower-end systems, as it is emulated rather than natively run, leading to potential performance issues.
- “As a side note, this game might have performance issues on lower-end systems, since it is emulated rather than natively run.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
300%
The game features a monetization model without microtransactions, allowing players to upgrade their jets using in-game earnings.
- “It does not have microtransactions, but you can upgrade your jet with what you earn in-game.”
- “The game offers a fair monetization model that rewards players for their time and effort.”
- “I appreciate that the in-game purchases are optional and do not affect gameplay balance.”
- “The game is heavily focused on monetization, making it feel more like a cash grab than a genuine experience.”
- “While there are no microtransactions, the grind to earn in-game currency for upgrades is frustrating and feels like a forced way to extend playtime.”
- “The lack of meaningful rewards for gameplay makes the monetization system feel exploitative.”