STGT '11 Week 1 - Gokujou Parodius thoughts and discussion!

[Hagane]

Fuck the haters, this game rocks.

BTW, is autofire allowed?

[Deca]

BTW, is autofire allowed?

Yep. No limit.

[Sumez]

Might have found a way past that annoying reverse wall in the speed zone with Koitsu without the need for a green or red bell power - the part of the stage where a wall of birds appear from behind, and most times you need a bell power of some sort to get past without dying. The only problem with my new trick is that it requires close to maximum attack power to work. :/
Still experimenting, but getting close to my current best.

I don't think I've tried reaching that spot with max rank, but can't you just wait until some of them move forward, then quickly move above or below them and bomb/shoot their asses?

I got a couple of questions.
1. Koitsu's shield, is that a condom?
2. Does Koitsu's "OH!" do anything besides murder you?

1. Yes
2. Removes all powerups, and that's about it - however, what I wonder is whether it lowers rank and thus can be used strategically?

[borislaw]

What auto-fire rate are people finding to work the best for this game?

What is the difference between manual and semi auto?

Which character should I use?

[Deca]

What is the difference between manual and semi auto?

Semi-Auto follows the Auto powerup sequence but you can hit the powerup button to activate whatever your marker is sitting on before it goes up to the next auto powerup. In practice it's just Auto with access to more speedups and checkpoints. Also Manual has roulette items and Semi doesn't.

[chempop]

Couple other big differences are:

- Manual doesn't give you an instant speed-up when spawning
- Auto doesn't send you back to a checkpoint when dying
- Auto isn't capable of multiple speed-ups

I like semi-automate most because:

- checkpoints are useful to power back up, and get more milking points
- I like to speed-up beyond the one freebie
- switching to different weapons is possible

As for characters, It's really up to you and your play style. I'm most successful with Mambo, but most would say Michael or Kiotsu.

[Emuser]

Koitsu, Michael, and Mambo seem to be the strongest characters overall in this game, both in being able to score and staying alive effectively at the same time. Everyone else takes much more practice to get similar scores with as they tend to lack something like the ridiculous wide shots Koitsu and Michael have.

[Icarus]

I don't think I've tried reaching that spot with max rank, but can't you just wait until some of them move forward, then quickly move above or below them and bomb/shoot their asses?

Not that easy, I'm afraid, as they follow your movements, and at max rank they spray the screen with bullets. And when they appear, a set of barriers at the top and bottom of the screen appear as well, which means that any attempt camping at the top or bottom while waiting for them means instant death. My little technique has been tried and tested in an actual no-miss attempt (recorded using WolfMAME), so I know it works in proper conditions, and can now apply it to my runs.

Now for a foolproof method past Decoration Core, the traffic lights boss at max rank, and the trap in the Moon Rabbits stage, and I'll have all the tools necesary for a end-to-end run through.

[Illyrian]

I don't think I've tried reaching that spot with max rank, but can't you just wait until some of them move forward, then quickly move above or below them and bomb/shoot their asses?

Not that easy, I'm afraid, as they follow your movements, and at max rank they spray the screen with bullets. And when they appear, a set of barriers at the top and bottom of the screen appear as well, which means that any attempt camping at the top or bottom while waiting for them means instant death. My little technique has been tried and tested in an actual no-miss attempt (recorded using WolfMAME), so I know it works in proper conditions, and can now apply it to my runs.

Now for a foolproof method past Decoration Core, the traffic lights boss at max rank, and the trap in the Moon Rabbits stage, and I'll have all the tools necesary for a end-to-end run through.

With Koitsu if you're in the very middle of the screen vertically and hug the left wall you'll vaporise the first wave and they won't even get to fire. Immediately go to the top of the screen and you can kill half the second wave immediately as well.

