i'll admit it. i suck. do you?

sjewkestheloon · Post by **sjewkestheloon** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:05 pm

ok i know a lot of you here are actually pretty amazing at shmups. i've seen replays, lists of 1ccs, etc that prove credentials.

however i've come to the conclusion that one of my fave genres hapens to be one that i'm not paticularly good at. the prime motivation for this is strikers 1945 part 2. normal mode destroys me every time, and i struggle to even get to stage 5 on one cred. i will only play on one cred on anything as i play for score and personal bests.

i've been going through the game on the lower difficulty levels and 1ccing them each in turn and i find this much more entertaining than just sticking with normal always in the stubborn hope that one day it will all click. this is the point i'm interested in. in games as tough as this, am i alone in cranking down the difficulty? also would anyone support a hi-score thread for a game such as this on a lower difficulty mode for the less godlike players? it sure would be cool to compete and post against people who are in the same boat as me.

just interested in your thoughts

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:08 pm

Join the low-bar club. I feel GREAT that I can beat level 3 on ESPgaluda on 1cc.

professor ganson · Post by **professor ganson** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:12 pm

CMoon wrote:Join the low-bar club. I feel GREAT that I can beat level 3 on ESPgaluda on 1cc.

I feel great that I can GET to level 3 on ESPGaluda on 1cc.

russ · Post by **russ** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:21 pm

Games like Gradius III triumphantly laugh in our faces.

Where do I sign up?

gs68 · Post by **gs68** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:28 pm

Give me a copy of DDP: DOJ and I will:

- score under 20 million
- get a maximum combo of under 400
- get no further than the middle part of stage 3 on one credit
- deploy bombs roughly as fast as shots when many bullets appear on the screen

and that's on Easy difficulty.

On the other hand, I've almost one-lifed Gradius Gaiden on Normal difficulty and 1CC'ed 1941: Counter Attack. Maybe I'm just not suited for bullet storms that finely coat the screen.

freddiebamboo · Post by **freddiebamboo** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:28 pm

I reckon it's good not to be godlike at them

The main reason you play is to get better and improve your score

I pity the likes of clover-tac etc.. that get the best score on the planet and are left with no reason to keep playing

Dartagnan1083 · Post by **Dartagnan1083** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:44 pm

I'm decent,
Not godlike, but able to do rather well regardless.

sjewkestheloon · Post by **sjewkestheloon** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:44 pm

well indeed there are suckers like me lol

so what percentage of you here play strikers 1945 part 2? we could do a hi-score thread for easy mode and see what we all come up with??

Nemo · Post by **Nemo** » Sun May 22, 2005 11:50 pm

With a little practice and determination anyone can be decent at shmups.

Smraedis · Post by **Smraedis** » Mon May 23, 2005 12:01 am

I don't

I just spend hours and hours on a game before I make any score attempt or something, so if I just thought 'I suck' and played a game once, of course my score and play would be very poor.

alpha5099 · Post by **alpha5099** » Mon May 23, 2005 12:32 am

I've come to the conclusion over the last few years that I'm really not good at any video games. I've beaten very few games, and a large number of the ones I've beaten were with the help of guides (which I've since swore off). In fact, about the only games I've beaten lately have been games that really don't take too much skill to really beat, like most RPGs.

Non-shmups I've beaten without the use of guides:

• Ren & Stimpy: Stimpy's Invention
• Super Mario 64
• Golden Sun (aside from one small issue at the end of the game where I had to be told I was able to run)
• Grandia II
• Streets of Rage (with a friend)
• Wario Land
• Wario Land 4
• Super Mario World
• Revolution X (Genesis port, with a friend)
• Sin & Punishment
• Star Fox 64

That might actually be it, I may be forgetting somethings, but probably not. I've come close to many games. I've gotten to the last level of Sonic Spinball (my first game), and I've always been stuck on Wario at the end of Super Mario Land 2. I've never had the patience to play through something like the Sonic games, which require everything to be beaten in one sitting. I was playing Sonic 1 earlier, and realized I had never actually seen the third boss before, because I usually turn it off out of boredom during the Marble Zone.

I suck at gaming, my skills are only impressive to those who don't play the games I play. My skills are entirely familiarity.

Deep down, I'm just a casual gamer who took it too far, never developing the dedication others have.

MSZ · Post by **MSZ** » Mon May 23, 2005 12:44 am

I 1CCed lots of Konami shmups, but I suck in other games.

I just cannot figure out how to play a manic shmup properly

sjewkestheloon · Post by **sjewkestheloon** » Mon May 23, 2005 1:06 am

well i'm pretty nifty at most games per se. i've completed ninja gaiden on the hard difficulty setting, can really play unreal tournament online, have completed countless action games over many formats etc.

my main gaming passion lies with rpgs though. it's ridiculous the amount of time i've wasted on them. currently i'm trying to get a totally completed ff1 on dawn of souls...

one thing i've noticed about shmups though is the classic ones that i've played have been pretty tough to start with, but have slowley become more familiar and doable with time. modern ones usually spam me and my twitch reflexes aren't any good against em. i suppose it's the same with 2d fighters which i've never been good at but always loved. something just doesn't totally click into place.

as for practise. i do. believe me

LoneSage · Post by **LoneSage** » Mon May 23, 2005 1:47 am

I don't care about 1CC; hell, I think the only one I have 1CCed is Darius R.

As long as I have fun, then I'm set.

Badaro · Post by **Badaro** » Mon May 23, 2005 1:58 am

You can add my name to the list.

Hey, at least we get a ton of replayability from our shmups.

[]s Badaro

neorichieb1971 · Post by **neorichieb1971** » Mon May 23, 2005 2:18 am

I don't compare myself to anyone online because its pointless.

