Doing a review of Metal Black- need input!

[black flag nc]

I contribute to a monthly video game show and for the next episode, I'm reviewing Metal Black. I would like opinions on the game from you guys to help me give a well rounded review. I really like the game but I know some folks don't.

What say you shmup fans? Thanks!

[jp]

Great atmosphere, great music, and rock solid gameplay.


Scoring takes a hit due to it being entirely reliant on the lame bonus rounds though.

[black flag nc]

Thanks, man. Yeah the bonus rounds are one of the things I'm gonna mention as a negative. I'm sure they were impressive in 1991, but I find them to be awkward and tedious.

[BulletMagnet]

Great atmosphere, great music

I'd agree with those points, but the third...

The quintessential Taito shooter, IMO - great presentation, some unique ideas (fighting for Newalone against the bosses, and of course the beam battles, which IIRC were a first at the time), but absolutely merciless, shamelessly credit-munching gameplay. Some might give me the ol' "learn 2 play" treatment for saying so, but it's just too memorization-heavy for my tastes (then again, it's hardly unique in that area, especially during that era).

[StoofooEsq]

Gameplay is alright. I really do appreciate the burst fire for the standard gun. And there's the beam struggles, which were a good start for what would later appear in G-Darius and Border Down.

As expected, the soundtrack supplied by Zuntata suits the action well and sounds good. Out of the tracks, Dual Moon is my personal favorite. Presentation is another high point for the game, where nearly every point in the game is done with style (particularly towards the end where Taito weirdness begins to show).

The bonus stages are the only parts about Metal Black I don't like, since the experience indeed might've turned heads in 1991 but just feel like a chore now. It's still very much a quality Taito Shmup and a classic in its own right.

While this thread is here I might as well ask: How did the ports of Metal Black (Saturn and Taito Legends 2 for PC, PS2, and Xbox) turn out?

[Ghegs]

While this thread is here I might as well ask: How did the ports of Metal Black (Saturn and Taito Legends 2 for PC, PS2, and Xbox) turn out?

To summarize, and hope I have it right: The western Taito collection releases has issues, but the JP PS2 (Taito Memories) collection hasn't.

Some more info here.

[jp]

Great atmosphere, great music

I'd agree with those points, but the third...

The quintessential Taito shooter, IMO - great presentation, some unique ideas (fighting for Newalone against the bosses, and of course the beam battles, which IIRC were a first at the time), but absolutely merciless, shamelessly credit-munching gameplay. Some might give me the ol' "learn 2 play" treatment for saying so, but it's just too memorization-heavy for my tastes (then again, it's hardly unique in that area, especially during that era).

The memorization can be a bit tricky, but its not quite THAT bad. Like, I never felt like I was killed unjustly. It was just that later on the game does so much stupid shit to you that its a bit overwhelming (the bubbles, the things that slow you down and make it so you can't fire, etc.).

[black flag nc]

The version I'm reviewing is off of the Taito Legends 2 released in the States for the xbox and PS2. Taito Legends 2 is a gift from the gods!

I'm thinking I should talk up the soundtrack more. I may post the rough draft of my review for you guys to read and tell me if I'm on the right track. Our show doesn't come out till the end of the month and I've got time.

Thanks so much for your help!

[Andi]

This game has unique bosses. While, true, their patterns and attacks may not be all that original, there are some interesting ideas. The dung beetle boss that attacks by building up its ball is an interesting concept. Also not to be forgotten is the screen-filling transparent boss with a tiny hit box, and, of course, the cat.

Lots of good ideas but with a lack of consistency and polish.

[dpful]

Darius Gaiden is similar stylistically and a lot more polished.

Metal Black still is very stylish. I love the game for it's music and 'tude. I've never played for score, just survival.

[GaijinPunch]

Be sure to insult your reader. That always helps.

[black flag nc]

OK, here's the rough draft of the review. Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks guys!

---------------------------
Metal Black Review for Video Masters TV- April 2008 Episode

What's up peoples? I'm Matthew also known as Black Flag NC on the VMTV forums. Now, I love shoot-em-ups. Gradius, R-type, Raiden love em all. So, this month, we're gonna take a look at good ol arcade shooter, Metal Black.

Released for the arcades in 1991, Metal Black was originally intended to be a sequel to Gun Frontier, but bares more resemblance to Taito's Darius series of shooters. The story is pretty straightforward which is to be expected from this sort of game. In the year 2042, an alien race come through a companion star near the planet Jupiter and set to doing what aliens do, destroying mankind. Earth's top scientist start a project caled Metal Black to study the aliens weapons enough to develop a fleet of spacefighters that use the same power source. That's where you come in. Yeah the story's cliche and it's silly that a star would suddenly appear near Jupiter and if it did, we'd be toast immediatly. But you don't play a game like this for the story, you play a game like this to blow stuff up.

