Experimenting with
MIJIN-style stage 6-2 in Saigo, that is,
blasting the sweet balls out of everything in sight with
BAMBOO THUNDER GRENADE. I only partially comprehended it during the runs themselves, but as the name implies, the objective is to
reduce all before you to so much shinobi dust. So they can't shoot at you! Although I killed the enemy, I performed shamefully with regards to total atomisation, and survived in much the same lowly fashion - scurrying beneath a hail of kunai! It looked hilarious at least!
OPERATIONAL DATA OF BAMBOO THUNDER GRENADE
GOOD: Powerful as all hell. Technically the game's second-highest DPS after SWIRLING LEAF/shuriken, whose focused fire will shred single targets like Ryuichis and Ghosts a tad quicker. But in practice, the grenades' huge splash, snap aiming, blisteringly high shot rate and armor/terrain-piercing capability make them
far easier to connect with, and de facto your most destructive weapon.
BAD: The dead man's click. Until it's gone, that same lingering splash will bar you from firing any other weapon. Furthermore, there is no such thing as a crouching grenade shot; only the landmine. Adept players can prevent Tsukikage himself from setting mines, but if you're fifty feet in the air and have to fire downward, while a shadow is on the ground? That's gonna be a landmine, and they hang around an eternity in game time. Assuming nobody steps on them ofc.
===
Having accepted quick-switching grenade/chain action was off the table, my first attempt went stormingly well, as I attacked with considerable violence and the Wind Demons didn't get to shoot much. Fairly minimal close shaves, though there's a couple of real pants-shitters in there! Then I stepped on 7-1's first gas trap and died instantly.
Clipped for illustrative purposes.
Tried again but had lost my
ULTRAVAIORENCE and was kinda SCURRED
so Wind Demons went full protodanmaku. This run will illustrate just how lenient Saigo's projectile hitboxes are, as I survive by the skin of my shivering arse again and again! For a late 80s game it's very progressive on player+projectile hitboxes - the edges of Tsuki's sprite can safely touch those of flying kunai or fireballs - fatal contact seems reserved to center-mass. Accordingly, Rifles' bullets (small, red n' angry) aren't to be trifled with, not much give there. Smart design from IREM, with the sheer fusillade this game looses on the player.
May also provoke howls of
FALSIFICARE from the scrub gallery, and I will get to have some fun by asking where the ACA version's invincibility DIP switch is.
(sound chaps, these ACA devs... that's one bit of hardware accuracy I can do without! however, I would like them to explore no-wait and forced 60hz options! idgaf if it runs a bit fast,
i can stand teh pain I grew up with
R-Types lmao! Adapt or die, kids!
)
EDIT: HOLY FUCK
Reviewing the clips, I'm pretty sure WIND DEMONS use the same "startup delay" as Metal Storm's shooting enemies. That is, a set-in-stone delay between spawning and firing. That was a critical bit of info in conquering MS's rather nasty loop, and it could be very handy here too. Most of the aggressive jump-throughs in the above clip were sheer desperate aggression, but this hugely organises things.
Now I wonder if they also have Toaplanesque pointblank guard, ala the Red Ninjas/grenadiers. I'm guessing not. Metal Storm's shooters sure as hell don't, bahaha.
TENTATIVE JUDGMENT: Kusarigama's bullet-cancelling, huge sweep and considerable destructive power still seems the overall best bet, but this could be a good option for experienced clearers. I wonder if with enough utter aggression / quick Kite-sniping you could really steamroll this fearful combat sequence. Shuriken also need trying out, particularly as they don't jam up the other weaponry like Grenades tend to. They're of limited use VS Monks, however.
Also holy cow, I never really comprehended that 6-1 and 6-2 are only thirty seconds or so apiece! A riveting ordeal at the controls.
Second attempt went on to 1LC. Interestingly enough BONEY-sama went down in a virtual instant replay of my previous no-miss. Hmm. May be onto something there. Where the last time around I uneasily eyed the grounded bolt, which was all "yarr I'll bite yer legs off, grrr" this time I deliberately let it snap n' snarl near to my foot, before being all
"KUDARAN" and vaulting away to finish its master, that calciferous RNG-crazed knob-jockey!
EDIT2: oh nice, it's done. My quickest 1LC so far, I believe, though I wasn't going for speed and have no interest in doing so, outside of not dawdling in 7-1. It's about the
HARDCORE KILLING
TBH, 6-2 Wind Demons had me dead to rights at least twice here. I'm gonna see if I can produce something truly dominating with the Metal Storm-derived data above.
Stage 3
/VALLEY OF TSUKI and Stage 4
/CAVE OF ISHI remain two of my favourite anythings
EVAR yo. Pure action gaming expression, tearing them apart at adept level.
I mean look at this smart boy! ULTIMATE SURVIVOR UNCLOUDED BY DELUSIONS OF MORALITY
HOW HE COULD LEFT ALL OF HIS HOMIES 2 DIE (tail prop <333 )
===
Oh shit son.
ACA T-A-N-K is out now (JP PSN). Been looking forward to this one, being an admirer of its slightly ARPG-inflected Famicom sequel
Great Tank (aka Iron Tank). SNK archaeologists will of course know this as the debut of
RARUFU - long before he started drinking heavily and punching metrosexuals in the mouth, he roamed occupied Europe in his IRON BEAST WAR-CRY, mowing down and mulching and generally fucking up der Nazi schweinhunds!
Colonel Ralph, a special unit, knew that it was an important matter to win or lose, and decided to do the destruction work alone.
Be for always
DOING THE DESTRUCTION WORK ALONE
I wonder if they'll do AC Ikari III and, for SNK macho manliness completism, Datsugoku. Those two have excellent and quite good Famicom interpretations, respectively. I've often seen the AC ones slagged off as inferior... very curious though.