Shmup Related Questions That Don't Deserve a Thread

[604_degrees]

Answer found @ http://www.emphatic.se/?p=807

[powersoul]

From which game did the shmup jargon "no-miss" begin from?

[Squire Grooktook]

What exactly do the gold ingots in Esp Galuda II do? Like how do they effect scoring/multipliers etc? I'm told you wanna keep a balance between gold and gems, but from what I've seen, it seems like it would be better just be better to save up gems for Zesshikai's (I know this can't be right, which is why I'm asking.)

[BulletMagnet]

Assuming you're talking about regular ol' arcade mode and not one of the 360 arrange modes, gold works pretty much the same way as in the first Galuda: basically, it gives you points, and the more of it you get (as reflected in its changed appearance) the more points it's worth. You are correct in saying that if you want the really big numbers it's best to use the gold for Zetsushikai, though it's of course possible to play without it though your score will be a good deal lower. Not sure where you heard the "balance" thing, as gems are there for kakusei and zetsushikai, and that's about it.

[Squire Grooktook]

Assuming you're talking about regular ol' arcade mode and not one of the 360 arrange modes, gold works pretty much the same way as in the first Galuda: basically, it gives you points, and the more of it you get (as reflected in its changed appearance) the more points it's worth. You are correct in saying that if you want the really big numbers it's best to use the gold for Zetsushikai, though it's of course possible to play without it though your score will be a good deal lower. Not sure where you heard the "balance" thing, as gems are there for kakusei and zetsushikai, and that's about it.

Yeah, I'm playing regular. Also can't you use Zetsushika without gold? I know it depletes both gems and gold, but it seems that it only ends with gems run out?

[rCadeGaming]

Where did the term shmup come from? I know it's short for shoot-'em-up; I just mean what were the times and circumstances that took it from space shooter, to shoot-'em-up, to shmup?

[BareKnuckleRoo]

From which game did the shmup jargon "no-miss" begin from?

I don't know how it came about or how early it's been in use, but I know that the Japanese use the word 'miss' as a sort of slang/loanword term to refer to a mistake in general. It probably progressed from there to shmups to refer to dying as a 'miss' (as in a mistake), so that a no-miss refers to a run without mistakes (deaths).

[BulletMagnet]

Where did the term shmup come from?

If memory serves the first recorded use was in a bygone UK magazine, Zzap!64. Not sure how the writer came up with it, but that's the generally-accepted point of origin for the shorthand term.

Also can't you use Zetsushika without gold?

It's been a bit since I last played, but again if memory serves you need gold for it.

[Squire Grooktook]

Oh ok I see. Thank you.

[rCadeGaming]

Thanks BulletMagnet. Any idea what time period that was?

I guess before FPS's shmups could just be called shooting games?

[shmuppyLove]

Would a DDP: Resurrection from France just be the normal EU release?

And that one's region-free, right?

[BulletMagnet]

Thanks BulletMagnet. Any idea what time period that was?

According to this article it was in 1985.

I guess before FPS's shmups could just be called shooting games?

In Japan they still often label them "STGs", short for "shooting games." Not sure what they call other "shooter-ish" genres.

[rCadeGaming]

Wow, I was guessing 90's.

Article bookmarked. Thanks!

[AntiFritz]

Would a DDP: Resurrection from France just be the normal EU release?

And that one's region-free, right?

Region free in that it works on pal and ntsc-u consoles. But not ntsc-j.

[shmuppyLove]

Would a DDP: Resurrection from France just be the normal EU release?

And that one's region-free, right?

Region free in that it works on pal and ntsc-u consoles. But not ntsc-j.

Yeah, I was just concerned that France would get a different version for some reason.

Maybe the same reason I'm cautious buying games from Quebec -- sometimes they get something dumb like bilingual packaging

[EmperorIng]

Is the PSP version of Darius Burst equivalent, more or less, to the arcade original counterpart?

[AntiFritz]

I think the arcade version came out after, and has added content.

[EmperorIng]

Well I know there's at least six hundred different arcade revisions of Darius Burst, none of which Taito deemed necessary for a western release outside of damn smartphone bullshit.

[jepjepjep]

Anyone else not like the Super Ball in Outzone. I always seem to die when I pick it up.

[Skykid]

Is the PSP version of Darius Burst equivalent, more or less, to the arcade original counterpart?

No, it's actually radically different. A couple of bosses and stage backgrounds are unique to PSP/Arcade, but arcade shortens the game route to just 3 stages, is far more challenging, with tougher patterns, more enemies, bullets etc, and much longer boss battles with new attacks to evade. They also have different soundtracks for the most part.

You can cakewalk the PSP routes as soon as you learn how to use the Burst Cannon defensively (all except Great Thing on the final route, he's tough), but the arcade takes ton more practice.

Burst on the PSP is still utterly amazing, it's just the challenge is more in score than survival.

