FATAL ATTRACTOR: The Art & Spirit Of ATTRACT/TITLE/GAMEOVER

[Despatche]

This is my thread, it was made for me!!!

I know it's been mentioned but METAL BLACK

I'm surprised Freedom Force hasn't been mentioned yet, everyone loves the Freedom Force intro! The last bit of the intro got removed in the final release. Here's the full thing.

I've always liked Fire Barrel's quick intro for some reason.

Oh and of course ELEMENTAL MASTER

[AAA]

Nice thread, will devour all suggestions here.

First attract mode that sprang to mind for me, was the one for Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UybgyKjr5Dk

The voiceover generates tons of hype.
SURVIVE... UNCANNY ADVENTURES!

[drauch]

Spoiler

Bloodstorm
I used to just stare at this one forever. Kinda ass game, but this and Timekillers were at least sorta neat in how you could lose limbs and still brawl away.

Spoiler

Zombie Raid
Gif isn't the best made, but here it is on youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8-8oE6z1AM

[BIL]

Zombie Raid

First I've heard of that one - tres noir, I dig!

---

While Deathtiny's CG intro is perfunctory in comparison to past-gen STG highlights (the work itself being characteristically stratospheric Shottriggers quality), I love its newsreel glimpses of EVAC behemoths. Gives them a scary cryptozoological aspect.

A large SPHINX in its natural desert habitat. Deals in riddles and WAR AND PAIN

Spoiler

Vinogradov, the most brutalistically literal of Huge Battleships Approaching Fast.

Spoiler

Some kinda fucked-up robot moth that was trapped in a rice cooker. I hope it's ok! :[

Spoiler

Speaking of earlier-gen CG highlights: PS2 Gradius III & IV.

DEMO_MOVIE_01

Spoiler

Duck you fuckers! Wait. I mean fuck you Duckers! The more conventionally filmic of the pair, a Star Wars-inflected glimpse of Gradius II. Besides its flyer-worthy images of BIGCORE duelling, the authentically fraught close combat reminds me of Gaiden's classily reserved intro - or from that same year, the superbly fronted Mars Matrix (DC).

DEMO_MOVIE_02

Spoiler

Much trippier! But Gradius III's DEATH CHEERIOS are treated with deserving gravity! Thumping Yamaoka BGM and discomfortingly pulsing organs evoke not only Beatmania, but also Silent Hill 2's much-loved Fukuro (AKA: Pyramid-kun's DokiDoki Basement Fuck Fest) and Kinoko (AKA: You Look Just Like My Dead Wife! The Ballad of Jimmy James). I wonder if any personnel were shared... the CG guys for SH1-4 were some A1 crack team killers. Also brings to mind Shattered Soldier with the pointed lack of any subtitling or numerals, just a "sup motherfucker?" GRADIUS.

---

Man. Adding to the considerable number of early Neo Geo titles already featured ITT, practically every one I try lately has a killer Game Over and/or PLS CONTINUE screen!



Especially poetic with Ghost Pilots' unusual choice of a seaplane fighter-craft. "Many Brave Souls Lie Asleep in the Deep."



Raguy / Blue's Journey, downright plaintive.



Aww, you're welcome sweetie. WAIT FUCK

Ninja Ryukenden is a name with strong aesthetic cachet, both the FC incarnation's cinemas, and the AC's infamously gory PLS CONTINUE screen - which is actually a rather shocking twist in its knowingly silly "NINJA ON VACATION" tone!



Damn, need a 60fps capture for the saw blade animation. Just pretend it's there! Same with the terrifying whirr and Ryu's anticlimactic (strangely erotic tbh ) dying "OOOH" .

However, the HS table tips the balance further into ghoulish darkness with... tbh, I'm not sure WTF is going on here. It's rad, though!



Round intro, so goddamn cool.



Ryu has a fun persona in this one. On FC he's in the MURICA to REVENGE FADDER. Here he's on a business trip to wipe out some assless chaps weirdo and his cult, with plenty of inter-stage downtime.



TBH I'm gonna headcanon this to taking place after the FC trilogy.

[Queen Charlene]

A large SPHINX in its natural desert habitat. Deals in riddles and WAR AND PAIN

Spoiler

this is fucking awesome

[BIL]

Ah, my ongoing frustrated dalliance with Jaleco. ¦3 I'd have picked up ACA Plus Alpha, but it's late on PS4 due to CERO bullshit. In the meantime, its hardware stablemate Soldam has an unimpeachably cracking Attract screen! (nice tunes too!)



And if THAT doesn't reel 'em in, break out the heavy artillery!



Y halo thar!