And that, my friends, is what you'll be doing. The gameplay is quite different from any other shooter. Instead of getting traditional weapon power-ups, you'll be chasing many small power-ups called Newalone molecules to beef up your weapons. This levels up your normal weapon as well as building up your beam blaster, but if you use your big gun, your power-up level falls back to zero. Naturally, the more Newalones you get, the bigger the beam and the greater the damage. Stage bosses also have a similar beam attack. One of the most innovative things about Metal Black is that when your beam collides with a boss's, it becomes a a shoving match of sorts in which the more powerful beam wins. If you overpower the boss's beam, a fantastic ball of energy smacks into your opponent, causing massive damage. But be careful folks, cause if the bosses beam wins out, the energy ball of doom comes after YOU. Either way, it is awesome to see. Which brings me to the overall graphics of the game. You'll be hard pressed to find a more vibrant exciting looking game from the early 90's. From the fantastically rendered backgrounds to the dozens of creative adversaries this one shines as one of the most visually pleasing shooters you'll ever play. There's some excellent boss creativity such as a Hermit crab boss with an aircraft carrier on its back, a dragon-like boss that hatches out of the moon, and even a freakin dung-beetle boss. That's right, the little critter that rolls up balls of poo. Except in Metal Black the poo-ball shoots laser at ya. After taking down a boss, you're rewarded with brilliant explosion sequence that I never get tired of seeing. There's a ton of different enemies and there's even cameos of some of the robotic sea creatures that veterans of Taito's Darius series will recognize.

The game features a great 2-player co-op mode as well as there always seems to be enough power-ups to go around. The music is appropriately exciting and the game also provides each levels' music track titles at the beginning of of the given stage. Now that doesn't really add much, but it's a neat feature for a game that's nearly 20 years old. After some levels you get bonus stages that I'm sure where very impressive back in the day, but I find them to be a bit tedious. It's pretty much point, shoot, repeat in an awkward first person point of view. As for the difficulty, the game can dish out cheap deaths at times but I've seen a lot worse in other shooters. The game is made harder by the lack of a traditional shmup bomb that clears the screen and gives you space to breathe so you'll have to be on your toes to escape a tight spot.

It took quite a while for this bad boy to make it to home consoles. By the time the game came to a console in Japan, the game was already 5 years old. Japanese shooter fans got it on the Sega Saturn in 1996 but US gamers would have to wait until 2006 before it was finally released along with a slew of other great shoot-em-ups on Taito Legends 2 for the Xbox and PS2. I picked that title up for a measly ten bucks. If you dig shoot-em-ups, definitely give Metal Black a spin. It's a bad-ass game for 1991.

[Ed Oscuro]

I can only skim it, but it looks alright for a radio/youtube style bit.

Although I don't like this sentence, written or otherwise:

And that, my friends, is what you'll be doing.

It's not much of a segue.

The next sentence is also pretty silly as well - it's quite different from any other shooter, o rly? I recall flying around and shooting things, same as any other shooter. In fact I didn't get into any laser beam battles when I played it (which means that you don't HAVE to do it, you can play it mostly as a straight-up old fashioned shooter until that late stage with the crazy background where I think you have to engage in a battle).

[ROBOTRON]

Its a great game, but the bonus rounds are not needed since I don't play for score.

[black flag nc]

I can only skim it, but it looks alright for a radio/youtube style bit.

Although I don't like this sentence, written or otherwise:

And that, my friends, is what you'll be doing.

It's not much of a segue.

The next sentence is also pretty silly as well - it's quite different from any other shooter, o rly? I recall flying around and shooting things, same as any other shooter. In fact I didn't get into any laser beam battles when I played it (which means that you don't HAVE to do it, you can play it mostly as a straight-up old fashioned shooter until that late stage with the crazy background where I think you have to engage in a battle).

Maybe I'll change that segue. We sort of revel in our own cheesiness on VMTV, though. Yep, we're dorks.

I think the power-up system and the beam struggles do make it stand out from other shooters of the time. Remember, our audience may not be the shmup experts that a lot of you good folks are. I sort of have to play to our audience, ya know?

Thanks for your help!

[Ed Oscuro]

No problem! If you're comfortable with it, and it fits the atmosphere, you may very well want to keep it. I always try to think of new ways to write, however - that keeps things fresh and occasionally spawns a worthwhile new joke.

