[03-30-2005]: Made new additions and changes everywhere. Something feels like Konami stuff here listed is for Gradius only?
[04-02-2005]: Few changes here, namely for CAVE and IREM.
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CAVE:
- minimum two fighters; sometimes may have variations
- background can shake from explosions (large ones), and the shaking often affects only the background, score counter, and fighter, but not the score/lives/bomb display
- explosions can cause white flash (background only, exception to this rule is when the boss instantly flashes the background, but happens for only a frame and affects the player ship).
- bullets have acceleration properties (allows '3D' bullet movement)
- sprites are often pre-rendered 3D models
- bullet count extremely high
- use of bombs discouraged
- often stage clear screens will replace the entire screen, otherwise the player is forced to move to the default spawning position while the score bonus is displayed
- if the player meets conditions, often the player will enter a second loop of the game
- there's something to slow the player down (e.g., stronger shot, laser, etc.)
Raizing/8ing:
- minimum four fighters
- bomb usage and deaths should be smart to maximize score
- bombs always consist of a missile-type rack
- upon death, player pukes powerups/option icons to destroy other targets/bullets on screen
- often a "Medal System" is used (max 10k points per medal)
- bosses can throw off player
- if the game has options, there's a minimum of 2, maximum 6
- options can switch between several modes (including a funnel mode which is not common)
- explosions can either be circular, or trail a long line of fire
- bullets are more biased towards throwing player off than quantity/quality
- secret characters and extras common
- no stage clear screens, so no level bonuses; this one involves the screen fading to black and an engine sound to depict the player moving to next stage
- you can still hit the boss while it's blowing up
- level name often at top of screen
Psikyo:
- Rotating 'P' icons
- Short stages
- First three stages randomized, even though there are four initially that must be played through
- Charge attack
- Fast bullets, not a whole lot of spam. Bullets generally yellow/brown in color
- Multiple part bosses
- Gold/coins to pick up with cycling values
- Difficulty ramps up quickly
- no stage clear screens, so no level bonuses; this one involves the fighter moving out of the level to the next area
- bosses have a technical bonus during a period of time (usually once) and will be instant-killed if player makes contact with it
IREM:
- Some kind of charge shot. Always.
- Tri-color powerups, usually red blue yellow or red blue green.
- Usually some kind of blastoff/launch intro at the beginning of the stage 1, if only a very brief one
- Strangely colored ship canopies (except where not appliccable, as in Dragon Breed)
- "Suggestive" bosses and/or backgrounds (yeah, a lot of shmups have those, but Irem and R-TYPE in particular are big on innuendo that's subtle enough most younger players would miss it)
- Rounded ships as opposed to angular/winged ships
- Giant segmented robotic snake/worm that will encircle you at some point during gameplay
- Bullets usually round and orange.
Compile:
- Same jingle for 1ups
- a slick animation for level clear (many games, not all)
- Multiple secondary weapons that can be upgraded
- A primary weapon that is upgraded with p-icons, yellow balls, red balls, or some variant
- Shots from enemies that can be destroyed along with the industructible shots
- Numbered power ups (most games)
- Long stages (most games, not all)
- an AI system (earlier games, with the exception of Zanac Neo, which is more recent and has the system)
- a mode with enemies that drop bullets when they die (many games)
- at least one boss or mini boss that involves destroying ground turrets (or whatever they are called)
- an occansional guest appearance from blue lander
Konami (Gradius-specific, here? o_O):
- Options
- "Destroy all of them".
- Die and You are Screwed.
- Stick figure on paper airplane.
- Power-up bar.
- Bell powerups.
- "Wall turrets".
- Enemy "cores".
- Boring space background in almost every Gradius beginning-of-level.
- Short Thin Blue Beam Rain Of Death
- Verbal announcement of each activated weapon
- Pansy-ass wuss final boss
- THE Gradius staple right next to Options and the Viper @ end of last boss
- Moai heads
Takumi (except Kyukyoku Tiger II):
- Screen filled with bullets
- Some kind of defensive/offensive gimmick that uses a meter that charges -with time
- Screen almost as filled with little collectable thingys that multiply your score
- Touching enemies can't damage you
- Scores have at least 20 digits
Seibu Kaihatsu:
- Powerups with different weapons that change as they float around
- Megabombs, always
- Medals for points
- extremely speedy bullets
- Juicy explosions with little shrapnel
- Music is some sort of techno-pop
- Vertical scrolling, vertical monitor
- ship moves faster diagonally
Treasure:
- ship moves faster diagonally
Toaplan:
- cool music :p
- mech style everything, not much organic things at all.
- speedups, then when speed is maxed, speed ups give a 5000 bonus, same with powerups.
- random cameos in latter games.
- round/triangle ass ship with options on his side happen a lot, see truxton 1&2, zero wing, batsugun (type 3) dogyuun. also happens in some cave games, ddp, ketsui (although being an helicopter)
- no stage change in the earlier games, the game continues as if nothing.
- virtually infinite looping.
- flashy colors in most games.
- Ground enemies in vertical shooters, even the futuristic ones
- Disc shaped enemies (not all games)
- Tank enemies in military shooters that can get their top blown off (also happens in some Seibu games)
IREM:
- More than 75% of their shooters are not R-type.
- most Irem shmups are trial-and-error memory/strategy shmups.
