I Have a Shmup Problem

Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

Edited By JerkFace

So I'm recently finding myself with an unquenchable thirst for shmups.  Despite this, I'm fairly new to the genre and I'm looking for any feedback on some good ones I might be able to get my hands on.
 
I'll briefly list the ones I have at the moment:
 
Raiden Fighters Aces
Raiden IV
Ikaruga
War-Tech: Senko no Ronde (I know, I know.  It's weird and somewhat terrible, but MAN are those 'chievos easy to get!)
 
I have a 360 currently, and I'm not morally opposed to using emulators for anything older.  I also hear there are some good indie shmups built for PC, which I'm intrigued by.  So what do you guys think? I need my Bullet Hell fix!

Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#1  Edited By JerkFace

So I'm recently finding myself with an unquenchable thirst for shmups.  Despite this, I'm fairly new to the genre and I'm looking for any feedback on some good ones I might be able to get my hands on.
 
I'll briefly list the ones I have at the moment:
 
Raiden Fighters Aces
Raiden IV
Ikaruga
War-Tech: Senko no Ronde (I know, I know.  It's weird and somewhat terrible, but MAN are those 'chievos easy to get!)
 
I have a 360 currently, and I'm not morally opposed to using emulators for anything older.  I also hear there are some good indie shmups built for PC, which I'm intrigued by.  So what do you guys think? I need my Bullet Hell fix!

Avatar image for arcborealis
ArcBorealis

1722

Forum Posts

37375

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 6

User Lists: 0

#2  Edited By ArcBorealis

If you got a DS, Bangai-O Spirits is something worth checking. It's not a traditional shmup as in vertical or horizontal scrolling, but there's LOTS of shooting.  
Plus it's challenging, but personally, it wasn't brutally tough as many reviewers made it out to be, but that's probably because I could pick up the controls and gameplay pretty quick. Once you know how it works, alot of it becomes a breeze.

Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#3  Edited By JerkFace

I do have a DS, and I've been looking for something new to play that doesn't involve my pokemans.  Thanks!

Avatar image for linkyshinks
Linkyshinks

11399

Forum Posts

-1

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#4  Edited By Linkyshinks
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#5  Edited By JerkFace
@Linkyshinks: 
 
Senko no Ronde is really interesting, isn't it?  It's not great, but the whole 1-on-1 fighting turning to straight up bullet hell action is kind of awesome.  Best $2.99 I've ever spent.  I didn't know there was a sequel!  I'll definitely be looking into that.
 
Right now I have an SNES, Genesis, and a GBA.  Lots of good stuff on the Saturn, then?
Avatar image for noe
noe

57

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 1

#6  Edited By noe

There's R-Type Dimensions on XBLA. It is a horizontal scrolling shooter. Also check out 1942: Joint Strike on XBLA.

Avatar image for linkyshinks
Linkyshinks

11399

Forum Posts

-1

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

#7  Edited By Linkyshinks

Just added the video above dude ;) I agree, it is cool, there's aspects to the original that could be easily improved upon, hopefully the games sequel will do that. 
 
The very best stuff is on Saturn :)..and a choice few on Japanese PS1 
 
There's MUSHA on Genesis.

Avatar image for mikkaq
MikkaQ

10296

Forum Posts

52

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 2

#8  Edited By MikkaQ

If you haven't played through any of the DonPachi games, dude, do it! DoDonPachi is my favorite shmup.

Avatar image for noe
noe

57

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 1

#9  Edited By noe
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#10  Edited By JerkFace
@noe: 
 
I have demos for both of those waiting for me at home.  And if Ikaruga is any indication, I bet Radiant Silvergun is really good.
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#11  Edited By JerkFace
@XII_Sniper: 
 
Dude.  That does look really awesome.  I need to get some of that in my life.  I think I might have to get my hands on a Saturn, like Linkyshinks said.
Avatar image for raviolisumo
raviolisumo

2263

Forum Posts

243

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 3

#12  Edited By raviolisumo

  

  I believe the standard edition of that game is region free for 360. Good luck!
Avatar image for noe
noe

57

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 1

#13  Edited By noe

I love me some Ikaruga.  Also, have you played any of the Gradius games. Those are good too. You can find at least one Gradius game on almost every platform.