[The Coop]

Just as a correction, there is no US XBox version of Taito Legends 2. There is however, a US PC version. Also, TL2 came to the US for the PS2 in May of 2007, with PC version sneaking quietly into US stores in July of that same year.

Europe got a PS2, XBox and PC release of the game in 2006, while the US just got the PS2 and PC ones the next year. The XBox version was left behind unfortunately (or maybe 'fortunately', given what happened with the PS2 version).

[black flag nc]

I did not know that. I shall make the appropriate changes. Thank you!

[black flag nc]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GMtq_zXBwU

Finally got the episode out. My bit on Metal Black is somewhere in the middle. Unfortunately, I had to rely on the footage from John and he dies a lot. LOL!

Thanks for your help guys!

[neorichieb1971]

Doing a review is supposed to be your own experience right?

[Zebra Airforce]

He means he had to use footage of somone else playing as an example to the viewers, but this someone else sucks, so the footage is of the player being destroyed mercilessly again and again.

[Specineff]

"Bears". Not "bares". "It bears more resemblance to Darius".

Sorry, as a foreigner, my grammar isn't perfect, but I just had to point that one out.

[PainAmplifier]

He means he had to use footage of somone else playing as an example to the viewers, but this someone else sucks, so the footage is of the player being destroyed mercilessly again and again.

Sucks? Only if you are referring to the game and not the player.

I have the PS2 Taito Legends 2 version of this game and the game is just plain bad.

Yes, the graphics are interesting and fairly unique, and the weapon system/upgrade/dueling thing is a novel setup/idea....but as far as gameplay goes, it fails completely. Nothing goes together well, and it all makes for a bad game.

It's a bit like a bad mashup of R-Type, Raiden, Darius and a Bullet Hell schmup but without the redeeming features of any of the above.

Your ship is huge (including the hitbox) and has only one movement speed...damn slow. Your main weapon *only* fires forward, and only gets slightly larger in size if you are 'powered up'.

It's not always 'obvious' what you can and can't touch as far as level scenery or even enemy ship/parts go. Some things it's instant death touching, others you can move over without issue. Also, the same goes for enemy bullets...some can be canceled by your shots, others can't. Seperating the two can be extremely difficult given the speed at which they appear on screen combined with their similar colors and looks.

Also, everything but you moves blazingly fast. Enemy bullets, beams and enemies themselves are near impossible to avoid, shoot or predict with much regularity. And on top of that, a staggering amount of them come from behind or above your ship. Many of them launching their attacks before you can manuever or react to their presense. And 'memorizing' the 'attack patterns' is near impossible, as you are bombarded by a veritable swarm of enemies, half of which are not 'popcorn' types. About the only thing that moves the same speed as you is the power ups. And half the time you need to chase those down while dodging all of the above, which is a bit harder than other games 'power chasing' is, as you need so many more of them to have an effect.

Losing your main weapon powerup when you use your beam/bomb is frustrating as well. The game itself if hard enough without having to send you back to a 'Vic Viper w/o any powerups' status every time you use your only 'good' weapon.

I consider myself a 'fair' schmup player, but more of a general gamer overall...and I've seen some high loop videos of Gradius V that look far more 'do-able' from a personal point of view than playing Metal Black with credit feeding is! And bullet hell games at least give your ship a small hit box to make those playable/fun.

Metal Black doesn't have a 'learning curve' either...it goes straight from fiendishly difficult to nearly humanly impossible by the second level/first boss. 'Learning' how to play Metal Black is a bit like trying to learn how to drive by being a crash test dummy. Straight line acceleration is fine, but you just can't seem to stop smashing into a wall after 60 feet no matter what you do!

Metal Black is so ridiculously difficult/bad,I'd never recommend it to anyone unless they really want to credit feed through it to see the graphics. (Or if they are such awesome schmup players, that they think games like DoDonPachi or Mushihime are 'too easy'.)

[Zebra Airforce]

Well, metal black is a memorizer, pure and simple. Obviously it won't be everyone's cup of tea.

[BIL]

I always laugh when people whine about MB's difficulty. Because either they're not getting some very basic points about that game, or I'm a god of shooters. The ship isn't underpowered in the least, mainly because of its oversized main weapon hit area.

Your ship is huge (including the hitbox) and has only one movement speed...damn slow. Your main weapon *only* fires forward, and only gets slightly larger in size if you are 'powered up'.

