PSiKYO Appreciation from a Cave Fan

[Matskat]

Great OP! I sometimes wonder if there's a conspiracy by CAVE to control the minds of the youth cos, whilst their games are tiptop, there's plenty of other great stuff out there and , as you point out, it's just got a different flavour. Raiden III and IV are good examples.
And Psikyo made Strikers 1945 II- end of story
Who are those three bee men? They look like a Captain beefheart cover!

Thanks MJ...I had to LOL at the Beefheart reference!

That pic is one of many from my buddy Dave's wedding. I took it myself - me being the closest to the camera, face non-obscured (but with the addition of bee antennae)

Just bored and figured I'd make a DDP reference.

Back OT - I'm happy to see this thread getting lively.

Managed to pick up a few superplays from superplay.co.uk , that crazy +4million 2-all is insane!
Loop 2 is truly brutal, and it seems to me that after changing my shorts, I'm gonna have to get through loop 1 for the sole purpose of getting destroyed by 2-1

OH and Seibu rocks...just not enough for them to stick in my head when thinking about the STG powerhouse developers. Just a personal opinion thing, not fact in any way.
In FACT, Raiden III (I know - haters) was the SECOND shooter that I ever bought on PS2...it was ALSO the game that led me to the Shmups.com website for the first time, WHICH led me to the forums some time later (where I was a lurker for 3 years before finally joining up) So Seibu definitely deserves mention, and is a totally valid contender if we were to create , say, a thread titled "Top 3 STG Dev's? Your votes?"

Anybody?

[dunpeal2064]

Woah, Raiden 3 was my second ps2 shooter as well. Thanks to it and Shiki 2 I now know the awesomeness of shmups.

[soupbones]

I just got Dragon Blaze a month ago - and I have to say, it ranks up there with Futari imo.

[PsikyoPshumpPshooterP]

me pyscho for psikyo

real men DO own strikers 99 board..teehee

[dunpeal2064]

me pyscho for psikyo

real men DO own strikers 99 board..teehee

Yeah, I was a goob and thought it had a port somewhere.

Oh well, looks like I'm sticking to 2 until I can afford a cab/supergun

[burgerkingdiamond]

I gotta disagree with this (completely). The music in Raiden II is mediocre at best. Good game but the music composition is really sub-par in my honest opinion.

Your opinion sucks!!!

Raiden II music is BOSS.

[Necronopticous]

TECHNICAL BONUS

[ChainsawGuitarSP]

I gotta disagree with this (completely). The music in Raiden II is mediocre at best. Good game but the music composition is really sub-par in my honest opinion.

Your opinion sucks!!!

Raiden II music is BOSS.

Seriously. You know it's a truimph in music when you manage to pull off a heroic and somber sound at the same time.

[Matskat]

Seriously. You know it's a truimph in music when you manage to pull off a heroic and somber sound at the same time.

I have said THOSE EXACT WORDS. VERBATIM.
...except I was referring to the riff that precludes the final guitar solo from "War Pigs" by Black Sabbath.
http://youtu.be/r4dOACe2QiE?t=6m35s
Dahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Na na nanana - na na DUH DUM DAHHHHHH
Na na nanana - na na - dah dah DUUUUM!

Heroic and somber....fickin' awesome & very effectively articulated. +10 word score! (Triumphant would work too )

Woah, Raiden 3 was my second ps2 shooter as well. Thanks to it and Shiki 2 I now know the awesomeness of shmups.

Very interesting to hear someone else relate that the two vert PS2 STGs that we got here in the states were their gateway drug.

I went NUTS digging through the bins for more similar games....silly me (though I DID score the sorry-ass "Mobile Light Force 2" retard-port of Shiki 1...for $.99 at Slackers....heh)

I bet that's a trend. Maybe.

[Muchi Muchi Spork]

Namiki's farts sound better than Raiden II music. Raiden II's music was written on Fisher-Price My First BGM Machine by a 5 year old.

Enjoy.

[evil_ash_xero]

Is this chick jailbait?

I hope so.

But uh, i'm not the biggest Psikyo fan. I like Dragon Blaze, Zero Gunner 2, and Gunbird 2, in that order. They're good games. I don't like them as much as CAVE's, Treasure's, or Raizing's games(well, the better ones). I'm TERRIBLE at them too, because of their speed. ZG2, i'm not TOO bad at, but it's definitely easier than a lot of their games. I think Dangun is kind of a stab at Psikyo's style. I'm horrible at it too. And I mean really bad.

