Steam Greenlight - A way to get Cave shmups onto the PC?

[Shogun]

Valve announced Steam Greenlight today. It basically is a way for game creators to submit their games to steam and then the community votes on if it should get released or not. The first thing that flashed in my head was could this could be used to get Cave games and other shmups onto the PC? I know I would buy them all up in an instant. Would this work or is Cave opposed to the PC as a viable platform?

[AntiFritz]

It's more likely that cave or other shmups would then be MORE likely not to get on steam, because we don't have the numbers to vote for it.

[trap15]

[CStarFlare]

cave games are already on the pc

they should just set up a paypal link and ask fans to kick in $10 for every game they have mame'd, they might do better than they would porting games that have been widely available for free for years and giving valve a slice

[Op Intensify]

Yeah, it's not happening. Not enough support, and the Steam management hates shmups. Even if the games went up, everyone would just keep on emulating them. If the Android releases are anything to go by, they could also be shoddily programmed. Cave is pretty much trapped in smartphone land at this point.

I think a Paypal donation button with a goal meter would be a good idea, but it would violate the Professional Japanese Company's Honor Code. Though come on, Triangle Service at least begged everyone to buy Trizeal when they needed money, with no repercussions.

Some more reasonable ideas for them to get out of their rut:

- iOS version of Nin2Jump with touch-controlled kunai aiming
- PC port of Instant Brain with added H-scenes, followed by an all-ages PSP/Vita port if it sells
- XBLA version of Dodonpachi Maximum
- New Steep Slope Sliders or Yanya Caballista on 3DS/Vita
- iOS and/or XBLA double pack of Uo Poko/Mushi Tama
- Manga series based on Mushi/Futari - I feel there's a lot of potential for telling a story with that game's setting
- Muchi Pork/Pink Sweets fuck pillows
- More flavors of Deathsmiles urine drinks

[trap15]

- Muchi Pork/Pink Sweets fuck pillows

They already did a Momo dakimakura. I agree that they should make some Pink Sweets ones though Or at least Ibara. You know there's potential there!

[mesh control]

[brentsg]

I'm not on top of a mountain and I know this is a stupid post.

[Ed Oscuro]

Not enough support, and the Steam management hates shmups.

Did you even read what Greenlight is supposed to be? Only the first of those objections will likely hold (and even then, there might well be enough Cave followers to get something on the service, but then I might ask - why Cave and not any of the other classic shooting game devs that are still around? Might as well ask for Namco, Konami, or Seibu releases).

But, once again, we're back where we started - Cave's probable lack of interest.

[Op Intensify]

Did you even read what Greenlight is supposed to be?

Nope. I have now though.

Now that you mention it, asking for a PC version of Raiden IV would be pretty reasonable, preferably with the new NESiCA changes. MOSS ported Raiden III to PCs, after all.

But there really isn't anyone to stand up for these games besides us anymore. Hipsters fawned over Ikaruga because it was simple to understand, made by Treasure, and focused on bullet absorption instead of dodging. It helped that they couldn't just credit feed through the game from the start. Most of the people who were curious enough to start checking out Cave games in MAME were turned off almost immediately. "Do I really have to dodge all these bullets? Why do I have no idea what's going on with all these numbers? Didn't they get the memo that high scores haven't mattered since the NES? All these games play the same! They're just stupid quarter munchers, but they're so easy! I can just keep continuing."

They weren't being spoon-fed information and concessions to difficulty at all times like in their modern CRPGs and military shooters. They were forced to repeatedly practice short sections of a game, and research other players' strategies and data if they wanted to improve. This was far more effort than they cared to invest into such games. So everyone who didn't have a hard-on for Touhou simply gave up and decided that they wanted nothing more to do with this broken, obsolete genre, and went back to Half-Life 2 or whatever they were playing then. And that's how we ended up with these gaming journLOLists who give irredeemable trash like Sine Mora glowing reviews, post links to pirate sites, and describe Taito's arcade masterpieces as "pew pew pew shooters." On pretty much any popular message board outside this site's sphere of influence, the response to showing off a shmup will range from indifference to outright hostility. Not Cave, nor MOSS, nor Triangle Service, nor any doujin shmup publisher has any chances for success on Steam or similar platforms.

