You know that you love shmups when you feel they're so awesome, that you want to crap your pants. And that you love them when all your body. Even your pee pee.
Shmups are the ultimate paradox: In one hand they don't care if they kill you horribly, but on the other hand, they are very precise and methodical in doing so.
sven666 wrote:also shmups is the only genre that still makes me scream profanities in anger and bashing controllers till they break...
Try Valis.
Or any of the Mega Man games!
Seriously, I would say I know I love shmups because I eat up all the info on new releases (even though I don't have all the next-gen consoles) & try to spend money on shmups whenever I get the chance. Now that I found out my wife bought me a PS2 for Christmas I'll be going after as many PS2 shmups & PSX imports (solderless mod anyone?) I can.
I love shmups for their artistic impression, fast frenetic gameplay and found that the community that surrounds them would make up my ideal neighborhood.
This industry has become 2 dimensional as it transcended into a 3D world.