Avatar image for unogenius
UnoGenius

152

Forum Posts

256

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 2

#14  Edited By UnoGenius
@Linkyshinks said:
" I'm a collector of games in the genre. Your first purchase should be a Sega Saturn ;) 
 
The sequel to Senko no Ronde - "DUO" looks pretty cool. I've posted details on the game somewhere in the 360 forum 
 
  
  
 
There's a few bullet hell shooters on DS and DSiWare. Here's one:  http://www.giantbomb.com/dsiware/60-106/ketsui-death-label-creators-bring-another-shooter-to-dsiware/35-259590/#3 What platforms do you have, including retro one's ? "
They made another game like War Tech wtf?
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#15  Edited By JerkFace
@noe: 
 
There's a couple on XBLA.  Got the demos for those waiting for me, too!
Avatar image for mikkaq
MikkaQ

10296

Forum Posts

52

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 2

#16  Edited By MikkaQ
@JerkFace:  A saturn is a good move, there's some tight shmups on there, problem is there's japan exclusives like Radiant Silvergun, which in japan costs an arm, a leg, and your eternal soul. But you can also import DoDonPachi on playstation from what I can see. 
 
You can get one of the other DonPachi games, dodonpachi dai ou jou black label extra for the xbox 360. Once again... import. 
 
You could always emulate them in MAME or something, but that's not exactly legal or commendable in any way shape or form.
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#17  Edited By JerkFace
@Wes899: 
 
...
 
Good God does that look crazy.  Ha ha.. Thanks for the tip!
Avatar image for raviolisumo
raviolisumo

2263

Forum Posts

243

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 3

#18  Edited By raviolisumo
Avatar image for tiwi
Tiwi

1422

Forum Posts

1156

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 6

#19  Edited By Tiwi

get mushihime. great game, but it cost me 70 dollar. it's allso entirely in japanese, and is difficult like hell. 
 
ikaruga is also great, you should prolly get that.
 

Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#20  Edited By JerkFace
@Wes899: 
@XII_Sniper: 
 
Damn!  I was trying to find out if  DoDonPachi DAI-OU-JOU Black Label EXTRA was region free, and you answered my question.  I can't justify getting an import 360 at this stage in my life!
 
That game looks great though.
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#21  Edited By JerkFace
Avatar image for quater
Quater

50

Forum Posts

-1

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 2

#22  Edited By Quater

Check out the Touhou games, that's a damn fine series that manages to combine crazy bullet madness with a relatively accessible difficulty curve (like the DonPachi games and a lot of other Cave shmups, it's insane to look at but the minuscule hitbox makes the game actually somewhat easier than you'd expect). Anything by Kenta Cho (crap, no Giant Bomb page! Must add that to the wiki to-do list...) is always worth a look. If you're interested in a serious old-school challenge, check out the original Raiden and some other golden oldies like the old 1942 games - people think Ikaruga is tough, but the first Raiden was murder. Slower ship speed, MASSIVE hitbox, and all the enemies are actually aiming for you rather than firing out predictable patterns. That game is hard
 
Beyond that, I'm afraid if you're not willing to get into MAME or some other method of arcade emulation, you're going to have to trawl through your import options and still miss out on a whole lot of all-time classics. 
 
Edit: For more Indie goodnes, somewhere like this is a good place to start.

Avatar image for mobius1
Mobius1

37

Forum Posts

36

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 6

#23  Edited By Mobius1

1944 The Loop Master
The Raiden Project (Raiden 1 and 2)
Sonic Wings (Aero Fighters) 1,2,3 
 ESP Ra.De.
 Ibara

Avatar image for ajamafalous
ajamafalous

13992

Forum Posts

905

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 9

#24  Edited By ajamafalous

Touhou.

Avatar image for jost1
Jost1

2226

Forum Posts

1275

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 10

User Lists: 17

#25  Edited By Jost1

Don't worry it happens to a lot of boys your age...wait what was the problem again?

Avatar image for liquidswords
LiquidSwords

2728

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 1

#26  Edited By LiquidSwords

 Espgaluda II Black Label   
Imperishable Night    (This one can be downloaded online)
Avatar image for animateria
animateria

3341

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 4

#27  Edited By animateria

Imperishable Night is from the Touhou series... Only available on the PC. 
 
