what would you do if...

[Oniros]

If you have a PS3 or PC
Ketsui - PS3 - $60 + shipping (around $75 total)
Under Defeat HD - PS3 - can be found for $40 with shipping included
Zanac X Zanac - PS1 classic - $7
Danmaku Unlimited 2 - PC - $5

If you have a 360
Mushihimesama Futari - varies from $40 to $50
Deathsmiles - $20
Eschatos - $30 plus shipping
Ikaruga - $10
Radiant Silvergun - $15
Dodonpachi Resurrection - Can be imported for around $30 these days, check ebay

As you can see both options are under $150, no need to go over that. I'm my case, I recently bought seven 360 shmups plus a brand new 4GB Xbox for around $225. Check black friday deals and craigslist/ebay.

[Special World]

Can't believe I forgot Eschatos and Ginga Force. If you have a 360, definitely get the double pack!

[Ed Oscuro]

Any PC younger than 10 years should be enough to run most doujin shmups known to me. The optimal OS is probably Windows XP Pro.

XP Pro is of limited use on modern hardware, especially if you want to receive the benefits of modern CPUs and 64-bit addressing, and flexibility in what you run.

There is no simple plug-and-play Windows OS, despite the hype, if you want compatibility with a broad array of software. But there are solutions for everything - and personally I would rather spend 10 minutes looking up a solution for a particular issue than not seeing any of the benefits of modern CPUs made in the last 10 years.

That said there is obviously some benefit to a system with less lag, but unless you can specifically defend having a dedicated XP box, it is a lot of money for relatively small returns.

Meanwhile, lag is not apocalyptic on Windows 7, and there are plenty of gaming-exclusive performance enhancements for many games.

[alpachinko]

There is no simple plug-and-play Windows OS, despite the hype, if you want compatibility with a broad array of software. But there are solutions for everything - and personally I would rather spend 10 minutes looking up a solution for a particular issue than not seeing any of the benefits of modern CPUs made in the last 10 years.

I agree. Always a workaround. Might not work 100% correctly sometimes, especially with earlier games. But there's plenty of ways around installing some older games.

[Furry Fox Jet Pilot]

Raiden Project (Contains Raiden and Raiden II) (PS1) $18-$35
Raiden DX (Japanese PS1 only) around $30-$45
Gekioh Shooting King (PS1) $11-$25
Sonic Wings Special (PSN classic) $5.99
Alltynex Trilogy (PC) (Contains Alltynex Second, Kamui, and Reflex) $20

If you buy Raiden DX, there is really no point in buying Raiden Project for Raiden II, since DX is basically an upgraded version with more features, stages, etc.

[To Far Away Times]

I would highly recommend Mushi Futari and the Black Label expansion though you'd need an Xbox 360. The game is really high quality all around, it has lots of very well polished modes and between the Normal, Maniac, and Ultra/God modes. The game can range from beginner friendly to extremely challenging depending on the mode, and the scoring mechanics are top notch. The game should be pretty inexpensive these days, and it's region free. It's by far my favorite and most played shmup. And you can also use the 360 to play other stuff.

[joe_w]

Wow thanks so much guys for the recommendations and operating system info I'll look into the games, and maybe even an xbox 360, but money is kind of tight so prolly just the playstation stuff for now : / And yeah, I'll try to look up some tutorials on MAME and emulation, and hey thanks to the guys who posted the links, I'll check them out