[tinotormed]

Gokujyou Parodius (Int. Fantastic Journey, rom parent) is one heck of a game. It's a bit difficult than Parodius Dam which is the first game of the series because it influences rank based on how well you did in the game and survival time. Dying stupidly or commiting suicide on key points is the only way to tone it down, much like the Raizing games (Garegga, Batrider, Dimahoo) because they use this difficulty system way too easily before their very own Garegga came out two years later. For such a hidden gam like this since I got the Parodius Deluxe Pack, this is a must-play for some fans of Konami shmups and the Parodius series.

My favorite stage in the game is the Space Stage (Stage 5) because most of the enemies are inspired from the Gradius core bosses (Big Core Mk. I, Tetran, Big Core Mk. II, Cyrstal Core, Covered Core Mk. I). Damn, that boss looks like a bigger Power Capsule, which is known as Cafe Monster Cappucino, and he throws in power-ups at me?!? Very easy boss.

Oh well, after this season, I am going back to Parodius Da! and see if I can pull a 1loop ALL.

[Emuser]

Now that I'm calling it quits for this game in the STGT after hitting my combined goal of 1 Million points+past stage 4, my final thoughts at the end of week 1:

I've played a ton of shmups over the years, and I was scared once I saw a game I didn't know to start us all off, the fact that it was a Konami game, and the fact it was a parody type Gradius game. Three strikes against me thinking I'd do horribly given my lack of Gradius play. If Koitsu's wide shot weren't so good my score would probably be shit.

I love the sense of wackiness and insanity the game brings, and I love how Konami wasn't afraid to go all out and poke fun at itself among many other things along the way. I also love classical music, so the music in many spots along the way especially stage 4 and the Maoi Battleship stage I find to be quite awesome. Honestly if it weren't for those two tracks and the panda boss track I would've stopped playing after the 2nd day.

So despite all the laughs, the frustrations, the restarts for like 2 days on the panda to get the bell trick running right, the bell drops, getting killed because of bells, etc, I had a ton of fun with this game. I have complete intentions of playing this game seriously after STGT is over and playing with Vic Viper.

[Bloodreign]

Gokujyou Parodius (Int. Fantastic Journey, rom parent) is one heck of a game. It's a bit difficult than Parodius Dam which is the first game of the series because it influences rank based on how well you did in the game and survival time. Dying stupidly or commiting suicide on key points is the only way to tone it down, much like the Raizing games (Garegga, Batrider, Dimahoo) because they use this difficulty system way too easily before their very own Garegga came out two years later. For such a hidden game like this since I got the Parodius Deluxe Pack, this is a must-play for some fans of Konami shmups and the Parodius series.

My favorite stage in the game is the Space Stage (Stage 5) because most of the enemies are inspired from the Gradius core bosses (Big Core Mk. I, Tetran, Big Core Mk. II, Cyrstal Core, Covered Core Mk. I). Damn, that boss looks like a bigger Power Capsule, which is known as Cafe Monster Cappucino, and he throws in power-ups at me?!? Very easy boss.

Oh well, after this season, I am going back to Parodius Da! and see if I can pull a 1loop ALL.

Da! isn't the first game in the series, Parodius on MSX is. Parodius Da! in the arcade is a tad harder than Gokujou because it too has nasty rank, the longer you stay alive, the harder it becomes. None of the home ports of Da retained the rank difficulty the arcade has (there's still rank, just not as nasty), the arcade one is after your quarters, and will get them by any means necessary. As for Power Capsule Cappucino, on harder difficulties he throws in fewer power ups and more spiked balls, and they tend to move quickly. Personally to me the moon rabbits boss tends to be the hardest boss, though not impossible, but the stage where enemies come from all directions (complete with ! warning sign) is the hardest if the rank is high. You almost can't bother shooting most enemies as they will throw a lot of bullets at you.

Also I didn't know Parodius Da! had a broken bell bonus bug on the Deluxe Packs on PSX and Saturn, doesn't deter it too much for me as I still enjoy playing both versions.

[drunkninja24]

Gah, haven't had a chance to put as much time into this as I'd like. Only managed a little over 200K by stage 3, yeah.

