What's this? A horizontally-scrolling sci-fi shooting game, originally developed and distributed for MSX2 by Hertz in 1989; players blast across several stages in order to liberate their planet, with pit stops along the way that allow them to change ships and/or change or augment the "Hyde" options that adorn the ship and contribute additional defense or firepower, and performance-based branches in the basic story.
Why should I care? You're looking for a shooting game that demonstrates the highest level of performance seen on MSX2, rivalled only by Konami's output, as well as one that's fun in the conventional shoot-and-dodge fashion and isn't encumbered by half-baked RPG elements. (You might also want to hear the first commercial tunes by composer Keisho Yonao, who'd later find acclaim across a great many commercial and doujin games including Mad Stalker, the Asuka 120% series and Strania: The Stella Machina.)
Language barrier? The crucial real-time text is presented in English, but the story/event scenes are in Japanese.