I'm so glad that Hamster's Arcade Archives are a thing.

[valziman]

Any preferences? I prefer either B-2 or B-3 depending on the game.

By the way for reference, the filters are listed A-1 through A-5, with those only showing scanlines. Then B-1 through B-5 which show scanlines and that effect where it looks like a vertical bar goes across screen. lol not sure what it's actually called however, the old arcade games used to have it.

I can't stand any of them because of the vaseline effect. I only want scanlines. A1 is the least blurry, so I recommend it, but it's better to just not use one, imo. Some old ACA releases have an option to switch on scanlines without the blur, but those are rare.

[hamfighterx]

I can't stand any of them because of the vaseline effect. I only want scanlines. A1 is the least blurry, so I recommend it, but it's better to just not use one, imo. Some old ACA releases have an option to switch on scanlines without the blur, but those are rare.

Agreed, I normally love a good scanline filter but I can't do the blurred softening effect that is on all of the usual Hamster A1-5/B1-5 settings, so I just keep it off. My (probably wildly unrealistic) dream scenario would be for Hamster to release updates for all AA/ACA Neo Geo release to have an option to remove that gross blur filter.

The handful of older releases with options for "Sharp" or "Soft" scanlines are mostly, if not all, done by Gotch Technologies (credited on the initial menu screen), but they only account for a small handful of the Arcade Archives releases and I don't think I've seen a new one in years.

Decent handful of releases in 2018-2019 had the "good scanlines", mostly on games from Nichibutsu, UPL, Technos, Tecmo, Jaleco. Also a few Konami titles (Twinbee, Scramble, Mr. Goemon). I used to count them and have 24 games marked from pre-2020, but seeing Gotch stuff and those scanlines fell off shortly thereafter and I stopped keeping track.

[Sima Tuna]

I don't use scanlines in ACA releases, but I do use the 00 filter since it removes some of the worst pixel chunkiness.

[Steven]

The only good fake CRT things I've seen are on the Bitwave Toaplan games, which is probably and unfortunately the part of those releases that had the most effort put into it by someone other than me, and Sonic Mania. Most of the rest... completely suck. Most of them just make the image dark and blurry; this is you, M2!!!!! That's not how CRTs actually work. At least, that's not how either of my CRTs work; you can't even see scanlines at all on my Trinitron.

Other filters' fake scanlines don't align with the pixel grid, whether because of poor scaling or whatever happened on the PS4 Dracula X collection, so it looks really bad. Of course, Hamster still hasn't figured out that non-fucked up scaling is something that actually exists and is possible to do. It really isn't that hard, Hamster. Square pixels is arguably very wrong, but I'll take even that over the poorly scaled nothingness that is the only choice ACA has now.

[Sturmvogel Prime]

Alright, dragonslayers. Here's some good news.
Athena's Castle of Dragon/Dragon Unit is the first Arcade Archives title of 2025.
https://www.famitsu.com/article/202501/29270

[BEAMLORD]

Happy new year. I am looking forward to finding out what the first release of 2025 will be. Been a very good run in recent weeks.

Haven't got round to SDF's second loop yet, still trying to nail down the first. Also, Daioh is competing for my attention after I finally learnt to play it properly after watching player Sikraiken's 2-ALL on STG Weekly.

Edit: Ah, thanks Sturmvogel Athena returns.

[BIL]

I suspect Macross's 2-5 is the cure for those giantess fetish wronguns. X_X Or maybe they're masochists, too.



"Don't underestimate them! They're as deadly as the men, maybe even worse!"
"Aww, you got a crush Hikaru?" *ROCKET TO FUCKIN FACE*
"KAKIZAKIEAAAAAH"

2-5 Meltrandi rush, so brutal. Yet articulate! Demolishing them with focus fire during startup, without getting driven into a corner by Revenge Bullets, nor letting them loose scads of spreadfire and homing rockets, a rush of control every time. Unfortunately, the bullet visibility is a bit weak as you cross the ancient city, putting their white revenge bullets over off-white metal. Though not to the extent of doing real damage; the bullets' blue glowing effect helps a lot. Nothing on par with real howlers like TD1's Cloud stages, and Raiden Fighters Jet's Real Battle Phase 01. Which is also a Cloud stage, dammit. Won't even mention The Tin Star, now that is some tragic shit!

