So really, how good is Dodonpachi on the Saturn?

[Nei First]

Is it a really good shooter or are there other saturn shmups (Batsugun/Soukyugurentai) I should be more focused on?

Also how good is this port on saturn compared to the PSX and Arcade/Mame versions?

[Naiera]

PSX version is better, but if you play the Saturn version in TATE it's acceptable.

[Nei First]

Please can you explain what TATE means and how it helps to improve the game?

[adam76]

I've heard that the PSX version is better but the Saturn port has an extra level tacked on. For what its worth, i really enjoy the Sat version. Its relatively easy to pick up whilst not requiring you to remortgage your house(Radiant Silvergun i'm looking at you!) so pick it up if you can.

Still prefer Batsugun though...

[MovingTarget]

What is better about the PSX version?

Its 'acceptable' in tate? Thats a bit harsh isnt it? Looks amazing to me.

[TWITCHDOCTOR]

TATE= sideways TV/vertical.
PSX DoDonPachi is better only slightly, the Saturn version's only downfall(which ain't really bad at all) is pixles. Yea, slightly more pixles mostly noticable when things blow up. Still, its a "good" port. The PSX version is only better if you're "anal" about it.

PLus, the Saturn version currently sells for one third the price of the PSX.
Get whichever one, and I doubt you will be disapointed.

[jp]

I've only played the PS1 version myself and IMO its the second best Cave game (behind Pro Gear and really only relevant if you like Cave). I'd say it'd be a good introduction if its your first Cave game, a lot better than the craptacular Saturn version of Donpachi.

[CMoon]

The pachis are great. Avoid Donpachi on the Saturn though (that said, I've heard it is still a fun port). Apparently the Saturn and PSX versions of Dodonpachi are more comparable however.

What is tate? That's when you put your TV on its side! I'll be posting a picture shortly in the 'organize your collection' thread with a tate and yoko (horizontal) tv side by side. How does it help? Well many shmups are vertical in their original arcade orientation, so if you don't tate your tv, the game must either compensate by cropping, squashing or shrinking (or even the most dreaded 'wobble mode'.)

Cropping of course would simply be cutting off parts of the screen--layer section on the saturn does this in yoko.

Squashing would be to simply change the proportions of the screen, meaning your ship (and bullets) would move faster along the x axis than the y axis (this is clearly a bad solution).

Shrinking means that you end up with black bars on one or both sides of the screen, making the game very small (sort of an inverted letterbox). This is probably the best way to play in yoko, and acceptable if you have a BIG TV.

Wobble Mode is when not all of the screen is displayed at once, but scrolls back and forth as you move your ship up and down the screen. The funny thing is that the old Raidens actually used a horizontal wobble intentionally to pretty awesome affect, giving the sense of a bigger playing field, but when this is implemented as a vertical wobble, it is VERY bad, and known to induce all sorts of headaches.

The only real solution to these games is either 'shrinking' or tate. I'm not going to argue some elitist stance for those who can't tate, but cropping, squashing or wobble are essentially the shooter equivalent of pan & scan for movies. You aren't playing the whole game.

[Nei First]

Oh, well thanks for clearing that up C'moon.

Funny thing is I actually play alot of my DC shmups in TATE mode, I just didn't know there was a technical term for it. Well, you learn something new everyday I guess.

Is it worth getting if you can get it on MAME?

[CMoon]

Is it worth getting if you can get it on MAME?

I used to emulate and got sick of it. Even crappy ports often feel better to me than emulation. Everyone feels different about it so I won't carry on. For me, playing these games on my PSX feels WORLDS better than emulation, but the choice is really yours.

Again, apparently saturn version of dodonpachi is great too, so I don't see any reason not to get it.

[Nei First]

I must admit whwn I play emulated games they sometimes feel cheap, like the value of wanting to get the game, then actually getting it to play on a console, has more value than just getting a free emulation. Maybe it's just psychological or the fact you can play with unlimited credit.

Anyway I hate the feeling of being cheated, what's a roughly good price to pay for Dondonpachi?
How's Batsugun compared, is the action even more crazier?

[alpha5099]

Is it a really good shooter or are there other saturn shmups (Batsugun/Soukyugurentai) I should be more focused on?

I personally prefer Batsugun over DDP (it's just a bit higher than DonPachi in my book), but it's not so much greater that you should focus on it solely, avoiding the Pachis. Really, if you enjoy any one of those manics (Batsugun, DP, and DDP), you'll almost certainly enjoy the other two. Not identical in style, but close enough that few people would love one game and hate the rest.

