Shmups with an alternate stage system?

This is the main shmups forum. Chat about shmups in here - keep it on-topic please!
Hazuki
Posts: 29
Joined: Mon Jan 25, 2021 1:56 pm

Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Hazuki »

I'm thinking of something like Akumajou Densetsu or D&D Tower of Doom/Shadow over Mystara's stage system, where the path occasionally splits during play and whatever stage you don't pick is cast away from the run.

I may have played a few shooters with such feature before but nothing comes to mind right now. I can only think of linear ones, which is the majority.
User avatar
Rastan78
Posts: 1964
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 2:08 am

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Rastan78 »

Darius series is the obvious one most famous for this. Most of them let you choose a stage after each boss, but G Darius also let's you choose a branching path within each stage.

Raiden Fighters Jet has a system where your performance is graded at the end of the stage and the next one you get sent to will be automatically chosen based on your performance in a bunch of areas. Enemies killed, survival, bonuses collected etc.
User avatar
ACSeraph
Posts: 2724
Joined: Sat Jul 19, 2008 2:00 am
Location: Tokyo

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by ACSeraph »

Well, the obvious one is the Darius series with its branching stages as stated above. There are some other games that have a similar system in place, Neogeo Heroes for example.

Then you have games with Semi-random stage order, most of Psikyo's stuff is like that.

And finally you have a number of games where the paths change depending on player actions. A really famous example would be DFK's secret paths, but there are other examples like Triangle Service's Delta Zeal (G-Stream G2020).
<STG.1cc> 死ぬがよい <ACT.1cc>
Image
Hazuki
Posts: 29
Joined: Mon Jan 25, 2021 1:56 pm

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Hazuki »

Oh right, Darius. I've only beaten Darius Twin on SFC long ago (which seems to be among the weaker entries in the series), but had completely forgotten about it.

It's a series I've been neglecting for a long time but will want to play properly eventually.

By the way, I just remembered another one with that feature: Twilight Refrain (doujin shooter).
User avatar
Sengoku Strider
Posts: 2203
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:21 am

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Sengoku Strider »

I've never played it, but does Technosoft's Blast Wind on the Saturn fit this category?
User avatar
Kiken
Posts: 3954
Joined: Tue Jan 25, 2005 11:08 pm
Contact:

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Kiken »

Choutetsu Brikin'gr (on Neo-CD) borrows Darius' selectible branching path system. Radiant Silvergun's arcade mode has the player choose between either doing Stage 2 or Stage 4 after clearing stage 3.
User avatar
AntiFritz
Posts: 1629
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2011 2:34 am
Location: Australia

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by AntiFritz »

Kingdom Grandprix has you picking between two levels (3 for the final) with the levels you didn't pick being playable in the second loop but only if you make the loop requirement.
RegalSin wrote:Rape is very shakey subject. It falls into the catergory of Womens right, Homosexaul rights, and Black rights.
User avatar
Herr Schatten
Posts: 3259
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 12:14 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Herr Schatten »

The most recent example is certainly R-Type Final 2, where you pick one of three pairs of final stages at the end of stage 5.
Buffi
Posts: 192
Joined: Sat Jul 22, 2006 5:17 pm
Location: Sweden

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Buffi »

Sonic Wings 3 does this also (shoot left/right side of the ship at end of stage to select branch)

edit: Border Down is another one
StrzxgvNuvWvfld
Posts: 86
Joined: Fri Aug 25, 2017 12:26 pm

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by StrzxgvNuvWvfld »

Not quite the same, but Borderdown lets you choose from three different routes through each stage.

