Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

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Starfighter
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Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Starfighter »

Tallyho frens! I've always been struggeling with horizontal shmups. :oops: I have a hard time dodging bullets in them (it's somehow easier for me to see the trajectories when bullets are coming from the top of the screen), I find myself running into walls and obstacles too often and I mostly end up blaming all my mistakes on the format rather than my lack of skill and practice. So I was wondering, what are some horizontal shmups that fit the following:

- No checkpoint system, I start right where I died
- A minimum of walls and obstacles to collide with - or at least beeing able to touch the walls a bit and not just immediately dying
- Not an abundance of different pickups to keep track of
- Not too hard, I guess :)

Some curiosa to guide any potential suggestions:
I just recently tried to 1CC Einhänder and that was way, way, out of my league. After three weeks of practice (an hour or two every day) I ended up beating it on Easy using four continues. Perhaps that gives you an understanding of the beginner level I'm at, especially with horizontal shmups.
Horizontal shmups I've 1CCd on normal (where applicable): Darius Gaiden, Deathsmiles, Aegis Wing, Gaurodan.
Horizontal shmups I've tried my best at but failed: R-Type 1, Darius Twin, Area 88, Gradius V and Metal Black.
Horizontal shmups I'm extremely close to getting an 1CC in: Empire of Steel, Gley Lancer, Over Horizon, Redux, Super Fantasy Zone.

Thank you so much in advance!


Thread suggestions thus far:
  • Akai Katana (Got it!)
  • Andro Dunos II
  • Blazing Star
  • Cotton Rock n' Roll
  • Dariusburst AC (Got it!)
  • G-Darius (Got it!)
  • Gradius Gaiden
  • Harmful Park
  • Hellfire
  • Infinos Gaiden
  • Natsuki Chronicles
  • Progear (Got it!)
  • R-Type Leo (international version)
  • Rolling Gunner
  • SideLine (Got it!)
  • Thunder Force AC
  • Trouble Witches Neo
  • USAAF Mustang
  • Vastynex (Got it!)
  • Zero Wing
Also, here's a list of the STGs in my collection at this point.
Last edited by Starfighter on Wed May 25, 2022 7:01 am, edited 4 times in total.
Steven
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Steven »

If you are having difficulty seeing trajectories, try Natsuki Chronicles, as that literally shows you the trajectories if you want it to. I find it distracting as hell, though, so I disabled it.
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Starfighter
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Starfighter »

Steven wrote:If you are having difficulty seeing trajectories, try Natsuki Chronicles, as that literally shows you the trajectories if you want it to. I find it distracting as hell, though, so I disabled it.
That's pretty interesting! I might find it distracting as well but it's worth a shot, thanks!
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Steven »

Just know that opinions on the game are mixed. Some people really love it and some consider it a completely irredeemable pile of shit. I do think it's easily the worst game Qute has ever made, but I liked it enough on normal, although I have not really tried the arcade mode yet. Hard is too difficult for me at my current skill level and I'm stuck on stage 6 or 7 or something.
sunnshiner
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by sunnshiner »

Akai Katana Shin/Slash kind of fits the bill if you have a way to play it (x360 or Xenia on pc). No checkpoints, no pick ups and nothing to crash into (at least as far as I can get on one credit (level 3) anyway!)
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Sumez
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Sumez »

DeathSmiles?
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Stevens
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Stevens »

sunnshiner wrote:Akai Katana Shin/Slash kind of fits the bill if you have a way to play it (x360 or Xenia on pc). No checkpoints, no pick ups and nothing to crash into (at least as far as I can get on one credit (level 3) anyway!)
Akai is dope, was thinking Progear. It's a bit simpler.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by sunnshiner »

Trouble Witches Neo (again x360 or Xenia on pc) and it's on Steam too.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by sunnshiner »

Stevens wrote: Progear. It's a bit simpler.
Excellent, thanks, there's another game I get to stink at... :lol:
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BareKnuckleRoo
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by BareKnuckleRoo »

Vastynex is my recommendation: https://zakichi.ojaru.jp/vastynex.html

It ticks all the boxes. Trajectories on bullets aren't complex, it's pretty forgiving (3 hit shield, bullet blocking options, a powerful homing shot), pickups aren't complex (grab the one you want, they don't bounce), there's not too many tricky walls to evade, and it's not difficult by any means compared to other horizontal games.

