Eliminate Down -Sega MegaDrive- 9.5

April 18, 2025

Eliminate Down was released for the Japanese MegaDrive back in 1993, and is one of the most hardcore shmups ever made. It never came to the United States, and the authentic cartridge is a highly sought after item by many retro game collectors. I was fortunate enough to attain my beautiful cib just over a year ago, and I finally decided to play through the game this past week. Even playing on easy mode, Eliminate Down is the most challenging space ship shoot ‘em up I have yet conquered. This game is relentless with its hordes of bullets and foes, and you will die over and over again until you master every second of the one hour it takes to complete a full run.

Eliminate Down is divided into eight stages, and they get progressively brutal the deeper go. You are given three weapon options: a straight forward cannon, a series of bombs that spread above and below your ship, and a reverse shot. Along the way you gather upgrades that increase the power and range of your weapons, and even outfit your ship with a shield and laser. Like a lot of classic shmups, Eliminate Down rewards you if you play well and punishes you for making the slightest error. The bosses can be destroyed a bit more easily if you can face them with a loaded deck. But if you die along the way, you lose one entire level on your powerups. Eliminate Down is an extremely difficult game to progress through unscathed. Perfect memorization and sharp reflexes are required to make any progress at all. Only the most dedicated of gamers need apply.

Eliminate Down fires on all cylinders with its presentation and soundtrack. The grinding, metallic tunes forebode the impending doom as you encounter each onslaught of enemy ships and aliens. Good music is one of the most important features in a shmup for me, and this is one of the very best soundtracks in the genre I have ever heard. These are the type of grungy chiptunes that the Genesis and MegaDrive were known for, and they get my blood pumping every time I crank up the stereo sound. The graphics of Eliminate down are also stellar, with close to zero instances of slowdown for the entire campaign.  Things move fast in this game, and the 16bit hardware handles the frenetic chaos with expert precision. The boss encounters are epic, and learning their complicated patterns takes practice and perseverance.

I am proud to own this authentic cib of Eliminate Down as one the most prized pieces in my entire videogame collection, and I am equally proud to have finally beaten the game, at least on easy mode. The MegaDrive and Genesis had some of the greatest shmup’s ever made, and this ranks up there with the best of them. I rate Eliminate Down a 9.5 out of ten.