As long as my abilities are better than anyone who does not play shmups I know that I have achieved some kind of progress.

FatalError · Post by **FatalError** » Mon May 23, 2005 2:26 am

For me, it's a combination of the shooter, the time of day, and my current level of hand-eye coordination at the time. Some days I can't help but suck. Other days all the stars are in perfect alignment and I'm 1CC-ing everything.

Vexorg · Post by **Vexorg** » Mon May 23, 2005 2:44 am

Heck, I can't beat level 2 in Gunbird 2 in kiddie difficulty. Beat that.

alpha5099 · Post by **alpha5099** » Mon May 23, 2005 2:55 am

Vexorg wrote:Heck, I can't beat level 2 in Gunbird 2 in kiddie difficulty. Beat that.

Bravissimo.

The Bullet Dodger · Post by **The Bullet Dodger** » Mon May 23, 2005 4:10 am

I really suck when it comes to the Gradius series and R-Type series. I'll admit that. Every single one is super hard to me. I haven't beaten one yet without using some kind of code. Besides these, I can pretty much hold my own.

You must train your eye & hand coordination, as well as your reflexes, grasshopper.

black mariah · Post by **black mariah** » Mon May 23, 2005 4:22 am

Vexorg wrote:Heck, I can't beat level 2 in Gunbird 2 in kiddie difficulty. Beat that.

Dude, my SISTER can 1cc that on the easiest level.

Sundance · Post by **Sundance** » Mon May 23, 2005 4:24 am

I think its also knowing the "hitbox" for that specific games. Some games just take a lot of Practice and others just aren't the most feasible to 1cc. In the end its not whether you 1cc'd it but whether you enjoyed playing it/felt like your time was well spent.

The Bullet Dodger · Post by **The Bullet Dodger** » Mon May 23, 2005 4:33 am

Sundance wrote:In the end its not whether you 1cc'd it but whether you enjoyed playing it/felt like your time was well spent.

Words.....of.........wisdom.

Zweihander · Post by **Zweihander** » Mon May 23, 2005 4:37 am

Give me a copy of Ikaruga and I'll:

1. Get a no higher than a 30-something Chain on the first stage
2. Get no higher than a B-ranking on stage 1 if I complete the previous mentioned task.
3. Probably take my first couple of hits during stage 2's bossfight.
4. Get no further than the midboss of stage 3 on 1CC.

...all on Easy mode!

Also...

Espgaluda: Reach the stage 4 boss on 1CC, IF i set lives to 5 instead of 3...
I also have the current lowest score in Arrange Mode, on the Shmups highscore board. ^^;; 41 mil... I can do better than that... ....can I? T~T

Sanvein: 1CC. ...on Easy mode. ~_~ Normally, I can get to maybe Stage 4 on normal mode, before my bad karma catches up to me.

Darius Twin: Take no hits until the last level (ALL sub-bosses), lose almost all my lives, and MAYBE get the privellege of reaching the final boss's 2nd form, only to get raped to death by its homing shots. :/

...YOU ARE NOT ALONE! XD;;

Nemo · Post by **Nemo** » Mon May 23, 2005 4:47 am

neorichieb1971 wrote:I don't compare myself to anyone online because its pointless.

Why be the best on your block when you can be the best in the world?

black mariah · Post by **black mariah** » Mon May 23, 2005 5:23 am

I can get halfway through stage 4 in Giga Wing 2 without dying. That's about the best I can do on anything.

Stormwatch · Post by **Stormwatch** » Mon May 23, 2005 5:29 am

alpha5099 wrote:Non-shmups I've beaten without the use of guides:
• Revolution X (Genesis port, with a friend)

Wait... doesn't that game has infinite continues? Beating this game requires no skill - though it takes is a massive load of patience. Read the S.A. review?

IlMrm · Post by **IlMrm** » Mon May 23, 2005 6:40 am

black mariah wrote:I can get halfway through stage 4 in Giga Wing 2 without dying. That's about the best I can do on anything.

I love that stage. For Romi stage three is so calm, the boss is easy, then right at the beginning of stage four and throught the level, bullet spam in your face non-stop. Fun level though.

As for me I suck in Ikaruga and Zero Gunner 2. In Ikaruga I can't chain, and I am not very good at changing polarity to match. I also have trouble remembering enemy color placements.

In ZG2 I can't turn/rotate for shit. Oh and Psyvariar 2, I just don't know how to play that game.

Zweihander · Post by **Zweihander** » Mon May 23, 2005 7:10 am

IlMrm wrote:In ZG2 I can't turn/rotate for shit. Oh and Psyvariar 2, I just don't know how to play that game.

same here-- ZG2 took a lot of getting used to, and i still suck at it. :/ the rotating concept is cool, but it's completely different from any shmup i've played before.

as for Psyvariar 2.... that game just frustrates me.

the Buzzing feature is cool, but requires you to be even more suicidal than Shiki 2... i can 1CC Psy 2 with Kei, but only if i turn lives and bombs up to 5... ~_~ the levels in that game are way too short, IMO. also, they're ungodly easy if you're playing just to shoot things, but ungodly hard if you actually wanna get a Buzz bonus. plus, with how easy the regular enemies are and how hard some of the bosses are, i can't help but feel the game is flawed and imbalanced.

sure, the TRUE final battle is cool (judging from a video of it), IF YOU CAN ACTUALLY GET TO IT...

Moogs · Post by **Moogs** » Mon May 23, 2005 10:55 am

I can 1CC Axelay and Gunbird 2 easily, but that's only cos I know those games like the back of my hand. I can almost 1CC Psyvariar 2, but I kind of feel like the hit box + the buzz system = wonky collision detection. I dunno. Sometimes I feel invincible, sometimes I don't. It's odd.

Other than that, I think I'm about average when it comes to shooters.