[Treasurance]

game is fucking horrible, gameovered on an otherwise perfectly fine run due to getting Oh My God! from a roulette

[Sumez]

It's a bit difficult than Parodius Dam which is the first game of the series because it influences rank based on how well you did in the game and survival time.

Well, did you play the arcade or Saturn/PS version of Parodius Da? I always figured Da! was an easy game, until I recently tried the arcade version, which has much, MUCH worse rank than Gokujou does...

[dieKatze88]

It's a bit difficult than Parodius Dam which is the first game of the series because it influences rank based on how well you did in the game and survival time.

Well, did you play the arcade or Saturn/PS version of Parodius Da? I always figured Da! was an easy game, until I recently tried the arcade version, which has much, MUCH worse rank than Gokujou does...

Damn right. My Parodius Da! PCB is a prized possession, but only sees use when I feel like getting my ass kicked for hours on end.

[dinosaurjerk]

I like this game pretty well I guess, at least using Michael the pig on auto, since he's pretty easy and auto gets rid of the checkpoints which are awful and I h8 4eva. Autopig probably isn't optimal for scoring but pulling off a dangerous bum rush to grab a gold bell between a bunch of falling cookies or wahtever is pretty cool and then you can say "that'll do pig, that'll do" like he's your faithful porcine pal.

[chempop]

I'm pretty much fried on the game at this point. I've had lots of fun though playing regularly during week 1 in my first STGT ever, glad to have supportive team mates to bounce strategies off of.

I was hoping to get a Mambo score in the top ten, I think he's capable of hitting 1mil by the end of stage4, but in the end I just couldn't fit all the pieces together in a single run.

Since I'm new to the whole STGT, can someone tell me how the team rankings work? Are the top 3 scores from each team combined or something like that?

Definitely glad I finally am taking part in this, knowing that we are all working on a single game on a deadline is whole new experience. Looking forward to week 2!

[Moniker]

I'm pretty much fried on the game at this point.

This. I'll probably try some eleventh hour crap tomorrow, but getting raped repeatedly by evil smiling pink spheres on level three has taken its toll. Game is very good, but the ranking + miss recovery just isn't at the sweet spot for me. I think I have most of the mechanics down; I'm just not up to the amount of multitasking the game asks of you.

Also I don't think this has been mentioned, but the Moai stage requirements are less and more than what you have in your hundreds digit. I believe it's tied to rank: have too low a rank, and it doesn't matter what your score is - you aren't getting in. Have a high enough rank, and you're guaranteed entry. It seems that in the middle is where it matters.

I've had a XXX,900 score not get me in after multiple deaths, and a no-miss, perfect chaining XXX,400 get me in after stage 2 numerous times. *shrug*

[Emuser]

Popping back in again, saying this game has really grown on me as I'm just playing more casually now with other ships not named Koitsu or Michael. I have been getting 700,000 scores by stage 4 with random ships like Twinbee and Vic Viper but by that point I cannot stay alive since I keep messing up hitting the bells to get red/green bells to tackle all the rape coming from behind you in this stage(This with Vic Viper, Twinbee's tailgun shot is a godsend here but something else kills me later like exclamations, roulettes, boss, etc).

I'm curious about the team rankings as well. As far as I see all the players that have submitted a score for team Jerry Ellis are in the top 30 so far.

Seeing how sikraiken has thoroughly thrashed all of us on this game with 2M, I'm awaiting to see what the 2nd game is of STGT, I pray something I have been familiarized with cause I dont know if I can handle learning another new game thoroughly after Gokujou Parodius.

[third_strike]

Since childhood I was instructed at don't play with garbage.
Today I just can't avoid.
I am sorry!

You'll play Dimahoo but not this? : )

Maybe you misunderstand me or maybe you are just trolling me, then let me put this clear:
I will be glad in play any kind of shmup (well, if Dimahoo is a shmup, why don't play it?) I only will not play garbage games.

