You really need to play Mecha Ritz

[Squire Grooktook]

Hey I can do this too :3 Since someone mentioned it in the Degica/Eschatos thread anyway.

Anyway, I was introduced to this game earlier this year by Jaimers video, and having played it a ton by now, I have to say it's easily one of my favorite shmups ever and definitely my favorite doujin shmup (*edit* errr I forgot CRS68K was doujin too, TIED then).

Basic gist of the game is that it's rank based but the anti-Garegga: The more you score, the more rank rises (as opposed to Garegga where you score to gain more lives to suicide to lower rank etc.). The thing is though, you're not really "punished" for scoring because rank drops very fast when you get hit, and you have tons of resources to survive. Survival is actually pretty easy most of the time, but the game still has an exhilarating feel and a lot of tension since you're in a constant tug of war to raise rank higher and see what more the game has to offer (both in terms of score and how patterns change with rank). It's incredibly addictive and fun IMO.

The patterns are amazing. Very much in the style of manic "shooters". Lots of really clever, well designed stuff with just the right balance of strategy, micro, macro, confusion/sight reading, random-elements, gimmicks, etc. I think I like them more than those in Dangun Feveron or Dragon Blaze in terms of fast bullets/manic shooting. They also change dramatically with rank, sometimes becoming almost completely different with things like homing or large bullets and shit. Level design is great too, lots of varied enemy's and set pieces, and it does a great job of forcing you to constantly move across the screen at full speed whilst dodging bullets.

Really recommend everyone give this game a shot. I'd probably say that it's my favorite fast-bullet/manic shooter. I don't know how deep the rabit hole goes in terms of scoring mechanics on this one, since it's relatively new and not a lot of people have dug into it, but so far it's been an amazing ride for me.

[Shepardus]

I second this recommendation, very fun game and definitely surprising for a freeware doujin. Check out the high score thread since merely clearing on normal difficulty is pretty trivial due to how many resources the game throws at you (the hard difficulty is significantly more challenging to clear though). You can also find some more information about the game on that thread (I posted a link to a Google-translated copy of the manual there).

Scoring revolves largely around doing things as fast as possible, avoiding using bombs and shields or losing lives, and point-blanking item carriers to get the maximum bonuses from them. Pushing rank up will help with doing things quickly, since it's tied to your shot level (making boss/midboss kills quicker) and at least according to the manual the rate at which the game scrolls through levels is also tied to rank, which is pretty rare for a shmup. I haven't compared in depth yet just how much faster the game is at high rank compared to low rank, but I definitely end up with much more time left when I do better. Maybe the game is even speedrunnable to a certain extent?

The game shows all of its end of stage and end of game scoring calculations, but I'll just give a quick overview. At the end of each stage you get a base point value based on the number of lives, shields, and bombs you have left, which is then multiplied by a value calculated from your rank and time left, and that is your stage clear bonus. At the end of the game, your total score is multiplied by a factor calculated from the maximum rank you reached and the total time you took across all stages. So if you reach a high rank and complete the game quickly, you can get an absurd multiplier on your entire score (23 in Jaimers' video). You get extra time after each stage based on a constant + how many time bonuses you got from killing bosses/midbosses quickly. By the way, running out of time doesn't end your game, but replaces the TLB with a "fake" TLB.

Also, this game has an awesome soundtrack.

[Squire Grooktook]

Yeah there are extra enemy waves that show up if you kill everything as fast as possible. Very similar to to Dangun Feveron on that note. Minor cool little detail on that note, but I like how the need to point blank item carriers results in a little extra bit of rhythm to shooting and movement. Can't just blindly spray.

Oh yeah and the frequency of mini-bosses is also worth noting. Borderlines on some Radiant Silvergun shit, but just barely falls into a more traditional kind of pacing none-the less. Lots of variety though.

I think Recca might be an influence too, given how "over the top" some zako swarms movement and speed is near the end. The game is very flashy and over the top in a way that many danmaku/manic shmups aren't.

[Squire Grooktook]

I can't believe nobody mentioned the peculiar yet mind-blowing soundtrack yet.

