Shmup stinkers

[Obiwanshinobi]

Tyrian just feels all wrong to me. The controls are laggy BY DESIGN. It's got Raizing stealth bullets moving FAST, shot by the barely visible sniping turrets (would make sense in real life, but in a shmup?), and it's just all around like a Compile shmup done nightmarishly BADLY. The very attempt to make a Compile shmup by a company that isn't Compile is respectable, but sheer ambition and some good production values only get you so far if you can't do game design. If they thought Compile shmups have underpowered weapons, they were dead wrong.

No way on earth Thunderforce series on the MD can be called stinkers though.

So maybe not stinkers (I like the presentation), but what I'm saying is that I didn't enjoy them. Too many bear traps, too little fun.

[EinhanderZwei]

If they thought Compile shmups have underpowered weapons, they were dead wrong.

Compile shmups usually tend to have an impressie aresenal with large destructive powers (Gun-Nac, MUSHA Aleste)... Though I still think of Tyrian as one of the PC shmups that dared to be ranked as high as the console ones, and almost could

[Obiwanshinobi]

Nah, not Walker - it scrolled left-right and you were definitely a dude. Proportioned a bit like the Metal Slug characters iirc, but it's been sooo long.

One of Jim Power games?

Compile shmups usually tend to have an impressie aresenal with large destructive powers (Gun-Nac, MUSHA Aleste)...

Some people don't get it, though, and Tyrian feels like a shmup designed by people of that ilk. In Zanacs (especially Zanac Special Version) even the basic set of weapons on basic level is fairly effective if you can use them. In Tyrian I can hardly destroy anything with my peashooter.

[Skykid]

Tyrian just feels all wrong to me. The controls are laggy BY DESIGN. It's got Raizing stealth bullets moving FAST, shot by the barely visible sniping turrets (would make sense in real life, but in a shmup?), and it's just all around like a Compile shmup done nightmarishly BADLY. The very attempt to make a Compile shmup by a company that isn't Compile is respectable, but sheer ambition and some good production values only get you so far if you can't do game design. If they thought Compile shmups have underpowered weapons, they were dead wrong.

No way on earth Thunderforce series on the MD can be called stinkers though.

So maybe not stinkers (I like the presentation), but what I'm saying is that I didn't enjoy them. Too many bear traps, too little fun.

Fair enough of course, but I'd rather get the outright atrocities (check out the youtube links!) noted though rather than stuff people don't get on with. Case in point:

Ok ok, I'm done. Ignore the above and let's stay on-topic.

Has anybody mentioned Battle Garegga?

Don't even go there man.

[uroko-sakanabito]

D-Return x68000
FROM HELL !

[dunpeal2064]

Perhaps Gradius III would have been better on the Mega Drive.

I agree with this. I love how people keep denying my opinion that this game is trash

Why can Thunder Force IV have sweet backgrounds, scaling stages, and allow me to be at max power through the whole game without glitching, AND have better music, better bosses, a better story... and the Genesis is OLDER. gah, I guess there is no point in arguing it, I just think its a stinker. Time to get back on topic

Earth Defense, or "The Earth Defend" is pretty darn bad. I could never enjoy Legendary Wings too much either, but not to the point of calling it a stinker

[Treasurance]

NANOSTRAY 2 AARGH

[Sly Cherry Chunks]

Air Buster
Every Amiga shmup

I like Air Buster; first game I ever played on a PC Engine.

And the Amiga wasn't all bad, the conversion of Silkworm is superb (I prefer it to the arcade) and Apidya is ok for what it is too. Banshee, Uridium 2, Z-Out, T-Zero and Dispoable Hero are all worth trying too.

Sorry, just a random question for somebody who seems to know a thing or two about Amiga games: A long time ago I played a demo of an Amiga run and gun (on a demo disc of some magazine I can't recall the name of). I remember it having a pretty striking visual style, with a predominantly grey, black and red colour palette. It may have been post-apocalyptic, there may have been a large pterodactyl thing. If the full game was even released, it would have been around the end of the Amiga's lifetime as a viable system (around the time Shadow of the Beast III was put out). Any ideas?

Ruff and Tumble?

[Herr Schatten]

Xenon II is fine for what it is: a shmup for people who don't play shmups, who, in fact do not even like them. (This applies to the original homecomputer versions at least, the console ports are far worse.)

R-Type Final is decent.

Star Parodier is a great game, even if it's easy.


You should definitely add Curse and X-dazedly Ray to the list, though.

[IseeThings]

Alien Gate on the CDi?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vj0GFhxTsi0

Worst part is.. it's not even the worst shooter on the system.. you also have
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfl1TkPZqao

but it's part of a multi-game thing... so might not count

Note, this was meant to be a 'next generation' system at the time, really really expensive.. yet the games are all complete trash.

[Thjodbjorn]

+1 Sol Divide. Could not enjoy it.

[TrevHead (TVR)]

Divine Sealing is the epitome of shit.

YES! thats the game I was talking about. I just watched this video of it (MY EYES!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hECB_LsCTo8

Talking about shmups that have bad backgrounds the worst ive ever seen is a iphone game called Shmup that I happened to just just see a 15 second gameplay video of. It is the only time ive ever suffered from motion sickness from a video game (so bad I had to lay down) The only other case of me ever getting motion sickness from a screen was when I watched that basketball court fight scene in Matrix 2 at the cinema. Considering the differences in screen size (the gameplay vid was in a small window) its amazing that I felt much worse with the game.

