Irem Collection Volume 3 Limited Edition (Nintendo Switch)

Three arcade deep cuts that most Western players never got to touch. The Irem Collection Volume 3 Limited Edition for Nintendo Switch bundles Mr. Heli, Mystic Riders, and Dragon Breed into one physical package from Strictly Limited Games, capped at just 4,000 individually numbered copies worldwide. That's the kind of scarcity that makes a collector's pulse quicken.

Let's talk about what's actually in here. Mr. Heli is one of the wildest multidirectional shmups Irem ever produced, letting you fly a helicopter in full 360-degree freedom while dropping bombs that roll across the ground like you're at a cosmic bowling alley. Mystic Riders has never been available outside Japanese arcades until now, making this its genuine Western debut on any platform. And Dragon Breed, where you ride an invincible dragon named Bahamoot whose tail deflects enemy projectiles while you pick off foes with a crossbow, finally gets a console release outside Japan for the first time since its 1989 arcade debut. Three first-ever moments in one box.

The package includes a colorful game manual and all the quality-of-life touches we've come to expect from these curated collections, like rewind and quick saves. You get multiple regional versions of each game where available, including both English and Japanese arcade ROMs for Mr. Heli and Mystic Riders, plus the PC Engine version of Mr. Heli.

For Irem faithful, this is the collection that proves the company's catalog went far deeper than R-Type. For the rest of us, it's a numbered ticket to three games that were genuinely lost to time until now. The kind of physical release that justifies the entire limited run model.