I'd also suggest SideLine: https://sideline.ghegs.com/

It's got a lot more pickup types but you can read all about them here. ;) It's extremely fun, has a good soundtrack, and gives you a ton of bombs and shields to work with (both can be used to avoid or bypass terrain damage). It's tough, but if you've done Darius Gaiden, then this one should be doable too with a bit of effort, the dodging in this isn't as tough as Darius Gaiden, at least for a 1CC of the first loop (it infinite loops if you're crazy about going for score, but no TLB or anything in later loops).
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EmperorIng
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by EmperorIng »

Starfighter wrote:- No checkpoint system, I start right where I died
- A minimum of walls and obstacles to collide with - or at least beeing able to touch the walls a bit and not just immediately dying
- Not an abundance of different pickups to keep track of
- Not too hard, I guess
You're telling me you want all of this and you haven't checked out the brand new Cotton Rock n' Roll (aka Cotton Fantasy) yet? What are you waiting for man, it's like the best shmup released last year.
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Starfighter
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Starfighter »

Thank you everyone for your suggestions, I'm checking out everything!
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by John4300 »

If you liked Darius Gaiden, try out Dariusburst AC especially if you have two screens (Dariusburst Chronicle Saviours has it and the single screen mode on PC). It should be from the easier side of Darius games. Might be a tad overwhelming at first with all the ships and modes, but it's quite a blast to play anyhow. There are less walls than Darius Gaiden, and the last level of shield gives you some protection against walls like normally in Darius games (You still take shield hits rapidly however being inside a wall).

In that game even if you die, you keep all your weapon levels. Also your shield isn't limited to just 3 to 5 hits - you get extra hits from each shield powerup you pick so you might be quite tankish for the last stage if you do well in the first stages.

At this point I feel like I suggest this game in every topic like this. Oh well.

I was also going to suggest Gradius Gaiden, but that might not be your cup of tea with returning to a checkpoint after dying. It is easier than Gradius V however.
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copy-paster
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by copy-paster »

G-Darius on Lambda/upper route are pretty much free, I see tons of players (even the most beginner ones) cleared it some are no-miss too. Just get the HD port and learn how to counter beam because it will kill bosses faster and in a epic way too.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Jonpachi »

Sumez wrote:DeathSmiles?
I'd second DS as a great starting point. Maybe the most friendly horizontal shmup around.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by EmperorIng »

Horizontal shmups I've 1CCd on normal (where applicable): Deathsmiles,
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Sumez
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Sumez »

I could have sworn I did a quick ctrl+F to make sure it wasn't already mentioned >_<
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Sengoku Strider
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Sengoku Strider »

Old School:

Thunder Force AC is the GOAT given these parameters. Grab the sublime M2 Sega AGES version if you have a Switch.

Also - the recent Ratalaika release of Gynoug is excellent. As is their Gley Lancer, but that has checkpoints.

