Galactic Crusader

Galactic Crusader is a vertically scrolling shoot-’em-up (shmup) that serves as one of the more visually interesting, if slightly technically compromised, titles in the Watara Supervision library. It is an adaptation of an unlicensed NES game developed by the infamous Taiwanese studio Joy Van (an arm of Sachen), and it brings that same "weird and wild" energy to Watara’s budget handheld.

The game puts you in control of a "metamorphic" starship - a craft that looks remarkably like a mechanical butterfly. Your mission is to fly through several deep-space stages, blasting through waves of alien formations and dodging bullet patterns that grow increasingly dense as the game progresses. Like many shmups of the era, the gameplay is fueled by a power-up system: destroying specific enemies drops icons that upgrade your firing rate, grant you wider shot spreads, or provide a protective shield. Each stage culminates in a massive, screen-filling boss fight that requires pattern memorisation and steady thumbs.

On the Supervision’s hardware, Galactic Crusader faces the inevitable battle against the system's notorious LCD "ghosting." Because the game features a constantly scrolling background and fast-moving enemy sprites, the screen can often become a blurry mess of gray smears during intense firefights. To combat this, the developers used large, high-contrast sprites for the player’s ship and the primary enemies, making it easier to track the action through the visual fuzz. While it doesn't reach the technical heights of a Game Boy shooter like Solar Striker, it offers a surprisingly complete arcade experience with distinct stages and a real sense of progression.

It’s a loud, frantic, and occasionally frustrating game that captures the essence of early 90s "bootleg-adjacent" game design. It isn't the most refined shooter on the platform, but its unique ship design and relentless pace make it a standout for collectors looking for something a bit more ambitious than the typical Tetris clone.