Neo-Geo Shmup collection advice please.

[KisakiProject]

Hey all. So I finally got a Sega Saturn again. I'm having a blast collecting all the games I missed and importing. This inspired me. I've always wanted a Neo-Geo. The VC and now PSN collection is fairly lacking and I doubt going to get much better.

So I'm torn on what to do. My main focus is shooters for it. This puts me at a cross - roads. Th AES and its carts are way too expensive. So this means that I can either buy the MVS cab and MVS carts or get a CD and CDs. CDs is the cheapest option but the library is limited.

So I guess my question to you guys i what is the best course of action for collecting.

MVS cab (I heard usually about $500) Carts are usually $100 to 300.

AES system (the system plus the converter for the cheaper MVS carts is also like $500) Carts are way more than MVS but if you buy the converter that problem is solved.

CD system ($100-200 with pack in games). But doesn't have titles like Blazing star. However Pulstar is $60-90 on ebay instead of $300 for MVS and $800 for AES.

I know I can get Twinkle Star Sprites for Saturn and its the premium version.

Shmups that have caught me interest are

Blazing Star
Pulstar
ADK Collection
Aero Fighters 2
Aero Fighters 3
Andro Dunos
ASO II

did I miss any? (Metal Slug I'm ignoring cause I have a bunch for other systems)
not all are on CD. So I guess I'm asking are they worth holding off on until I can afford the cabinet or AES with converter. Or should I get the CD and the cheaper versions of those games available on CD.

Thanks in advance.

[Ghegs]

Well, the full list of shmups available for Neo Geo is listed here plus then there's Fast Striker for MVS and Last Hope for AES/CD.

If Pulstar caught your eye, you should definitely give Last Resort a go. I think it's one of the best R-Type-inspired shmups around and personally I prefer its sprite-based look to Pulstar's pre-rendered graphics. Also, you can find Pulstar for much cheaper than $300.

As for the system, there's also the possibility of getting consolized MVS. I have one of those myself and it's great.

Last but not least: Don't collect the games, play them.

[RHE]

If Pulstar caught your eye, you should definitely give Last Resort a go. I think it's one of the best R-Type-inspired shmups around and personally I prefer its sprite-based look to Pulstar's pre-rendered graphics.

This. Last Resort is definitely a must-have title!

[KisakiProject]

Given this description of Blazing Star

Blazing Star Yumekobo Arcade only. Not as good as Pulstar, though not a true sequel.

I'm tempted to go the CD route. I guess my biggest question is there anything not on CD that is absolutely worth owning for shmup fans that should make me hold off on getting a CD and get the AES or MVS?

Also by collect I did mean play. I really got interested in this cause I want an arcade cabinet in my house to show my friends and play and MVS seemed the best choice. But then that made me really want the games I was checking out. Especially Pulstar and the cabinet is a huge investment.

The 2 new german shmups for neogeo are on dreamcast and I'm thinking of getting them to play on my brothers dreamcast. I don't have one. I was thinking about getting it for him for xmas but I don't think he is that into shmups.

Thanks.

[CIT]

You don't need a cab to play MVS games, you can get a consolized MVS or a supergun. The latter is a little bit better IMO, as it will allow you to also play arcade PCBs.

Anyway, should you get MVS or CD?

The CD route is actually pretty good, as it's the cheapest and 90% of the shooters don't have the excessive loading times that plague some of the fighting games (only Pulstar has some longer loading times). A lot of the games also have very nice arranged soundtracks, Last Resort's is especially good. Also, Chotetsu Brikinger is a CD-exclusive shooter and it's pretty good, although very expensive. ADK World is also CD exclusive, but the shooter on it (19YY) is more of a mini-game gimmick than anything else.

With an MVS system you'll have to spend a little bit more on the games, and some of the good games that everybody likes (such as Last Resort and Pulstar) can be tough to track down. There's also some excellent MVS titles not alvailable on CD like Blazing Star, Prehistoric Island 2 and Strikers 1945 Plus.

Basically, I would consider how much money you want to spend, and then decide which way to go.

[LSU]

If Pulstar caught your eye, you should definitely give Last Resort a go. I think it's one of the best R-Type-inspired shmups around and personally I prefer its sprite-based look to Pulstar's pre-rendered graphics.

This. Last Resort is definitely a must-have title!

It sure is. It's actually my favourite Neo Geo game of all.

Lots of good advice so far. If you do decide to go the CD route, consider splashing out on a CDZ console. They're smaller and games load a bit faster. The CD version of Last Resort will load all in one go, so there's no wait times at all after the initial boot-up.
Most other shmups like the Sonic Wings games also load at very good speeds - almost no delay at all between stages when played on the CDZ. However, most of the CD fighting games still have wait times between bouts that are bad enough to completely spoil the flow of play so don't get it for the fighters.
My personal gripes with the CD shmup library are:
1. Pulstar has looong load times. There's an option to turn off the cut scenes which helps but it's still a bit of a wait between stages.
2. The one good exclusive CD shmup Brikinger is now very expensive to buy.
3. No Blazing Star. This is almost a deal breaker for me and the biggest hole in the CD collection.

(Oh and yes, RHE's game is a must have on CD too!)

So like everyone else my advice would be: MVS if you can afford it, CD (Z?) if not. Have fun.

[KisakiProject]

Thanks for all the great advice guys!