Ive noticed that the programmer has removed the videos from his page so ill discribe it for you. (its probably for the best) The stage was a cityscape with lots of skyscrapers in 3D that you looked down at in vertical. It wouldnt of been so bad if the background scrolled slowly like in most shmups but this was superfast and the fact that the 3D buildings caught the eye made it into a recipe for motion sickness.

I really hope for the sake of those who buy it that the dev slowed it down

[Despatche]

Forget it, I can't think of anything good to put here

[dannnnn]

I'd like to add a vote for R-Type Final and KOF: Sky Stage getting taken off this list

Final is simply not to everyone's tastes, but it's by no means a bad game, certainly not a stinker anyway. KOF:SS: mediocre? Yes. Stinker? No.

I can't think of any terrible games to add to this list right now. I also must try out Philosoma for myself, I bought it ages ago and haven't even bothered to give it a go as of yet.

[Sly Cherry Chunks]

Guess I dont play/like shmups anymore.

[Kollision]

I want to play Divine Sealing again.

[Skykid]

Ok, so in terms of disputes, Star Parodier has been removed, and so has R-Type Final.
There are a few others pending too.
I might make it three disputes per game instead of two, that will probably be more accurate.

Worst part is.. it's not even the worst shooter on the system.. you also have
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfl1TkPZqao

but it's part of a multi-game thing... so might not count

That's so unfathomably bad it's going on.

[emphatic]

Asuka & Asuka
Darius Gaiden

[dunpeal2064]

Darius Gaiden

No wai! Darius Gaiden > Touhou, and that isn't up here

[Skyline]

I never saw anything bad with Raptor. Not my favorite type of shmup but playable nonetheless.

Shin Chuuka Taisen/The Monkey King and Daisaiou/Saint for the Wii are both horrible games. Not enough going on to keep anyone's attention, too easy.

[louisg]

Tyrian is definitely not total rubbish. It doesn't hold up well next to arcade or console shmups from around that time, but back when it was new, it was pretty much the most competent one for DOS available. Keep in mind that this was way back before you could play Crimson Clover or even Cho Ren Sha on your computer Yes, this is a good indication of how sad the DOS platform was for established 2d genres. BTW you should be playing it with analog controls (I know, I know...).

But, the the level design was decent (and entertaining), the art was ok, the music was good (if not totally ripped off from console shmups), the framerate was steady... You couldn't really ask for a whole lot more on that platform around that time. It's what I played before I had re-bought my Genesis.

[Skykid]

Anyone else votes for Tyrian being decent, I'll take it off the list.

Also, if you guys fancy posting some youtube links that would be helpful for adding them to the list (it's more fun with links.) Just try not to get ones with idiots doing idiotic commentary - I wanted to punch the Divine Sealing guy, even if he is right.

[EinhanderZwei]

And here comes The Ultimate List Of Shmups That I Do Not Consider Crap:

Tyrian (already mentioned, BTW it's listed twice in the opening list)
Raptor: Call of the shadows
Xenon 2
Philosoma (PSX)
Cho Aniki (PCE)
Cho Aniki (Saturn)
Touhou

[Skykid]

And here comes The Ultimate List Of Shmups That I Do Not Consider Crap:

Tyrian (already mentioned, BTW it's listed twice in the opening list)

I know, but I'm going for three disputes now, probably fairer that way.

I'll remove that and Xenon 2. The rest stay for now.

[Ruldra]

Raptor: Call of Shadows is far from a stinker, by the way. I used to play the hell out of that game back in the day and I loved every minute of it. The fact it's a vertizontal and it plays differently from arcade games makes it a bit harder to enjoy it today, but it's an excellent game otherwise.

Is this shit? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hj0OaH9HJWE

Fun fact: my school had a videogame tournament every year and when I participated for the first time Raptor was chosen. Whoever had the most in-game money when they died was the victor. I got 2nd place - but found out afterwards the winner used a cheat to get lots of money.

[Zerst]

+1 for Turbo Force as crap.

Slow ship, fast homing bullets, limited ammo system, bombs that are used immediately when you pick the icon up, enemies that glitch out and become invincible if you shoot at them when they're too high on the screen (almost guaranteed death when this happens), and a ridiculous survival-based rank system where no-missing up to stage 4 means you can't even destroy some enemies before they fly off the bottom of the screen.

[saucykobold]

Tyrian, KOF: Sky Stage, R-Type Final, Darius Twin, Raptor, and Turbo Force range from mediocre to pretty good; they certainly aren't the shmup equivalents of Plan 9 or Manos.

And Darius Gaiden, really? Yeah, there's a fine example of a breathtakingly, historically bad game.

[kog3100_edw]

Puzzled by inclusion of Blast Wind. It has a sort of 'crowded enemy' concept as opposed to the tight spaces formed by bullets in danmaku shooters, but once I got used to it and learned which spots to switch fire in, I thought it rocked. It looks to me like the graphics are deliberately coarse and mega-drivey looking. Either for aesthetic reasons or to keep the speed of the game up with all the junk flying around on screen. There are no control issues, a great (though typical Techosoft) soundtrack, and variable paths through the levels.

I prefer it (and the ThunderForce games) to Hyper Duel by a wide margin. I wouldn't put Hyper Duel in a crap game list either though.

[Skykid]

Took Raptor off.

Stop throwing up games that are half decent as stinkers guys, making it hard to manage.
It's not about stuff you don't like so much as stuff you know is utterly dreadful.

[Kollision]

I don't know about other versions, but Xenon 2 on the Mega Drive is utter garbage.
Ai Cho Aniki (PCE-CD) is a pile of steaming shit as well. The others in the series are OK, at least they "resemble" real shmups.
And Planet Joker is probably the worst Saturn shmup.