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Post by Ex on Oct 30, 2019 21:35:05 GMT -5
November's theme is arcade shmups (shoot 'em ups). Games like R-Type, Darius, or Dogyuun, for example. Fly/drive a ship (or dragon or whatever) around, shoot and destroy, rack up a high score. The expected criteria concerns shmups that originated from the arcade scene. That includes home console/handheld ports of said games. However, if you would rather play a non-arcade shmup, that's your choice. (Though we may someday have a theme concerning console/handheld exclusive shmups.)
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Post by Jameson on Oct 31, 2019 5:44:01 GMT -5
I missed out on shmups entirely as a kid, save for a single PC exclusive from the mid 90's that I can't remember. I didn't start seriously playing them until around 2010 or so. I don't have anything of substance to say about them, really. I'm bad at them and generally stick to whichever ones have the coolest settings and aesthetics. I definitely prefer the arcades over consoles for this, and I gravitate to Cave and Raizing more than any other developers. Despite how bad I am at them, I still stick to the 1CC rule lol but this is mostly to extend my play time more than anything. I find these games exciting enough to do this with them. I don't play for score though.
Now, I've been playing Ketsui quite a bit, maybe a good 30 minutes every other day (full name is Ketsui: Kizuna Jigoku Tachi). The straightforward military setting is a bit plain, but the music is rock solid and the bosses have some really interesting patterns to them. The 3rd stage adds a really cool set piece with this battleship that takes in the whole screen. I can almost beat the 3rd boss, but that might take a while. This game has a reputation for being pretty hard, but it's clicking with me so I'm gonna stick with it.
In spite of its reputation, Battle Garegga is probably the only shmup I'm decent at, and one of my favorites. I can reach stage 5 on a credit with enough of a warm up. This has to be one of the coolest settings I've seen in any game, and Manabu Namiki, the composer for this and Ketsui, is a god. From what I've read about the ranking system, it seems a little bit silly in many respects, but it doesn't matter for my playstyle.
Finally, there's OG R-Type. Haven't played this since 2013 maybe? This one is not too hard it looks like, and I'm a little stunned it came out in the year it did. It has always impressed. The art here is fantastic. On my 3rd credit, I managed to reach stage 4 before I lost all my lives. Not too bad! I only stopped playing because I want to get the Steam collection and rack up hours on there lol.
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Post by anayo on Oct 31, 2019 6:44:51 GMT -5
I have mixed feelings about this genre. I like it because it's full of excellent titles and it gives me nice memories of the 90's, back when the shmup genre was still a part of the gaming landscape. But it can also get kind of samey, with too many titles that feel similar. For this reason I experienced genre fatigue on the Sega Saturn and especially on the Turbo Graphx 16.
I have beaten "U.N. Squadron" and "Axelay" (SNES); "MUSHA", "Trouble Shooter" and "Battle Mania 2" (Genesis); "Lords of Thunder" (TG16-CD); and "Soukyuugurentai" (Saturn). I have tried beating "Truxton" and "Gaiares" (Genesis) and wasn't successful. For this month, I can take a stab at "Section Z" or "Sqoon" (NES). I just have to beat Ninja Gaiden II first, something I can probably accomplish by the end of this week.
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Post by Ex on Oct 31, 2019 10:28:29 GMT -5
save for a single PC exclusive from the mid 90's that I can't remember Could it have been this or this? I've personally never believed in, or adhered to, the 1CC rule. We've had some interesting discussions on this forum about that rule before. There used to be an active member here called dunpeal2064 , who was by far the most knowledgeable shmup connoisseur I've ever known. He was rather adamant about the importance of the "1CC rule" himself. I've also never been into high scores in general, even back in the '80s I thought score chasing was a droll goal. I have 1CC'd a few shmups in the past, but that was a side effect of playing them so much, rather than attempting to do so purposefully. I will freely admit I'm more of a content-tourism player for this genre. I don't think I'm awful at shmups, but I'm also not an elite shmup player by any means. I tend to pick shmups based on whim rather than challenge level or prestige. When you dig deep into the bowels of the genre, even if only in the arcade scene, you can find unusual iterations. An example would be 1994's Kingdom Grandprix, which combined shmup shooting with overhead racing. Lastly I find playing shmups to be really relaxing. Insofar as I'm just credit feeding them. Obviously playing in 1CC mode, or on consoles with limited lives... well that's not so relaxing. Still this is a genre where "getting into the zone" happens very easily for me. But it can also get kind of samey, with too many titles that feel similar. That's true, and I have the same problem with the beat 'em up genre. Still there are some unique shmups out there, insofar as their intrinsic mechanics, if you explore around enough. I'm short on time right now, so I'm not good for rec's at the moment. But later on perhaps I can remember some examples. >U.N. Squadron, Axelay,Trouble Shooter, Battle Mania 2, Lords of Thunder I have beaten those as well, and I think they are all highly decent. - One of my favorite arcade shmups which I never see mentioned on forums:
19XX: The War Against Destiny has remained an arcade exclusive since 1996. Give it a try!
