Terra Trilogy

Genre: Compilation / 2-Stick Shooter / Shmup

Players: 1

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Review:

Terra Trilogy is a physical-only Compilation released on Nintendo Switch in 2021 that includes Terra Lander, Terra Lander II – Rockslide Rescue, and Terra Bomber, all games released separately on Nintendo Switch in 2021, but included on one game card in this package.

Here is what I thought of each of the games in this collection:

Game	Genre	# of Players	Grade
Terra Lander	2-Stick Shooter	1	C-
tl;dr Terra Lander combines the physics-focused gameplay of the classic game Lunar Lander with 2-Stick Shooter elements. Unfortunately, these two gameplay elements don’t mix very well here, and even beyond that, this game has serious problems with difficulty spikes. Unless something about this game’s concept really appeals to you, you’re better off letting it drift off into space.
Terra Lander II – Rockslide Rescue	2-Stick Shooter	1	C-
tl;dr Terra Lander II combines the physics-focused gameplay of the classic game Lunar Lander with 2-Stick Shooter elements, with this sequel also adding humans to rescue and rocks to use a tractor beam on. While these new elements provided great opportunities to address the issues with the first game, this game doesn’t have any interest in fixing those problems, and as a result this is once again an overly-difficult game whose gameplay elements clash with one another. Only the most hardcore fans of 2-Stick Shooters will find something to enjoy here.
Terra Bomber	Shmup	1	C-
tl;dr Terra Bomber is a Shmup that’s clearly inspired by the 1981 arcade classic Scramble. And while this is mostly a solid game in that same vein, the long levels and lack of checkpoints make this far too tedious to recommend.

All three games in this Compilation share a similar visual style, and are similarly inspired by early Arcade Space Shooters from the late 1970s-early 1980s, and all three games also suffer from the flaw of being overly difficult and lacking proper checkpoints in a game where one false move will kill you and send you back to the beginning of the level.

In terms of value, I’ve seen this package listest at $40, which is absurd – not only is that $10 more than each of these games costs separately, but given the old-fashioned nature of these games, even the $20 price tag I see some retailers selling this for seems a bit steep.

However, no matter what price you get it at, I can’t recommend the Terra Trilogy to anyone but those with the biggest attraction to the nostalgic trappings of early videogames. Not only are these games, well, not actually from that golden age of videogames, but they all suffer from problems that make it hard to enjoy them in the modern era. Even if this was a good value (and it isn’t), it wouldn’t be worth buying.

tl;dr – Terra Trilogy is a Compilation of Terra Lander, Terra Lander II – Rockslide Rescue, and Terra Bomber, all inspired by early Arcade Space Shooters from the late 1970s-early 1980s, and also all similarly flawed, with overly difficult gameplay due in part to the lack of proper checkpoints. This Compilation doesn’t add much value, either. Skip this one.

Grade: C-

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