Yeah, stage 3 theme is amazing, and both phases of the final boss are quirky and adrenaline pumping at the same time.

I just wish there was a way to lock the minimum rank, though. With things moving that fast I always make a couple of stupid mistakes here and there, and then it could take a while to raise the rank up to an enjoyable difficulty again.

Have you unlocked/tried hard mode yet? Rank is locked at minimum 100 and can rise indefinitely.

[Lord Satori]

I absolutely love this game! The way the sounds, graphics, and music fit together are practically orgasmic! It's a shame there aren't many more games like this.

[Elixir]

Discovered this back at release and it's pretty unique. I love the music too, it has a very Megadrive-esque feel to it. If you're into the music, the creator HEY actually has a couple of soundcloud accounts which I would recommend checking out.

The game's style is precisely what I look for in a shmup, so definitely check it out if you're interested.

[Shepardus]

(btw you might want to actually add a link to the game in the opening post)

[Drake]

yes yes yes yes yes yes yes

[Immryr]

Haven't got around to playing this yet, but I watched jaimers' replay last week. It looks great, the patterns look completely stupid (in a good way).

[Squire Grooktook]

Haven't got around to playing this yet, but I watched jailers' replay last week. It looks great, the patterns look completely stupid (in a good way).

Keep in mind it's only like that with advanced score play. You need to be seriously good to boost rank that far. I've only gotten near that plateau once. Things look a lot less stupid (but still awesome) otherwise.

[ATTRACTS]

Beautiful game, thank you for the share/suggestion.

[horaceappleton]

This game is such a treat. I've only given it a few credits so far but it does a really good job of easing you toward better play, which is honestly all I ask out of a shooter at this point. I'm looking forward to what it yields with better memorization & with higher starting rank.

Also I love its mega-drive-but-even-uglier instrumentation and the funky flicker effect during the cutscenes so, so much

[cave hermit]

I'll give it a shot maybe over the weekend when I have some free time; hoping to be pleasantly surprised!

[MathU]

Oh wow, a doujin game that actually allows you to set your own keyboard inputs for once? This is revolutionary, other doujin developers please take note! Arrow keys suck!

[CStarFlare]

Does this game have autofire? I feel like that would be really nice to have.

[Special World]

Looks great. Been meaning to check it out since you've been repping it so hard. Downloading now!

[Squire Grooktook]

Does this game have autofire? I feel like that would be really nice to have.

It uses the shot/laser format of a Cave game, it's just that the equivalents of "laser" tend to be very wacky (steerable missile, close range ripple, etc.). The tap rate for "shot" is pretty low and easy though. Can't remember if there's a "full auto" button.

Looks great. Been meaning to check it out since you've been repping it so hard. Downloading now!

Sweet!

I like to think of the game as kind of a spiritual successor to both Cho Ren Sha 68k and Dangun Feveron. It has the emphasis on fast movement from both games, and the fast bullets and emphasis on speed killing DF does. It has more numerous and complex boss fights then CRS68K though, and more chaotic flak flying around than DF. It's really my favorite "fast bullet"/Manic Shooter game at this point.

[MathU]

So does this game have a bit of intentional slowdown or is my computer really that old now?

[Shepardus]

The game slows down a bit for me too in certain places, mainly when a bunch of bullets are being spawned at the same time (e.g. suicide bullets when killing bosses and a couple boss patterns such as those at the start of the stage 4 boss). Given how fast the rest of the game is, I doubt it's intentional; maybe it's a limitation of the engine it was made in? (it was made using something called Shooting Game Builder)

[Special World]

Didn't know how to feel about this at first. I really disliked it for how "iffy" everything is: the way enemy shots just disappear combined with the prevalence of shields makes the game feel like it's going way too easy on you. There's that sort of uncertainty there that counteracts the more solid feel of traditional STG mechanics. But playing it more today, I like it a lot more. For one because you can jack up the rank beforehand (really looking forward to hard mode and never having to dip into "disappearing bullets" territory again), but also because I dig the flashier rainbow bullets, which are a little more distinct. And that soundtrack really is a hell of a thing, with the sound effects adding a lot of ambiance.