A large SPHINX in its natural desert habitat. Deals in riddles and WAR AND PAIN

Spoiler

this is fucking awesome

Yeah, I absolutely adore that billowing desert dust, and the high altitude zoom with sketchy artefacts, as the turret idly scans the horizon... pure STG hyperreality. My favourite cinematic depiction of the classic Toaplan/Seibu Monster Tank, brief as it may be.

(I will always fondly regard Raiden Project's polygonal tales of glory )

Spoiler

Get that speedkill done! I mean, you want to use Vulcan ideally, but whatever! Good show!

Speaking of PS1, Vagrant Story. CG intro that leverages its terse runtime into maximum impact. Fiery Sakimoto-powered barrage of MENS ADVENTURE-ised D&D. Only thing it's missing is Ashley's signature assless chaps! But such unbridled masculinity would be a bit too on-the-nose opposite the alluring priestess, a dread beast, and the hearty selection of lovingly-maintained gear for the triumphal skullfucking of!

The answer to life's mysteries is simple and direct ♫

Spoiler

SEX AND DEATH

I didn't appreciate at the time how coin-op it is. Were this an Einhander-esque venture into beltscrolling (), it'd hit just as hard. I like its paring of the conspiratorial plot down to the fabled Mullenkamp, her coveted flesh blurring with the horrors of Lea Monde - its remainder devoted to the tools of Cursed Citadel-diving. The gear ain't for show! I had a blast forging up joint-obliterating warhammers with presposterous names BITD (BEEFCAEKORIZOR will take your skull!). Had several of differing affinities, depending on whether it was a soldier, a skeleton, or a goat-man needing their shit ruined.

And oh heck no! ROB PYTHON just got KNOCKED THA FUCK OUT

Spoiler

Buriki One, SNK's Baki-informed MMA quasi-sim. Countdown screen is authentic damage! Good job they've covered their asses with on-site EMTs! Ta @ awbacon for footage!

[Kiken]

I'm going to toss out some 16-bit GameArts love here.

The intro to Silpheed still grips me after all these years. It's just a fantastic combination of dynamic sweeping camera shots and incredible audio. It's also a really intriguing technical feat as the footage is a real-time/streaming hybrid: the disc streams raw vector data that the VDP then fills in real time.

Then they have their custom sprite art animation system put to amazing use in the Urusei Yatsura: Dear My Friends intro. Yeah, they also used it in the intro to Lunar Eternal Blue, but I think the execution is much more complex here. They got as close as possible to presenting an anime intro without resorting to FMV.

[Steamflogger Boss]

That is downright amazing for Sega CD.

[Jeneki]

Arcade Rygar never fails to make me laugh when you lose the last life, and the grim reaper swoops in to carry the lifeless body off the screen. Oh yeah, Tecmo game, that explains it .

[FinalBaton]

Yoooooo, those Seca CD cutscenes are lit af

[BIL]

Oh heck no



Nosferatu (SFC) . 80s karate badass VS 20s monster mash, via Prince of Persia Real Platform Simulator. Still haven't put time on it, but it's got an inimitably anachronistic horror vibe that's only gained with age.

"Are you alright, ma'am?"

"DRAW, PILGRIM!"

Sunset RUFF RYDAS. Golden age Konami firing on all cylinders. Moreso than anything posted so far ITT, Motoaki "Gradius II" Furukawa's BGM is essential. Bang-on Morricone-lite.



Although the TMNT hardware meant vivid, anime-quality attracts, there's still a charming economy in the seamless use of in-game sprites.

Arcade Rygar never fails to make me laugh when you lose the last life, and the grim reaper swoops in to carry the lifeless body off the screen. Oh yeah, Tecmo game, that explains it .

Also that cheeky little "WOOOP woopwoop woopwoop" Nearest I've found to gaming's Price Is Right Sad Trombone.

[Stevens]

Cause I've been posting about it everywhere else:

Zero Ranger

[GaijinPunch]

[XoPachi]

I made a thread already with this game as the header, but I seriously cannot get over it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-lVyYtkgRY

I adore the art here when the pilot is gearing up. That dark style, the camera work in the shots of the cars on the tracks, and the smooth lights when the gates open up. It's so bold.

[BIL]

Taito is kings!

RASTAN SAGA

The kingdom "Ceim," haha. Rastan The Ceimerrian

EMPTY THE CHAMBER / LOCK AND RELOAD



POWERED GEAR God damn, this game fires me up. (｀ω´メ)



CONTACT LOST. OMFG! Cor brimey, HOW TEH TABLES HABE TURNED. Especially cool how the backdrop matches the current stage.

WHAT HAS HAPPENED?



