Takahashi Meijin's crowdfunded shooter: Star Gagnant

[BrianC]

The switch page confirms that is it Terarin.

[xxx1993]

Is it really Switch exclusive, though? Not on Steam or anything?

[Leander]

Is it really Switch exclusive, though? Not on Steam or anything?

Nothing confirmed but I think terarin said a Steam port at least is likely.

[xxx1993]

Either way, I still might get it for Switch.

[Ghegs]

There's a 2-level demo out, at least on Switch. Gave it a whirl, and it's as Star Soldier as expected with similar hidden bonuses. The only major difference is the rapid fire system. Holding down the fire button will still rapid fire, but the shots are weak. Repeatedly tapping the fire button actives more powerful shots, from yellow, to green, to blue. The faster you tap, the more damage the shots do. There's also a meter that empties whenever you use more powerful shots, and if it's empty, you have to use just the "holding down the button" rapid fire for a while, but there are also frequently items that fill the gauge.

This is a really weird design decision in this day and age. Had the demo continued to a third stage I would've stopped playing simply because I was already starting to feel some discomfort in my hand. Were I buy the game and start playing seriously, I'd just use my 8BitDo Controller to have two fire buttons, with turbo fire activated on one of them. I can only imagine the mechanic exists solely due to Takahashi Meijin's whole "16 shots per second" -shtick. It's something that should've stayed in the 80's. Other than that, the game feels fun.

I do like Star Soldier titles and Terarin's games, I have most of them on Switch (Gemini Arms is a personal favorite), but it'll take a serious discount before I'll pick this up. Even the -40% launch discount isn't enough for me personally.

[Steven]

That sounds annoying as fuck!

Everyone is going to play this with external autofire now. I think a decent amount of Hori controllers have autofire, so maybe not a big deal, but still a weird decision to make the game like this.

Does the game let you assign 2 separate fire buttons or do you have to do that externally? I guess I can just go download the demo and find out myself, but...

[Ghegs]

Does the game let you assign 2 separate fire buttons or do you have to do that externally? I guess I can just go download the demo and find out myself, but...

The game lets you only have one fire button, so you need something external to be able to have two.

[Sima Tuna]

Not only would I not want to play a game that way, but I'm pretty sure I am not able to play it. I have joint problems which prohibit me from repetitive mashing in games. I play almost every game with autofire because of this. Very baffling design decision to cater to the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Enjoyers crowd, Star Gagnant.

[EmperorIng]

Star Pregnant looking to be the shmup that kills off miserable dadshmuppers for good by ruining their wrists; I can kind of vibe with that. End us all.

[Rastan78]

I mean it's unique and will no doubt appeal to a specific type of mashaholic. Kind of makes sense given Takahashi's whole watermelon smashing fingertip of steel thing. Do I want to play it? Not really, but I'm not mad a its existence. And I guess we'll have to wait and see for sure how this is handled. Could autofire be a code? A separate mode or unlockable?

The whole accessibility thing is a bit more of a thorny issue. I do think it's a bit more acceptable for niche releases to have problems with accessibility or not to be made for every player out there compared to say a big budget release meant for the masses. SF6 looks to be doing amazing things with playability for blind players which is great for example. In this case it's sort of cool if they're saying hey here's the style of gameplay we want to put out as a throwback to the Star Soldier days when mashing was essential. If it's not for everybody then oh well there are plenty of games out there for you.

Again, I may skip this one. Nor am I anxiously awaiting a sequel to Track n Field lol. But this type of thing doesn't need to be wiped from the face of the planet for those few players that do still love the game play style (for some crazy reason).

[BulletMagnet]

One would think they would perhaps offer two separate game modes, one of which requires fast tapping and the other which allows "traditional" autofire, and keep separate leaderboards and whatnot for each; that way both hardcore purists and those who value their own well-being could be satisfied. Such a setup couldn't be terribly difficult to implement, could it?

[Rastan78]

Yeah in a sane world 2 modes would make perfect sense. Then again maybe it would require a rebalancing or remove the idea of what the dev is going for? Maybe Takahashi is just going to hold on to his 16 shots legacy at all costs until the day he dies? Lol

One issue is how do you keep a no autofire leaderboard fair anyway? Some sort of means of detecting external autofire? Even then auto could probably be used intermittently. If the rate is reasonable and used only during a few key points it could be disguised fairly well even in a video replay.