[mesh control]

Namiki's farts sound better than Raiden II music. Raiden II's music was written on Fisher-Price My First BGM Machine by a 5 year old.

Enjoy.

Namiki's music is terribly predictable.

[Siren2011]

Namiki's music is terribly predictable.

Of course. So is anything after you've heard it once.

On the contrary, I know of no other video game composers who come close to his eccentric style. The man is clearly a genius at what he does.

I forgot where I heard this from, but Namiki wrote the scores for Garegga, DOJ, and Ketsui after studying the linear fashion in which the levels unfolded, to better accommodate them. The result is a marriage between his music and each part of the stages; they play off one another.

The best example I could find of this has to be stage 5 of Garegga. Whenever a new carrier plane appears, the music grants its cue.

Here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VS3HOWfBWUk

Notice how the music gets all dramatic whenever the first of two sub-bosses is brought into the fold. That is master craftsmanship.

[iluvmonsterz]

i love character shmups so psykio and cave have always been faves, gunbird 2 is one of my all time favorite shmups. i think the cave games recieve more accolades due to their polish and great (addicting ) scoring systems.

[dunpeal2064]

Namiki's music is terribly predictable.

Of course. So is anything after you've heard it once.

On the contrary, I know of no other video game composers who come close to his eccentric style. The man is clearly a genius at what he does.

I forgot where I heard this from, but Namiki wrote the scores for Garegga, DOJ, and Ketsui after studying the linear fashion in which the levels unfolded, to better accommodate them. The result is a marriage between his music and each part of the stages; they play off one another.

The best example I could find of this has to be stage 5 of Garegga. Whenever a new carrier plane appears, the music grants its cue.

Here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VS3HOWfBWUk

Notice how the music gets all dramatic whenever the first of two sub-bosses is brought into the fold. That is master craftsmanship.

Wow, thats pretty freakin sweet. All 3 of those games have really top notch music. I'm really happy that they decided to pack those arranged soundtracks into the Ketsui LE. I usually can't justify the cost of the original soundtracks, but those suffice for me

Also back on topic for the Psikyo stuff. I always found it really interesting that the characters in Castle Shikigami 2 had little stories, and even interacted with each other when played co-op. I didn't find out until later that Sengoku Blade actually did that much earlier. I really wish I could actually understand the dialog though.

[Siren2011]

I'm really happy that they decided to pack those arranged soundtracks into the Ketsui LE. I usually can't justify the cost of the original soundtracks, but those suffice for me.

So the limited edition only includes the arrange OST and the regular Ketsui 360 does not have an arrange OST option? I just might have to get both, because I'm crazy.

I totally agree. I prefer the arrange version a lot more over the original (stage 5 theme is an exception).

[dunpeal2064]

The LE for Ketsui comes with the arranged soundtrack for Ketsui AND the arranged soundtrack for DOJ! How could one possibly go wrong?

[chempop]

Gunbird 2 is special for me because it was either the first or second game I played in Tate (not including arcade of course, the other was Layer Section). I always considered it the best Psikyo game along with Dragon Blaze. Recently I've finally gotten around to picking up Strikers1945pt1 and 2 (both on Saturn) and they are exceptional, but I still prefer the quirky style of Gunbird. Also got Zero Gunner 2, damn what an awesome game (though I still prefer Under Defeat).
The thing about psikyo games for me is that they kick my ass.

After talking about Psikyo a bit with some other online folks, several people suggested I give the first Gunbird a go - insisting that it's the best Psikyo game. Best art, most creative bosses and stages, best music, etc...

After getting a copy for Saturn I couldn't put it down, I was determined to make it my first Psikyo 1-all, after about a week it was! Now I'm inclined to say that it's my favorite Psikyo, but of corse that's because I can actually clear a loop.

Still need a copy of Sengoku Blade, but from what I've played it's amazing too.

