Anyone else not into R-Type series?

[FatalError]

I personally like the R-Type games, although the high difficulty level at times is annoying. I think it purely a preference between the memorization style shooters, and the manic shooters.

I beat the original R-Type arcade a long time ago, and I have the grey hairs to prove it.

[captain ahar]

i have never really liked R-type. while the pod mechanic is cool, the actual play never seemed worth it. i bought r-type final out of excitement for it even being released here, but quickly learned that a more calculated decision should have been made (i like to support the "little guy", but $40 is a lot when there are other games you'll actually play).

for my money Gradius is a much better series. i feel driven to play Gradius Gaiden/V/etc, whereas with R-type it always seemed like I was just trying to make it worth the money I spent.

also, as i will soon be getting a duo, i am looking forward to playing the other horizontals i missed out on, such as Gates/Lords of Thunder, Download, and Magical Chase (so very expensive).

[kemical]

I like r-type and I like the slower gameplay, but its way to freaking hard for me, same with thunderforce 3 and 4..
I think its just horizontal shooters that I have a hard time with. I need to try playing them again.

[zaphod]

R-Type, the original, is oen of the best meorization style shooterrs ever made. PERIOD.

It has a very well balanced learning curve. That is the bigges good thing about it. The first level is really easy, and the second oen is almost as easy. The third one teaches you how to use your force properly, an dyour first real challenge is level 4. Level 7 is the one that keeps kicking my ass, tho.

R-type (original) has the *same* hit rule as gradius. if you can shoot thru the gap, you can move thru it. The hitbox is smaller than the shit itself, though not super small. YOu can scrape the edge of the ship on the ground and not die.

The main reason me malc, and others think r-type is great is because of it's well balanced difficulty curve, and the fact that the game gives ample warning before doing anything that could ever be considered cheap. The game mkakes you aware of the fac that y ou coud lget smashed by those blocks i level 6 by making them come on fromscreen endges first when you aren't likel yto be near them. It gives you the clue in level 3 that you may want to put your force on the rear at times before throwing parts at you that really need it in level 4. Also, the restart points ar ebalanced as well. At ANY checkpoint before second half of level 7, I can continue playing after a death.

PS: The stage 8 boss battle starts getting manic, even thoughit does'nt pelt you with bullets.

PPS: R-type has no rank. Those wishing to make a shmup without rank would do to give it a play or two..

[greg]

My biggest gripe is R-Type Delta, since that's the only one I've ever spent much time playing. I have Super R-Type for the SNES, but it's boring. I love the force pod and launching it into the bad guys, especially the anchor-type in Delta, but whereas other horizontal, memorizing-based games like Gradius and Border Down, R-Type Delta not only demands rote memorization, but also to be perfectly spot on each time you play it. I dont' like having to remember exactly when to go under foot of the Imperial Walker-like boss at the right time when it raises its foot, and if I miss my one chance then I'm dead.

[Leeram]

You should go and visit my web site, have a read of the Salamander Vs R-Type argument.

www.eckychap.co.uk click on the debates page

Cheers

Leeram

[captain ahar]

Leeram, that debate got me odd stares at my college's computer lab. friggin' hilarious everyone, go read it!

[Leeram]

Thank you for your kind comments!

Cheers

Lee

[Leeram]

I just read it again and cringed at my spelling and English grammar. Time for a spelling update methinks!




Cheers

Leeram

[greg]

R-Type Leo is the only one I dig.

I played a lot of R-Type Leo over the weekend and I really dug it. Die-Hard R-Type fans may not like it since it's "not a true R-Type game" but I like it. It feels far more arcade-y, has instant respawn, and doesn't require you to have precog superpowers in order to know which exact spot to be in order to survive. I miss the traditional force-orb, but the two mini-orbs are pretty useful.

[Bydobasher]

I love R-Type Leo too. Sure, it isn't really R-Type, but taken on its own merits I think it's a great deal of fun.

I really do prefer the Japanese version though, because that one does have checkpoints. If you're big into 1-crediting games, then maybe it won't matter so much either way, but I really enjoy using lots of credits to figure out checkpoints. But then, I'm a big fan of R-Type and R-Type 2.

[tehkao]

I love R-Type, the original. There's no question it's one of the top 5 shooters ever made.

My problem with R-Type is that with the exception of R-Type 3 SNES, none of the other R-Type games really captured the magic of the legendary original.

I got R-Type Delta and couldn't get into it. Also didn't care much of R-Type Final, it just didn't appeal to me visually.

[evil_ash_xero]

I like memorizer type shmups, so I have always loved the R-Type series. I actually think it is one of the more solid series in shmupdom. R-Type, R-Type II, R-Type III, and R-Type Delta are all good to great game. Leo doesn't really work for me(although it's pretty), and I hate Final. But the rest is really sweet. And I love the atmosphere. The only thing I can say bad about it, is that the music isn't that memorable.

Viva La R-Type!

[ROBOTRON]

I like the original R-Type, R-Type Delta and Final. I'd probably like Leo too if I had it.

[Alfred]

I love R-Type.

[Subterranean Sun]

You hate memorizing.
You love Gradius.
......

[Square King]

R-Type was the second shmup I ever played and it blew me away. I played it at an arcade in Denver and, at that time, I had an NES with Gradius. R-Type had great levels, wonderful music and astounding level/enemy/boss design. Leo might just be my favorite and I don't see why Final gets so much hate.

[gray117]

Yeah, I liked final quite a lot actually. It could have maybe have been more correctly named delta 2 though, I'm sure 'final' in the title skewed expectations towards a final conclusion/reboot of the original aesthetic and premise...

