A snappy, colorful Psikyo shooter with a comedic cast and tight patterns. Aggressive scoring rewards mastery and the look stays delightful. A grand vintage arcade shmup.
Your verdict
Category
Shooter1 player12+
Description
Ship pilots face bullet rain in this Psikyo multi-planetary fantasy vertical shoot'em up. Published by Virgin, released in Japan in March 2000. Vertical shoot'em up with reflective barrier system, pilots with varied weapons, spectacular bosses and fantastic lore. Japanese version.
Gunbird 2 review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
A Psikyo vertical shooter, Gunbird 2 unfolds a colorful, mischievous fantasy aesthetic, carried by a vivid cast mixing witches, pirates and robots. Detailed sprites, shimmering backdrops and inventive bosses make a playful, readable art direction. The characters' humor and the teeming settings give the game an irresistible cartoon charm. A joyful, sparkling shmup.
Gunbird 2's soundtrack fizzes with arcade energy and playful melodies, in tune with its mischievous fantasy world. Bouncy themes, punchy brass and brisk rhythms accompany the rising intensity of the stages and boss fights. This colorful, rousing music keeps up steady good cheer, carrying the game's cartoon charm. A joyful backing, built for nervy action.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
A vertical shooter bursting with colour and zany characters, where the screen drowns in fire and oversized bosses: the action never lets up. The fun lies in pixel-tight dodging and relentless fire that drive the score up. Snappy, readable and fiercely addictive, this Psikyo arcade distillate will delight fans of demanding scoring.
A direct sequel to the Psikyo vertical shoot'em up, this Japanese Dreamcast port carries the aura of a studio whose shooters became touchstones among genre fans. The conversion preserves the scoring and the reflective barrier system unique to the series, making it a version prized by danmaku purists. Kept exclusive to Japan and never physically reissued on the console, it benefits from the steady demand Psikyo shooters sustain within the community.
Is Gunbird 2 still worth playing in 2026?
Made by Psikyo, this vertical shooter bets on colorful characters, light humor and exemplary readability rather than a deluge of bullets. Snappy handling and cleanly drawn patterns make it an ideal entry point to the genre while still rewarding mastery with demanding scoring. The Dreamcast port reproduces the arcade board faithfully, with trimmed loading times. Three decades on, its taut pace and cartoon charm keep it a joy to fire up again.
