Idiot requests advice...

[trap15]

It's still kinda dumb. Only using 1 credit isn't a significant feat until you've cleared. Just say "I can make it to stage 3". >_>

[soupbones]

I suck compared to most on these forums, usually manage to beat stage 3 or 4 in any given shooter.

If you're after a 1cc then Deathsmiles and DoDonPachi Resurrection (Novice Mode) is the way to go. Has some challenging parts, but it's doable - and you'll feel like you did something important afterwards.

Or just do what I do and play for fun and score. 1cc is just a bonus as far as I'm concerned.

XBL Gamertag is soupbone is anyone ever wants an easy score to beat.

[casualcoder]

Another vote for Deathsmiles. I remember it wasn't too long ago that I would sweat through a level 1 1cc, but it is so fun learning the system and getting better that you gradually work your way up to a level 3, the suicide bullets, EX stage... In other words it's got a good difficulty curve that shows you are getting better. This was the game that took me from perrenial "I'll never be good at these games" to "holy shit, I'm getting better and better and now quite good at these games" simply because the difficulty ratcheting system kept giving me a way to increase the challenge little by little as my skills were improving (as any good game design should do)

The scoring conditions are a bit strange at times but now I find it second nature. Also, remember that if you no-bomb jitterbug, you will be rewarded with 2 extra lives. You may find that this is the game that breaks you past your skill barrier. Another one I could suggest for this is the original Espgaluda, or maybe even futari original. Those are my choices.

[Spirit X]

I can actually 1cc to the 3rd stage

Why do people say things like this? That's not what 1cc means.

Speaking of which, I was reading your thread about doing a 1-All on DDP. Congrats!.....and what does 1-All mean? No lives lost?

Well I have an update. Started playing Deathsmiles at around 11 this morning and aside from doing a bit of housework and having some food, I've been at it pretty much all day. It's been an interesting day trying to figure out the best routes and when I should be using shot and laser and when to use the power up and all that stuff.

To my great surprise though, I just got my 1cc at around 9:30pm. About a quarter of hour ago. Considering how it had been going, I really wasn't expecting it to happen today, although I had made it to the castle with nary a scratch 2 or 3 times. In the end it was when I stopped trying to show off that I got the 1cc.

I kept on trying to get past Jitterbug and the last boss (name?) without bombing, which I thought would be good practice. I certainly did get better at it as the day went on, although dealing with the column of black boxes that the last boss throws out killed me pretty much every time. When I did start trying to use bombs as an emergency escape I was always a tenth of a second too late on the button and would get hit before releasing the bomb.

So I did some practice on the last stage at judging when to bomb, purposely filling the screen with enemies and bullets and dodging as best I could until I needed the bomb. It was a big help and before long my bomb finger was just reacting to the warning signs of iminent death without need for my conscious intervention. So I started a few more games and finally cracked what I think I was missing when I discovered how useful the target shot is when the last boss goes up above you and starts raining stuff down. Up until that point I don't think I'd used the target shot at all during all my playtime. I started toying with it in the early levels and found that there are some walking pigs with meat cleavers that, if killed with the target shot, will give more crowns than with the laser or shot. It's weird though, because the easiest way I found of targeting what I wanted to with the target shot was to turn my back on the enemy (because my little cherub would always go and sit behind me when I held the two attack buttons down).

Anyway, I digress. My head's a bit full of things and there are a number of questions that I still have, mostly regarding how to really get the most out of the power up, but I don't want to go through a full technical analysis right now. Although one thing I will ask is about something interesting I saw when watching a replay I downloaded. It was on the graveyard level and the player activated the power up fairly early and it ran out just after he destroyed the house that gives you loads and loads of skulls. When it deactivated though, he insantly had 1000 on the meter again! Is this a trick? Or a bug?

So, to the points. I had a pretty good game going and got to the castle with only one life gone. I got to Jitterbug and activated my power up as soon as the fight started. I've been doing this to try and shorten the length of the fight so I don't have to deal with some of the nastier attacks he uses later on....and it means I don't need to bomb so I still get the Life Up item when he gets munched. So Jitterbug went fine, I did take a hit which was annoying but no biggie.

Then the last boss really didn't give me much worry because my bomb finger was ready for him. I think I used 3 bombs during the fight. One durnig the column of black boxes and 2 during the very final phase.

I played every level on rank 2 except the Volcano which I've been doing on rank 3. Once I realised how much you can milk the Volcano, it was hard to resist playing on rank 3.

Final score 110.5 million. And I'm pretty chuffed. Well, at least I got over a hundred-mil.

So, to my amazement, I'm already thinking about what's next. Not that I'm ditching Deathsmiles of course, I still want to understand the subtleties of it better and improve my performance. Try the other characters and stuff.

I think I'm going to try Futari on BL next, as a few people suggested in earlier posts. Or maybe even Novice mode.