2-4 is a genuine classic of vertical tank warfare, imo. That stage puts your ass to work. >83 It's easy not to notice, with the relentless rumbling procession of heavy ground units, until suddenly you're a half-second behind and the fuckers wall you in, stealing a bomb. Caning it from start to finish, particularly when chasing all kills and medals at minimum bomb expenditure. Exactly the movement-imperative STG design I like best. GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE TUNAHEAD-KUN Dozy bastard is buried smack between the closing Zentradi + Meltrandi battalions, tricky to dig him up without missing a speedkill and getting put on the back foot.

Bombing for pure survival is very forgiving. (at least in the moment; your ass better keep Stage 7 in mind boyo ) Particularly if you take full advantage of Armor Suicide. New Armor pickup onscreen? Suicide the current to spawn a free Bomba, while generating a hearty burst of i-frames; perfect for 30hz teabagging nearby heavies. Nab the new Bomb + Armor, get back in the groove. Or even loose a bomb after you've suicided the Armor, demolishing the screen down to a blank slate before recouping. (don't bomb before! you'll blow away whatever you intended to run into, and be impervious to any newcomers for a good ~2sec after, prefiguring the classic Garegga "God dammit! KILL MEH NAO" conundrum)

The obvious hit is to score; -10,000pts for Armor surplus, possibly another -10,000pts for Bomb capacity. In classic arcade style, STGs are all about the long game, ofc. I see the WR is ~9mil, compared to the typical 2ALL of ~7mil; I'm curious about scoreplay, but am just enjoying figuring stuff out for now.

Gained a new appreciation for the Item Queue. Gerwalk, Battroid, Fighter, Bomba, repeat. Easier to anticipate icons, and also great motivation to chase down those zako formations; missing them will put those vital bombas further back. Still not sure how Armor appears, I think it's at set points. Same for Powerups, maybe. Some enemies and formations also drop Bombas outright; this is basically the only reason 2-7 works, at least from normie perspective. (the final gauntlet is one long Equivalent Exchange)

Also noticed, now survival is more in the bag, the SameSame Bounce Hazard has a charming bit of restraint: they'll bounce off an invisible line roughly 3/4ths downscreen, until they're finally ready to leave. Handy; doesn't quite remove the deadliest instance, 2-7's DogPileMania, where I'm currently midscreen, but it's welcome detailing and might prove useful.

I like that Armor, despite doing boss-crushing focus damage, isn't the flat-out Best Weapon. Battroid really tears up some sectors, notably the Dogpile, which can be quasi-improv'd. Fighter is deceptively comfy VS zako formations, where Battroid's homing is conspicuously weak. And Gerwalk's piercing greatly simplifies multi-part enemies. Armor's strong enough even without its +1HP security and bomb surf that you want to keep it; also a massive cumulative score boost. (all Change items become bonuses, for regular 15,000pt bumps) But it takes conscious adaptation of its relatively weak spread and extra-narrow focus, a nice tactical wrinkle.

Also liking how, despite the ruthless absence of Toaplan-style Bullet Sealing, flying zako are bound by hard ammo limits. Common pest has just one snipe shot, then can be safely approached. Their archetypal "column of destructibles" variant, same; parallel parking while they unload a furious barrage downscreen handy in 2-6. Laser Prick is SOL once he's loosed his payload; better speedkilled, but safe to approach if you're forced to. You can see the deceptive consideration that'd be leavened into Thunder Dragon 2.



EDIT: Ahaha, holy shit! That's not just the ancient city you pass over... it's the Macross itself, knocked flat on its ass with its cannons blown off by the stage boss, as seen on the big screen. This game's art direction and scripting is such a pleasure. Tacit understanding between staff and audience, tailored to STG pace. I always liked DYRL as a writer's exercise, folding so many hours of TV into a ~2hr film. The game is like an origami take further, compressed into a ~20min game. Sometimes a bit upsettingly, as with Max unceremoniously blowing away the canonical mother of his eight kids. Safer than timing her out! ;3

Alright, dragonslayers. Here's some good news.
Athena's Castle of Dragon/Dragon Unit is the first Arcade Archives title of 2025.
https://www.famitsu.com/article/202501/29270

I was just thinking while enjoying Macross, this time last year it was the landmark Mystic Warriors followed by Solitary Fighter. (not to be confused with KID's badass isometric STG, Isolated Warrior)

Actually, I shouldn't be so dismissive. The Famicom port is weak, some rad style from UNDEAD_TAMA aside. Be for always HERETIC FOREST He would be better-served in its spiritual sequel, Sword Master.

