What's Your Favourite Milestone Shmup?

[mjclark]

There's been a few Milestone related discussions around recently, so just wondering what's people's favourites and why?

[Despatche]

(this thread is also a vote for best soundtrack)

[Jeneki]

Chaos Field is the one I keep coming back to. Although the level and enemy designs are meh, the game mechanics, controls, and scoring have a lot variety and require a tons of experimenting to exploit. I always feel I have more to learn.

[stryc9]

I have played all of the games in the poll except for Illvelo (which looks great btw), disliked Chaos Fields difficulty spikes, but loved Radirgy and Noa Massive. Have not really played enough Karous yet to make a solid descision, but it looks and sounds great.

I voted Noa but I'm really talking Classic Mode on the 360's Massive, close enough.

[louisg]

Radilgy for me, but I've only played Noa briefly and haven't seen Illvelo-- it's possible those are better. I can say with certainty that I disliked Karous and Chaos Field though:

CF didn't seem very focused, like it was a case of them thinking of cool weapons but not really having an idea in mind. It sort of just grabbed ideas from various other shmups and blended them together. I also would've preferred actual levels to just a boss rush game.

Karous was a disappointment. I ordered it for DC when it was announced because I enjoyed Radilgy at a friend's place. But, I didn't really care for the leveling-up system, I missed the pick-ups, and it overall didn't have that sense of manic joy that the older game had. Radilgy, on the other hand, brings a smile to my face every time I play it. It's partly the attitude, and partly the gameplay which makes you fly all over the screen like a maniac. Good stuff.

[Herr Schatten]

Radilgy for me, but I've only played Noa briefly and haven't seen Illvelo-- it's possible those are better. I can say with certainty that I disliked Karous

[...]

Karous was a disappointment. I ordered it for DC when it was announced because I enjoyed Radilgy at a friend's place. But, I didn't really care for the leveling-up system, I missed the pick-ups, and it overall didn't have that sense of manic joy that the older game had. Radilgy, on the other hand, brings a smile to my face every time I play it. It's partly the attitude, and partly the gameplay which makes you fly all over the screen like a maniac. Good stuff.

My thoughts exactly

[Deca]

I just don't get Chaos Field at all. It feels so bland and unfocused and...bad. Also it's pretty ugly, especially compared to their other games. There's some good music, but overall the game really turns me off. Vertizontal and 3d models just make me think of Radiant Silvergun and I never really cared for that game at all either.

I really love Radilgy though. Presentation, music, and overall feel really appeal to me. I do kind of wish the game was a little more focussed, I don't feel like it really gets going until the third stage and there are several parts where I'm really not sure what the game wants me to do but overall I really enjoy it.

Karous I've only played for a few minutes and I haven't had a chance to try Noa or Illvelo. I have heard the Illvelo soundtrack though and was kind of blown away.

[racer445]

Ugh, I don't know. I like Chaos Field for the relatively ok graphics and my favorite music out of all of them, but there's just something funny feeling about the gameplay. I can't quite put my finger on it, but after playing games from other developers and the other offerings from Milestone, in some way it just feels... off. Maybe I just need to play it more.

Radirgy takes it for me right now. Decent music, overall coherent visual style, and solid gameplay with some nice patterns at later levels. I like the idea of Karous' dark visual style, but I just think it looks completely disjointed when mixed with the thick cel-shading of Radirgy, and I found the music to be mostly monotonous glitchy breakbeats. I also found the gameplay of Karous to just be so bland that I got bored and put the game away. I haven't tried Illevlo or Noa but they seem pretty cool.

[MathU]

Of the 3 I've played, I'd say I probably enjoy them all about equally for different reasons, but I've put by far the most time into Chaos Field. Between Radio Allergy and Karous, I have a blast with Karous every single time I just pick it up and play, while Radio Allergy requires a bit more effort to get into.