[Naiera]

Again, apparently saturn version of dodonpachi is great too, so I don't see any reason not to get it.

I bought it initially because it was cheap and I thought "how bad can it be?". It was really, really bad! Luckily I was able to sell it again. It's OK in TATE, but if you can't play shooters in TATE you need to get the PSX version.

[CMoon]

DOdonpachi is bad too? I thought it was just Donpachi which was fairly poor on the Saturn?

[MovingTarget]

Again, apparently saturn version of dodonpachi is great too, so I don't see any reason not to get it.

I bought it initially because it was cheap and I thought "how bad can it be?". It was really, really bad! Luckily I was able to sell it again. It's OK in TATE, but if you can't play shooters in TATE you need to get the PSX version.

Really really bad?

[llabnip]

I must admit whwn I play emulated games they sometimes feel cheap

For me, emulation is a hollow experience (and that's after I spent tons of time building arcade controllers, getting just the right monitors, etc). I get far more satisfaction from playing a game in I own in my collection than playing an emulated version. If you are interested in DoDonPachi, I'd suggest you pick up the PSX rev (which is better in slight ways over the Saturn port, unlike the original DonPachi which is far better on the PSX) though you will be plenty happy with the Saturn port as well.

what's a roughly good price to pay for Dondonpachi?

The Saturn port is cheaper... I think $40 should do it... maybe a little more if you don't want to wait too long to get one.

How's Batsugun compared, is the action even more crazier?

I prefer the original DonPachi to DoDonPachi and prefer Batsugun to both of them. It's actually somewhat similiar to the Pachi's - it strattles the line between classic and manic (much like DonPachi). It is my understanding that some of the Toaplan guys went to work for Cave and Batsugun really feels like DonPachi Zero (or, to put it another way, DonPachi is Batsugun II).

[Ord]

Oh come on! The Saturn rev of Dodonpachi is NOT really really bad. The explosions are more pixelated and the sound isn't the best quality. There is some slowdown but it plays fantastically in tate and it's highly recommended. It's cheaper than the PSX version yet retains ALL the playability of it.

[it290]

Yeah, I really don't have a problem with the Saturn revs of DP or DDP. I don't understand what people think is so bad about Saturn DP. Okay, the loading times are a bit long and the sound sucks, but the gameplay is 100% intact and it actually offers you more viewing options than Saturn DDP does.

[CMoon]

How's Batsugun compared, is the action even more crazier?

I prefer the original DonPachi to DoDonPachi and prefer Batsugun to both of them. It's actually somewhat similiar to the Pachi's - it strattles the line between classic and manic (much like DonPachi). It is my understanding that some of the Toaplan guys went to work for Cave and Batsugun really feels like DonPachi Zero (or, to put it another way, DonPachi is Batsugun II).

Wow, I somehow missed this question.

Exactly. Batsugun, Batsugun 2 (donpachi) and then Dodonpachi which is the first Cave game that really feels like a Cave game. Donpachi still feels more like a Toaplan game to me and that is why I hate to compare those two games. I actually highly prefer Batsugun and Donpachi to Dodonpachi. I also think Batsugun and Donpach are easier to start with instead of just jumping into to Dodonpachi which might be intimidating at first.

Oh man...Batsugun though is just one hell of a great game and one of my all time favorites. This for me is one of the top reasons for owning a Saturn.

[TWITCHDOCTOR]

I give up trying to explain here. Just go buy either one...if you don't like it, you can always re-sell it for what you paid for it.
With that in mind, I would try the Saturn port. I own both, but I feel that the Saturn port plays closer to MAME which should be pretty frickin close to the PCB. The PSX version seems to be the hardest.

Also, everyone failed to mention this, in the PSX version, when playing joint play(two players) both ships HAVE to be of the same type.

[CMoon]

Yeah, I really don't have a problem with the Saturn revs of DP or DDP. I don't understand what people think is so bad about Saturn DP. Okay, the loading times are a bit long and the sound sucks, but the gameplay is 100% intact and it actually offers you more viewing options than Saturn DDP does.

The gameplay is not 100% intact in the saturn version of DP. There is a LOT of slowdown not present in the original game. I believe llabnip actually timed how long it took to finish level 3 on the PSX and Saturn version and there is about 30 seconds difference or something.