Not currently into r-types, but talking about it can get me back into it, at least for a couple of plays...

It was and is a fantastic part of shmups.

It can be frustrating; gratification and rhythm, in general, are quite different from our more recent manic moods that developed later.

Not liking it is fine, but you have to a least appreciate it, however, in so doing, you must also recognise it's far from the be-all-and-end-all. It is the single subject of too many simplified 'retro' examples.

Wasn't there a radiant silvergun thread around that was like this one?

[Gungriffon Geona]

R-Type 3 Third Lightning was one of the best Horizontal shmup
ever on the snes.

that was the absolute slowest game I've ever played, even for an R-Type. I don't think there's a shooter I can't stand more than it, and I'm a big Irem fan in general.

[Klatrymadon]

The only stage in III that feels overly slow to me is the first one - beyond that it plays at about the same pace as the early games, albeit with slightly longer boss battles. It's certainly a fair bit quicker than Delta and Final, heh. The speed has never really been an issue for me, though; I absolutely worship the series. Someone on the first page mentioned it being a series that everybody fawns over and nobody actually plays, but although it's true that a lot of journos still waffle on about the original game's influence like retired colonels despite not having touched it in twenty years, I don't find this to be the case at all. There are still more people playing it than yacking about it.

[ROBOTRON]

R-Type was the second shmup I ever played and it blew me away. I played it at an arcade in Denver and, at that time, I had an NES with Gradius. R-Type had great levels, wonderful music and astounding level/enemy/boss design. Leo might just be my favorite and I don't see why Final gets so much hate.

INDEED.

I really liked that Tholian web level (Space Megaforce has one too) thats what really attracted it to me when I first saw it. Mothership battles in R-Type rule also!

[lilmanjs]

R-Type Leo is the only one I feel is worth playing.

[Obiwanshinobi]

Say what you will, but there was nothing quite like the 3rd stage of R-Type before, was it? You have to actually BREAK this enormuos thing rather than just deplete its lifebar. Einhänder did that rather well too and Omega Fighter Special is kind of build upon this concept.
As for the III's slow first stage, I'm not good at these games and in R-Type-likes I use continues, thus I always have my hands full whilst R-Typing. As R-Type clones tend to profess even harder-than-thou design philosophy, it's good to have at least one actual R-Type game with more gentle difficulty curve. Just one doesn't hurt.
Are R-Types really slow-paced, though? The scrolling is usually slow and most things move slowly, but does it automatically make the gameplay slow?

[Klatrymadon]

I wouldn't say so, no. To me the gameplay's always felt incredibly metered, particularly when you're playing well, and this isn't the same thing as slowness at all. There are definitely a few stages that are just a drag, though, like Final's opening one.

[FIL]

I'm not a big R-Type fan but I sometimes feel it's taboo to say you don't like it. It's like saying you don't like Star Wars.

[ryu]

You hate memorizing.
You love Gradius.
......

Personally I find R-Type to be far more strict than Gradius. There are too many places where it feels like there's only one, maybe two solutions.

I think the issue with R-Type is indeed that it is rather slow paced, although this doesn't completely kill the games. There are some stages that just don't work well with the slow pacing and end up being somewhat boring, but everything else is still good and enjoyable.

[Drum]

Echoing most of the nays: I find it slow and success is almost wholly dependent on memorisation or luck - it's not so much a videogame as it is a carney sideshow.

There's really no comparison with Gradius (well, maybe Gradius III & IV - the weakest games in that series) - Gradius is much more tactical and there is way, way, way less 'gotcha' bullshit.

The art iand music is great though, and I like Leo.

G-Type, however, is awesome!

[chempop]

As a kid I used to argue with a friend about Thunderfoce vs R-type, I was in favors of TF and called R-type a snail-shooter. Years later I decided to give the series another chance with Final but it only frusterated me and It sat on my shelf until just the other day.

I forced myself to give it a real chance and after several hours it finally clicked
Now I'm a convert and excited to play more games in the series, although I've only reached level 6 once.

[Obiwanshinobi]

I find it slow and success is almost wholly dependent on memorisation or luck - it's not so much a videogame as it is a carney sideshow.

Nothing in shoot 'em ups is dependant on luck, or rather - there is no luck without skill. If you have so called luck, it means you are doing well. If you don't have luck, it means you suck at the game. Also, I'd like to see someone beating any arcade shmup without memorisation. Memorisation just happens as you keep playing the game. Everyone can memorise a shmup, but beating one takes much more than that. It's not like R-Type is hard to memorise. You still need to develp proper tactics and perform well.

[Drum]

I find it slow and success is almost wholly dependent on memorisation or luck - it's not so much a videogame as it is a carney sideshow.

Nothing in shoot 'em ups is dependant on luck, or rather - there is no luck without skill. If you have so called luck, it means you are doing well. If you don't have luck, it means you suck at the game. Also, I'd like to see someone beating any arcade shmup without memorisation. Memorisation just happens as you keep playing the game. Everyone can memorise a shmup, but beating one takes much more than that. It's not like R-Type is hard to memorise. You still need to develp proper tactics and perform well.

Please don't misunderstand - all I mean is that there are some situations in R-Type where you are pretty much going to die unless you already know what's coming up ... but you might get lucky and be in the right place and the right time so you won't have to learn the hard way. A knowledgeable, skilled R-Type player can beat the game every time for sure. Trial-and-error is a much more pronounced feature in R-Type than pretty much any shooter I can think of .