Favorite Cave shoters. rank 'em.

MovingTarget · Post by **MovingTarget** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 4:30 pm

I've only played dodonpachi and espgaluda, mushihime will be arriving soon.

I cant say which I prefer as they're totally different, one month I might be hooked on dodonpachi, the next month it'd be espgaluda... I'm more concerned about which one I'll be able to 1cc first lol

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 4:39 pm

Wow, I'm so regressive...

DP and DDP are still my favorites. I feel like with DDP that cave hit a sort of pinacle, and everything after that has just been variation upon a theme. Better production at times, smoother graphics, etc. DDP is still one of the tightest shmups ever made.

Post by **Dave_K.** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 4:44 pm

I think you'd find peoples top picks are those they are currently playing, while the others may be just as good (or better) they just haven't gotten enough attention yet. Personally I can't wait to dig into all the rest, but my top 3 that I play most often (right now) are:

1. DoDonPachi
2. Ketsui
3. DDP DOJ

SNKJorge · Post by **SNKJorge** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 4:50 pm

•Pro-Gear No Arashi
•Ketsui
•DDP D-O-J

Neon · Post by **Neon** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 4:56 pm

10 dangun feveron - what a piece of shit, music rocks but everything else is horrible.

Elaborate please.

I feel like with DDP that cave hit a sort of pinacle, and everything after that has just been variation upon a theme.

Elaborate please.

I love Donpachi as well, it's in my Cave top 3 till Ibara arrives.

Last Guardian · Post by **Last Guardian** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 5:08 pm

Only own and played DDP, DOJ, Espgaluda and Mushihimesama.

1. Espgaluda, the scoring system in this one combines the thrill of playing manic shmups with the excitement felt when winning on a slot machine and then multiplies that by a nifty percentage. It's the only Cave game (maybe Mushi's original mode too) where I feel a 1CC might one day become a reality.

2. Mushihimesama, it's got some annoying characteristics (extra loading screen really pisses me off somehow) but the multitude of different gamemodes and that kick-ass dragon stage easily make up for that.

3. DDP DOJ, it's a tie with DDP, stage 2 music wins it (also haven't played enough of DDP yet tbh, only got it a month ago).

Ex-Goku · Post by **Ex-Goku** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 5:25 pm

Progear, ketsui, Espgaluda and some from doj, guwange and Espgaluda2.

Post by **system11** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 5:49 pm

Mushihimesama
Espgaluda
Donpachi

I will have Ketsui shortly, played it at Casino in London and liked it enough to pay for one. I don't know where it would fit in the above list, yet.

iatneH · Post by **iatneH** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 7:25 pm

DDP was the groundbreaker for me, but Ketsui is my favourite.

I'd rank them

1. Ketsui
2. DDP
3. ESP RaDe
4. Progear
5. Guwange
6. galuda
7. DOJ
8. Mushi

And then there are the ones like Dangun and DP that I haven't played enough to rank fairly, and Bee Storm, IBARA, and galuda II that I haven't played at all.

AAA · Post by **AAA** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 7:51 pm

i havent played ibara yet so cant comment on that - so ruling that game out my list looks like:

1. Ketsui - simply the best
2. dodonpachi DAI-OU-JOU
3. Mushihimesama
4. guwange
5. ESP Ra.De.
6. ESPGaluda
7. Arashi no Progear
8. DoDonpachi
9. Donpachi
10. Dangun Feveron

LUNardei · Post by **LUNardei** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 7:59 pm

Hard to say.

1.
Mushihimesama & Ketsui.
It's impossible for me to choose one: Mushihimesama is love, Ketsui is hate. Ying and yang.

2.
Esp Galuda.
Great design, easy but deep game.

3.
All the rest exept Donpachi.
I really like every Cave game, but I'm not able to play all of them for score. It's just a feeling.

4.
Donpachi.
Mmm, IMO a step behind confronted to the mighty Batsugun.

sven666 · Post by **sven666** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 9:29 pm

Neon wrote:
10 dangun feveron - what a piece of shit, music rocks but everything else is horrible.
Elaborate please.

.

just speaking my mind here so dont get your panties in a twist if i diss your fave ok

but yeah the graphics are sloppy at best, this game is even surpassed by some of the earlier toaplan games (which were beautiful in their own right but this was released '99 ffs!).
the ships and weapons are, well, boring.
Im also not a fan of this choosing whichever speed you like for your ship, speeds vary from being blown away by raiden 3 to taking 1stplace in kingdom GP with one foot on the brake

it kind of looses alot of gameplay feel...
i somewhat like the odd scoring system but it still feels like it could have been executed better.
and finally bossbattles, im more of a fan of reflexing my way thru bulletstorms rather than having to place myself in a "safe spot" before it spits out...

if anyone wants to trade/buy this PCB please PM me, ive got one for sale

Imhotep · Post by **Imhotep** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 9:31 pm

Plasmo wrote:1.Ibara
2.Ketsui
3.DOJ

that would be my list, too. Although I haven't played Ibara yet, it will most certainly be my favourite.

