The Arcade flyer.
Pilot Kids is a 1999 toy-themed Horizontal Scrolling Shooter released by Psikyo, and one of two Cute 'em Up games in their catalogue (the other being the sci-fi parody Space Bomber) from the 90s.Like every other arcade shooter of it's type, Pilot Kids follows an Excuse Plot, though unlike most note arcade shooters which are set during a war or an alien invasion, the game is instead set in a child's playroom, with the player(s) assuming the titular pilot kids, a doll (or two, both players being shown on the arcade flyer) in an RC plane shooting at other toy-themed enemies.
If you're looking for a trope about literal children piloting vehicles, try this one.
Pilot Kids contains examples of:
- Advancing Boss of Doom: The garden stage has an Angry Guard Dog which pursues you from one end of the garden to another. It's invulnerable to all your weapons and you can only flee from it, shooting enemies in your way to clear a path until you outrun it.
- Bee Afraid: Bees are another common enemy types in the garden level.
- Boss Bonanza: This game has a tendency to throw two or more bosses in a row in most of the levels; for instance the submarine boss in the bathroom being followed by a bathysphere robot, the garden stage ends with battling a living ceramic gnome and his pet Man-Eating Plant in a row, and the Final stage, the Attic, who throws a Tin-Can Robot (resembling a 50s vintage robot toy) armed with a Wave-Motion Gun, followed by two different Flying Saucer bosses who constantly swap forms during battle.
- Bruce Lee Clone: Bafflingly enough, your enemies include giant Bruce Lee action figures (without being named explicitly onscreen) who attacks you by kicking and punching, makes Funny Bruce Lee Noises whenever they're onscreen and tanks plenty of damage before going down.
- Bullet Hell: It's a Psikyo game, so no matter how cute the premise is, you'll still be busy dodging projectiles filling up the screen (or dying half the times) from bosses and multiple enemies.
- Flying Saucer: Two of the bosses in the attic stage are flying saucer toys several times larger than your character's RC plane, and can spam bullets and beam attacks from their underside.
- Giant Space Flea from Nowhere: The Man-Eating Plant technically counts under this, since you spend most of the game battling toy-themed enemies, and even if you're attacked by opponents from the real world, you're facing the family dog or bees. And then, cue a giant pitcher plant.
- Living Toys: You're a living doll piloting an RC plane, and battling other living toy enemies.
- Man-Eating Plant: The garden stage ends with a battle against one of these, summoned by the gnome. It can spit Bullet Seeds as well.
- Mecha-Mooks: The enemies in the attic stages are mostly toy robots.
- Our Gnomes Are Weirder: The garden stage ends with a boss battle against a living ceramic gnome holding a flower pot that sprouts a Gatling gun. And taking him down only results in him summoning his Man-Eating Plant pet.
- Outlaw: Another oddball boss in the game, a black-clad cowboy doll whose revolver can spam bullets on you, and occasionally uses dynamites.
- Parasol of Pain: One stage have your character flying through the bedroom belonging to a little girl, where you'll battle Bo Peep dolls whose umbrellas can fire projectiles on you.
- Snowlem: One of the earlier bosses is a living snowman from a snow globe (which is alive, like every other toy in this unviverse) who sits on a pedestal capable of firing projectiles.
- Tin-Can Robot: Plenty of the robots in the final attic stage resembles classic tin can robots. Notably, the first (of several) bosses in the final stage is a vintage 1950s wind-up robot.
- Toy Time: Each and every level, given the premise.
- Two-Faced: The ceramic gnome boss starts off cheery and smiley, until you reduced his health to half. He then spins around, obscuring his face for a second and behold, he's now frowning and grumpy. And ready to pull out his Gatling gun on you.
- Under the Sea: Subverted with the bathroom stage. The level is supposed to simulate an underwater adventure, despite clearly taking place on dry land, where you'll be shooting hostile rubber duckies, toy sharks, boats and enemy dolls in scuba suits. Culminating in battling a toy submarine and bathysphere boss back-to-back at the end of said level.
