Best looking polygonal shmup?

EOJ · Post by **EOJ** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:10 am

Border down for horis, Ikaruga for verts.
Doesn't get much better than those two.

gs68 · Post by **gs68** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:20 am

Gradius V, rRootage, and Gunroar.

Marc · Post by **Marc** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 12:22 pm

I think Zero Gunner 2 looks bland. R-Type Delta is nice, but looks scruffy. Final is a bit dull. The enemy design of Border Down doesn't appeal to me at all, and Gradius IV is possibly the shittiest use of 3D I ever saw. But we're talking about the best visuals not the worst, sorry

I love Iky although I think the overall tone of the visuals is quite samey. Psyvarier 2 has some stand out moments, but isn't quite consistent enough. Gradius V is utterly beautiful to my eyes, although I think the more brash style of Gaiden is even better (well, there are SOME ploy's in there).

captain ahar · Post by **captain ahar** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 3:14 pm

zero gunner 2, even over ikaruga and gradius V. the craft and environment design are just so cool, and with psikyo's transforming bosses... yeah, consider my case rested.

roker · Post by **roker** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:15 pm

captain ahar wrote:zero gunner 2, even over ikaruga and gradius V. the craft and environment design are just so cool, and with psikyo's transforming bosses... yeah, consider my case rested.

I like ZG2 a lot, probably one of my favorite games on the Dreamcast, but I think the graphics are a little blocky.

landshark · Post by **landshark** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:17 pm

... for level 1's glowing red planet things alone. There's so much color in this game. I love it.

professor ganson · Post by **professor ganson** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 10:54 pm

I'm so old-school that I really don't understand wtf polygons are. I've asked my students to explain, but I'm still not sure I fully understand.

Does Shiki II count? Try it on a Gamecube with S-video cables in tate mode. Beautiful.

doctorx0079 · Post by **doctorx0079** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 12:41 am

mice wrote:I'm with shatterhand here, Raystorm looks amazing. Not as polished as Ikaruga, but way more variation in color scheme.

The wiggly backgrounds in level 1 are annoying. Still I love it. I have to try that game on a PS2 with texture smoothing I suppose. And what about RayCrisis?

Neon · Post by **Neon** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 1:56 am

landshark wrote:

... for level 1's glowing red planet things alone. There's so much color in this game. I love it.

Wow, a starry background, big fucking pat on the back Treasure. If you could stand to play it at all with the unskippable cutscenes and toe deep gameplay, you'd still be blinded by the artstyle shittiness.

Raystorm 3rded. Not that graphics matter.

ROBOTRON · Post by **ROBOTRON** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 4:31 am

<-------------- VIEWPOINT.

Rob · Post by **Rob** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 5:02 am

Einhander. Crusty PS-3D all the way.

J-Manic · Post by **J-Manic** » Wed Jan 18, 2006 11:28 pm

Einhander is a fantastic polygonal shmup. I also love G Darius and R-Type Delta. Not to mention Thunder Force V which is the best in the series IMO. I guess G Darius would get my vote for the best looking, because of the crazy battles with those gargantuan bosses. And the backrounds can hypnotize you if you aren't careful.

Zweihander · Post by **Zweihander** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 12:07 am

This thread goes against everything shmupping stands for... XD

But i'd say, prettiest shmups are Iky and Gradius V.

As for epic-scale boss battles.... Iky, Gradius V, Einhander, G-Darius, Border Down, Psyvariar 2's final boss (the rest of the game is nothing to write home about, though), and Shiki 2.

captain ahar · Post by **captain ahar** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 2:50 pm

roker wrote:
captain ahar wrote:zero gunner 2, even over ikaruga and gradius V. the craft and environment design are just so cool, and with psikyo's transforming bosses... yeah, consider my case rested.
I like ZG2 a lot, probably one of my favorite games on the Dreamcast, but I think the graphics are a little blocky.

perhaps, but the mechanical design is just too good for me to care

PaCrappa · Post by **PaCrappa** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 10:17 pm

Sega Ages Fantasy Zone for PS2.

Pa

Alpolio · Post by **Alpolio** » Thu Jan 19, 2006 11:18 pm

I'm going with Gradius V on this one. What Treasure did with those backgrounds is totally insane at times. Here's a cool review with some nice screen shots and videos. Link.

Thinimus · Post by **Thinimus** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 2:17 am

I think for 1998, Gradius 4 was pretty good looking.

For some older consoles, I'd have to go:

Nes: Gradius 2

Megadrive: Thunder Force 4

SNES: Axelay, Gradius3

Blazing Star was fantastic. One of the few cartridge games that had movies on it, albeit short ones. (Rise of the Robots is the only other one that I can think of.)

Acid King · Post by **Acid King** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 5:05 am

Thinimus wrote:I think for 1998, Gradius 4 was pretty good looking.

For some older consoles, I'd have to go:

Nes: Gradius 2

Megadrive: Thunder Force 4

SNES: Axelay, Gradius3

Blazing Star was fantastic. One of the few cartridge games that had movies on it, albeit short ones. (Rise of the Robots is the only other one that I can think of.)

Resident Evil 2 for N64.

elvis · Post by **elvis** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 5:39 am

Ikaruga on a high-res 29" candy.

*Drooooool*

zero.otaku · Post by **zero.otaku** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 5:34 pm

I'd have to agree with the majority and cite Gradius V and Ikaruga as tops (WarpZone's post couldn't describe my feelings more accurately had I written it myself). Someone also mentioned Thunderforce V which I also think is incredibly well done. I'd also have to go it alone and throw some props toward Gigawing 2. While I don't enjoy its gameplay all that much, Takumi's creative backgroups employ clever (IMO) use of polygons to create a true feeling of depth and scale. Anyhow, that's my two cents.

DC906270 · Post by **DC906270** » Fri Jan 20, 2006 10:25 pm

i like gigawing 2 when you drop the bomb and its like evangelion, i also like the way the dodgy jap bloke "speaks" the options in the options menu , "arr-kade" and "sco-wottack mode" it is top class entertainment all the way