[Battletoad]

Indeed an interesting topic. Since I owned a Dreamcast long before any system that had Cave shooters on it, I got to know the charme of bullet hell shooters with Takumi and Psikyo instead of Cave. But not only because of that, my first contacts with Cave were in Dodonpachi and Guwange and I didn't really get to like them right away. In contrast, I loved all my first three Dreamcast shooters Giga Wing 2, Mars Matrix and Gunbird 2 immediately. I never understood all the hate Psikyo gets, I simply adore the lovely hand-drawed graphics, action, perfect mix of shooting and dodging as well as the intimidating, but exciting lightning fast bullet patterns. Not to forget Gunbird 2 has the best character selection/variety ever which gave (and still gives) me a hard time deciding on one of them. Only Batrider could maybe come close to that, but I haven't played that much. Back to Psikyo, I don't really like their early work, but every "important" title since Strikers 1945 II (not talking about Pilot Kids and that) was outstandingly awesome. Seeing how they improved over time and brought more variety into their games, it's sad to think about what we might have missed through their bankruptcy (Zero Gunner 3 ). The only thing that totally sucks about Psikyo, is the music, some boss tunes are nice, but the rest is mostly meh...

Besides playing Psikyo games, the superplays, especially 2nd loops, are some of the most fun ones to watch.

I just recently got my first two Cave shooters with ESPGaluda and Mushihimesama though to finally try out the other side of the road.
Cave have without a doubt a bunch great shooters in their library + many I'm not really interested in. So will they ever match my appreciation for Psikyo and Takumi? Dunno, we'll see I guess.

PS: Zero Gunner 2 and Giga Wing, best shooters ever.

[Bananamatic]

giga wang makes me sleepy

the stages are stupidly long

[emphatic]

The best example I could find of this has to be stage 5 of Garegga.

The music change in Ketsui's 4th stage as the mid-boss appears would like to have a word with you.

I really love the look of Psikyo games. But as someone who doesn't like to memorize exactly where to stand in boss fights, Psikyo's games doesn't appeal to me like those from Toaplan, CAVE, Raizing etc. I've sold three Psikyo PCB's and now only own Strikers 1945. Also second loops are crazy.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

giga wang makes me sleepy

the stages are stupidly long

I didn't know that Capcom/Takumi made a "Giga Wang" shmup sequel. How's the gameplay/game mechanics on that particular shmup title?

(Unless you're refering to the proper spelling of “GigaWing” instead...Takumi's trademark GW stylized scatterfire patterns are pretty to look at, especially in motion.)

PC Engine Fan X! ^_～

[Rob]

memorize exactly where to stand in boss fights,

This always gets trotted out in these threads, but I don't think many patterns in the first round of Psikyo games require strict memorization, especially with options like Focke-Wulf + 2 bombs per ship + 1 additional bomb per stage. The bullets are fast, but not that (second round) fast.

When in doubt: one tap.

[Hagane]

Rob is right. A lot of people think Psikyo games need a lot of memorization, but this is not true for most (the best) of them. Unlike most other shooters, in Psikyo games you want to avoid having to dodge bullets. If you want to survive and score well, you NEED to kill major threats (usually big enemies with fast patters) before they actually manage to shoot. For this the games usually encourage you to stay on the upper half of the screen and give you strong close ranged attacks.

Dragon Blaze takes this to the extreme, forcing you to play very aggressively, in close range, to take advantage of the dragon shot (which gives you extra points, too). This is the case with Sengoku Blade too (the best characters are the ones that can kill stuff fast with close ranged charged attacks: Katana and Aine).

Also, avoiding fast bullets is much easier when you are on the upper half (just a tap diagonally downwards or a sweep will get you through most stuff because nearly everything is aimed).

So, if you aren't familiar with Psikyo, play them with this philosophy: kill scary stuff fast, avoid having having to dodge patterns as much as possible. You'll notice that you won't have to memorize that much playing this way.

[Matskat]

Gunbird 2 is special for me because it was either the first or second game I played in Tate (not including arcade of course...)

THIS too!

I DO declare!

Between the "Shiki 2 and Raiden III on PS2 Gateway Drug Phenomenon" and the "My First Time: Mame, Gunbird 2 and Tate - Crossing the Threshold Phenomenon", I might just have my master's thesis after all!

It's a small world, after all!

PRO TIP: Heroin addicts and STG dependents share the same frequency of serendipitous revelation.

giga wang makes me sleepy

I didn't know that Capcom/Takumi made a "Giga Wang" shmup sequel. How's the gameplay/game mechanics on that particular shmup title?
PC Engine Fan X! ^_～

Hate to come down on you PCEFanBEX1.5...BUT...the proper pronunciation is "Giga Wang"...

