Mobile shmups - do you play them?

[MathU]

There are only a few types of games for which a touchscreen as primary means of control actually works well. Sadly, real-time action games with a player avatar, such as scrolling shooters, are definitely not among them.

No, I get my portable video game fix on dedicated video game systems, and I prefer to use phones for communicating with people. Frankly, I often feel like IP owners porting shooters to phones over dedicated game systems is a big middle finger to their fans. The enhanced screen resolutions of this recent handheld generation have been a perfect opportunity to port many of the arcade games from the '90s and late '80s. Instead, Taito has decided they would rather challenge people to beat an already brutal game like Rayforce on a goddamn touchscreen.

[Bananamatic]

only losers play video games in public in the first place

[Krimzon Kitzune]

only losers play video games in public in the first place

What about arcades, though?

[Bananamatic]

even worse

[davyK]

Not convinced mobile and shooters go together. Sampled Futari on iPhone. They made as good a job as they could of it - but I can't get around plonking your finger on the screen.

There may come a day when a shmup that is designed from the ground up as a mobile/touch game appears. That might produce something rather good. But until that happens I remain uninterested.

If a tablet could be propped up in tate aspect and connected to a nice controller then you could have a mini arcade type of setup but that's not really mobile gaming.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

If a tablet could be propped up in tate aspect and connected to a nice controller then you could have a mini arcade type of setup but that's not really mobile gaming.

This is what I have for both my Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.0 tablet and Apple Mini iPad 2 with Retina Display tablet (circa 2014 + has 1080p support from the get-go) -- both have tablet carrying cases that allow for tate & yoko + the appropiate gamepads to play the mobile shmup apps that do support such bluetooth powered gamepads. Still better than having to be stuck with using the capacitive touch screen setup any ol' day, indeed.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[jdollatari]

i have played gunbird and recently dodonpachi on my android phone a galaxy s6 they are fun to play when stuck somewhere like work

[LiqMat]

One of the few iOS mobile shmups that I somewhat like is "Independence: The Last Hope" from a Korean developer, but it is unfortunately no longer available in the Apple App Store. Could not find any info on it online so I did a longplay for historical purposes.

https://youtu.be/IUOqXD1Ptd8

[Elunil]

You guys should consider "Shogun : Rise of the Renegade". They made everything really smart in terms of inputs, dynamic difficulty and it runs super smooth

[qmish]

Inheritage Boundary of Existance aint available on ios anymore too, though should be on android

[tate]

According to Famitsu, the Ray series is being re-released/released on mobile. RayForce this spring with controller support and a new track from Zuntata. RayStorm also this spring. RayCrisis will be released for the first time on mobile this summer. I am cautiously optimistic; may have to finally padhack a MFi controller for arcade stick use.

[Gespenst]

No mention whether they're (especially Rayforce and Raystorm) iOS exclusive or not?

[tate]

No mention whether they're (especially Rayforce and Raystorm) iOS exclusive or not?

No, but Famitsu is platform agnostic, so there is reason to believe that Android might be in the mix. It would make sense given the use of the term re-release and the availability of Dariusburst on Android. The fact that Android doesn't have stupid controller restrictions like MFi would be a bonus.

BTW, I forgot to mention that these are part of a new line called Taito Classics that includes other releases – the primary purpose of the blurb was to announce Time Gal – and could be indicative of more care in the ports.

[EDIT: Time Gal is out for both iOS and Android, so signs point towards yes.]

[ReSe2k]

no
i have played strikers1945ii a bit, but the touch controls are pretty bad for shmups imo

[el_rika]

no
i have played strikers1945ii a bit, but the touch controls are pretty bad for shmups imo

Like in any other gaming related issue, there is a learning curve.
I remember transitioning from arcade stick to console pad, waaay back. WOW, it was painful, i could never consistently do a hadouken. I still have issues with fighting games on consoles (on smartphone though, i rarely miss a special move, rarely)
Shmups are not that hard to get used to. I am talking virtual joystick (emus), not that crap finger under ship movement, that is bs. Joystick will forever be king, but V-joystick is not that bad

[Despatche]

I am incredibly alarmed by the idea of transitioning from a stick to a controller. Seems like self-harm, and I don't even use sticks.

[Gespenst]

RayForce for Android is out now, the iOS one has been updated too.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... o.rayforce

[reckon luck]

^Bought it, played a few levels, refunded it. The more 'serious' I get about shmups, the less I like playing on my phone.

I hope they get around to releasing these on PC/console.

[qmish]

but... after a hard long day.. a bit of casual shmupping laying in bed before sleep...

[John4300]

I've completed DariusBurst SP few times now on mobile - I had to buy a stylus to play it with.

Playing on mobile will give you a whole new fear for walls. Those stages before you get Hyper Arm to protect you from walls will be super stressful! Especially bad is the second to last, middle route on SP mode with the trash going around, which is similar to Zone G on AC.

Overall, I don't know how much I like the game, just because of the control scheme. It's an upgrade to DariusBurst on PSP, but using touch screen to move your ship is... Not very good. Even with stylus, the ship hops around like crazy. You'll also cramp your arm trying to press the burst/shoot toggle with your other hand. Maybe I'd need a phone with a better touch screen. The game is good waste of time on train however, if I don't bother keeping 3DS with me. Would be nice if the game had some kind of midpoint save system.

About the game overall, as said it's similar to the PSP port. A little better. I didn't see much of a difference on SP mode to the original mode, other than that they made enemies fly past the screen like on AC or CS so you'll know when and where they'll appear. Counter bursting doesn't need to be timed, but if you cut in too fast you'll take a hit.

I need to test out if you can play the game with a bluetooth controller. I don't think the game had a support for that however.

[monouchi]

No.

[qmish]

Dariusburst SP introduced some of my favorite music tracks to DB's huge ost though

[Stompp]

I occasionally play Phoenix 2 and BHM for killing time.

[CHI]

Yes, only just recently...
For the past week I've been playing DariusBurst SP seriously out of boredom

[BurlyHeart]

I play Gunbird 2 and Strikers 1945 II sometimes, but overall not a fan of shmups on a phone.

[el_rika]

Managed to completely blow away my previous PB (around 2.5 mil) in Dodonpachi level 1




Now i'm trying a bit of Danmaku Unlimited 2 lite, but i find the full touch controls really awkward campared to the touchpad from the emulators. I just need to get used to it i guess.

[John4300]

I'm extremely surprised. DariusBurst SP supports a bluetooth controller, but it works kinda weird with it. You can't move around menus, but you can highlight and select a choice. In game it works great, your ship is kinda fast however.

With this, the game actually becomes playable!

[blackpawn]

Playing shmups has been one of the primary uses for my iPad since I first got one.

[Goompaolo9500]

Strikers 1945 II and III are decent enough for mobile shmupping, regarding the Android ports. Definitely a great way to kill some time if you have to be somewhere other than home. I highly advise against downloading the port of the first game. Everything about it is atrocious and that's putting it kindly as I could say much worse things about it.

Psikyo Shmups on mobile.
Strikers 1945 series and Gunbird 2 on Mobirix's side, Samurai Aces on APXSOFT's side.

[Mero]

Bit late to the party but I've been hammering Bullet Hell Monday lately, great game.