Saturn Shmups: TATE Vertical Monitor Position Option?

[niggenz]

Is there a list out there somewhere, or can some of you add to this thread known Saturn vertical shmup titles that have a vertical monitor positioning option (TATE)? The only game I can think of that has this option is Soukyugurentai.

The reason why I am asking is that I am putting together a dedicated Konami Windy City cab for vertical shmups and want to know if it is worth the trouble of making the cab modular enough so that I can easily add the Saturn. Otherwise, I will just through the Saturn in a horizontal cab or hook it up to a TV.

[brand1bil]

Soukyugurentai is not tate-able, right? Batsugun, Layer Section and Battle Garegga is thought...

[alpha5099]

The only tate-oriented Saturn shmup that I know of that doesn't include the option is the Twinbee Deluxe Pack.

[Wanderer]

The only tate-oriented Saturn shmup that I know of that doesn't include the option is the Twinbee Deluxe Pack.

Blast Wind does not include the tate option as well.

[Wanderer]

Below are most of the key tate Saturn shooters:

Batsugun
Battle Geregga
Donpachi
Dodonpachi
Game Paradise
Gekirindan
Gunbird
Gun Frontier
Image Fight
Kingdom Grand Prix
Kyukyoku Tiger 2 Plus
Layer Section
Shienryu
Sonic Wings Special
Strikers 1945
Strikers 1945 II

[Zach Keene]

I don't think Blast Wind, while vertically scrolling, is tate-oriented though. (Same with Soukyugurentai.)

Capcom Generation Vol 1 includes tate for all three games.

[Wanderer]

I don't think Blast Wind, while vertically scrolling, is tate-oriented though. (Same with Soukyugurentai.)

Capcom Generation Vol 1 includes tate for all three games.

Blast Wind is vertically scrolling but only has the yoko mode in the saturn port.

[niggenz]

I stand corrected on Soukyugurentai. There is no TATE on this game.

[Zach Keene]

Blast Wind is vertically scrolling but only has the yoko mode in the saturn port.

Blast Wind is Saturn exclusive. I'm assuming it was designed from the get-go to scroll vertically on a horizontally-oriented screen, and therefore including a tate mode wouldn't make much sense.

[Wanderer]

Blast Wind is vertically scrolling but only has the yoko mode in the saturn port.

Blast Wind is Saturn exclusive. I'm assuming it was designed from the get-go to scroll vertically on a horizontally-oriented screen, and therefore including a tate mode wouldn't make much sense.

Blast Wind was released first in the arcade as a vertical tate shooter. Play it in mame and you will see for yourself. Again, the Saturn port is missing the tate mode.

[Zach Keene]

Mame doesn't support Blast Wind. By all accounts on this forum, that would be because there never was an arcade version.

[Wanderer]

Mame doesn't support Blast Wind. By all accounts on this forum, that would be because there never was an arcade version.

Well I think i just ate crow because I believe your right.

I was so sure Blast Wind was an obscure arcade release, I guess I must have been thinking of Hyper Duel.

[Icarus]

Mame doesn't support Blast Wind. By all accounts on this forum, that would be because there never was an arcade version.

Then this screenshot (taken from the back of the Thunderforce Gold Pack 2 manual) is very misleading:

I stand corrected on Soukyugurentai. There is no TATE on this game.

The Saturn version of Souky doesn't have TATE. I heard somewhere that the ST-V version does though, as a dipswitch setting. But not true tate though, more like squashed screen TATE.*I could be wrong*

[alpha5099]

Mame doesn't support Blast Wind. By all accounts on this forum, that would be because there never was an arcade version.

Then this screenshot (taken from the back of the Thunderforce Gold Pack 2 manual) is very misleading:

Perhaps they A) intended an arcade release, or B) created a tate oriented game exclusively for a console (which is just crazy) but ultimately decided to take out the tate option.

[BulletMagnet]

The only tate-oriented Saturn shmup that I know of that doesn't include the option is the Twinbee Deluxe Pack.

Were the Twinbee games originally vertically oriented? I always thought they were intended for a horizontal screen...might be wrong though.

[alpha5099]

The only tate-oriented Saturn shmup that I know of that doesn't include the option is the Twinbee Deluxe Pack.

Were the Twinbee games originally vertically oriented? I always thought they were intended for a horizontal screen...might be wrong though.

Hmm, interesting. Looks like you're right, about Yahho anyway. All the arcade screenshots I can find are letterboxed. Peculiar.

http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?gam ... 0&letter=T

Detena was tate though, so there really should be an option to play the proper way.

http://www.vgmuseum.com/images/arcade/0 ... inbee.html

[BulletMagnet]

Hmm, interesting. Looks like you're right, about Yahho anyway. All the arcade screenshots I can find are letterboxed. Peculiar.

I'm not sure that's a "traditional" (for lack of a better word) letterbox. If you look at the third screenshot down on the site you linked to, look at the bottom part of the left "letterbox" black column. There are different-colored icons, which keep track of the different bells you've collected; I'd guess that the column on the right side would be for the same thing for the second player. Also, look at the screen below that; the "Twinbee Yahho!" logo overlaps the right bar, I don't think it'd normally be able to do that.

You were right about Detana though, that one was indeed vertically-oriented.

[alpha5099]

Yes, I've noticed the bell tallies in the Saturn version. I always figured it was something they'd included in the port to keep the bars from being empty, unused space.