[trap15]

Anyone else not like the Super Ball in Outzone. I always seem to die when I pick it up.

Glad I'm not the only one...

[Squire Grooktook]

In Hyper Duel, does your hitbox actually get bigger when you enter Mech form? Or is it the same for both forms?

[ACSeraph]

Didn't know where I should post this question so I'll post it here.

I've been getting serious with shmups lately, and I'm very very close to getting my first 1cc in Triggerheart Exelica (true ending). I was thinking I wanted to learn a cave game next, so last night I took a break and popped in Mushihime-sama for PS2 just to check it out and do a credit feed run.

On normal that game is really hard compared to Triggerheart. My brain can't really process the bullet patterns and react to them fast enough. Now I'm pretty motivated, and I got into this genre prepared for the difficulty. My question is for someone who's relatively new to hardcore 1cc targeted shmupping, is it actually reasonable or efficient for me to jump right into a cave game as my second 1cc? Should I learn something else first? The credit feed took me 9 credits to complete, but I swear a lot of the patterns I survived was blind luck so it probably should have taken more.

Secondly, usually it's against my policy, because my goal is 1cc-ing things on normal, but I turned the difficulty down one notch and the game became much more reasonable. I got to stage 3 on my first attempt and felt like the difficulty was more akin to Triggerheart. Now if I want to be able to do normal ultimately, is it a good idea to learn easy in Cave shooters first, should I just jump into normal because death and despair is the name of the game with cave, OR should I wait until I get a bit better by working on other games first? Any advice on this is majorly appreciated, sorry for the long post.

[Skykid]

^ You have to begin somewhere, and Mushi original is a perfectly good place to start: but perhaps not on PS2.

The PS2 port of Mushi is missing quite a bit of slowdown and is irritatingly tougher than the arcade original. Bullets are fast in original anyway, but you'll find them plucking you out of the sky a lot more frequently than on the PCB. This has been contested by some people, and honestly, I don't agree with them. I played the PS2 port alongside the arcade version for a long time when I was getting into the game, and my progress in the arcade would always be dramatically greater than on the port. The difference was definitely noticeable, and when I finally bought the PCB the clear came quickly.

That said, it's still perfectly possible to clear with practice, just keep the above in mind. Learning Cave shooters is like riding a bike, just keep pushing until you're in the zone, and with a little willpower and determination it's all uphill from there. Don't fear it!

[ACSeraph]

That's good to know, thanks for the info. In that case I'll just jump right into normal and toughen up. I was thinking about buying that big old box of Cave junk on 360 and I think theres a version of Mushihime in there. Maybe I can just practice on PS2 until I get that and then when I switch over it will seem easy in comparison.

[Skykid]

That's good to know, thanks for the info. In that case I'll just jump right into normal and toughen up. I was thinking about buying that big old box of Cave junk on 360 and I think theres a version of Mushihime in there. Maybe I can just practice on PS2 until I get that and then when I switch over it will seem easy in comparison.

Definitely. If you don't have any Cave shmups for 360, the Budget Collection is definitely a bargain (and the Mushi on there is far superior.)

But just plough away at the PS2 one to get a feel for the danmaku, and don't ignore the arrange mode on there: tremendous fun and the highlight of the disc for me.

[ACSeraph]

Yeah I have't tried any of the other modes yet. What exactly is the difference? There was also something under arcade mode called maniac and ultra, I assume those are just difficulties.

[Skykid]

Yeah I have't tried any of the other modes yet. What exactly is the difference? There was also something under arcade mode called maniac and ultra, I assume those are just difficulties.

Maniac and Ultra are increased difficulties, but there's more to them than that. Maniac has slower bullets, but more of them, and each mode will test you with different patterns throughout and in different ways. They really are genuinely unique game modes rather than simply upped difficulty. Maniac is loads of fun, my favourite mode, but tackling original first is probably best. Ultra is for lunatics - crazy hard.

Arrange mode on the PS2 release is an exclusive 'arrangement' of the game, where you have fully powered weapons from the start and can switch between them at will. It throws an insane amount of very slow bullets at you, which makes you feel great as you wade through them fairly easily, blowing the crap out of stuff. The big test is whether you can accumulate enough lives (or god-like skill) by the end to defeat the TLB, who's the arrange mode special treat: thankfully it's pretty soft up until that point.

[ACSeraph]

That sounds awesome! I gotta go try that when I get off work. Is that not in the 360 version? I was going to sell my PS2 one when I got the 360 one but I won't if that is a unique mode.

[Skykid]

That sounds awesome! I gotta go try that when I get off work. Is that not in the 360 version? I was going to sell my PS2 one when I got the 360 one but I won't if that is a unique mode.

Pretty sure it remains unique to the PS2. Worth keeping just for that IMO. Cave's arrange modes are often a bit crap, but that's one of few exceptions.