www.jap-sai.com - R-Type III

Amidst recurring rumours that they were in financial dire straits, Irem once again turned to their R-Type series for inspiration, releasing R-Type III as a home exclusive for the Super Famicom in late 1993.
Hmm. One R-Type game per year might be a little too hectic a pace for a lot of people. For Irem more than anybody: it must be difficult to make any kind of impact so soon after Super R-Type (1991) and R-Type Leo (1992).
The result was that R-Type III slipped by virtually un-noticed, despite that fact that there was (and always has been) a serious lack of quality shooting games on the Super Famicom.
1993 was a year of change. There was a lot of pent-up cynicism towards classic genres like 2D shooting games and R-Type III was a victim of this trend. It was only greeted with a modicum of enthusiasm from the press, then released worldwide with little advertising fanfare.
Which is a shame because R-Type III is a very nice game, that toys around intelligently with the R-Type engine by introducing 3 different kinds of 'Force' devices, each one requiring a different strategy to master. This selection is put into focus even more by there being only one difficulty setting on offer: rock hard.
So choose your favourite weapon and get cracking. The first level may be a bit bland, but the game really picks up from Stage 2 onwards with fresh and inventive backdrops that all adapt themselves remarkably well to the R-9's new arsenal.
Following an excellent in-game tribute to the bosses of the original R-Type (1987), the final stage is a nightmarish, memory-bending hellhole of a course that requires a serious amount of time, skill, and luck from the player. Tough cookie...

TACTICS - Stage Select
At the 'Continue' screen:
Tap the R button 10 times, the L button 'x' times,
then press START
The 'x' is determined by the stage number (1-5)