Asian only ps2 shmups

[MovingTarget]

Any recommendations and reasons for which shmup I should first buy when I finally get a japanese PS2?

I'm thinking espgaluda... even though am shite at dodonpachi its a lot of fun and I love it to bits, I've heard the dodonpachi for the ps2 is very hard which is why I'm thinking its probably safer to go for espgaluda. How hard in relation to dodonpachi would you say this game is?

[Ord]

Espgaluda is like a gentle summer breeze, compared to Dodonpachi Dai-Ou-Jou's full on hurricane of pain!!
Seriously, Espgaluda is utterly great and doesn't overwhelm you to the extent of DDP DOJ.

[MovingTarget]

Sounds right up my street

how hard would you say dodonpachi for the saturn is relatively?

[kingmobster]

Sounds right up my street

how hard would you say dodonpachi for the saturn is relatively?

A LOT easier.

[professor ganson]

I like DDP DOJ better than ESPGaluda myself. I find the former's weapon system more familiar, more straightforward. Mushi is also nice because it offers so many different styles of play.
Don't forget about Psikyo titles, most of which are available for Japanese PS2. Right now I prefer Psikyo games to those of Cave.

[MovingTarget]

Sounds right up my street

how hard would you say dodonpachi for the saturn is relatively?

A LOT easier.

God, I find dodon really hard. I dunno, I have phases where if I can get past the first two levels without loosing a life then i can get to the 4th and 5th. I find it hard keeping my concentration consistent throughout the game.

[rib]

how far would i made it in espgaluda and mushi if i made it into stage four in ddp doj without continue and with standard settings at my best?

[visuatrox]

Yea ESPGaluda is a good game to start with (as it is excellent, but also because chances are it is soon going to get harder to find). Difficult games do not bother me, the Arrange mode rocks and I never play Espgaluda on the normal setting. Altough arrange is a lot harder and struggled to even get past the first stage, now I get to the third stage if I'm lucky .

[Jedah Doma]

Yea, ESPGaluda is a great game. I've only gotten a chance to play it a bit, but from what I've played, the mechanics are well done. I like the idea of slowing down bullets and getting the max amount of bullets on screen and then turing all the bullets into a rain of gold. I've got Dodonpachi Dai-Ou-Jou and Mushi, so this will be a great game to get for a nice Cave trinity of shooting goodness on PS2.