Iro Hero is a decent game with a poorly thought-out execution. The game is difficult but almost unforgiving, as longer-than-usual levels and a high enemy count mean you'll start at the beginning of stages far more often than you'd like. The mechanics are barely explained in-game due to the ill-conceived layout, and the story suffers the same fate as well. With an inconsistent presentation to boot, Iro Hero is a game that's solely for hardcore genre fans, as everyone else will barely make it out of the first stage before deleting it in favor of other, better-executed shooters.

If Iro Hero was updated to create a better balance, I would definitely want to play it again. The game has a lot of potential. There are great bosses with different fighting styles, the graphics are fun and non-distracting from the gameplay, and the music and sound effects all add to the overall action. However, throwing endless enemies and obstacles at a player all in the name of creating a difficult game does not inherently produce a rewarding challenge. Unfortunately this title sorely missed that mark.

Iro Hero borrows some ideas from other shoot ‘em ups, but also adds its own flavor. It has a very unique take on design/difficulty, so it might not be for every player, but if you understand it, we think you’ll enjoy it.