shmuplations.com - 12/1 Zanac

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OmegaFlareX
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Re: shmuplations.com - 10/1 Soldier Blade

Post by OmegaFlareX »

I've seen this a lot in JP dev interviews, but whenever they mention "memory" are they talking about RAM or ROM? I think in this case, since way down it's mentioned they wanted a 6 megabit HuCard but had to settle for 4, that's it's ROM, but typically game consoles have had piddly amounts of RAM so I'm still not sure.
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blackoak
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Re: shmuplations.com - 10/1 Soldier Blade

Post by blackoak »

They don't usually specify it in the conversation, but since they're talking about data storage for sprites etc, it's almost always ROM space they're referring to. Actually I'm struggling to remember a single interview where they've specifically complained about RAM capabilities of the hardware, hehe...
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KAI
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Re: shmuplations.com - 10/1 Soldier Blade

Post by KAI »

Please never stop being awesome blackoak.
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blackoak
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Re: shmuplations.com - 1/8 Rayforce, Compile

Post by blackoak »

hey all, glad you enjoyed the Soldier Blade interview! As a nice little farewell to 2018, i've uploaded two more STG pieces: a lengthy Rayforce interview, and a more general Compile retrospective from 1998.

http://shmuplations.com/rayforce/
http://shmuplations.com/rootsofcompile/

The Rayforce interview goes into nice depth about the game's unusual conception, it's influences (Xevious, Metal Black, Master of Weapon... haha), stage design, etc. There's a little bit about R-GEAR at the end, too. The Compile interview has some interesting comments about how they lost all their staff and had to quit making STGs. For shmupforums the more interesting stuff is probably the small selection of concept art from Aleste/Power Strike/Gunhed/Spriggan/Musha.
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STG
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Re: shmuplations.com - 1/8 Rayforce, Compile

Post by STG »

Really great translations as always blackoak, read them both over the weekend!
blackoak wrote:The Compile interview has some interesting comments about how they lost all their staff and had to quit making STGs.
I also thought this part was interesting too, was wondering if this was around the time Raizing was formed. He mentioned the late 80's in the interview, but Raizing didn't start until 93?
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blackoak
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Re: shmuplations.com - 12/1 Zanac

Post by blackoak »

It's been awhile, but here's a shmuplation that's long overdue--the gargantuan Zanac interview I kept saying I'd get to! 8)

http://shmuplations.com/zanac/

The first third mainly covers Takayuki Hirono's early days at Compile, so feel free to skip past that if you want to get straight to the Zanac info (but I think it's a good read besides). Don't know what's next for shmup translations specifically, need to take a look through the backlog and see what series I've still not covered...
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copy-paster
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Re: shmuplations.com - 12/1 Zanac

Post by copy-paster »

I think I requested G-Darius and Nobuya Nakazato's Contra: Shattered Soldier interview on e-mail. Well if only I have more money I would gladly join your patreon.
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BIL
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Re: shmuplations.com - 12/1 Zanac

Post by BIL »

blackoak wrote:It's been awhile, but here's a shmuplation that's long overdue--the gargantuan Zanac interview I kept saying I'd get to! 8)

http://shmuplations.com/zanac/
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__SKYe
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Re: shmuplations.com - 12/1 Zanac

Post by __SKYe »

Many thanks for the translation blackoak, that was a great read. :)
His pre-Compile story was pretty fun to read, as was his insight on danmaku games (as an aside, the maikom/naikom wordplay is pretty funny).

Is the Famicom version of Zanac really that easier than the MSX one? It has been awhile since I've cleared both, but I can't recall anything that was particularly harder in Zanac MSX. Zanac Ex (MSX2) on the other hand is considerably easier because it suffers from a lot of slowdown.
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6t8k
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Re: shmuplations.com - 12/1 Zanac

Post by 6t8k »

Zanac was truly ahead of its time. It's still astonishing that they were able to create a game this long, this fast and smooth, with such intelligent gameplay mechanics and such an outstanding aural backup, on the Famicom in 1986.
It's eye. opening. to compare it to other shmups (or other games in general) on the Famicom/NES from around that time (I have much less experience with the MSX so not commenting on that).

For these reasons, it's one of my favorite shmups of all time.

Thank you for the provisioning and translation of this interview! Image
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Master O
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Re: shmuplations.com - 12/1 Zanac

Post by Master O »

blackoak wrote:It's been awhile, but here's a shmuplation that's long overdue--the gargantuan Zanac interview I kept saying I'd get to! 8)

http://shmuplations.com/zanac/

The first third mainly covers Takayuki Hirono's early days at Compile, so feel free to skip past that if you want to get straight to the Zanac info (but I think it's a good read besides). Don't know what's next for shmup translations specifically, need to take a look through the backlog and see what series I've still not covered...
Although it's not a shmup, do you have any interviews about the fighting game Darkstalkers 3 / Vampire Savior? The site already has one about Darkstalker's Revenge / Vampire Hunter. I'm merely curious.
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FRO
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Re: shmuplations.com - 12/1 Zanac

Post by FRO »

Very much enjoyed reading that Masamitsu Niitani/Compile interview! I wish Compile, and honestly, the STG scene would have been healthier approaching the mid-90's, because Aleste vs. Kaijuu would have been a cool concept to bring to fruition, and a sequel to Dennin Aleste would have been welcome.
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