Vexorg · Post by **Vexorg** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 9:45 pm

I've not played any Cave games after Progear (I don't have a PS2, and do not intend to ever get one) so my experience is limited to MAME, although I do own a Donpachi PCB and have a Dodonpachi PCB on the way right now).

1. Dodonpachi
2. Esprade
3. Donpachi
4. Progear
5. Guwange
6. Dangun Feveron (I could just never get used to it)

Although not technically Cave, I'd probably put Batsugun in that list somewhere too.

Not played:

Ketsui
DDP DOJ
Espgaluda (I'd like to eventually get this PCB as well, but I imagine that's not going to happen for a while.)
Mushihime Sama
Ibara

BR1 · Post by **BR1** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 12:18 am

1)DDP

2)Kestui and DDP-DOJ

3)Every other game

4)Donpachi

Jck · Post by **Jck** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 12:58 am

1) No doubt: Progear. Simply a masterpiece. A easy to learn scoring system but an incredible depth (and without chaining

)

2) Ketsui: love at first sight

Dylan1CC · Post by **Dylan1CC** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 1:07 am

Seven Force wrote:
Dylan1CC wrote:I need to play Donpachi again, someone else here who posts frequently said it reminds him more of a straight up Toaplan game.
Very true. Play Dogyuun, Batsugun, Donpachi and Dodonpachi in that order, and it'll seem like a natural progression to you.

Bummer, no home ports of Dogyuun? Too short to buy the PCB right now.

iatneH · Post by **iatneH** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 1:13 am

If you're vigilant, some Dogyuun PCBs slip through the cracks on eBay once in a while...

CIT · Post by **CIT** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 1:49 am

Dogyuun runs perfectly on MAME, EXCEPT for the fact there is no sound. You should still give it a quick pop though, just to get a feel.

And yeah, the PCB is actually not that hard to find or expensive. Probably the most worthwhile ToaPlan PCB to get, if you ask me.

Dylan1CC · Post by **Dylan1CC** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 1:51 am

iatneH wrote:If you're vigilant, some Dogyuun PCBs slip through the cracks on eBay once in a while...

An auction for one just ended but it was a non-working board.

Ord · Post by **Ord** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 10:59 am

Dodonpachi - Just an incredible classic. The "popcorn" enemies, the design, the firepower, the music...everything! Just classic.

Espgaluda - Very accesible to the beginer, yet it has incredibly deep gameplay mechanics. It's also very satisfying, when you reap a screen full of gold ingots!

Guwange - Incredibly beautiful, and atmospheric. Wonderful music and brilliant art from Joker Jun. It features some outstanding enemy designs with probably the best bosses in any shooting game ever!

Ibara - It's the stunning visuals, and the sheer carnage of this game that leaves everyone I know who's played it speechless. Incredible.

I know it's just me, but i have to say that I feel Ketsui is a good bit overated.

Post by **system11** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 12:49 pm

bloodflowers wrote:Mushihimesama
Espgaluda
Donpachi

I will have Ketsui shortly, played it at Casino in London and liked it enough to pay for one. I don't know where it would fit in the above list, yet.

Happy I bought Ketsui (thanks Whitey) - sadly my eternally loved Donpachi will have to lose its third place, to Ketsui. It's a shame this game will probably never be ported.

RFL · Post by **RFL** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 3:26 pm

Hmmm...

Let's see...

1) DoDonPachi - classic... I will never 1CC this game, and I will never have a "good" highscore... But, it's a great game, fun as hell, and it's one of my all-time favourites

2) Ketsui - Don't own this one yet, but I played some last year in Tokyo when I spent a couple of weeks there (why the F*** didn't I buy it over there?!?!)... Great game, aggressive, crazy bulletpatterns and GREAT MUSIC!

3) ESP Ra.De. - Didn't like this one too much after only playing it in MAME... But, since I got the PCB, I find ESP Ra.De. being one of the best Shmups I ever played

4) Mushihimesama - Pretty easy game to pick up and dig deeper into, hitboxsuperdupermania, nice graphics, nice music, NICE bulletpatterns (Maniac & ULTRA)... A liiittle "hmmm" scoring system...