New School:

Easy Listening: Deathsmiles

BALLER MODE: Rolling Gunner
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To Far Away Times
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by To Far Away Times »

EmperorIng wrote:
Starfighter wrote:- No checkpoint system, I start right where I died
- A minimum of walls and obstacles to collide with - or at least beeing able to touch the walls a bit and not just immediately dying
- Not an abundance of different pickups to keep track of
- Not too hard, I guess
You're telling me you want all of this and you haven't checked out the brand new Cotton Rock n' Roll (aka Cotton Fantasy) yet? What are you waiting for man, it's like the best shmup released last year.
I can't recommend this game enough. Cotton Rock N Roll is one of the best modern shmups.
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bobhasashotgun
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by bobhasashotgun »

Have you tried Blazing Star? No checkpoints, pretty mild in terms of obstacles, powering up is is very straightforward, and most of then pick ups on screen are just for score. The game as whole has a greater emphasis on scoring then a lot of classic horizontal STG's seem to do.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Starfighter »

Sumez wrote:I could have sworn I did a quick ctrl+F to make sure it wasn't already mentioned >_<
No worries at all, I'm just glad people want to help! And if it turned out I hadn't played it it would've been a very good suggestion. :)
bobhasashotgun wrote:Have you tried Blazing Star? No checkpoints, pretty mild in terms of obstacles, powering up is is very straightforward, and most of then pick ups on screen are just for score. The game as whole has a greater emphasis on scoring then a lot of classic horizontal STG's seem to do.
I haven't but it sounds like what I'm looking for!

If anyone else have more suggestions I'm always interested, I make a note of everything. I've also updated the first post with your suggestions to make it easier to see what's been brought up!
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Steven »

Let's toss Andro Dunos II and Infinos Gaiden on there. Haven't spent a lot of time with Infinos Gaiden yet, but it's good.

Also try the PC Engine version of Hellfire. Almost 1CCed that the very first time I played it, but I game overed on the final stage after a chain death. Was apparently not far from the boss and therefore the ending. This game was designed and meant to be played with checkpoints, like all of Uemura's games, and both the original 1P arcade and MD versions have them, but the PC Engine version is based on the 2P arcade version, which has no checkpoints.

Normally I'd also say MD Zero Wing, but that has checkpoints. Maybe try it anyway. Pretty sure the arcade 2P version doesn't have checkpoints in 1P mode, but I haven't played it, so maybe try the 2P arcade version. MD version is the best version of the game, though, mostly because of its unbelievably good soundtrack.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by sunnshiner »

Blazing Star's a really good shout.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Steven »

I just remembered another one: USAAF Mustang. I was going to recommend it earlier, but the bullets can be hard to see in places and the second half of the game gets a bit tough in spots and the final stage is that annoying boss rush. After putting some more time into it over the past few days, I've come to like it, though, so I might as well mention it now. Just be sure to play on 2P side, as I guess 1P side doesn't get any points from the stage 4 boss but 2P side does... or something like that. Not really sure of the specifics.

I haven't played the home version, Fire Mustang, in a long time, but I'm pretty sure it's basically the same game, so try Fire Mustang as well, I guess.

Also, R-Type Leo's international version does not have checkpoints from what I understand and that game is actually pretty easy. Not sure of any other differences, but definitely try R-Type Leo's international version.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by BareKnuckleRoo »

Steven wrote:Also, R-Type Leo's international version does not have checkpoints from what I understand and that game is actually pretty easy. Not sure of any other differences, but definitely try R-Type Leo's international version.
R-Type Leo's international version is a good suggestion. It's an unusual and rare example of a western version that's arguably better than the JP one. The controls are improved too (two buttons instead of one button), and the lack of checkpoints makes it much friendlier to play.

Note that while the game is fairly chill, it does take a steep difficulty climb at the second-last boss, and the final stage has some nasty spots, particularly the hopping enemies before the final boss. However, if you've beaten Darius Gaiden and Deathsmiles, I don't think these would be insurmountable to learn by any means, and the game's fun homing attack is well worth checking out.

I see Blazing Star's been suggested. I'd say it's a fairly tough game but you'll have fun with it as long as you setup autofire for it. Otherwise it's quite mashy. The ship with the large frontal shield can block a lot of shots and is decently damaging, and has the easiest time with several attacks in the game including the final boss's massive bullet sprays.