[cj iwakura]

Chaos Field is a better game overall, but I really enjoy Radio Allergy's style.

It's got the most personality. Must play Noa!

[dunpeal2064]

I have only played Chaos Field out of all of them, and I enjoyed it enough to play it every now and then.

Out of all of them that I haven't tried, Karous looks the most interesting. I'll hvae to pick up a copy eventually

[cj iwakura]

Karous plays almost just like Radio Allergy, but it's less charming and more grimdark.

[Age of Kings]

I like Karous best because the scoring system is far simpler than Radilgy, and the weapons leveling system makes for dynamic gameplay. I've also put a fair bit of time into Chaos Field and yes, it's rougher and more primitive than the others, but it's one of the better "boss games" I've played. While Radilgy is a good game, I only play it casually because I have no clue how to keep the network bars up, hence shitty scores.

Never played Illvelo or Noa

[Despatche]

And of course, like with Touhou, (some) Milestone games may as well go on that stinkers list. And of course, it's not something I necessarily believe in or approve of. I'm really surprised that people haven't honestly tried to put up CAVE games.

(this has been part three of a series on shmups and their forums, thank you for watching)

[Gmintyfresh]

For some reason I really can't get on with Radirgy but Noa Massive is a different kettle of fish I think it's great.

[Bee Cool]

This is slightly off topic, but what are the sales figures for these games, or where could I find them?

I'd like to know which one was the most popular overall.

[Despatche]

Radirgy, by far. There was even an INH set for it.

[cj iwakura]

This is slightly off topic, but what are the sales figures for these games, or where could I find them?

I'd like to know which one was the most popular overall.

Strictly assuming here, but I believe Radilgy has the largest following, thanks in no small part to the charming cast.

[Frenetic]

I really have a soft spot for Illvelo. Great artwork, music, puzzle/bonus stage mechanics. It's a shame it hasn't gotten a domestic release so it can spread its wonderful spirit to everyone. Hopefully one day.

[MathU]

I was hoping that maybe UFO canceled it in favor of localizing Milestone Shooting Collection 2, but I guess that's not going to happen either.

[Mero]

I'll go with Radirgy Noa. I've only got about a third of the shooters on the 360 but of the ones I do have it's the one I've played the most by a million miles. It's just a shame so few people seem to have played it.

[cj iwakura]

Might help if it wasn't 360 exclusive. I'd have imported it in a heartbeat if I owned the console it came out on.

[nZero]

Might help if it wasn't 360 exclusive.

It's not, there's a Wii version that was released 8 months before the 360 port.

[Age of Kings]

Might help if it wasn't 360 exclusive.

It's not, there's a Wii version that was released 8 months before the 360 port.

Wii games are region locked. Or else I would've imported the Milestone Shooting Collection 2.

There's a Windows version too, but I hear it's only compatible with Windows XP....

[stryc9]

Might help if it wasn't 360 exclusive.

It's not, there's a Wii version that was released 8 months before the 360 port.

Wii games are region locked. Or else I would've imported the Milestone Shooting Collection 2.

There's a Windows version too, but I hear it's only compatible with Windows XP....

Isn't there some sort of Magic Loader disc for Wii these days? My mate got his console modded (not really worth it in the end) and I'm pretty sure he mentioned something about this.

Is there windows versions of any of Milestone's other games?

[MathU]

It is very simple to play imports on your Wii. You don't need a disc or any sort of hardware modification.

[stryc9]

It is very simple to play imports on your Wii. You don't need a disc or any sort of hardware modification.

Please explain.

[mesh control]

You just need a copy of Lego Indiana Jones, a sd card and 10 minutes of google searching.

[xbl0x180]

I only have Radirgy Noa Massive and I love that game. However, I haven't played the Wii collection.

[cj iwakura]

Might help if it wasn't 360 exclusive.

It's not, there's a Wii version that was released 8 months before the 360 port.

Well... then.

Hunting time!