Also really love that boss with a tunnel in the center (with the floating orbs that remind me of the police car boss in Ginga Force) and those cool green and pink... targeting reticle enemies that cancel when you destroy them. Plus the ring boss that you have to dive into to destroy. Pretty fun game, and even if I didn't like it, I'd admire it. Wish this STG creation tool was available in English.

[Shepardus]

Have you unlocked/tried hard mode yet? Rank is locked at minimum 100 and can rise indefinitely.

By the way, I think the rank in hard mode is capped at 300. A bit disappointing that it doesn't go up forever but it's plenty hard enough to get to and stay at 300 anyway.

[MathU]

They also change dramatically with rank, sometimes becoming almost completely different with things like homing or large bullets and shit.

Can you actually name any examples of this? I'm beginning to think you were exaggerating a bit. The only difference I've detected between the Rank levels is that the higher modes simply don't "delete" as many bullets out of the guns as the lower ones and the bullets move faster of course. In fact in some cases higher Rank actually makes the game easier because you can destroy boss phases before certain patterns have a chance to pop up due to your more powerful gun.

This game's adaptive difficulty system is pretty nice, but it's still no Hellsinker.

[Domino]

I swear whoever did the SE must had taken plenty of ques from V-Five. Some stuff sounds too familiar to V-Five.

[Squire Grooktook]

They also change dramatically with rank, sometimes becoming almost completely different with things like homing or large bullets and shit.

Can you actually name any examples of this? I'm beginning to think you were exaggerating a bit. The only difference I've detected between the Rank levels is that the higher modes simply don't "delete" as many bullets out of the guns as the lower ones and the bullets move faster of course. In fact in some cases higher Rank actually makes the game easier because you can destroy boss phases before certain patterns have a chance to pop up due to your more powerful gun.

This game's adaptive difficulty system is pretty nice, but it's still no Hellsinker.

Not a lot off the top of my head, but 200+ rank or so, some bullets become huge, and homing effect gets applied to certain stuff. It can be quite the eye opener.

Didn't know how to feel about this at first. I really disliked it for how "iffy" everything is: the way enemy shots just disappear combined with the prevalence of shields makes the game feel like it's going way too easy on you. There's that sort of uncertainty there that counteracts the more solid feel of traditional STG mechanics. But playing it more today, I like it a lot more. For one because you can jack up the rank beforehand (really looking forward to hard mode and never having to dip into "disappearing bullets" territory again), but also because I dig the flashier rainbow bullets, which are a little more distinct. And that soundtrack really is a hell of a thing, with the sound effects adding a lot of ambiance.

Also really love that boss with a tunnel in the center (with the floating orbs that remind me of the police car boss in Ginga Force) and those cool green and pink... targeting reticle enemies that cancel when you destroy them. Plus the ring boss that you have to dive into to destroy. Pretty fun game, and even if I didn't like it, I'd admire it. Wish this STG creation tool was available in English.

I was actually never at low enough rank to catch disappearing bullets :smugface:

Also I have a save file in my high score thread that has all the ship types and difficulties unlocked.

[MathU]

I wish this game had some sort of visual indicator for when your shot is actually more powerful.

[Shepardus]

The shot does change a bit when you reach a new power level, for example fighter 01's rapid fire shot becomes wider as you increase in power. It just increments every 20 rank anyway.

[MathU]

It seems completely indistinguishable on some of the ships.

[Special World]

I was actually never at low enough rank to catch disappearing bullets :smugface:

I'm pretty sure you'd have seen it the first time you played, considering the rank starts at 0. Unless you can jack up the rank for the first game?

Either way, this game is hella cool. Very stylish.

[Squire Grooktook]

Yeah, I went as high as possible ASAP (maybe I saw it on stage 1, but I can't remember). Not a lot of danger since the game falls so sharply to compensate. You can pretty much be aggressive as you want (Yagawa this is not)

Keep playing though, the patterns and level designs get so damn good.

[Squire Grooktook]

Time isn't so much a challenge as it is an emergency back out for if you want to clear but absolutely don't want to fight the tlb under any circumstances.