Edit: The edit above wasn't there when I posted :)
User avatar
Mortificator
Posts: 2808
Joined: Tue Jun 19, 2007 1:13 am
Location: A star occupied by the Bydo Empire

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Mortificator »

Garegga / Batrider / Bakraid have a stage edit feature, where the first and last stages will be the same, and the player choose which stages in which order will be played between them. RayCrisis also lets you select the same stage multiple times in the same run, difficulty increasing each time.
RegalSin wrote:You can't even drive across the country Naked anymore
User avatar
LordHypnos
Posts: 1960
Joined: Sun Mar 09, 2014 11:59 pm
Location: Mars Colony, 2309

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by LordHypnos »

Great Fairy Wars has you choosing from multiple possible stages. Can't remember the details as it's been way too long.
YouTube | Restart Syndrome | 1cclist | Go Play Mars Matrix
Solunas wrote:How to Takumi your scoring system
1) Create Scoring System
2) Make it a multiplier for your actual score
xxx1993

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by xxx1993 »

Border Down. The stage slightly changes if you lose a life.
User avatar
Starfighter
Posts: 185
Joined: Sun May 11, 2008 7:15 pm
Location: Sweden

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Starfighter »

Does random count? Because I remember Strikers 1945 II handing the first four stages to the player in a random order.
User avatar
Sengoku Strider
Posts: 2203
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:21 am

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Sengoku Strider »

If just choices of single stages are admissible, Tengai/Sengoku Blade's final level lets you choose two distinct routes which produce different endings.
User avatar
Rastan78
Posts: 1964
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2005 2:08 am

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Rastan78 »

OP was asking about games where you won't complete the all levels in one playthrough ie Akamajou Densetsu. If you were talking about games with variable stage order ie GB Castlevania 2 Belmont's Revenge that would likely be a much larger list and kind of a different topic. Psikyo games, Thunder Force III and IV and so on.

I'm a big fan of the branching path style as far as replay value so I'm also curious what other shmups are out there with this feature.
User avatar
MathU
Posts: 2172
Joined: Thu Jun 28, 2007 11:13 pm
Location: Paranoia

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by MathU »

Star Fox and Star Fox 64 of course.
Space Invaders Extreme 1 and 2.
Of course, that's just an opinion.
Always seeking netplay fans to play emulated arcade games with.
User avatar
NMS
Posts: 72
Joined: Tue Sep 08, 2020 10:41 am
Location: Yes

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by NMS »

Not exactly a different stage altogether, but there are branching paths within stages in Panzer Dragoon Zwei, which means you won't be able to see everything a level has to offer in one run.
User avatar
PerishedFraud ឵឵
Posts: 536
Joined: Fri Jul 19, 2019 9:36 am
Location: To escape from our Utopia

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by PerishedFraud ឵឵ »

Minishoter RS Delta (yes, shoter) has you covered. Prolly even named Delta for that to begin with. Each stage has an A and B version and a square next to the level shows you which route you're entering by changing color. Prerequisites vary greatly, from collecting an item to killing certain or all enemies, to just being on the upper or lower end of the screen after the boss dies. Because the game is full of unlocks it's really nice to go through it the first time, unlock all the ships and minigames, and see all the possible stages.

Free starter tip: don't kill the white face enemies on stage 1 for the first alternate one to trigger.

Also it's free. And if the screen size bothers you there's other free programs that fix it easily.
Last edited by PerishedFraud ឵឵ on Fri Jun 18, 2021 8:10 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Image
Fun Over Victory| Shitpost Central | Shmusic Archive | Old Account | tuckfouhou@gmail.com
User avatar
LordHypnos
Posts: 1960
Joined: Sun Mar 09, 2014 11:59 pm
Location: Mars Colony, 2309

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by LordHypnos »

Fantasy Zone II DX has light and dark versions of each stage. You can go back and forth between them or just stick to one or the other. I believe there's a separate ending for if you complete all stages on the dark side, but I never made it that far. Very fun game, too.
YouTube | Restart Syndrome | 1cclist | Go Play Mars Matrix
Solunas wrote:How to Takumi your scoring system
1) Create Scoring System
2) Make it a multiplier for your actual score
User avatar
dark
Posts: 202
Joined: Sun Feb 03, 2013 12:00 am

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by dark »

