Home / Reviews /Macross Shooting Insight review ByRichard Seagrave 5 February 20255 February 2025
Being an arcade-styled shooter that features multi-dimensional gameplay with multiple characters to play as, each with their own story, it’s easy to be optimistic about Macross Shooting Insight. The trouble is, you’re not likely you to get anything out of those stories unless you’re an ardent Macross fan — they just aren’t all that engaging.
You have no choice but to jump into the story, however, as it’s the only mode unlocked from the outset in Macross Shooting Insight. Thankfully, though, if you’re not a Macross fan and are simply picking this up because you’re keen on the arcade-shooter genre, you can skip the story scenes if you wish and just focus on the action. It certainly makes things more bearable, but there are some strange choices here that mean even the gameplay isn’t as fun as it could be.
Like in any arcade-shooter, you’ll make your way through numerous stages, shooting pretty much anything that moves. You have two basic ways to attack your enemies: a standard shot-type weapon, and missiles that need to be locked on before you can fire. Irritatingly, though, you can’t use both at the same time. Chances are, then, that you’ll mainly find yourself using missiles given that you can lock onto enemies all around you with them, while your shot attack typically only fires forward.
When the going gets tough, you also have access to a special attack. Rather than having a specific number of uses, it instead relies on a gauge, allowing you to choose how long you want to sustain your powerful salvo. The final weapons in your arsenal are ‘songstresses’. These are the game’s equivalent of power-ups, sometimes singing a song for you that provides one of numerous special effects. They might sing a song that reduces incoming damage for a short while, for example, or one that increases the effectiveness of your firepower. Very handy indeed.
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Adding some variety into the mix is Macross Shooting Insight’s multi-dimensional nature. That means you might start a stage scrolling horizontally before changing form and then scrolling vertically. Sometimes the perspective shifts to make Macross Shooting Insight feel more like a twin stick shooter, too, giving you full 360-degree movement, and some sections find you flying into the screen, Afterburner-style. You have no control over these changes, and they’re not all that dynamic, taking some of the fun out of them.
Needless to say, there are some good ideas and unique features to be found here, but they’re just wrapped up in a package that isn’t all that exciting. But those that do stick around will find plenty of content to get stuck into. By playing though story mode, other modes such as Arcade, Ace Battle and Boss Rush are unlocked, presenting new challenges to overcome. There are a large number of collectibles to find as well, and options to tinker with.
Ultimately, if you’re a Macross fan, you might get a bit more enjoyment out of Macross Shooting Insight than others, but the fact of the matter is that this is simply a mediocre arcade shooter. It’s pretty slow, not being to make use of your shot and missile weapons at the same time is a bore, and the songstresses songs, while useful, just aren’t as rewarding as picking up a good power-up.
Macross Shooting Insight Review
If you're really into Macross, chances are you'll get more enjoyment out of Macross Shooting Insight than others. Ultimately, though, while it has some good ideas and unique features, this is a mediocre arcade shooter, outclassed by many others in the genre.5out of 10
We like…
- Some nice ideas and unique features
- Multiple playable characters
- Unlockable modes
We don’t like…
- Story mode is impenetrable
- Gameplay just isn't all that fun
This review of Macross Shooting Insight is based on the PS5 version, with a code provided by the game’s publisher. It’s available on PS4, PS5, Switch and PC.