The main gun's hit area is unique, and is meant to be exploited. Notice how you can kill stuff directly above and below you? Next time something gets in your face, maneuver so that it can't hit you, but you can hit it. You'll find you can kill everything that goes near you with a little finesse.

Also, the same goes for enemy bullets...some can be canceled by your shots, others can't. Seperating the two can be extremely difficult given the speed at which they appear on screen combined with their similar colors and looks.

The only cancellable bullets are the ones fired by midbosses / bosses. They look and behave exactly the same way each time. Purple palette-swaps of your own shots, which fly horizontally. And frankly, they don't appear frequently enough or present enough of a threat to mention. OMG it's those purple bullets, time to shoot and not worry otherwise.

Also, everything but you moves blazingly fast. Enemy bullets, beams and enemies themselves are near impossible to avoid, shoot or predict with much regularity. And on top of that, a staggering amount of them come from behind or above your ship. Many of them launching their attacks before you can manuever or react to their presense. And 'memorizing' the 'attack patterns' is near impossible, as you are bombarded by a veritable swarm of enemies, half of which are not 'popcorn' types. About the only thing that moves the same speed as you is the power ups.

It comes back to you not using the ship properly. You have to play very defensively in this game. Let the faster enemies dart about. As long as they don't go near you, they're not much of a threat. As soon as they get close, your sofa-sized main gun hit area can shut them out. If you think I'm talking shit, look at this video of these techniques in action:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=FCgDkJ0vEkQ

Notice how everything that challenged that guy got obliterated?

Losing your main weapon powerup when you use your beam/bomb is frustrating as well. The game itself if hard enough without having to send you back to a 'Vic Viper w/o any powerups' status every time you use your only 'good' weapon.

The bomb is only needed in a few places, once you're adept at using the main gun. Most of the time, it's a deathtrap and not worth the penalty. The enormous weapon downgrade does indeed suck, but that's why you're encouraged to exploit the main gun. Which again, is inordinately capable of killing stuff.

I consider myself a 'fair' schmup player, but more of a general gamer overall...and I've seen some high loop videos of Gradius V that look far more 'do-able' from a personal point of view than playing Metal Black with credit feeding is!

I'm a fair shooter player too. I wouldn't call MB very hard compared to dozens of other shooters, from many different subgenres. Along with Thunder Cross, it was my first coin-op 1CC, and I consider both rather unremarkable.

Metal Black doesn't have a 'learning curve' either...it goes straight from fiendishly difficult to nearly humanly impossible by the second level/first boss. 'Learning' how to play Metal Black is a bit like trying to learn how to drive by being a crash test dummy. Straight line acceleration is fine, but you just can't seem to stop smashing into a wall after 60 feet no matter what you do!

Metal Black is so ridiculously difficult/bad,I'd never recommend it to anyone unless they really want to credit feed through it to see the graphics. (Or if they are such awesome schmup players, that they think games like DoDonPachi or Mushihime are 'too easy'.)

Are you any good at DDP or Mushi, so that you know what you're actually comparing MB to? I certainly wouldn't compare it to DDP. It sounds more like you have no idea how to play MB, and have mistaken that for some kind of impressive difficulty. Again, it's either that, or I'm a lot better at shooters than I thought. Not to do the "L2Play" thing, but that's the only way I could see MB being mistaken for that hard a game.

[Ed Oscuro]

Metal Black's Memories port is broken, if I remember what I read right, because the laser mechanics are broken. Woops!

The game is great, although I haven't gotten too far in (third stage maybe?) and need to give it some more playtime.

The missile lock-on sequences are pure class.

[BrianC]

Metal Black's Memories port is broken, if I remember what I read right, because the laser mechanics are broken. Woops!

Taito Legends 2 US and EU (PS2 only, Xbox and PC don't have the input issues) have the broken laser mechanics for Metal Black. From what I heard, the JP PS2 Memories version doesn't. Hat Trick Hero/Football Champ is also broken due to similar input issue.

[jp]

Metal Black isn't impossible. If you spend some time with it its actually very doable. The only tricky parts come towards then end where the level fucks with you (the little things that cling to your ship to slow you down, bubbles, etc.).

[Ed Oscuro]

BrianC: Good thing he was complaining about the PS2 version, heh heh

[BrianC]

BrianC: Good thing he was complaining about the PS2 version, heh heh

You misunderstood my post. I wasn't even replying to PlainAmplifier.

This is the message I was replying to:

Metal Black's Memories port is broken

My reply to this was meant to point out that, according to other posts on this forum, the Memories PS2 version doesn't have the same issues as the other PS2 version on Taito Legends 2.