Again, that doesn't mean unplayable, and it doesn't mean fun. It just means that the psx port probably plays closer to the arcade. Likewsie, as pointed out, the PSX version of DDP plays too fast! Almost all these ports have problems however--the PSX version of DP for instance hasn't got a useful yoko mode (play tate or die!), while (as mentioned) the psx version of DDP doesn't allow different ships to be selected in 2p mode.

I actually don't feel like there is much room for arguing on these things.

DP: If you can tate, get the PSX version, it is better and it is cheap. If you can't tate, get the saturn version or go with mame.

DDP: toss up. Both versions have slight faults but game play is intact in both. Saturn version is cheaper and may actually be more accurate (since the PSX version runs too fast).

Regardless whatever port you play though, it seems like they are all fun and very playable.

CMoon's words of wisdom: Just remember this lesson kiddies when it's Gekirindan bashing time again. Imperfect port does not equal BAD PORT. A few cosmetic problems may be the blemish that scares gamers away from an otherwise perfectly playable and fun game.

[llabnip]

I don't understand what people think is so bad about Saturn DP. Okay, the loading times are a bit long and the sound sucks, but the gameplay is 100% intact

Well, other the than the fact that there are missing explosions (the big boom at the end of boss 2 is just flat out gone) there is the unrelenting slowdown in Saturn DonPachi which is really poor (stage 3 is almost 20% longer in the Saturn DP due to the slowdown... in TATE it nearly crawls to a halt for seconds at a time... though this does make it far easier than either the arcade or the PSX rev - great for high scores!). The announcers scratchy voice sounds like he is speaking through a poor phone connection.

If you are playing in NON-TATE modes... this is the lone sane reason to want the Saturn DP. The PSX non-tate modes are fairly generic - but for TATE, the PSX rev is the smoother, more lovingly crafted port.

As for DoDonPachi, the PSX rev has crisper graphics, slightly better sound overall and is generally a smoother playing port (though they added in a WAIT option to add back in some slowdown to make it a bit closer to the Arcade rev). The Saturn rev adds a new bonus stage at the beginning of the game... but it's not great and hardly worth it. The PSX port forces the use of the same ship for both players in 2P mode (so if you play 2P mode with friends and use different ships, the PSX version would be no good).

The price of Saturn DDP is cheaper - and since it is a good port (just not the best port, IMO) it's perfectly fine to own and play - you should get lots of enjoyment from it.

As I've said before, I bought and own both 'Pachi's for both the PSX and Saturn and the PSX got the better ports hands down. For DoDonPachi, the differences are minor enough that you can get whatever port suits you best. For DonPachi... well, you would have to be pretty inventive to convince me that the two ports are even in the same league.

[it290]

I'm not trying to say that Saturn DP is better, but just that it's nowhere near the 'avoid at all costs' level that some people seem to put it at.

[Nei First]

Thanx to all you who replied man! I knew I could count on you guys here to give me more detailed opinions and advice.

Not sure which version I'll get at the moment, as long as the fun and gameplay isn't affected, I probably won't have too much problem with the Saturn version. I don't know if a jap PSX game would work on a PS2.

I'd love to see some videos of Dodonpachi and Batsugun man.

Btw, I forgot about another Dodonpachi that came on the PS2, anyone played it, is it any different and as good?

[MovingTarget]

Check out the dodonpachi high score thread, theres an amazing replay in there. As I found out you have to follow the steps described in the thread exactly else you dont get the proper replay.

[The Bullet Dodger]

DoDonpachi is my absolute favorite manic shmup on the Saturn. The game is nuckin futz!! I never played the PSX version though, and I really don't give a shit if I ever do because I'm more than happy with the Saturn version. And tate is a must!

Yes, DoDonpachi on the Saturn ownz!

[MovingTarget]

If only sex was possible with video games, Dodonpachi would get it.

[Nei First]

Thanx for that link MovingTarget, I'm gonna try and get it to work.

Anyone played the PS2 Dodonpachi?

[CMoon]

I think almost everyone has played DOJ. It is obviously great but one of the hardest SHMUPS ever made.

[Dylan1CC]

Definitely get DoDonPachi for the Saturn if you want to kick off a good Sat shooter collection. Great visuals and weapons, tight manic gameplay with excellent replay value, deep scoring that is easy to get into and little slowdown that is very noticeable. It looks excellent in TATE (flipped TV mode). DDP Saturn is my 3rd favorite Sat shooter next to Radiant Silvergun and Garegga. I don't doubt the PSX rev (which I don't own) is more faithful, but as long as you have a Saturn and don't feel like paying a lot for the PSX rev, get it.