If you're into Deathsmiles, why not check out another game that lets you attack left and right? Look into Raiga Strato Fighter. You're massively powerful when at max shot power, and get a ton of extends... but you also depower heavily on a death, so it's still a tricky game. 1 loop clear is pretty manageable I think.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Steven »

BareKnuckleRoo wrote:R-Type Leo's international version is a good suggestion. It's an unusual and rare example of a western version that's arguably better than the JP one. The controls are improved too (two buttons instead of one button), and the lack of checkpoints makes it much friendlier to play.

Note that while the game is fairly chill, it does take a steep difficulty climb at the second-last boss, and the final stage has some nasty spots, particularly the hopping enemies before the final boss. However, if you've beaten Darius Gaiden and Deathsmiles, I don't think these would be insurmountable to learn by any means, and the game's fun homing attack is well worth checking out.
Yeah, I had some difficulty with that last stage. Had to feed it a few coins to get through it. Still, R-Type Leo is a great game and a lot of fun to play. The lack of a home release outside of that poorly emulated Windows version that isn't even available to buy anymore is extremely disappointing.
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by BareKnuckleRoo »

I can't believe this thread's gone this long without mentioning the rare and unusual PS1 game Harmful Park, and I can't believe I didn't think of it yet. Fantastic game, some of the best spritework ever made and the default difficulty is very easy (though you can crank it up to be a nice challenge). It's a hori with switch-on-the-fly style weaponry, and each weapon as its own bomb you can use.

There's no too much terrain to worry about, but you can touch it safely without dying (unless it crushes you at the screen edge which isn't ever a major threat).
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Starfighter »

BareKnuckleRoo wrote:I can't believe this thread's gone this long without mentioning the rare and unusual PS1 game Harmful Park, and I can't believe I didn't think of it yet. Fantastic game, some of the best spritework ever made and the default difficulty is very easy (though you can crank it up to be a nice challenge). It's a hori with switch-on-the-fly style weaponry, and each weapon as its own bomb you can use.

There's no too much terrain to worry about, but you can touch it safely without dying (unless it crushes you at the screen edge which isn't ever a major threat).
I'm very interested in getting Harmful Park! It's been on my wishlist for over 15 years but I've never found a realistically priced opportunity to buy it. :(
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by Sengoku Strider »

BareKnuckleRoo wrote:I can't believe this thread's gone this long without mentioning the rare and unusual PS1 game Harmful Park
Well, it never left Japan, has never been re-released - digitally or anything, and is literally the most expensive PlayStation game in any region. So that's one stumbling block.
To Far Away Times wrote:I can't recommend this game enough. Cotton Rock N Roll is one of the best modern shmups.
My copy just got here a couple of days ago so I haven't gotten into it yet, but I watched the review Shmup Junkie put up 2 days ago and man, it looks amazing.
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To Far Away Times
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Re: Looking for a certain type of horizontal shmup

Post by To Far Away Times »

Sengoku Strider wrote:
BareKnuckleRoo wrote:I can't believe this thread's gone this long without mentioning the rare and unusual PS1 game Harmful Park
Well, it never left Japan, has never been re-released - digitally or anything, and is literally the most expensive PlayStation game in any region. So that's one stumbling block.
To Far Away Times wrote:I can't recommend this game enough. Cotton Rock N Roll is one of the best modern shmups.
My copy just got here a couple of days ago so I haven't gotten into it yet, but I watched the review Shmup Junkie put up 2 days ago and man, it looks amazing.
One of the best things about Cotton Rock N Roll is that the ship selection changes the game so much. Cotton (the character) plays nothing like Fine (who has a draining and rechargeable health meter), who plays nothing like Ria (who plays like the Psyvariar games). I've never quite seen anything like it in a tightly scripted shmup with just how much the character choice impacts the way the game plays. It's so cool. A shit ton of effort must have went into that.

Also, the way the game integrates it's 3D backgrounds into the game play is a real treat. It doesn't feel like the game is 3D rendered beacuse it's easier or cheaper. It feels like it should be 3D.
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