In regards to CDZ it doesn't seem worth it to me to pay twice the price for the console just to avoid 15-45 second loads. I saw Classic Game Room's compare and it doesn't seem $100-150 more worth of console just to load faster. Plus the regular CD looks pretty to me. I dunno I find it the most appealing looking console I've ever seen.

Yeah Blazing Star is the AE/MVS exclusive that is kinda holding be back from getting CD. Brikinger is CD only so is Iron Clad. Iron clad is on VC so I can get it for my Wii. In fact I'll probably pick it up tonight to satiate some of my NEOGEO shmup lust tonight. So I guess my decision comes down to Blazing Star vs Brikinger game wise and financially. CD whenever I feel like spending $200-250 to get on of ebay plus pulstar. Or wait until I have $500 for a cabinet and see what games the person I'm buying it from is bundling in with it.

So from this between Brikinger vs Blazing star maybe you guys could better help me if I give you some insight into my shmup taste? Note worthy watching pulstar reviews on ebay is whats driving me to buy neo-geo so that leans blazing star? But my favorite 5 shmups are 1) Ikaruga 2) Mushihime Sama Futari 1.5 3) Guwange 4) Soldier Blade 5) Raiden Fighters Aces series

with those insight in my tastes which do you think I would prefer?

You guys mentioned the MVS cab converted to a home system? Where do you get those? How much are they?

Thanks a million.

[brentsg]

In regards to CDZ it doesn't seem worth it to me to pay twice the price for the console just to avoid 15-45 second loads. I saw Classic Game Room's compare and it doesn't seem $100-150 more worth of console just to load faster. Plus the regular CD looks pretty to me. I dunno I find it the most appealing looking console I've ever seen.

The normal CD is fine for some games but the load times on others feel like an eternity. It honestly makes some games not worth playing, so any decrease is a good thing.

[Darkseed]

Blazing Star is a must and would totally affect my decision.

[KisakiProject]

Blazing Star is a must and would totally affect my decision.

I've seen the MVS cart as low as $150 which isn't to bad compared to $800-1000 for the AES cart.

The MVS to AES converter seems to be a pretty solid deal. You save your money right there. Does anybody have one of these? How reliably are they? I see them for $250 new which seems a lot until you see yourself saving $500 on a cart.

[RHE]

(Oh and yes, RHE's game is a must have on CD too!).

[Strider77]

If you do decide to go the CD route, consider splashing out on a CDZ console. They're smaller and games load a bit faster.

I would for sure go the CDZ route.... one can be had for 200.00 or a bit lower.

Having said that I would just go the cpnsolized MVS route though...... no loading and all games are pretty much available on it. I have both the CDZ and a MVS. But if I had to choose I'd keep my MVS.

[drauch]

My buddy Drunkninja is selling a Neo Geo CD lot with a few shmups in the trading forum. Would be a good way to start off. I have an MVS myself, and yeah, it can get pricey. I dream of owning Pulstar some day.

[Despatche]

Yeah Blazing Star is the AE/MVS exclusive that is kinda holding be back from getting CD. Brikinger is CD only so is Iron Clad. Iron clad is on VC so I can get it for my Wii. In fact I'll probably pick it up tonight to satiate some of my NEOGEO shmup lust tonight. So I guess my decision comes down to Blazing Star vs Brikinger game wise and financially.

"Choutetsu Brikin'ger" is the eventual NGCD version of "Ironclad"; that is, Ironclad was going to be released on the MVS and seemingly outside of Japan as well, but it never happened (there are multiple other MVS games that eventually became NGCD titles like this). The version on the Wii's VC is the original cartridge version; not long after this VC release it was bootlegged and the resulting rom dumped (you'll find it in emulators as "Ironclad (Wii conversion)" or some such).

Ergo, you should get Blazing Star in this situation. Getting Brikin'ger at this point is a collector's idea. However, there is this (read the notes at the bottom).

[KisakiProject]

Yeah. I downloaded Ironclad off VC last night. I am loving it. More modern shmups need branching paths.

Well. How hard is it to come by "consolized" MVS cabs? Also its it cheaper than a AES with the converter or just buying the cabinet?

I know we all saw the NEO-GEO on PS3 announcement but I assume I shouldn't hold my breath for Pulstar or Blazing Star to ever hit that.

[drauch]

Yeah. I downloaded Ironclad off VC last night. I am loving it. More modern shmups need branching paths.

Well. How hard is it to come by "consolized" MVS cabs? Also its it cheaper than a AES with the converter or just buying the cabinet?

I know we all saw the NEO-GEO on PS3 announcement but I assume I shouldn't hold my breath for Pulstar or Blazing Star to ever hit that.

Consolized MVS' are pretty frequent on ebay, but can sometimes get a bit pricey. Converters as well can go for the buttload, but from what I've seen a consolized MVS would be the best choice, for space restraints, at least; otherwise, go for the cab.

[KisakiProject]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Consolized-Neo-Geo- ... 7899376868

Is this a good deal for a consolized MVS? What kind off questions should I ask the seller?

(Also maybe this post should be in the off topic forum)

PS I got a master list of Sega Saturn shmups but if anyone wants PM recommendations let me know. No Radiant Silvergun cause I'm not paying that much/ waiting for LIVE port.

Thanks guys.

[Strider77]

It's buy it now price is really expensive. But it is nice though and well done.

[drauch]

I mean, really, if you wanted to go the consolized route you could always just buy a supergun off ebay or a seller here and just a regular MVS motherboard. Might wind up being around the same price in the end, if not a little more, but you could play PCBs as well. Just a thought.