small things that enhance games of the shooting genre

[Udderdude]

- no power ups.
- no rank.
- no laser, fire and missile items flaying in screen.
- no bomb bonus.
- no lives bonus.
- no punishment for deaths.
- no chain.
- no loops.
- no check points.
- no boss milking.
- no pixel based dodges.
- no obstacles in way.
- no deep score system.
- no variable stage order.

Final destination.

[Pulsewidth]

Seconding the input lag comment:
http://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.ph ... 94&start=0

I'd love to see measurements from actual PCBs.

[ROBOTRON]

sweet inventive and unusual backgrounds w/nice scrolling effects

examples:

Stages II and III - Axelay

just about every stage on Psychosis

Stage V - R-Type Final

souky, space magaforce, Thunderforce series, etc.

[Udderdude]

Seconding the input lag comment:
http://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.ph ... 94&start=0

I'd love to see measurements from actual PCBs.

Well, the topic of the thread is "small things", and I think most people here would agree that input lag is more like "game-breaking".

[Pulsewidth]

I think most people here would agree that input lag is more like "game-breaking".

It's a matter of degree. I wouldn't call Guwange "broken" because it's got an extra frame of lag, but it's annoying enough that I'm not likely to put any serious effort into playing it. But 3 extra lag frames is definitely broken.

[Udderdude]

I think most people here would agree that input lag is more like "game-breaking".

It's a matter of degree. I wouldn't call Guwange "broken" because it's got an extra frame of lag, but it's annoying enough that I'm not likely to put any serious effort into playing it. But 3 extra lag frames is definitely broken.

A lot of arcade/PCBs have one frame of lag. It is not uncommon at all. Futari actually has two, if you go by what the "maniac mode" option says.

[clp]

I think most people here would agree that input lag is more like "game-breaking".

It's a matter of degree. I wouldn't call Guwange "broken" because it's got an extra frame of lag, but it's annoying enough that I'm not likely to put any serious effort into playing it. But 3 extra lag frames is definitely broken.

This is the most rediculous excuse for not putting effort into guwange ive ever heard .

[WarpZone]

I always appreciate is separate high score tables for different difficulty levels

I like separate high score tables for pretty much any combination of character/mode/difficulty, as well as for individual stages, which ought to be playable in a stage select/practice mode (at least in the ports). Most shmups overlook at least some of that, despite so often focused on score. I get tired of having to play the entire game to register scores or having to write them down on paper.

[Dandy J]

-Minimal input lag.
Can't really get into any shmup with noticeable input lag. I'm looking at you Raizing

yea...btw u can play them in raine w/o any input lag but it would be considered cheating

[LtC]

-Minimal input lag.
Can't really get into any shmup with noticeable input lag. I'm looking at you Raizing

yea...btw u can play them in raine w/o any input lag but it would be considered cheating

Yeah I know, but the accuracy of the emulation (slowdown) is probably even more important than few frames of input lag.

[Pulsewidth]

yea...btw u can play them in raine w/o any input lag but it would be considered cheating

You're right! Awesome! And it's only slightly cheating because I'm using an LCD and asynchronously polled controls so it's partly compensating for lag that isn't there with CRT+PCB. But I'll mention I'm using Raine for high scores. This massively improves these games! Even works for Cave games with lag! Thanks for telling me this!

[Pulsewidth]

Yeah I know, but the accuracy of the emulation (slowdown) is probably even more important than few frames of input lag.

The lack of slowdown makes things more fun too! Raine > MAME. Fuck accuracy, this is much more entertaining.

[EinhanderZwei]

I love when the visual designs of the characters and backgrounds are synced - prime examples for me are Einhander and Battle Garegga, both of which I'd rank 'the darkest shmups ever'. I've also thought that Einhander ships were designed with angelic creatures in mind - this makes sense, as long as the city in the first level is called Sodom in JP version. As for Garegga, I really like its rusty metal aesthetic - it makes even meh games like Air Duel memorable

Examples of mis-synced designs for me are Radiant Silvergun (yep), Sengoku Cannon (obviosly) and Steam Heart's (at least the PCE CD version)

[2dvertical]

I like the inclusion of blood in shmups. The guys that splatter up a fountain of blood like in esp series, or the serpent in guwange biting the cow in half. etc.

[xris]

I like these last 2 posts, blood and rust. The small details, like shrapnel, a fighter losing a wing and going down, people running in terror. The things that let me know I'm kicking ass.

[Obiwanshinobi]

I like the inclusion of blood in shmups. The guys that splatter up a fountain of blood like in esp series, or the serpent in guwange biting the cow in half. etc.

The blood in Guwange doesn't look all that cool, though. Don't get me wrong; grinding people to a bloody pulp wich a squid on a chain is all fun and games, but the gore effect should've been done better.

[Otai]

Good music is always a plus to me. Be it the title screen music in Crimzon Clover, the stage 5 music in Eden's Aegis or the credits in Rayging Blue Try Alpha, as long as they are great they pretty much motivates me to play more.

About scoreboards, I agree that separate scoreboards for different ships and difficulties is another plus point. It encourages players to try every playable ships.

Good ship/character graphics will do as well. Solid State Survivor and Eden's Aegis managed to pull this well.

Point items...it does nothing. But Lu. managed to make the point items a gaming mechanic that gives challenge while still fun to play. Oddly I haven't seen a thread on this game yet.

A good story behind the game is a plus to me as well. At least I know what I am playing for other than blast stuffs up. Just don't make things clutter.

[EinhanderZwei]

A good story behind the game is a plus to me as well. At least I know what I am playing for other than blast stuffs up. Just don't make things clutter.

+over9000!!111

[monouchi]

The small moment when the stage music fades down...quiet...quiet...some robotic voice warns you of massive danger...quiet...and then the boss music starts!!!!

[Van_Artic]

catchy/epic music
destructable landscape (wonders of Battle garegga)
rank
scoring with >insert flashy gold thing here<

[BIL]

Revisiting Gradius V compels me to mention frickin huge boss explosions. Blaster Cannon Core (st5 boss) in particular has an absolutely titanic sendoff. Ikaruga, Psyvariar 2 and Under Defeat also excel at boss demolitions, with subtly different takes on the same "smoulder and detonate" effect.

Not as massive in scale, and kind of random, but I love how Dragon Blaze cuts right in the middle of the Desert boss' violent explosion. Gives it a particularly abrupt "fuck you!" effect.

[sunburstbasser]

One thing I like about Compile's games is that in most, the various weapons are all usable and fun to play with. Raizing managed to make the multiple weapons works well in Mahou Daisakusen as well. In most games, its just power ups. I like having variety in-game. It doesn't break a game (Ikaruga does fine without so much as a bomb), but it is nice when its present.

[Syndicate]

This may sound stupid... but atmosphere, style. I know, how can you focus on that shit when your trying to just stay alive? I always liked Ikaruga and R-Type because they're kinda weird. I wish shmup developers would try to be a little more creative and not resort to using that dumb anime inspired pieces of random brightly colored geometry. And lolis, that's just silly.

[orange]

some developers actually have taken inspiration from those themes for example shooting game gears of war is very brown and devoid of color just like ikaruga

[Obiwanshinobi]

Ikaruga is toned down, but certainly not devoid of colour. Much closer to Metal Gear Solid 2 and Zone of the Enders series than Gears of War. I see no similarity whatsoever between Ikaruga and Gears.