A few newbie questions re: Strikers 1945 series

[kamadoma715]

So I just bought the Steam bundle of Strikers 1945 I, II and III yesterday. I use a Hori Fighting Stick Mini for my controls.

1) Is it normal that the score doesn't reset when making a continue for Strikers 1945 I? It seems like you're going to get ridiculously high scores even when playing bad, and this doesn't seem to be the case for Strikers 1945 II and III.

2) Do all of your scores rankings get seen online, or does that only apply to scores done via the Score Attack mode?

3) Is it just me or is Strikers 1945 II controls a bit more sluggish than I? I know that III is more loose because of the faster pace, but I can't help but feel that the planes in II are quite sluggish compared to I. Then again this might be just newbie me.

[Austin]

Regarding continuing in the first game, it raises the last digit of your score by one every time you continue, so onlookers will be able to tell how much you credit fed to achieve that score.

I can't vouch for the input lag as I haven't picked up the first game yet on Steam (been playing it elsewhere recently).

[EmperorIng]

Score are only uploaded online if you play score attack, this is true throughout all the psikyo steam releases.

I haven't played Strikers 2 on steam but I remember on switch it felt pretty slow. Steam has to be better but I don't know by how much. I can't remember if there is a config for the game, but if there is, try to turn vsync off, it helps the game performance.

[kamadoma715]

I wonder if the "sluggishness" I feel isn't input lag but more like that 1945 II's handling is just that slower. Then again maybe it's just newbie me. I haven't played 1945 II lately though as I feel like playing and getting used to 1945 I more.

[dojo_b]

Mark at the Electric Underground YT channel tested Strikers I and II on Steam, reporting 4 and 3 frames of lag respectively. However, the second case of II was a later video and he turned off V-Sync in the config tool, which might account for that 1-frame difference (but check the vids).

He also reported 2 frames for the PCB, and 6 frames for the Switch even under what he felt was a more-or-less ideal setup.

[dojo_b]

...of course, V-Sync exists for a reason, to get rid of screen tear. In my setup (capable gaming PC plus ordinary digital TV monitor) that effect does exist in Strikers I, and certainly can kill you if it happens at the wrong time. So far I still prefer V-Sync off for a suspected 1-frame lag reduction, but it will be up to personal preference.

Two more noob questions, one about game mechanics and one about Steam issues:

I. Is there an on-screen shot limit for the player that would cause point-blank attacks to kill faster? If so, is this general across Psikyo games, or even the whole modern genre?

(It makes sense that bullet-hell genre could have abolished shot limits given the technical limitations have seemingly been overcome; and at the same time, aggressive point-blank playstyles are fun and risky enough that it would be natural for games to still incentivize them.)

II. Has anyone encountered and managed to fix the problem I have, that clicking over to other apps in Windows causes the game to lose its USB connection to a PS4 controller? I have "solved" by unplugging and replugging, but it takes 5-10 sec.

[Sengoku Strider]

I. Is there an on-screen shot limit for the player that would cause point-blank attacks to kill faster? If so, is this general across Psikyo games, or even the whole modern genre?

(It makes sense that bullet-hell genre could have abolished shot limits given the technical limitations have seemingly been overcome; and at the same time, aggressive point-blank playstyles are fun and risky enough that it would be natural for games to still incentivize them.)

Pretty much yes. Not every game has shot limits, but it's a fairly standard mechanic for exactly the reasons you mentioned. It hasn't really been about technical limitations since like 1979. The Psikyo games developed other proximity mechanics as they went forward, like Gunbird 2's charged melee attacks.

[wiNteR]

I. Is there an on-screen shot limit for the player that would cause point-blank attacks to kill faster? If so, is this general across Psikyo games, or even the whole modern genre?

Good question. After reading this, I played a few minutes of Strikers-2 again (to check this). In this specific game at least, I think every ship usually has "primary" and "secondary" firepower (in addition to the "charge shot"). For example, with flying pancake, by primary firepower I mean the steady stream of fixed wide angle shots. And by second firepower I mean the pods that change their direction automatically to destroy enemies from all around the screen.

I was thinking that perhaps that the secondary firepower increases if one gets closer to the enemy, but that doesn't seem to be the case. So at least for flying pancake, the answer seems to be no in this specific game. However, it seems to me that there are number of points to notice:
(1) If you go closer to the enemy, the primary firepower will get maximum damage output. This is usually advantageous if it can be done while avoiding danger. So in that sense, Marion in gunbird games is similar to Flying Pancake in Strikers-2.

The above point is not just in case of Psikyo games but in general.

(2) Even if the secondary firepower doesn't increase if one is closer to the enemy, there might be the advantage that it might "lock" itself "earlier" on some bigger non popcorn enemy if one is closer to it. So this might be a point to keep in mind (even though usually this isn't likely to make a big difference).

(3) I suspect that in general there might be a number of ship/characters in Psikyo games, where the secondary firepower might increase if one is closer to the enemy. However, it would probably would need to be tested game by game and for each character.

[dojo_b]

When playing Strikers on Steam, make sure friends can see your achievements... you worked hard for them.



(Note, he's a completely ordinary giant robot, not even suitable for Dick Stock if we're judging books by covers)

[MidnightWolf]

Well, now is a good time to blow the dust off and get some Strikers practice in.

It is already 2 years late, but ZeroDiv / City Connection are supposed to be releasing Strikers 202X on Exa-Arcadia this year.