May I reference the seminal works of the STG Scholar Rob, founder of the "Go Play Mars Matrix" school of thought.

Giga Wang? Goo Wang? Coincidence?

Knowing is half the battle, and remember...that AIN'T no Dust Dragon! (GOPLAYMARSMATRIX!)

Teehee!

[emphatic]

Rob is right. A lot of people think Psikyo games need a lot of memorization, but this is not true for most (the best) of them. Unlike most other shooters, in Psikyo games you want to avoid having to dodge bullets. If you want to survive and score well, you NEED to kill major threats (usually big enemies with fast patters) before they actually manage to shoot. For this the games usually encourage you to stay on the upper half of the screen and give you strong close ranged attacks.

Dragon Blaze takes this to the extreme, forcing you to play very aggressively, in close range, to take advantage of the dragon shot (which gives you extra points, too). This is the case with Sengoku Blade too (the best characters are the ones that can kill stuff fast with close ranged charged attacks: Katana and Aine).

Also, avoiding fast bullets is much easier when you are on the upper half (just a tap diagonally downwards or a sweep will get you through most stuff because nearly everything is aimed).

So, if you aren't familiar with Psikyo, play them with this philosophy: kill scary stuff fast, avoid having having to dodge patterns as much as possible. You'll notice that you won't have to memorize that much playing this way.

I see what you guys mean, but the super-fast shots (bam, you're already dead unless you have Plasmo reflexes) are so off-putting to me that I just rather play something else. Also, charge shots is a very frustrating mechanic in my opionon.

[dunpeal2064]

Theres no way I have plasmo reflexes, and I can sight-dodge/bomb my way to level 5 in the psikyo shooters I have played.

But, to each his own. I personally do not really enjoy Mars Matrix much myself. I prefer dodging to reflecting, and the lack of powerups, weapon awesomeness, and character selection lend me to prefer Giga Wang when I want some Takumi action.

[Aliquantic]

It's easy enough to get to stage 5 in any Psikyo even on a blind run, it's just another matter altogether to hit the 1cc and then make headway into the loop... but that's not based on reflexes very much, more like careful planning and knowledge of the patterns, and flawless execution (pretty much like most other games out here!).

I prefer games with more of a scoring system to play around on the early stages (random stages are good for variety but that's it) and I don't really click with most Psikyo boss patterns, so I play JSS instead when I have Psikyo cravings I wonder how Psikyo would play like if you had a JSS-style shield though (which is pretty limited and weak, so nothing like Pink Sweets, let alone Giga Wing).

[PC Engine Fan X!]

giga wang makes me sleepy

I didn't know that Capcom/Takumi made a "Giga Wang" shmup sequel. How's the gameplay/game mechanics on that particular shmup title?
PC Engine Fan X! ^_～

Hate to come down on you PCEFanBEX1.5...BUT...the proper pronunciation is "Giga Wang"...

May I reference the seminal works of the STG Scholar Rob, founder of the "Go Play Mars Matrix" school of thought.

Giga Wang? Goo Wang? Coincidence?

Knowing is half the battle, and remember...that AIN'T no Dust Dragon! (GOPLAYMARSMATRIX!)

Teehee!

Thanks for the clarification, Matskat. So that proper pronunciation would apply to both Giga Wang 2 & Giga Wang Generations sequels as well then, I see.

Theres no way I have plasmo reflexes, and I can sight-dodge/bomb my way to level 5 in the psikyo shooters I have played.

But, to each his own. I personally do not really enjoy Mars Matrix much myself. I prefer dodging to reflecting, and the lack of powerups, weapon awesomeness, and character selection lend me to prefer Giga Wang when I want some Takumi action.

For dunpeal2064,

If you get the proper chance to try out the PSX port of Takumi's solid Night Raid, it's a fine danmaku shmup title (considering that they did the port conversion and publishing themselves). The original Taito G-Card version of NR running on the G-Net arcade platform ain't too shabby as well.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[BulletMagnet]

So, if you aren't familiar with Psikyo, play them with this philosophy: kill scary stuff fast, avoid having having to dodge patterns as much as possible.

Not to be a pain in the neck, but doesn't getting right in front of enemies as soon as they appear to kill them fast enough require precise memorization of the stage's layout in and of itself? It strikes me as a similar principle to the scoring system in Raiden III/IV, but not optional.