But it isn't just shmups. If what you're promoting to the Western PC indie gaming scene isn't a dungeon crawler, minecraft clone, witty SCUMM-style adventure, FPS, faux-retro platformer, or pretentious art experiment, expect it to go ignored and unsold. Especially if it isn't crammed full of internet memes and stupid characters.

[Jeneki]

Based on what I read, the developer has to submit the game before users can vote on it. Which means we can't just vote cave out of the blue, they have to put something up first.

[Observer]

I think CAVE would have far more luck getting in touch with Valve directly (or sending some loli fuck pillows for them to touch) than risking themselves in what frankly looks like a bloodfest and a popularity contest where the indie hipsters will reign undisputed.

Did you guys check those screens in detail? It has rate up/down. I know they might implement measures to avoid people abusing the system but nothing will prevent an angry mob of japanese games haters from literally burying deep down something they hate. Or some of these "trend setters" and "opinionators" directing a bunch of people into crushing down a dev no matter what, perhaps because of some stupid retardation said on Twitter or another "social" event totally outside of the development sphere. You would begin to wonder if x or y aren't holding a grudge on z.

It might work for the positive but, like I said, with the chance to vote things down, I don't see it happening. I would rather have support votes alone. You know what they said: "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything." I would rather have comments, indifference and the support voting than some "funny" retard directing several thousands of people into my game only to vote it down.

I assume moves like that would probably light alarms but still doesn't make it any nicer.

[Erppo]

...and the Steam management hates shmups...Cave is pretty much trapped in smartphone land at this point...[other usual Estebang stuff]...

You're really not even trying to hide your identity anymore.

[Zorator]

Cave doesn't want their games on Steam, so can we quit talking about this now?

And it really doesn't matter how many westerners write in to tell them to use Steam, they won't. You know why? Because we just aren't their target demographic. Being more recognizable in the west due to Steam presence is not going to get any more people to buy new PCB's or go to Japanese arcades.

[Bananamatic]

shmups are dead

except for touhou

[Despatche]

i can't wait until zun says "there will be no touhou 14"

[Bananamatic]

13.5

[mice]

I remember 10 years ago, no one on this forum was using their PCs for shmupping.
Guess this has changed now?

[RNGmaster]

Estebang, you always choose like the ugliest avatars. How many sets of eyebrows does that guy have?

[Op Intensify]

Alright, I can't really attempt to hide my identity anymore.

I've been trying to make a fresh start on this forum and avoid being needlessly confrontational, as I was before. Hopefully I can do that without the ridiculously drawn out indie games argument we had haunting me forever.

Don't tell me to go back to my old account, I asked for that to be permabanned. It's against forum rules to have more than one active account.

[Esupanitix]

shmups are dead

except for touhou

Pretty much, sadly.

Good thing I've already gotten into the Touhou boom. I still like MushihimeSama Futari, but still.

[Zeether]

Lock please.

[Despatche]

I remember 10 years ago, no one on this forum was using their PCs for shmupping.
Guess this has changed now?

that's because pcs couldn't really shmup 10 years ago, other than doozins-no-one-played-because-the-internet-wasn't-awesome-enough-yet

let's not get started on those clowns at replayburners who think it's funny to use mame 0.37 for gunbird 2

[MadScientist]

But it isn't just shmups. If what you're promoting to the Western PC indie gaming scene isn't a dungeon crawler etc...

What's wrong with dungeon crawlers?

[Op Intensify]

What's wrong with dungeon crawlers?

Nothing, I love a good Roguelike or Wizardry clone. It's just that we've been seeing a massive oversaturation of indie dungeon crawlers on PC as of late, which mostly range from mediocre to bad. They're trendy and cheap/easy to develop. I mean, if I ever see another new Roguelike that's even simpler than the original 1980 Rogue...

Japan's also had a considerable influx of mediocre Wizardry clones ever since Etrian Odyssey hit it big.

Anyone who wants to make a "simple dungeon crawler" should take some lessons from Stonekeep, which did an amazing job of seamlessly hiding almost every statistic from the player.