NOBODY KNOWS THE FACTS.

TBH I am more SEEK AND DESTROY but that pristine white logo drenching in blood be HAWT And as for the game itself, hooo boy. Best hardcore JP action Aliens riff ever.



"On standby" B-side title, always a classy touch (cf Tamayo-san's RAYFORCE & RAYSTORM standby BGMs)

[GaijinPunch]

I tried to get SAR for ages back when I had a gun w/ a rotary stick. Never succeeded.

[BIL]

It's a brilliant game - has a rare balance of generosity and intensity. Its user-friendliness particularly surprised me, given how balls-mean the Ikari/Dogo/Guevara trilogy are (I love 'em, but it's always tricky recommending them to the unsuspecting ).

And the style, goddamn. It's the video place's horror aisle distilled into hardcore run/gun. It hit me today - this is to Aliens what Splatterhouse is to Friday The 13th. That is, they obviously shoplift one icon apiece (Xenomorph/Jason), but the wider games are such rich canvases of horror inspiration, even the copycats are made their own. As with SH's forays beyond slasher mayhem into the chthonic and the body-horrific, SAR recalls The Thing, Body Snatchers and Japanese mecha/guro fiction just as strongly as Cameron's space marine bible.

Blocked by an assault suit on a crumbling catwalk, gutting it with plasma, riddling its zombie pilot, the corpse birthing a parasite horde that coalesces into a hulking Xeno, who shrugs off hideous damage to blindly charge, tumbling screeching into the abyss as you dive for the airlock... or in other words, stage 2-1. This thing is fuckin literature.

I wish I could say SAR is in decent form on PS4, via SNK 40th Anniversary, but sadly it's got some dumb issues. However, they're fairly easily worked around, and the game's so damn good I've already forgotten. Still, I'm hoping Hamster gives it an ACA release, along with the upcoming Guevara. Their ACA T.A.N.K./Ikari/Dogo are sterling (and going really far back, to the grand-daddy of rotary army shooting, ACA Front Line is bang-on too).

[GaijinPunch]

It's a brilliant game - has a rare balance of generosity and intensity. Its user-friendliness particularly surprised me, given how balls-mean the Ikari/Dogo/Guevara trilogy are (I love 'em, but it's always tricky recommending them to the unsuspecting ).

Guevara is an order of magnitude more difficult than Ikari or Dogousouken. I 1CC'd both... no small feet, but nothing I was gonna blow myself over. Guevara though... WTF?!

[BIL]

Yeah it's beating me up. First boss was a motherfucker until I figured out how to tank him to death. I get the feeling Koji Obada approached it like his DaiOuJou. The apocalyptic endgame of LS-30 army shooting. AFAIK he never directed another. I've no-missed Ikari and Dogo, I'll see how I go here... Unlike those two, beyond survival, the spectre of an all-prisoners (or at least "no friendly-fired prisoners") run looms.

Actually I'm probably gonna go for SAR first, at least the 1CC. Delighted to get an SNK rotary shooter that doesn't operate on cruelty! ADK's Battle Field seems suspiciously accessible too, the zippy movement speed feels almost like FC Guevara's. Hearing your dude scream like Al Pacino at the end of Godfather III with every death kinda grates, though.

Come to think of it, T.A.N.K. is pretty agile too. Punishingly heavy, tactical Gain Ground-style movement seems like an Ikari thing.

Not sure if you've seen this interview, but apparently Guevara's "Mike Dukakis" tank sprites were inspired by an Ikari bootleg.

[GaijinPunch]

Not sure if you've seen this interview, but apparently Guevara's "Mike Dukakis" tank sprites were inspired by an Ikari bootleg.

Well, like a moron, I read the first few lines of your reply and I went hunting through my HD and the interwebs for this interview. Didn't find it although I think I may have the issue somewhere, still. (Continue is, or was, a great rag btw). I read the interview, many, many moons ago. Forgot most of it but I recall them specifically talking about Guevara's asshole difficulty level. Should go through it again. There's another issue in particular that had an interview that hit close to home... got about halfway through translating it and never finished. That was many years ago... I think about 10. Ugh. Maybe one day I'll go back for old times sake.

Anywho, to continue w/ the stroll down memory lane I went through my HD and did confirm I have a 1CC video. There's a hiring scoring one of Guerilla War on YT. Not sure if the scoring is any different. Hardcore shit either way.

Other shit worth noting on the HD on this topic:
Ikari (Superplay w/ instructions off to the side. Kinda useful)
Ikari rank 1
Ikari rank 4
Heavy Barrel No Miss
Midnight Resistance (Normal / Normal shot only / Hard)
Tank (No miss)

Some other cool shit. Wonder if any of these are not on youtube.