But I was recently checking out the AC version, and tbh I didn't think it looked nearly as jank. Maybe I'm dead wrong on that. I'll have to give it a test drive in MAME, at least.

At any rate, speaking of Daioh, a reliable Meat 4 Puddin pick for Athena scrolling action. Roll on J.J. Squawkers! The jump in prowess between their earlier and later games is absolutely stunning. And I like Strike Gunner STG a lot. It's got some real underdog fire, pardon its fleeting Achilles of a truly godawful st5 BGM. It's just hard to believe the same guys made the hulking buff DAIOHHH in such rapid succession!

[Azathoth_0]

Is there a way to view any of the ACA leaderboards outside of owning the game and firing it up on a specific console? I'd love to see what the disparity is between platforms.

[Jonpachi]

I can't find SDF Macross on either the US or Japanese eshop. I searched every combination I can think of, and even trolled through all the NMK games and ACA games to no avail. What is this called on there? Or was the release delayed?

Maybe I should be looking under Beat-Em-Ups?

[Ms. Tea]

Macross is only out in Japan; no US release. Here's the webstore listing: https://store.playstation.com/ja-jp/pro ... C000000001

[Jonpachi]

Is it PlayStation only? Searching on Japanese eshop and I can’t find it.

[hamfighterx]

Direct link to the web page for the Japan Switch eShop version: https://store-jp.nintendo.com/item/soft ... 0000087461

It's in the "Shooting" or シューティング category. Hope that helps!

[Steven]

I finally decided to stop being completely lazy and got Viper Phase 1. This game is cool, I guess. The New Version wide shot is probably the most anemic wide shot I have ever seen. It's Seibu, so I'm sure it's got some crazy rank thing somewhere that nobody knows about. The music is definitely not doing anything for me at all, but that's about the only thing I don't like about this game so far.

Are there any advantages to playing on 2P side for this game?

[Jonpachi]

Direct link to the web page for the Japan Switch eShop version: https://store-jp.nintendo.com/item/soft ... 0000087461

It's in the "Shooting" or シューティング category. Hope that helps!

Found it! Thanks! I was going crazy.

[BIL]

Is there a way to view any of the ACA leaderboards outside of owning the game and firing it up on a specific console? I'd love to see what the disparity is between platforms.

Unfortunately no, not AFAIK.

Are there any advantages to playing on 2P side for [Viper Phase 1] ?

My usual reference doesn't mention VP1, and the STG Hall of Records doesn't include a note for player side. So I would guess not, offhand.

Incidentally, WIZ mentioned on a Metal Black run that he likes using 2P ships for fun, when performance is identical.

Thank you!
In Metal Black, there is no difference between Player 1 and Player 2, so choose whichever you prefer.
By the way, in games where Player 1 and Player 2 have the same performance, I always choose Player 2.
In the case of games where Player 1 and Player 2 have different performances, I choose the player who can earn more money.

I wonder if others like the option, too? Might explain it appearing in games with identical ship performance. ACA Raiga and Riot let you switch sides, too, not sure if it does anything there.

Maybe the VP1 toggle is a nod to Raiden Fighters vets who prefer the Blue Javelin over Judge Spear.

[RedCadre]

I havent noticed any Arcade Archives games with a smoothing like effect on them. Especially with the aforementioned visual filters. If there ever is a smooth option under the graphical settings of every game thats getting turned off right away lol.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

I havent noticed any Arcade Archives games with a smoothing like effect on them. Especially with the aforementioned visual filters. If there ever is a smooth option under the graphical settings of every game thats getting turned off right away lol.

If you give the Switch port of LiveWire's DoDonpachi-SaiDaiOuJou a spin, you'll see the option listed for enabling "Smoothing" or "Off" -- when I play it, smoothing is turned off. It's just a "matter of preference" at the end of the day in regards to playing DDP-SDOJ however you'd like.