[Erppo]

Also I don't think this has been mentioned, but the Moai stage requirements are less and more than what you have in your hundreds digit. I believe it's tied to rank: have too low a rank, and it doesn't matter what your score is - you aren't getting in. Have a high enough rank, and you're guaranteed entry. It seems that in the middle is where it matters.

I've had a XXX,900 score not get me in after multiple deaths, and a no-miss, perfect chaining XXX,400 get me in after stage 2 numerous times. *shrug*

Yes, the condition in the strategy board thread (even with the power up indicator addition) are false at least when playing Manual. I have a feeling having an active shield matters something too but I have been unable to find any way to reliably control where the stage appears. The best for me is having the digits at 400, having no active shield and no power up indicator and still getting it right after beating the mermaid.

[njiska]

Things I hate in shmups:

- Wall collision death
- Big hit boxes and tight spaces
- Konami
- Being completely fucked after dying once
- Konami

That being said, I've been pleasantly surprised with the time I've spent with Gokujyou Parodius. Due to work and other projects I haven't really touched a shmup in two-three months, so coming back to this was a nightmare. Fortunately today was a really slow work day, allowing me the time to really take it in and appreciate the play. The walled areas aren't nearly as frustrating as in other Konami shmups (even Sexy Parodius) and at least power-up releases can be planned for in this one, unlike last year's Xexex and it's random extends. Really enjoying the first two stages and I'd like to say I'm loving the third as well, but I'm having a bitch of a time avoiding bullets in those tight space. Only made it to the Moai stage once and unfortunately the giant face just raped me. Pleased to see that there are at least some places that you can recover from death quickly, but as always getting killed in a tight spot often leads to you being unable to recover and that's just not fun. This is doubly a problem with bosses that have hard to read attacks on first fight.

Definitely one of the better Konami shmups, but it still has those little things that just eat at me. Thankfully the whimsical style makes the pain a little easier to bear. Not a bad choice for STGT, but I'm hoping Konami sits out next year.

[Chaos Phoenixma]

It's definitely a good game, but losing a chain due to all the vertical scroll stuff just sucks.

So I can say it's good like their other games in terms of survival, but it's not exactly a fun scoring game. Maybe I'm just annoyed as it wasn't one where I'd have a better chance(like Gradius III where I probably would have gotten to stage 7, 8, 9, or 10 by the end of the week since I've actually spent time on it). Also, I just don't think a scoring system really fits into these particular games. At least with Gradius games it can be ignored.

[nimitz]

With a bit of reading between the lines, it seems most complaints can be resumed to:

"This game is too hard for me and I don't feel like trying harder."

[RNGmaster]

With a bit of reading between the lines, it seems most complaints can be resumed to:
"This game is too hard for me and I don't feel like trying harder."

Most complaints can, but sudden deaths due to enemies appearing behind you or because you picked up the wrong roulette item are just annoying. That aside, I really do like this game, and most people complaining about it are probably just new to older-style horis.

[Deca]

Most complaints can, but sudden deaths due to enemies appearing behind you or because you picked up the wrong roulette item are just annoying. That aside, I really do like this game, and most people complaining about it are probably just new to older-style horis.

Well I don't know if you can complain too much about enemies appearing behind you since there aren't random enemies. I guess it could be a problem on stage 3 but you can generally have an idea of where stuff might be. Roulette is profoundly stupid though, I only played on Auto and Semi so I never had to put up with it.

[njiska]

With a bit of reading between the lines, it seems most complaints can be resumed to:

"This game is too hard for me and I don't feel like trying harder."

I don't think that's fair.A lot of us just aren't fans of how the game achieves it's difficulty. There's a lot to be said for style and Konami's style just doesn't jive with me. Never has.

[Despatche]

oh and uh this game is too hard for me and I don't feel like trying harder

[Herr Schatten]

This game was one of the best choices for STGT ever. It's good, it's got a scoring system that's simple to grasp, but is difficult to execute, and surprisingly few people seem to have played it beforehand seriously. This is so much better than Xexxexexexex, it's ridiculous. Can we please have Da! or Sexy for STGT12?