Anyone who knows shooters knows that Lords of Thunder is, and always will be, one of the greatest shooters ever made. It's got everything you could possibly want in a great shooter. Sharp and colorful visuals, a hard rocking soundtrack, and intense game play that will test every single ounce of skill you've got in your arsenal. The first time you play Lords of Thunder you'll know exactly why this game alone sold thousands of Turbo Duo systems all by itself. Now lucky Wii owners are about to experience what all the fuss is about first hand. Say hello to Lords of Thunder.

In Lords of Thunder you take on the role of Landis, a freedom fighter on a mission to stop his enemies from reviving the evil Zaggart who's been imprisoned underneath the six lands of Mistral. You'll have to fly through these six lands and defeat the boss at the end of each one in order to lock the seal and keep Zaggart from being resurrected. You'll even have the help of the beautiful maiden Pharina, who'll lead you to the evil Zaggart at the end of your journey. This is when you'll have to take on the evil one and defeat him once and for all.

While Lords of Thunder is a shooter, you're not going to be piloting a space ship in this game. Instead Landis flies and attacks using the various types of armor he has at his disposal. This armor allows him to fly high in the sky and shoot off huge energy blasts. Each set of armor has its own unique type of elemental firepower consisting of earth, wind, water, and fire. At the beginning of each level you'll have the opportunity to select which armor you wish to use for that particular stage. Some types of firepower work better than others, and it sometimes depends on which level you're playing as to which armor is ultimately more effective. You'll also have the opportunity to use the gems that you collect in each level to purchase shields, smart bombs, and even elixirs that will restore your health in the event it runs out.

Once inside the level it's just you against the many enemies that are constantly coming at you from every direction. Luckily the control in Lords of Thunder is spot-on perfect and responds to every minute movement you make. It's one of the smoothest control systems ever used in a shooter and you'll need every bit of it if you're to successfully navigate your way through these insanely intense stages. The boss fights also test your reflexes and you'll have to figure out their many attack patterns if you're to defeat them. It won't take you long to realize why shooter fanatics hold this game in such high regard. If only all video games controlled this well.

The visuals in Lords of Thunder are top notch and some of the best seen on the TurboGrafx-16 system. The backgrounds show a good amount of detail and the larger color palette of the TurboGrafx-16 also allows the game to be vibrant and detailed all at the same time. The bosses are immense and some span the entire height of the screen. They're among some of the most impressive bosses seen in a game from this era. Even the firepower itself fills the entire screen and there's seldom even a hint of slowdown to be found throughout the game.

Now we get to the good part. If you thought the game looked and played well, you haven't seen anything yet. Lords of Thunder has one of the greatest hard rock soundtracks ever heard in a video game. There's not a bad musical track in the bunch and they just seem to get better the further into the game you reach. The wailing guitar solos that take place throughout each level perfectly set the tone for the intense action that's going on around you. Even the music in between stages is outstanding. You'll be hearing these tunes in your head long after you put the controller down. One of the best video game soundtracks in the history of video gaming and even that description might be somewhat of an understatement.

You really need to stop reading this right now and go download Lords of Thunder. It's the type of video game that will remind you why you play video games in the first place. They could charge 3000 Wii points for this game and it would still be a steal. Lords of Thunder is probably the best video game to hit the Virtual Console to date. Go get this one. NOW!