Finding it hard to find a easy shmup for practice

[sonicdv]

So I spent around 8-10 hours on Silvergun before beating the final boss, and I want to find a slightly easier shmup, but not too easy. I have been able to beat Silvergun and Ikaruga with 3 credits. Any games around that difficulty?

[CBM]

Your request seems quite.. specific.
If you include classic games, there's this thread: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=59651

[Special World]

From that description, I think Mushihimesama 1.5/Black Label Original or Maniac would be a good fit for you. Or Eschatos Normal/Hard mode maybe?

[EmperorIng]

Coming fresh off the tournament threads: If you play Gekirindan, you should be able to clear it in a few hours. Neat game with great music/sprites and very simple play-style (no weapon EXP grinding or whatnot). It's easier with the 2P side (look it up), but any ship you use is quite doable.

[Immryr]

espgaluda or death smiles would both be good choices, although they're more bullet hell-y than the treasure games you've played. also touhou games have a good range of difficulty settings if you'd like to progress through something that way.

[WarpZone]

I find survival in RSG a lot harder than Ika, but...

- Gradius V
- Gradius Gaiden
- Cho Ren Sha 68k
- Kamui
- Under Defeat
- Crimzon Clover (2011 version)
- Dodonpachi Daifukkatsu/Resurrection (Strong style)
- Blue Revolver

Seconding Eschatos, Mushi, and the first Espgaluda.

[mtbd500]

Aim to 1cc all the novice modes in the cave ports. It's enjoyable and acheivable for mere mortals / old guys like me!. Novice mushi futari ultra is a fun relaxing ride.

[Plasmo]

Stick to Silvergun and Ikaruga and learn to 1cc them. An "easy" shmup is never good for practice. You learn to get better by setting yourself challenges. The feeling of accomplishment will also be much more rewarding when you stick to the games you initially liked and not switch to easier games simply because they are easier.

Silvergun is much harder than Ikaruga btw.

[KAI]

Karous is what you need, it's easier and the weapon leveling system is similar to radiant.

[Square_Air]

I disagree with the notion that easy shmups are never good for practice. There's no shame in starting at the bottom and working your way up. You shouldn't drop Silvergun or Ikaruga, but there's no harm in temporarily changing focus to some more accessible games for your skill level to learn some fundamentals (how to practice efficiently is the main thing, and while we have multiple guides to help with that, you learn the most by applying it yourself and understanding your own habits). Of course once you reach a certain threshold you won't be challenging yourself enough to really gain much out of easier shmups, but you'll figure out when to push yourself to the next level.

If any of these are a little too easy for you than there should be no problem here in grabbing a quick & fun clear before you move on to the next one/clear subsequent loops/try for a hi score. I'll stick to Verts since that seems to be what you're asking for.

Arranged from least difficult to "most difficult" according to my hazy memories:

• Batsugun Special 1-ALL (the ubiquitous starting point for players getting into verticals))
• Crimzon Clover: World Ignition Arcade Novice mode
• Gekirindan (with 2 player type-c))
• Perfect Cherry Blossom Normal
• Cho Ren Sha 68K 1-ALL
• Mushihimesama Original

I mean no offense to you Plasmo, as i'm sure you have your reasons, but if someone told me to stick with DOJWL 3 years ago I would have rarely played shmups from that point onward and only casually at best. I didn't really lock in to playing shmups until i was re-introduced through Batsugun Special, CRS68K, & PCB. I suppose it can really depend on the individual, so I'll leave sonicdv with the advice to try and make his own decision, because i'm very biased towards the methods that have brought me success.

Just never play Asuka & Asuka, because the only thing it will teach you is how to regret playing Asuka & Asuka.

[Blinge]

Stick to Silvergun and Ikaruga and learn to 1cc them. An "easy" shmup is never good for practice. You learn to get better by setting yourself challenges. The feeling of accomplishment will also be much more rewarding when you stick to the games you initially liked and not switch to easier games simply because they are easier.

Silvergun is much harder than Ikaruga btw.

*cough cough*
Dear sonicdv, this video may be of use in that regard.
;]

[Shepardus]

I would just play a variety of things and see what you like and what you don't. Mix and match easier and harder games so you have readily attainable goals while still having something further in the distance to encourage you to improve. Part of what's nice about shmups is that there's plenty to choose from and most of them are easy to pick up and get a feel for without investing a lot of time and other resources like you might for some other activities. People will tell you that you'll get higher scores faster if you narrow your focus to a single game, and they're right, but unless you're trying to meet some deadline (*cough* TRP-STGT *cough*) I don't see why that should matter.

[neorichieb1971]

What systems do you have?

You didn't mention but I think you want modernish.

Gradius V - PS2
Gunbird - PS1/Saturn
ESP Ra.de - MAME PCB
The Game Paradise - Saturn

All the above are decently priced. Perhaps not the best games in the world, but they represent a challenge that isn't steep and certainly not harder than the 2 games you already play.

[Plasmo]

I mean no offense to you Plasmo, as i'm sure you have your reasons, but if someone told me to stick with DOJWL 3 years ago I would have rarely played shmups from that point onward and only casually at best.

The point is, however, that we are not talking about DOJWL here - in which case I would totally be on your side - but rather about Ikaruga and Silvergun, which are both very doable and not crazy at all. Ikaruga is a very good shmup for beginners imo.

Playing games with average difficulty (we are not talking DOJWL or Futari Ultra here!) will teach you much more than pump&dump easy 1ccs just to have some more titles under your achievement-belt.

At the end of the day, just pick the games you really enjoy. If this might happen to be a difficult game - stick with it. If this, after all, turns out to be Futari Black Label Original - stick with it.