Of course, there's no scanline filters available from the "get-go" but that particular issue is easily remedied with using an HD based external Scan Line Generator (SLG) device placed between a docked Switch and your preferred HDTV or gaming monitor (like how it replicates scanlines present if playing the DDP-SDOJ arcade pcb on an old-school low-res CRT-based arcade RGB monitor setup).

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[valziman]

All of mine started with smoothing on by default.

[Steven]

Are there any advantages to playing on 2P side for [Viper Phase 1] ?

My usual reference doesn't mention VP1, and the STG Hall of Records doesn't include a note for player side. So I would guess not, offhand.

Incidentally, WIZ mentioned on a Metal Black run that he likes using 2P ships for fun, when performance is identical.

Thank you!
In Metal Black, there is no difference between Player 1 and Player 2, so choose whichever you prefer.
By the way, in games where Player 1 and Player 2 have the same performance, I always choose Player 2.
In the case of games where Player 1 and Player 2 have different performances, I choose the player who can earn more money.

I wonder if others like the option, too? Might explain it appearing in games with identical ship performance. ACA Raiga and Riot let you switch sides, too, not sure if it does anything there.

Maybe the VP1 toggle is a nod to Raiden Fighters vets who prefer the Blue Javelin over Judge Spear.

Excellent, thanks. While we're on the subject of this game, is it me or is this another game where diagonal movement is faster than orthogonal? It sure seems like it!

[RedCadre]

I havent noticed any Arcade Archives games with a smoothing like effect on them. Especially with the aforementioned visual filters. If there ever is a smooth option under the graphical settings of every game thats getting turned off right away lol.

If you give the Switch port of ACA DoDonpachi-SaiDaiOuJou a spin, you'll see the option listed for enabling "Smoothing" or "Off" -- when I play it, smoothing is turned off. It's just a "matter of preference" at the end of the day in regards to playing DDP-SDOJ however you'd like.

Of course, there's no scanline filters available from the "get-go" but that particular issue is easily remedied with using an HD based external Scan Line Generator (SLG) device placed between a docked Switch and your preferred HDTV or gaming monitor (like how it replicates scanlines present if playing the DDP-SDOJ arcade pcb on an old-school low-res CRT-based arcade RGB monitor setup).

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

That's strange....I didnt know Arcade Archives did a port of Dodonpachi Saidaioujou. In fact, I dont believe even M2 did one.

For all of the ACA releases on PS4 the menus all look the same. So, after pausing the game and going to display settings there is an option listed screen filter. Going through the choices it doesnt offer a smoothing effect [not that I would want one].
The screen filter options that are selectable are mild to heavy scanlines ONLY.

The choices of screen filters are listed as A1-A5 then B1-B5. So, in other words selecting A-1 will put mild scanlines on the game with, A-5 being the maximum.

After scrolling past A-5 it'll show B-1. These also go from B1-B5, the difference being not only do they add scanlines, The different B's also display a vertical bar that moves horizontally slowly across the screen. I'm not sure what the technical term is for that however, the old arcade machines use to display it.
Again, the higher the number so, for example B3 to B5 the darker the lines and effects.

[hamfighterx]

For all of the ACA releases on PS4 the menus all look the same. So, after pausing the game and going to display settings there is an option listed screen filter. Going through the choices it doesnt offer a smoothing effect [not that I would want one].
The screen filter options that are selectable are mild to heavy scanlines ONLY.

The choices of screen filters are listed as A1-A5 then B1-B5. So, in other words selecting A-1 will put mild scanlines on the game with, A-5 being the maximum.

Unfortunately, the only option in the In the Arcade Archives "Display Settings" > "Screen filter" menus that does not have a smoothing filter effect is "OFF".

The default display mode for that setting is "00", which applies a smoothing filter that's very easy to see by comparing it to the OFF option right next to it. And then ALL of the A1-A5 and B1-B5 scanline filters use the smooth "00" setting as a base, and apply scanlines to that. There are no in-game settings that have scanlines and no smoothing filter.