Yay me. I broke my cherry!

[Deca]

what does 1-All mean?

1-ALL just means I cleared the first loop of a game that has multiple loops. It's not really correct for me to say I've cleared the game unless I beat both of them.

I just got my 1cc at around 9:30pm

Awesome!! Amazing work getting your first taken care of so quickly, even if it is an easier game you should definitely feel good about that. DS was my first cave 1cc and it took me longer than that.

last boss (name?)

TYRANNOSATAN

It's weird though, because the easiest way I found of targeting what I wanted to with the target shot was to turn my back on the enemy (because my little cherub would always go and sit behind me when I held the two attack buttons down)

That's specific to Rosa. Each characters option has different behavior during normal firing, lock shot, and lock shot startup.

When it deactivated though, he insantly had 1000 on the meter again! Is this a trick? Or a bug?

That's the recharge trick, and is essential to effectively score attacking this game. You time your hypers so that they deactivate right after you've spawned a ton of crowns but before you collect them, when you grab them all after the hyper has expired it instantly charges another.

I think I'm going to try Futari on BL next

If you can pound out a DS 1cc in a day I'd say that you're ready for it! Don't feel bad about clearing a game and moving on at this point, playing different games will round out your skillset. You'll know when you find something you really want to stick with and sink your teeth into.

[Kollision]

what does 1-All mean?

1-ALL just means I cleared the first loop of a game that has multiple loops. It's not really correct for me to say I've cleared the game unless I beat both of them.

I'd also add that I like to call a 1-ALL a first-loop beating of a game that requires certain criteria to be met for the loop to be triggered - Dodonpachi, Under Defeat, Ketsui, Bullet Soul, etc. In the case of a 1-ALL, the player failed to qualify for the 2nd loop.

You can't have a 1-ALL in Raiden, for instance.
It's either a 1-8 or a 2-1.

[trap15]

But you could consider a 2-1 a 1-ALL as well

[Spirit X]

last boss (name?)

TYRANNOSATAN

I think that's possibly the most awesome thing in the whole game.

That's the recharge trick, and is essential to effectively score attacking this game. You time your hypers so that they deactivate right after you've spawned a ton of crowns but before you collect them, when you grab them all after the hyper has expired it instantly charges another.

Aha, I see. Thanks. I guess the timing must be pretty precise.

Well I've downloaded Futari BL and I thought it might be fun to keep a little diary of my progress into learning shmups. Not to mention how useful it is having the people on the site to question. So I've started a new thread which will serve as my little diary. Find it here if you're interested

[Fudoh]

Amazing that you cleared Deathsmiles this fast. You should really have no problems in 1CC'ing Futari BL within a few days. I think it's much easier than Deathsmiles. Futari's hardest part is the 2nd part of level 3, while DS ramps up at the end.

[MrRange]

This is a great post, I too have loads of Shmups yet I am not particularly great at them. I really enjoy playing them because I can have a quick 10 minute play and then put it down, I don't have time to sit and play though hours of story these days.

I'd also like to 1cc one of my games, what Saturn shmups would the pros here recommend? I have the majority of them, although not all.

[MrRange]

Battle Garegga... Ha! I try so hard with this game and I really enjoy it but, damn, I suck at it. Do I collect the power ups making my ship powerful but the game impossible or dodge them making my ship rubbish but the game bearable? I find myself screwed either way.

Unfortunately Gunbird and Game Tengoku are among the few that still elude me. Any others that would be worth a try?

[7711]

I'd suggest Dodonpachi but since its kind of an obvious choice and is not on your list I guess you want something else.
Still, thats the first game I really got into and I really believe it is perfect for beginners.

[MrRange]

Really?! I have Dodonpachi, and I absolutely love it, but it gets insanely hard. I can't see me ever being able to 1cc both loops.

[7711]

The first loop is really not that hard, I 1cc'ed it after maybe two month of training. I've only played around 10 hours since then but managed to reach and almost defeat its last boss a few times, so I'm sure I've made some big progress in a quite short time.
You may think it's hard but I believe all thats going on in the later stages is just what you need to really get better with very little frustration.
The differences in difficulty between stages 1/2, then stage 3, stage 4 and so on is perfect and I've never felt frustrated on any stage if I was sure I had really mastered the previous one.
Well, I'm still a beginner but this is what I think

[Deca]

If you absolutely must have some sort of clear under your belt there's always Kingdom Grand Prix. That isn't going to feel like much until you get the 2-ALL though, really.

[KAI]

Karous and Illvelo are easy. Play them, love them, 1CC them.

[jepjepjep]

Any others that would be worth a try?

Batsugun Special!

[Softdrink 117]

Batsugun Special!

This. Batsugun Special is so much fun it's silly. It's a great game, and not terribly hard at all.