I'm still mystified as to why Konami would bother to do such a thing. Those black bars take up so little room, I don't see why they didn't just make the play field take up the whole screen. Unless they were so deadset on that silly bell tally.

[Zach Keene]

Then this screenshot (taken from the back of the Thunderforce Gold Pack 2 manual) is very misleading:

Hmm. I'll retract what I said then about it being intended as a horizontally-oriented vertical shmup from the beginning. Still, it seems that if an arcade release (tate or otherwise) was ever intended it never happened for some reason.

[niggenz]

Below are most of the key tate Saturn shooters:

Batsugun
Battle Geregga
Donpachi
Dodonpachi
Game Paradise
Gekirindan
Gunbird
Gun Frontier
Image Fight
Kingdom Grand Prix
Kyukyoku Tiger 2 Plus
Layer Section
Shienryu
Sonic Wings Special
Strikers 1945
Strikers 1945 II

Ok, back to the subject. Batsugun and Dodonpachi look to be very intriguing. I'll most likely pick these up. Any others?

[Wanderer]

Below are most of the key tate Saturn shooters:

Batsugun
Battle Geregga
Donpachi
Dodonpachi
Game Paradise
Gekirindan
Gunbird
Gun Frontier
Image Fight
Kingdom Grand Prix
Kyukyoku Tiger 2 Plus
Layer Section
Shienryu
Sonic Wings Special
Strikers 1945
Strikers 1945 II

Ok, back to the subject. Batsugun and Dodonpachi look to be very intriguing. I'll most likely pick these up. Any others?

As far as A++ titles, I would say Batsugun, Donpachi, Dodonpachi, Battle Garegga, Layer Section, Strikers 1945 I & II.

[alpha5099]

Below are most of the key tate Saturn shooters:

Batsugun
Battle Geregga
Donpachi
Dodonpachi
Game Paradise
Gekirindan
Gunbird
Gun Frontier
Image Fight
Kingdom Grand Prix
Kyukyoku Tiger 2 Plus
Layer Section
Shienryu
Sonic Wings Special
Strikers 1945
Strikers 1945 II

Ok, back to the subject. Batsugun and Dodonpachi look to be very intriguing. I'll most likely pick these up. Any others?

As far as A++ titles, I would say Batsugun, Donpachi, Dodonpachi, Battle Garegga, Layer Section, Strikers 1945 I & II.

Yeah, that's a good list, covers all the big name tate shmups on the Saturn, although personal preferences vary. (I'm not wild about Garegga, but it's certainly in the Saturn canon.) I love DonPachi, but be warned, it's meh port. Not unplayable by most reasonable stretch of the word, but it's also not an example of the best work done for the Saturn.

[D]

Does Technosoft have any arcade releases?
Never understood why they are so anti TATE though.

[zinger]

Does Technosoft have any arcade releases?
Never understood why they are so anti TATE though.

Hyper Duel and Thunder Force AC. These are horziontals though.

[professor ganson]

I'm disappointed that Blast Wind is not a proper vertical with a tate mode. What's with the lame-looking borders and the deceptive pictures on the back of the game that suggest it can be played in tate? Definitely disappointing. Hopefully the gameplay will make up for it.

[llabnip]

The only tate-oriented Saturn shmup that I know of that doesn't include the option is the Twinbee Deluxe Pack.

Correct - though only one of the two games on that pack was designed as a vertical shooter with true vertical monitor orientation. Twinbee Yahoo! (the newer of the 2 games on that pack) was an arcade game utilized a horizontal monitor orientation - so that game is correctly done on the Saturn (they just didn't bother to add the TATE orientation to the older "Detana!! Twinbee"). Still a great pack of two very enjoyable games. I think all other Saturn games that were originally designed with a vertical orientation had TATE mode included (i.e. great games like Radiant Silvergun and Soyku did not have a TATE option because they were not designed originally for a true vertical orientation - they are instead vertical shooters utilizing a horizontal monitor orientation).

[BulletMagnet]

I'm disappointed that Blast Wind is not a proper vertical with a tate mode. What's with the lame-looking borders and the deceptive pictures on the back of the game that suggest it can be played in tate? Definitely disappointing. Hopefully the gameplay will make up for it.

I'm tempted to say that the "Was Blast Wind originally an arcade tate-oriented shmup?" debate will never be resolved...there's evidence on both sides as to whether or not that's where it originally came from (for instance, to the best of my knowledge no one has actually found "physical" evidence of an arcade version existing, but on the other side are the screens Icarus posted, as well as the fact that on the Saturn, the "options" menu is titled "DIP Switches." Very weird.

As for the game itself, it's not bad, though not as good (imo) as the price tag might suggest, especially seeing as it's pretty easy on defaults. JP swears by the thing though, so maybe you'll like it a lot too.

[professor ganson]

As for the game itself, it's not bad, though not as good (imo) as the price tag might suggest, especially seeing as it's pretty easy on defaults. JP swears by the thing though, so maybe you'll like it a lot too.

Yeah, if I end up hating this one, it's jp's fault. He's the main one that goes on about how good it is.

[iatneH]

I got my copy of Blast Wind (relatively) cheap. I can't detect any visible scratches in the TOC area, but for some reason it has trouble booting on my Saturn There's a scratch farther towards the outside, but it looks to be in the dead space between the data area and the outer copyprotection ring.

Still a cool game though, great music and loud explosions. Just what I like.