The exception to this general rule for Arcade Archives would be the small handful of games that Gotch worked on (noted with a "Conversion worked by GOTCH TECHNOLOGY GROUP" at the bottom of the first AA menu screen where you select the arcade version, caravan mode, etc). Those have slightly different video options and let you choose Scan Line Type (from the choices: OFF, Soft, or Sharp). I like the "Sharp" setting for those, looks better than the typical Hamster AA A1-A5 scanline filter.

[RedCadre]

By the way, a number of Arcade Archives games caught my eye the other day. Thing is, Im not too sure how they play or if they're even any fun.

Renegade
Knuckle Heads
Vigilante
The Legend Of Valkyrie

As it is, I have a lot of Arcade Archives games that are either similar or the exact same genre. Basically I was curious if these were better than most of the others released.
The game Knuckle Heads seems intriguing. Looks to be a 4 player fighting game so kinda like Street Fighter with 4 people instead of 2. It was also developed by Namco maybe attempting to cash in on the 2D Fighter space.

Making things even more difficult the Double Dragon & Kunio-kun :Retro Brawler Bundle is 77% off from its regular price of $40.00. Many of the Technos Japan games from the Arcade Archives seem to also be available in that set. It includes 18 games with many not seeing a release outside of Japan until this release.
All games were localized for this release however, the games look more like console releases instead of Arcade.


Anyway, separate question from those. Has anyone played the ExZeus:The Complete Collection? If so, any good? Its not an Arcade Archives release, Also the 'collection' includes 2 different games. The price on this one is good too.

[BIL]

Still not sure how Armor appears, I think it's at set points.

Oh shi So that's why the ACA HUD rolls over at ten medals. Every 10x Medals = Armor drop. I thought the HUD was just a cute minor addition, but turns out it's actually incredibly useful for plotting out your attack.

Should've figured something was up, with those TD1+2-styled item lanes off to the sides. Just as those games' Gold Stars / Blue Medals give bombs, you can deftly suicide your current Armor to reap a bomb before snagging the new one. (Armor does also drop from a few set targets, most notably that first Zentraedi mech post-DogPileMania - and of course poor ol' KAKIZAKEEEH)

I've enjoyed the Loop 2 start a lot - 2-7's harrowingly goofy finale an obvious caveat. You actually only need one bomb for the 30hz teabag, even un-Armoured. (time it to the BGM as shown) It seems jamming on the bomb button, as seen in the first replay, actually makes dastardly BOLG survive longer. (kept it for the amusing death; you're supposed to be invincible after a boss dies, but it seems you can get a same-frame double KO, albeit at no lives lost)

Absolutely night and day with the very respectable prior six. 2-6 in particular captures the movie's scale and pandemonium without abandoning its design principles. I particularly like all the flying space debris, atmospheric and deceptively lethal. Perhaps my favourite fleet battle sequence next to RayStorm's inimitably menacing vision of surface-to-air fire. Also holy cow this game is unwatchable in 30fps.

This is my absolute worst time of the year for The Hard Gaming™, as my side gig in the Rural Farmfordshire Freshwater Angler Invitational revs up. What a joke, these chumps would not survive the high seas! So I'm tempted to leave it as a quick n' dirty second loop ALL before I bugger off for couple months. But it's a fun game for longer-form scoring too, despite the somewhat mild first loop. Shoot n' loot n' don't get shot. So I might well come back to the full 2ALL later in the year.

Making things even more difficult the Double Dragon & Kunio-kun :Retro Brawler Bundle is 77% off from its regular price of $40.00. Many of the Technos Japan games from the Arcade Archives seem to also be available in that set. It includes 18 games with many not seeing a release outside of Japan until this release.
All games were localized for this release however, the games look more like console releases instead of Arcade.

Nekketsu Kouha Kunio-kun/Renegade does show its age with some mechanical jank, yet it remains a deceptively strong beater once adjusted to. As I am always reminded, when it's been a while! The 1 v 6 arena setup has an instant fury that puts dozens of younger beaters to shame. I love DD1 and DD2, but both are arguably more flawed despite being younger games. Might be worth giving these three (and Dodgeball Club) a spin in MAME; if you can get over the aged mechanics, they can be inimitably charming beaters. DD1's enemy down sample has never been surpassed, so brutally satisfying.