Touhou is an indie 'curtain shooter', or bullet hell shmup series (made by one guy named Zun), but it's hard to call it an indie shooter when it has a convention dedicated to it every year.
 
Anyways here's a vid from Mountain of Faith, last boss on Lunatic difficulty. 

  
You'll need to play with a controller on the PC though, there's a focus button that requires holding down to slow down the character movement and it reveals the true hitbox of your character. It overwhelms the keyboard input limit (That's like what 3 buttons?) unless you have those special keyboards that can read more.
Avatar image for evo
EVO

4028

Forum Posts

20

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 4

#28  Edited By EVO

It's not a shmup in the traditional sense, but Rez loans just as much of it's ideas off shmups as it does from on-rail shooters.

Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#29  Edited By JerkFace

I really appreciate all the great feedback, gang.  It seems like the Touhou games need looked into, for sure.  Anyone know of a good place to find any of them online?  I've done a little searching (admittedly a little) this afternoon, and can't seem to find a good spot.  The fact that I can't read Japanese may be hindering this, I suspect!

Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#30  Edited By JerkFace
@EVO:   Rez is great!
Avatar image for evo
EVO

4028

Forum Posts

20

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 4

#31  Edited By EVO
@JerkFace:  Well, now that my obligatory Rez recommendation is out of the way, have you played R-Type III?
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#32  Edited By JerkFace
@EVO: 
 
Yes, I have.  The R-Type series never really did it for me, for whatever reason.  Perhaps something about the pacing or the maneuverability of the ship.  But the third one is definitely the best.
Avatar image for evo
EVO

4028

Forum Posts

20

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 4

#33  Edited By EVO
@JerkFace:  OK then, what about this:
 
  
On PC and PS3.
Avatar image for emilio
Emilio

3581

Forum Posts

1268

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 6

#34  Edited By Emilio
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#35  Edited By JerkFace
@Linkyshinks: 
 
That looks pretty gross!  Hah.
Avatar image for emilio
Emilio

3581

Forum Posts

1268

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 6

#36  Edited By Emilio
@Linkyshinks:  
That kinda reminds me of Omega Five
 
Anyone play Omega Five? Is is a very Japanese game...
Avatar image for fcksnap
FCKSNAP

2338

Forum Posts

844

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 4

#37  Edited By FCKSNAP

You could always try Cho Ren Sha 68k. It's free and the first thing I install on any machine I've put together since I was in middle school. It's like breaking a bottle of wine on the maiden voyage.

Avatar image for the_a_drain
The_A_Drain

4073

Forum Posts

577

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#38  Edited By The_A_Drain

I have WarTech, no idea why I bought it lol it's not even a great SHMUP. But I couldn't stop playing it for some reason. 
 
I would suggest Espgaluda II for iPhone, it's really great. Ummm, don't really know anymore that are readily available outside of Japan other than some more old classics like R-Type. 
 
EDIT: There's an Xbox Indie title called OneUp or something like that, pretty neat little Shmup for like a dollar where instead of getting extra lives, every time you earn one it flies right onto the screen and joins in.

Avatar image for aurahack
aurahack

2561

Forum Posts

44959

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 8

User Lists: 1

#39  Edited By aurahack
Raiden Project for PS1 @_@ 
 
There's also the Castle Shikigami series for PS2/Wii that's pretty okay. Oh, and there's Triggerheart Excelica on XBLA. 
 
Edit: Oh, and be cool and avoid the Touhou games. Or just play one and be content that they're all the same.  
Edit edit: OH SHIT i almost forgot. Not a shmup, more 2D shooter like Gradius or R-Type but duuuude. Einhander. Best PS1 shooter, bar none.
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#40  Edited By JerkFace
@aurahack: 
 
I tried the Touhou games and totally agree.  It's incredible what a basically one-man team put together, but beyond that?  Meh.
 
I picked up Triggerheart Excelica.  Pretty good stuff.  I dig the added mechanic of the crazy grapple beam thing.
 
And @The_A_Drain:   That ' Shoot 1UP' is pretty good.  Especially for a dollar!
 
@Emilio:   I'll have to check out the demo of that.
Avatar image for jerkface
JerkFace

124

Forum Posts

5

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

#41  Edited By JerkFace
@Snapstacle:   That looks pretty good, actually.  I'm going to have to check that out when I get home.