[Stevens]

Since I've been playing Blazing Chrome, here it is:

https://youtu.be/bk08WI06tZQ?t=9

Young Linda Hamilton all day:D

[trap15]

Not sure if you've seen this interview, but apparently Guevara's "Mike Dukakis" tank sprites were inspired by an Ikari bootleg.

Pretty interesting to see that developers back then were getting their starts by learning how existing games worked under the hood by reverse engineering. A very relatable development path

[BIL]

Other shit worth noting on the HD on this topic:
Ikari (Superplay w/ instructions off to the side. Kinda useful)
Ikari rank 1
Ikari rank 4
Heavy Barrel No Miss
Midnight Resistance (Normal / Normal shot only / Hard)
Tank (No miss)

Some other cool shit. Wonder if any of these are not on youtube.

I was looking for good Ikari runs after uploading mine, can't recall seeing anything annotated. The game's somewhat arcane sprite limit / object spawning policies alone would warrant it!

M. Janet (South Korean badass) has a nice rank 1 speedrun up, which is also a No-miss (naturally, Ikari being one of those games that's easier to one-life than 1CC, with the crippling powerdown on death).

Do you have a Youtube channel? I'll guarantee you at least one subscription.

Pretty interesting to see that developers back then were getting their starts by learning how existing games worked under the hood by reverse engineering. A very relatable development path

I was amazed at Obada's Heavy Barrel story, particularly not knowing the AC version - I'd never heard of anything so brazen, especially with DECO being up there with SNK for rotary army shooting. Now I'm hoping it'll get an ACA release, so I can file it right next to Ikari.

[GaijinPunch]

Do you have a Youtube channel? I'll guarantee you at least one subscription.

I unfortunately do not. Not really.
If you want to take a look at any of these give me a place to put them and they're all yours. I believe most of them I ripped from doujin DVDs I amassed over the years.

[BIL]

The apostrophe be silent yo One of those attracts that really needs its audio, awesome pounding death drums. The forlorn coda as the battlefield cross-strewn title scrolls up is great, too. NM has a superbly doomy mood, easily competing with SNK's own SamSho and Last Blade.

Spoiler

^^^ SIMILAR VIBE

[PerishedFraud ឵឵]

What's this? Another chance to tell people to play Night Striker?

The attract mode and little intro aren't too special, but the actual start of stage 1 is superb.

You get a quick explanation of your mission with an overwhelmingly suspenseful atmosphere (too much, even), and then, you're thrusted. right into the game along with a flawless music transition. The thrill and chaos of is pretty damn cool.

[BIL]

ANUBIS: ZONE OF THE ENDERS continues to scintillate.

Mah boi

Spoiler

TEH LORD OF KING wants you to know that YOU AINT SHIT



YEAH, I THINK U SCURRED, AINT GON CONTINUE ;3 ;3 ;3

Spoiler

Quarth gets a surprise Arcade Archives release! The world is regaled with some of the most stirring Victorian STG whimsy this side of Koutetsu Teikoku.

THE DELICATE BALANCE OF GRAVITY HAS DISINTEGRATED

Spoiler

---

Oho! CAPCOM ARCADE STADIUM means lots of new CPS2 arrivals, and that means badass attract modes galore.

"CON-TAAACT! Oh wait, it's one of ours. WAIT NO AIEEE"

Spoiler

1944: THE LOOP MASTER, where after wacky 1941: Counter Attack and soulful 19XX: The War Against Destiny, the 194X series got down n' dirteh with fiereh/fuzzeh burning strings to match. Less fluffy tropospheres and sparkling open seas, more quiet beachfronts turned vulcanic killing floors as the iconic mayhem of the PTO rolls into town. The Zero be stolen yo, that's my headcanon.

---

AKI appreciate. All credit to BulletMagnet for reminding me of this one, it's fuckin beautiful.

"Friendship is like the mighty red wood. When it fills out to its full size, it's beautiful and practically indestructible... but it's gotta go through a lot of harsh seasons to get there."

NOW THATS HARDCORE (■｀W´■)

Yeah I know it's "redwood" but listen how he say it. （＾ω´ ）

[trap15]

The Zero be stolen yo, that's my headcanon.

That's not the only thing that's stolen!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYRdWKjap9o vs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vppbdf-qtGU

[BIL]

Perfidious Nihonjin! Reminds me of a thread I've been meaning to do.

[RuySan]

Don't know how Shadow of the Beast 2 wasn't mentioned yet. For me the best game over screen ever. And the game is impossibly hard, so it's appropriate. Sweet music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGf5xpaRIx8