Majestic 12 (japanese version of Super Space Invaders) lets you pick what stage you go to next.
User avatar
Austin
Posts: 1263
Joined: Sun Aug 29, 2010 6:32 pm
Location: Fairfax, VA
Contact:

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Austin »

I believe the MS-DOS shooter Tyrian has some points where you can choose to go to one stage or another, which has an effect on what levels you actually play during any given episode. Then there are hidden bonus levels as well.
User avatar
PerishedFraud ឵឵
Posts: 536
Joined: Fri Jul 19, 2019 9:36 am
Location: To escape from our Utopia

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by PerishedFraud ឵឵ »

Tyrian's secret levels are pretty much the golden standard for such things in shmups. The first level famously has three different secret levels leading form it. There's also a chain of three secret levels you can take later on if I remember correctly. Finally depending on your gameplay at a later chapter's boss you can go down different level variants.
Image
Fun Over Victory| Shitpost Central | Shmusic Archive | Old Account | tuckfouhou@gmail.com
Hazuki
Posts: 29
Joined: Mon Jan 25, 2021 1:56 pm

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Hazuki »

Rastan78 wrote:OP was asking about games where you won't complete the all levels in one playthrough ie Akamajou Densetsu. If you were talking about games with variable stage order ie GB Castlevania 2 Belmont's Revenge that would likely be a much larger list and kind of a different topic. Psikyo games, Thunder Force III and IV and so on.
Yeah, I meant it exactly like that. It's even better if there's also a 2 loops feature, so you can play one side of the stages in the 1st loop and the other in the 2nd. I'm wondering what games out there have this combination. I know Darius Twin doesn't, but what about the other titles in the series? I have yet to play them.

Thanks for all the info so far guys, I'll want to look into those when I have time.
User avatar
Sengoku Strider
Posts: 2203
Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2020 6:21 am

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Sengoku Strider »

Hazuki wrote: Yeah, I meant it exactly like that. It's even better if there's also a 2 loops feature, so you can play one side of the stages in the 1st loop and the other in the 2nd. I'm wondering what games out there have this combination.
I referenced Tengai/Sengoku Blade having two different final stages earlier. It does have a second loop, where you'll be pushed to the stage you didn't pick on the first loop. One of the two stages is harder than the other, meaning if you take the easy way out on the first loop, you'll get pulverized in the harder one at the end of the second loop.
User avatar
CIT
Posts: 4641
Joined: Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:39 pm
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by CIT »

Raiden Fighters Jet and Image Fight I&II have performance based level progression. In the former you can reach the real battle stages sooner by not dying (iirc), in the latter two you get sent to an extra penalty stage if your enemy kill ratio is too low.
User avatar
Jeneki
Posts: 2500
Joined: Wed Aug 12, 2009 4:56 pm
Location: Minnesota, USA

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Jeneki »

Homura (arcade/ps2) is probably closest to the indicated games; a little ways into each stage you pick which path to take. Also Blast Wind, as was already mentioned.
Typos caused by cat on keyboard.
User avatar
donluca
Posts: 852
Joined: Sat Feb 28, 2015 8:51 pm
Location: Italy
Contact:

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by donluca »

If I understood correctly what OP is asking, then Dodonpachi Daifukkatsu Arrange (I believe?) does this if you meet certain criteria.

IIRC before the midboss you get teleported to a parallel stage with a different midboss.
Ixmucane2
Posts: 760
Joined: Mon Jan 19, 2009 3:26 pm
Location: stuck at the continue prompt

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by Ixmucane2 »

Apart from the unusually simple kill and timeout requirements, Tyrian secret levels are also notable because some contain exotic special weapons that can be collected and retained forever (including the next loops).
User avatar
FabulousVioletGuy
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Mar 06, 2018 5:18 am

Re: Shmups with an alternate stage system?

Post by FabulousVioletGuy »

Namco's Tenkomori Shooting has a choose-your-own-level system, not sure how it determines the 4 you get to select from though. Also, Sexy Parodius' mission-based branching structure.
Post Reply