Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
This video is part of the Ship Showcase 2.0 playlist.
About this ship -
The Leo comes from irem's eponymous game, only in R-Type Leo, you don't have a Force, only Bits, which is why they're insanely powerful in Final.
Pros
- all three weapons are supremely powerful - you almost don't need a Wave Cannon with the red weapon because if you're grazing the laser through enemies, it eats up their health real quick. The blue weapon is a reflective laser with shorter lasers than the Arrowhead and they bounce faster. The yellow weapon will fire forward and then bend at 90 degree angles to hit enemies, making it a fire and forget weapon.
- the Psy Bits will home in on enemies when you charge the Wave Cannon to full and release. They're bigger than the graphic suggests, making them handy in eating up enemy bullets. They also shoot regardless of which laser you have equipped, or even with the Force detached.
- this ship is really only outdone by its successor, the Leo II.
Cons
- it only has a one loop Wave Cannon which is fine in most instances.
About this stage -
You get to this stage by not breaking the red or blue pegs on Fine Motion in stage 5.0. If it's your first time through the game, this will be your only path. irem had a habit of making their penultimate stages FAR more difficult than their final stages, and this stage is no exception. Just look at the trouble spots - right at the beginning and then the hallway of doom. I'm not going to lie - it takes a degree of luck to get through that part if you don't have the Dose attack charged.
I failed numerous times trying to get through the hallway of doom and it doesn't go well even in this recording, but a victory's a victory, and I'll take it. Plus it makes things a little more exciting, don't you think?
I'd been practicing this stage all week long and finally got it the morning that I ended up recording. I made three successful attempts and recorded in the early afternoon.
Floating Graves is in Bydo space and looks fairly sinister with its lovely red background and its deceptively calm music, almost like you're dancing.
This stage has long been my pick for shmup hell and the hardest stage I've ever played in the series.
This video is part of the Ship Showcase 2.0 playlist.
About this ship -
The Leo comes from irem's eponymous game, only in R-Type Leo, you don't have a Force, only Bits, which is why they're insanely powerful in Final.
Pros
- all three weapons are supremely powerful - you almost don't need a Wave Cannon with the red weapon because if you're grazing the laser through enemies, it eats up their health real quick. The blue weapon is a reflective laser with shorter lasers than the Arrowhead and they bounce faster. The yellow weapon will fire forward and then bend at 90 degree angles to hit enemies, making it a fire and forget weapon.
- the Psy Bits will home in on enemies when you charge the Wave Cannon to full and release. They're bigger than the graphic suggests, making them handy in eating up enemy bullets. They also shoot regardless of which laser you have equipped, or even with the Force detached.
- this ship is really only outdone by its successor, the Leo II.
Cons
- it only has a one loop Wave Cannon which is fine in most instances.
About this stage -
You get to this stage by not breaking the red or blue pegs on Fine Motion in stage 5.0. If it's your first time through the game, this will be your only path. irem had a habit of making their penultimate stages FAR more difficult than their final stages, and this stage is no exception. Just look at the trouble spots - right at the beginning and then the hallway of doom. I'm not going to lie - it takes a degree of luck to get through that part if you don't have the Dose attack charged.
I failed numerous times trying to get through the hallway of doom and it doesn't go well even in this recording, but a victory's a victory, and I'll take it. Plus it makes things a little more exciting, don't you think?
I'd been practicing this stage all week long and finally got it the morning that I ended up recording. I made three successful attempts and recorded in the early afternoon.
Floating Graves is in Bydo space and looks fairly sinister with its lovely red background and its deceptively calm music, almost like you're dancing.
This stage has long been my pick for shmup hell and the hardest stage I've ever played in the series.
