Is After Burner still worth playing in 2026?
A port of Sega's famous arcade rail shooter, After Burner puts you at the controls of a fighter hurled at full speed against swarms of enemy planes, in rear view. The 8 bit conversion inevitably loses spectacle against the cabinet, but keeps the sense of speed, the missile lock and the adrenaline of dodging. The repetition and the technical roughness betray the machine's limits. For a retro rail shooter fan or someone nostalgic for Sega arcade, the title keeps a raw energy and a definite immediate pleasure.