[Darkseed_5150]

Just played the Switch demo. Getting this day one. Spiritually, another chapter in the Soldier series. Nice, crisp art style and good music so far. Hopefully it's great.

[BulletMagnet]

One issue is how do you keep a no autofire leaderboard fair anyway? Some sort of means of detecting external autofire?

That's a very valid point, though as things stand the same issue applies, and it's the only way to play the game, so all you're doing is leaving those who'd prefer autofire out in the cold. Heck, perhaps the autofire mode would actually be easier to keep fair, since you could program in a hard cap to how many shots per second are possible with it, which would make it easier to detect when someone is using external hardware to bypass it.

[xxx1993]

Just tried the trial. The game definitely feels like a Star Soldier game.

[Nugs]

I also played the demo.
This might be the first Terarin game I skip.
The button mashing mechanic does not appeal to me.
I tried it using the turbo function on my third party joy cons then it just felt like a worse Raging Blasters.

[Sima Tuna]

I also played the demo.
felt like a worse Raging Blasters.

That's what I predicted. It's made by the same people and uses the same assets.

I won't be buying the game strictly because of the autofire issue. It's not reasonable to pay a premium price (in the shmups world) for a game without the basic accessibility features which have been standard in this genre since the days of japanese arcades. If Meijin wants to wank himself off over his mashing skills, that's fine. But Raging Blasters cost me a fraction of the price and it comes standard with autofire. There's no reason for me to buy this. Soldier Blade still exists and I can go play it whenever I want. With autofire.

[xxx1993]

Even with the voice acting and the fact that the game plays like a spiritual successor to the Star Soldier series?

[drauch]

Just do your hand exercises and you'll never get carpal!

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

game looks like a turd.

[xxx1993]

I guess unless Aleste Branch and Ubusuna come out, there won’t be a shmup to top Sol Cresta or Andro Dunos 2 for a while. Not even R-Type Final 3 Evolved came close.

[Thjodbjorn]

I am loving this game so far. Terarin is quickly becoming a favorite developer of mine. I can only get 61st place in caravan so far, and I got a big ol D in Challenge mode.

[xxx1993]

People are keeping the final boss a secret at the request of the company for some reason, I don’t know why…

[EmperorIng]

Like it's any big surprise, lol. I watched the end on a stream. It's Takahashi Meijin, he is revealed before the final stage to have betrayed you and the space force, and furthermore got your comm gal girlfriend Star Pregnant (hence the title of the game) by thrusting inside of her sixteen times a second (which to be honest sounds a little bit like vanity/wish fulfillment from the aged Meijin). You defeat him but at the cost of your character's hands being permanently ruined by RSI from the ordeal.

[Nahar]

EmperorIng acid sarcasm always gets me.

[xxx1993]

Like it's any big surprise, lol. I watched the end on a stream. It's Takahashi Meijin, he is revealed before the final stage to have betrayed you and the space force, and furthermore got your comm gal girlfriend Star Pregnant (hence the title of the game) by thrusting inside of her sixteen times a second (which to be honest sounds a little bit like vanity/wish fulfillment from the aged Meijin). You defeat him but at the cost of your character's hands being permanently ruined by RSI from the ordeal.

What? He's the main villain of the game the whole time? Is this really how the game ends? Because then I've pretty much lost all seriousness at this point. I need to see the stream, please.

[Rastan78]

Yes xxx1993, everything EmperorIng says is accurate. Takahashi gave her 16 shots on her 16th birthday. Which is totally legal in the universe of Star Pregnant as well as many US states. What a lucky gal. He may be old but he's a human Hitachi wand.

Just imagine ladies . . .
https://youtu.be/oJ4lmAFB7d4

[soupbones]

This game fucking rules! Always a fan of Terrarin (tho tbh, didn’t love Terra Flame as much as Moon Dancer and Raging Blasters), but this might be his best work yet.

People complaining about the manual rapid fire should hit the gym and work those baby forearms.

[Sima Tuna]

People complaining about the manual rapid fire should hit the gym and work those baby forearms.

I don't wanna.

[xxx1993]

I just don't know why the creators are prohibiting anyone from posting the final boss and ending...