[pegboy]

If you like Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga why not also try Gradius V, which is also made by Treasure? Sure it's quite a bit different from those 2 games, but it probably has a smoother learning curve than either of them.

[neorichieb1971]

I love G5, but I can't control the drones that well in the mode that everyone uses where the drones shoot in all directions, my mind can't control the ship one way and the drones the other. There are areas of the game where using that drone system is crucial to beating the game. Its a shame because I really like that game and I can only get so far with the other drone modes. So although a shmup, it does have this odd handicap where I am concerned. That would be something completely new to someone who mostly plays a shmup where you hitbox is the only thing to worry about.

[Vanguard]

My first arcade 1CC was Espgaluda, that's a good one for learning the genre.

[BIL]

I love G5, but I can't control the drones that well in the mode that everyone uses where the drones shoot in all directions, my mind can't control the ship one way and the drones the other. There are areas of the game where using that drone system is crucial to beating the game.

You mean Type 2 / Aimable Options? They're a fun beginner's tool, and probably the most intuitive of the four Types, but they're absolutely not vital to clearing the game. Type 1 / Freeze in particular is enormously powerful with a little ingenuity. Need a boss weakpoint sniped? Freeze them into a screen-length laser sword and jam it straight through the armour. Scrolling to the left, or down, or up? Freeze them into an advance guard formation that'll kill the lion's share of whatever awaits. Attacked from all sides as in st4/st5, get a ring formation going. Etc etc...

IIRC, Type 2 actually fares worse than the others in higher loops, since you can't aim them without freezing your own movement.

[Koa Zo]

A really different style than the others mentioned, Strikers 1945 Part II on Monkey difficulty, 1LC while trying to max-out all bonus points is fun easy yet challenging. (2000 point gold bars, no bomb use, etc)

[Square_Air]

Silvergun is still more difficult to manage than a DOJWL 1-ALL, but Ikaruga isn't too bad for beginners. I guess if you decide to lock in for the Treasure clear, Ikaruga would be the better place to start. Blinge's video goes pretty in depth for how to achieve a survival focused clear, it wouldn't hurt to at least skim through it to sections you struggle with.

[Obscura]

If you're a fan of RSG but want something easier, give Strania a try.

(That said, I'm surprised to see people claim that Ikaruga is particularly easy; I'll admit I haven't played it much, since I don't enjoy it a whole lot, but every time I have, the stage 2 boss has torn me a new one.)

[Shepardus]

If you're a fan of RSG but want something easier, give Strania a try.

(That said, I'm surprised to see people claim that Ikaruga is particularly easy; I'll admit I haven't played it much, since I don't enjoy it a whole lot, but every time I have, the stage 2 boss has torn me a new one.)

The stage 2 boss is troublesome if you're unfamiliar with it but can be taken down pretty quickly and without much trouble if you move aggressively and damage it efficiently (not forgetting, of course, that using the opposing color does twice as much damage as using the same color).

That said, Ikaruga isn't super easy but I find it significantly easier than RSG. That may be because unlike RSG it actually has an easy difficulty mode, or because I've only played RSG on laggy Saturn emulation (still waiting for a PC port, Treasure ).

[Blinge]

It becomes much easier when you've memo'd a few specific patterns and moments of polarity wizardry.
I mean, being invulnerable to potentially half shots on screen has to translate to some level of ease.

But then - the people calling it easy are usually the ones that know the game. I remember starting out and how clearing easy mode felt impossible.
I'd suggest that US Don/ Dodonpachi are easier simply because bombs.
Eekarewga ain' gawt no bawbms!

[Vexorg]

A couple of somewhat easier ones that come to mind:

Sengoku Ace (Psikyo)
Espgaluda
Battle Bakraid (nowhere near as punishing as the other Raizing games)
Great Mahou Daisukausen / Dimahoo
Deathsmiles IIX

[Despatche]

Botetsucho.

[ArrogantBastard]

Play whatever you fucking like. You will eventually 1CC a game that you like the most, if you put in enough effort into it.

Finding an easy game to 1CC is a bad method. Don't do it.

[Xyga]

^ this. what's the point of approaching a game genre with practice in mind before actual enjoyment?
ok there are genres purposedly and exclusively designed for performance and competition, it's one excellent way to have fun after all.
shmups though aren't that narrow and specialized a genre, there's hundreds of games for every kind of shmupping pleasure, from the most casual/joyride type to sports-like material that requires up to years of practice.
Just play and discover as many as you can, you'll eventually get hooked up to some that'll do it for you.

[nesrulz]

The best way to practice is to play everything.

[jugemscloud]

Play Rally bike by toaplan no bullets but the way it scrolls and how certain parts of stages are laid out get you used to twitch/tap dodging (the zig-zag path on the desert stage is a prime example). And it's also a relatively easy introduction to position tracking AI that is straightforward to manipulate but requires last second bravery/understanding to master, and how much you can get away with using a comparatively large sprite to a standard shmup, should give you a few ideas on how to develop your playstyle, it's about the journey not the clear.

[LordHypnos]

Play whatever you fucking like. You will eventually 1CC a game that you like the most, if you put in enough effort into it.

Finding an easy game to 1CC is a bad method. Don't do it.

I actually pretty much agree with this, but another easy game that's pretty fun, and free (although I think there's a upgraded version that costs money) is Mecha Ritz. It's definitely worth playing for some pretty unique boss designs (there are quite a few bosses in each stage, too) and sick fm synth inspired BGM. One thing that's worth noting, though, is that it starts out super slow if you start with rank at zero, and is kind of boring that way, but you can increase the starting rank. I found starting rank 20 to work best for a nice compromise between survival and not being boring. It will go up, though.