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Post by Jameson on Oct 31, 2019 16:39:16 GMT -5
I have mixed feelings about this genre. I like it because it's full of excellent titles and it gives me nice memories of the 90's, back when the shmup genre was still a part of the gaming landscape. But it can also get kind of samey, with too many titles that feel similar. For this reason I experienced genre fatigue on the Sega Saturn and especially on the Turbo Graphx 16. I have beaten "U.N. Squadron" and "Axelay" (SNES); "MUSHA", "Trouble Shooter" and "Battle Mania 2" (Genesis); "Lords of Thunder" (TG16-CD); and "Soukyuugurentai" (Saturn). I have tried beating "Truxton" and "Gaiares" (Genesis) and wasn't successful. For this month, I can take a stab at "Section Z" or "Sqoon" (NES). I just have to beat Ninja Gaiden II first, something I can probably accomplish by the end of this week. I can't play them for too long, as it is a pretty simple genre.
Those are all great shooters. Battle Mania 2 has one of the coolest aesthetics I've ever seen, but something about the giant hitbox throws me off. It probably belongs somewhere on a lower tier of "good-not-great" shooters like Gleylancer, but I'm not quite sure yet. Both are must plays, and both are pretty easy games for anyone who wants to ease into the genre.
Well, I know there can be some elitism out there about the 1CC rule, but for me it's just a question of playtime. I don't care about "getting good" at these games, or any video games for that matter, because who cares? Arcade games are as good as it gets as far as 2D aesthetics go, and the 1CC helps me extend my time in the cool little worlds on display. I know as soon as I 1CC a game, I'm gonna lose all interest in it and likely never play it again.
I'll take it even further and say I don't even care about beating them lol. I've never even seen stage 6 of Battle Garegga outside of superplays, and it's still one of my favorite games ever.
And, yes, I think Raptor is it. I have a lot of memories of playing Raptor, DOOM, Duke 3D alongside each other.
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Post by Sarge on Oct 31, 2019 16:55:53 GMT -5
I generally play arcade shooters in a content voyeurism sort of way. I don't care about 1CC or whatnot unless I just seriously, really want to claim a legit, non-credit-feed win. Much like Jameson, I'm not great at the genre. That's not saying I didn't play shmups growing up, though; I remember having a go at Raiden several times, got to play a Sky Shark arcade machine, and generally liked the Aero Fighters/Strikers games I got to get my hands on. (And I've also beaten a few shmups on console, of course, including the rather difficult Silver Surfer.) Really, I think my overall lack of skill comes from not caring as much about the genre as many, so when I go in, I'm not looking to memorize what I need to do, except for rare situations. But if I do find a game where I want to do that, I can usually get through, but no one will confuse me for a shooter pro.
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Post by Ex on Oct 31, 2019 17:20:28 GMT -5
the 1CC rule, but for me it's just a question of playtimeI believe that method can be attributed to just about any "hard" oldchool game, which represents itself through linear scripted content. The skill on display is a matter of correct timing, in response to content memorization. I'd wager a chimpanzee could 1CC a typical shmup given enough time. The three shmups I remember 1CC-ing when I was younger: IIRC Astro Warrior and Xevious both just loop after a while. Anyway, the only reason I got so good at these three games, was because they were the only shmups I owned growing up. A war of attrition brought on by boredom made me quite good at navigating through muscle memory. I fully plan to credit feed my way through whichever arcade shmups I "beat" for this month.
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Post by Sarge on Oct 31, 2019 18:15:06 GMT -5
Yep, I'll be doing the same for sure.
I had Xevious myself, but I never knew it looped. I always just assumed I was still progressing; if I remember right, waves do tend to get harder.
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Post by Xeogred on Oct 31, 2019 18:55:12 GMT -5
My top favorite shmups so far:
1. Thunder Force IV (Genesis/MD) 2. Mushihimesama (Arcade, Steam, 360) 3. Gradius V (PS2)
I hope one of you checks out Mushihimesama. It helped me understand the bullet hell types. I haven't 1CC'd it yet though.
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Post by Jameson on Oct 31, 2019 19:02:49 GMT -5
the 1CC rule, but for me it's just a question of playtimeI believe that method can be attributed to just about any "hard" oldchool game, which represents itself through linear scripted content. The skill on display is a matter of correct timing, in response to content memorization. I'd wager a chimpanzee could 1CC a typical shmup given enough time. I'm talking about extending my time, not skill.
What is a "typical" shmup? I don't play those.
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