Greatest and crappiest shmup ship designs

Zeether · Post by **Zeether** » Tue Jun 27, 2006 10:31 pm

What, in your opinion, are the best and worst designed shmup ships, and why?

Mine:
Best- The RXR-001 from Rayforce, just really awesome

Worst- The Black Fly from Metal Black. UGLY.

iatneH · Post by **iatneH** » Tue Jun 27, 2006 10:56 pm

I like the mechs from Psyvariar 2, especially the hand-drawn artworks in the PS2 version galleries.

As much as I love Toaplan (and Hellfire), I don't like the design of the Hellfire player ship. For some reason it reminds me of a school bus. Or a cucumber. Or a cross between the two.

Post by **Dave_K.** » Tue Jun 27, 2006 11:12 pm

Ships with boobs are cool!

http://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=7870

JBC · Post by **JBC** » Tue Jun 27, 2006 11:42 pm

I agree with iatneH on that one, Hellfire's ship has always looked dumb to me.

Really i don't think anything will ever beat the R9 design for me. It just looks so comfortable and sleek.

mirkvid · Post by **mirkvid** » Tue Jun 27, 2006 11:44 pm

best: VIC VIPER (has to be!)
worst: Border Down ships...looks like bad origami

Post by **Icarus** » Tue Jun 27, 2006 11:45 pm

Red Wasp (Border Down). Ugliest ship design ever.
(That and that phallic elongated R-9 lookalike in Last Resort.)

Best ship design ever? Pentarou!

FatCobra · Post by **FatCobra** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 1:45 am

No contest.....ugliest ship award goes to the Zig from Zero Wing.

As for best, I like the Vic Viper.

Valgar · Post by **Valgar** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 2:37 am

Ikaruga and Ginkei = win.

Border Down = lose.

Post by **BulletMagnet** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 2:52 am

FatCobra wrote:No contest.....ugliest ship award goes to the Zig from Zero Wing.

I'm inclined to agree...

Best design? Rami-chan and Pochi from Keio Yugekitai, of course.

dial911 · Post by **dial911** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 3:31 am

The best is without a doubt the silvergun!

Border Down has the worst...

Stormwatch · Post by **Stormwatch** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 5:34 am

I actually like Border Down's ships... not the best, but far from that bad.

Middlemoor · Post by **Middlemoor** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 5:57 am

It's not a ship, but when I was a kid I used to like M.U.S.H.A Aleste's animations.

~Kid Icarus~ · Post by **~Kid Icarus~** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 8:09 am

Best = Ikaruga

Worst = Ginkei

Herr Schatten · Post by **Herr Schatten** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 8:47 am

BulletMagnet wrote:Best design? Rami-chan and Pochi from Keio Yugekitai, of course.

I agree. If we're talkin proper ships, though, the price would have to go to the timeless design of the R-9 Arrowhead.

Worst ship design ever is a tie between the ship from Andro Dunos and the one from Hellfire. The Zig is actually quite cute, imo.

Frederik · Post by **Frederik** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 12:13 pm

Coolest = The Psyvariar 2 mechs. A far cry from the butt ugly ones in both Psyvariar 1 Editions, which I vote for the ugliest - and they even transform into even uglier ones like a stupid cylindric shape with wings or something. No thanks.

PooshhMao · Post by **PooshhMao** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 12:20 pm

I hate the Silvergun ship

it reminds me of a Fool's hat (y'know, on the back of playing cards)

Best : R9 Arrowhhead

Anybody noticed the word 'R-Type' looks like the R9 when looked at with squinted eyes?

JBC · Post by **JBC** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 12:56 pm

PooshhMao wrote:Anybody noticed the word 'R-Type' looks like the R9 when looked at with squinted eyes?

YES! Also, in some mid 90's model Pontiac Firebird's the inscription font that says 'Type R' on the passenger side airbag looks exactly the same as the lettering style for the R-Type logo.

RoninBuddha · Post by **RoninBuddha** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 1:26 pm

uhmn, RSG's ship looks like a cros between a PS1 and an N64 controller

mine:
best - The Prince - Dimahoo (hearts!) & Ginkei (ika)

worst - anything from Blazing Star. haha.