I would say the best ACA beater for Technos-style grit is actually Konami's Vendetta / Crime Fighters 2, a much smoother-playing yet just as punishing affair.

At a glance, that collection looks like it's all FC/NES carts; they're radically different games from the arcade originals on ACA, deliberately so. I'd actually say Famicom Double Dragon II is the overall best beater Technos ever did, but I'm not sure if it's in that set. I have the Kunio beater collection, and that one was NES DD2-only; much easier, unfortunately. Still a fun enough time. A lot of those ports and originals are excellent fun, particularly River City Ransom / Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari.

[beer gas canister]

Heads up, Libble Rabble is on sale for Switch for the first time at the moment, for the next couple of weeks.

https://www.dekudeals.com/games?filter[ ... r]=HAMSTER

[Ms. Tea]

The ACA version plays really well; the twin-stick control scheme works nicely with the Switch's two analogue sticks. Definitely recommend picking it up.

[Quips]

Heads up, Libble Rabble is on sale for Switch for the first time at the moment, for the next couple of weeks.

https://www.dekudeals.com/games?filter[ ... r]=HAMSTER

Thank you; I love adding to my Arcade Archives collection through the occasional sales. <3

[DenimDemon]

Interesting didn't know the hit box was much smaller on VP1 Old version.

https://x.com/kommander_hzk/status/1876101772231733348

Any suggestion for a Yoko STG non Neo Geo on ACA?
I've got Gradius series, Darius, Mecha, Mustang, Bio Ship Paladin...to name a few.

[BIL]

The ACA version plays really well; the twin-stick control scheme works nicely with the Switch's two analogue sticks. Definitely recommend picking it up.

I was surprised to learn it's also a great co-op game, if you use the Preference Option that divides Libble/Left and Rabble/Right's controls between a pair of devices. (ostensibly two arcade sticks, for solo twin-stick action, or maybe even rigging up something like this beauty, fan-made for Dempa's X68000 port)

Spoiler

I wonder if players ever tried co-op on the real cab back in the day, haha. (and if management bitched them out for it ) Obviously a far easier game with a person per anchor, compared to the solo coordination tester, but such good fun.

I've got Gradius series, Darius, Mecha, Mustang, Bio Ship Paladin...to name a few.

I think you have XEXEX, IIRC? My first rec otherwise.

A couple of yoko outsiders I think are worth a look: Namco's Pistol Daimyou no Bouken, and Sunsoft's Markham. Former's genuinely pretty weird, built around a lobbing charge shot with a couple different power levels. The ACA port, just like Phelios, has custom autofire rates which lets you blast off mid- and fully-charged shots, turning it into a three-button game. I think it plays pretty well; bit on the easy side but with plenty of finesse, would've probably made a great console original. Same colourful gag manga style as its parent game, Bravoman; reminds me a lot of the Keio Yuugekitai games and Hana Taka Daka, too.

Spoiler

Markham's a lot straighter-laced, kind of a horizontal Xevious if that makes sense with its formations and boss weakpoint sniping. It does have one strikingly original mechanic, a player-guided missile; hold the button to set its altitude, release to let it rocket off. Great for nailing those boss cores!

Spoiler

I really like this one, has a nice early 80s immediacy. Massive caveat to the Sky Kid-prefiguring nose up/down movement; I don't mind it at all, actually I kinda like nailing enemies from above and below with 45' attacks, very Metal Black. But it's a divisive mechanic that always merits advising.

Also, for a similarly little-feted borderliner, Sunsoft's Ikki. Topdown arena run-gun / treasure hunt. Grab all the ingots while blasting ninjas. The screen edge riding would normally send me running for the hills... but a couple things save its bacon imo. First is the radar, which points out ingots and makes it easy to plot efficient routes. Second is the neat auto-targeting shot; frees up reaction time. Maybe worth a tryout in MAME to see if you can get along with its idiosyncrasies - that goes for all of these really - but it's the kind of obscurity that I've seen click with people.

[OldSkoolShmuper]

What do you think we're going to get this week? Please let it be Thunder Fox.

[Sturmvogel Prime]

In the second week of 2025, the Arcade Archives Namco Bird cometh.

Namco delivers their first entry of this year: VS. Family Tennis
https://www.famitsu.com/article/202501/29836