5) ESPgaluda / DDPDOJ -
ESPgaluda: Fun game, sweet and tender

Deep scoringsystem and innovative gameplay...
DDPDOJ: Hard as hell - I will never 1CC it and/or have a good highscore! But it's fun, maniac, fast and explosive!

6) DonPachi - The fist Cave-game I played...

7) Guwange - A nice game overall, nice twist with ground-based bulletdodging. Nice graphics as hell! Fun gameplay, cool bosses!

ill6 · Post by **ill6** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 5:12 pm

Mushimesama
Espgaluda
Progear
Dodonpachi
Ketsui
Guwange
Esperade
Dangun
DOJ
Donpachi

Not played Espgaluda 2 or Ibara.

Nemo · Post by **Nemo** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 5:24 pm

5. DDP
4. ESPrade
3. ESPgaluda
2. DOJ
1. Progear No Arashi

llabnip · Post by **llabnip** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 5:40 pm

For me, Cave's best remains DonPachi. The original still shines the brightest - the rest all make things a bit too manic for my tastes. Then again, I love the Toaplan games much more than Cave games - and DonPachi feels like Batsugun in many ways. So it's Don Pachi followed by a semi-large step down to DoDonPachi and everything else below that.

captain ahar · Post by **captain ahar** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 6:02 pm

love
ESPrade - very satisfying to play, and pretty as hell. even for my average abilities, i am incredibly inconsistent with this one.
Dangun - incredibly fast and fun. my game is passable until level 3.
ESPgaluda - game is just so adaptable. plus it kicks ass to fill the screen with bullets and then take em all out.
Mushihimesama - the cave game i've gotten furthest in. very quick and enjoyable. plus not as strict in structure as most other caves.

really like
Dodonpachi - good fun. chaining = :P
Progear - fun score system. it is incredibly entertaining to take a cloud of fire and covert it into a storm of diamonds (or whatever the highest value "thing" is)
DDOJ - cool stuff. very hard (fun), and chaining is still stupid.

like
Guwange - very cool. absolutely beautiful. intimidating as fuck. still can't grasp the system...

meh
Donpachi - upstaged by far by batsugun and many other toaplans. still entertaining now and again though. chaining wasn't an instituion at this point, and that, at least, is appreciated.

haven't played
Ketsui
Ibara
ESPgaluda II

------
i'm not a fanboy. i just can't complain about good, playable games.

Acid King · Post by **Acid King** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 9:38 pm

1. ESP Galuda - Love the scoring system, art and the difficulty is perfect as far as I'm concerned. Someone really has to do an ESP Galuda mod for Max Payne 2.

2. Donpachi - Classic. Chaining isn't as stressed or stressful as it is in Mushi, DDP or DOJ.

3. Mushi - Lots of diversity but I dislike the scoring system.

4. DOJ - Fun, hard, but likewise, dislike the scoring system.

Never put a lot of time into Guwange, DDP or Feveron and haven't played Ibara or Ketsui.

Post by **undamned** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 11:41 pm

My love for most games is directly proportional to how much time I spend with them, so:

1.) Dodonpachi - the closest to a perfect game I've come accross.
2.) ESP Ra.De. - as full gameplay-wise as it is visually appealing. The epitome of "anime shooter," IMO.
3.) Progear - wonderful. I know that's not very objective, but if you've played it, you know you're not disagreeing with me.
4.) Dangun - one of the very first PCB's I ever purchased. The most frantic game I think I've played. The combination of surviving and collecting cyborgs all at once is insane, and keeps me coming back for more.
5.) Guwange - astounding artwork and an enjoyable scoring system. Gives such a strong feel of another land/time.
6.) Donpachi - I would call it Cave's most fun game. I can't seem to get all worried about scoring in this one. I just blast away and have a good ol' time

7.) Espgaluda - I would call this one as a close second for fun-factor. Not punishing, like some other cave games can be.
8.) Ketsui - neat, but somehow, I really couldn't get into the tangable mechanized stuff. Cave's other mech stuff seems much more outlandish, which is more appealing to me. It just seemed too soul-less for Cave.
9.) Mushihimesama - Haven't given this one hardly any time. Gets +1 for being an insect game.
-ud

freddiebamboo · Post by **freddiebamboo** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 3:54 am

1. Dodonpachi
2. ESPRade
3. ESPGaluda
4. Mushihimesama
5. DOJ

Quite hard to decide actually, mainly due to DOJ and wondering if it's actually enjoyable. It certainly lacks the character of every other cave game, but I have a soft spot for it's nastiness.

DDP is the obvious no. 1 choice, and hasn't even aged a day in almost a decade.

ESPRade gets the number 2 spot purely for having the best boss battles in any cave game (unless you like to milk 'em - in which case, the worst).