@BorderDown - i guess im the only one who likes it.

also, for people shmups, i choose

best - Kosame - Guwange

worst - that cyber-ninja dude from Sengoku Ace

ccovell · Post by **ccovell** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 1:29 pm

PooshhMao wrote:I hate the Silvergun ship it reminds me of a Fool's hat (y'know, on the back of playing cards)

I actually like the Silvergun ship.... but it makes me want to pick it up and use it like a controller.

cf:

Blade · Post by **Blade** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 1:54 pm

Mr. Heli hands down!

rolins · Post by **rolins** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 2:59 pm

best: VF-80286 (Aleste 2) - I have the paper airplane that came w/ the game.
worst: Goemon (MSX Parodius) - one fugly ship

Klatrymadon · Post by **Klatrymadon** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 5:33 pm

Vic Viper for me. Beautiful stuff. My least favourite is probably Last Resort's Ford Capri/dildonic submarine thing.

No, wait, I love that one.

Blue · Post by **Blue** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 8:24 pm

I'm going to have to jump on the Ikaruga bandwagon. I like both the Ikaruga and the mechanical design in general (the 2-3 and 3-2 bosses are particularly nice). Many of the game's designs are very well-proportioned and graceful. I appreciate that the design is more about being sculpturally interesting than iconically representing "power" with a bunch of cartoon spikes and guns and blades. There are a few designs that sort of say "I am spiky! Fear me!" but it's done in a largely tasteful way.

I haven't yet had a chance to play Radiant Silvergun. Is its art direction as solid as Ikaruga's?

There are lots of other great player ships out there. I really like the Vic Viper in promotional art, but in the game itself it always seems a bit clunky to me. The R-Type ship is pleasing in a semi-cartoony way. The red ship in Raiden 1 is also pretty classy. I'm also fond of the ship in Asteroids.

Edit: I forgot Cho Ren Sha!

thesuperkillerxxx · Post by **thesuperkillerxxx** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 8:51 pm

Best: Wild Snail and counterparts (Rust Champion, Iron Mackeral, and Golden Bat)

Worst: (or at least bad) R-type final Mechs, I don't remember the ship designations...

gameoverDude · Post by **gameoverDude** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 9:19 pm

Best:
RXR-001 (RayForce)
Raiden
Any ship in a Raizing game (Ibara included)
Silver Hawk (Darius)
Panzer Jager (Ketsui) - Sorta reminds me of a turtle, but it's still rather cool.

Worst:
Last Resort - WHAT? This one looks like a damn flying Marlboro.

Lone Deranger · Post by **Lone Deranger** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 9:45 pm

I always quite liked the Xenon 2 design....

As for the worst... well.. Nobody remember Hany in the Sky?

LSU · Post by **LSU** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 10:14 pm

The Last Resort ship is certainly oddly proportioned, but I find it endearing somehow.

Best designs:
Ikaruga's right side/player two ship just looks like it could outrun or outgun anything.
Taito games - The Hawks from the Darius series, and anything from any of the Ray games, all very clean and stylish.
Love all the ship designs from Battle Garegga - great mix of well-used military and fantasy.
The Flying Pancake from Strikers 1945 II.
Vic Viper from ZOE2 (well, if we're allowed flashy variants like that).
And finally any game with a flying cat, or even better a flying cat in a cardboard box, gets great kudos from me - e.g. Jikkyou Osyaberi Parodius and Space Invaders '95.

Worst:
Never liked the Galaxian ship very much, anything that has that slight Starship Enterprise feel to it just doesn't look right in a fast moving shmup to me.

Ed Oscuro · Post by **Ed Oscuro** » Wed Jun 28, 2006 10:57 pm

Dave_K. wrote:Ships with boobs are cool!

http://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=7870

I've always disagreed with that analysis, but lol, the pilot seems to have them as well (displaced though)

EXMaster · Post by **EXMaster** » Thu Jun 29, 2006 12:12 am

Best: Fire LEO 4 "Rynex" from Thunder Force IV

Worst: Zig from Zero Wing

Blade · Post by **Blade** » Thu Jun 29, 2006 2:46 am

REZ