Does anyone prefer Salamander over its sequel?

shinsage · Post by **shinsage** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 5:41 am

Lifeforce was one of my first NES games back when I restocked in the late 90s. I thought it was too hard so I put it away for a few years, then I came back to it and fell in love. I'm pretty sure I could 1CC if my NES stopped going on the fritz while I'm playing it.

Anyways, I never played Salamander 2 but after seeing gameplay footage I was pretty amazed at how much Konami advanced the visuals (aesthetically more than graphically). It always seems to me that S2 is clearly the favorite.

But I'd like to know, does anyone enjoy the original more than its sequel? If so, why?

Also, if you've got Saturn Salamander Deluxe Pack+ for sale, drop me a PM...

The Coop · Post by **The Coop** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 6:51 am

When I was a kid, I played LifeForce quite a bit at a local pizza shop. I loved it. When I got my NES (long after it was dead), I grabbed a boxed copy of the game at a flea market. Then a few years ago, I grabbed the Salamander Deluxe Pack Plus for the Saturn, and got my first sampling of Salamander 2. While I enjoyed the noticeably easier sequel, and felt it was certainly a good game with nice graphics, music and additions, I gotta admit I still enjoy the original more. Perhaps it's nostalgia, perhaps it the greater level of challenge, but there's just something about LifeForce that puts it a notch or two ahead of its sequel.

mulletgeezer · Post by **mulletgeezer** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 8:51 am

I think Salamander is leagues ahead of it's sequel, though there's quite a bit of nostalgia wrapped up in my Salamander appreciation which can be hard to untangle - Salamander was the first game i saw in an arcade with a big "wow" factor and it used to pull crowds of 6+ watchers often and was one of the only shmups ever that really set my local arcade alight and got everyone playing it and competing for scores.

Salamander has great level design and wonderful music and stimulating visuals and the speech adds a lot of charm to the game; Salamander 2 seems to me just a very soulless rehash of the original.

WarpZone · Post by **WarpZone** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 6:28 am

I'd like to play a Salamander that captured the "spirit" of the original with the more fair and interesting mechanics of its sequel...

DJ Incompetent · Post by **DJ Incompetent** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 5:23 am

Salamander 2 is my better one. If only because of the option shooting and the final boss actually fights back.

NAVVARR · Post by **NAVVARR** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 10:00 pm

I picked up the Saturn Salamander Deluxe pack for about £10.50 + postage on ebay.
It's pretty good, but I agree that the originals were the best,- The sequel is fancier, but there is something lacking- the previous threads described it as soul less- i agree.

Maybe checkout- Xmultiply / Image Fight instead?

professor ganson · Post by **professor ganson** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 10:18 pm

Tough call. With the limited time I've spent with them my impression so far: both are incredibly fun, with Salamander 2 just a bit prettier to look at. But who cares about looks?

shinsage · Post by **shinsage** » Wed Sep 27, 2006 1:43 am

NAVVARR wrote: Maybe checkout- Xmultiply / Image Fight instead?

Own it, fuckin' love it. I just found out why it's called Image Fight too, something about over half of the game being set inside a hologram simulator (think Danger Room in X-Men).
Now IF and IF2, I wonder how those compare with each other.

Klatrymadon · Post by **Klatrymadon** » Wed Sep 27, 2006 6:52 am

I love them both dearly. Not sure I'd go as far as to call the second one soulless, though - it just bends the knee to many more old-hat audiovisual banalities than the original, thus feeling like it isn't even trying to be a natural evolution.

Oddly, I find that the NES game has a better atmosphere than either of 'em. The first level in particular is quite a bit more stark and unwelcoming than that of the arcade and PCE versions...