List of Organic/Creature Shmups?

[Guardic]

I'm looking for a list of Shmups where the games theme is either all or mostly organic matter/creatures that you are killing. Similar games:
R-Type Series, Bio-Hazard Battle, The Guardian Legend, Life Force, Salamander, Salamander 2, Axelay, Deathsmiles, Mushihimesama, Darius Series, Violent Solider/Sinistron, Dead Moon, Abadox
I prefer classic shmups. Not to big into the newer bullet-hell styles where the whole game is based around a high score and infinite continues, but more about limited continues and completing the game. But I did like Deathsmiles and Mushihimesama.

[EmperorIng]

Well, on one hand, even bullet hells are based off of limited continues - that is, not using any of them (1CC), so I don't know if that complaint is really valid.

However, to answer your question:

Chimera Beast (arcade) - not a human in sight; 100% alien action

Cyber Core (PC Engine and X68000) - insects

Dragon Spirit / Dragon Saber (PC Engine, Arcade) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Elemental Master (Genesis) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams (PC Engine, Arcade, SNES, PS1) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Chimera Beast is a game that's entirely organic, iirc, so I'd start with that.

[Squire Grooktook]

X-Motherfucking-Multiply

[OmegaFlareX]

I've always liked Nichibutsu's Armed Formation. Has a decent PCE-exclusive port, but arcade is better.

[BIL]

X-Motherfucking-Multiply

[Aisha]

For PC doujin games, almost every game by Akiragoya/Artesneit has strong organic components, but be forewarned that much of it is sexually charged, sometimes to an explicit degree. Another doujin game that comes to mind is Psyche Metal: The Bleeding, made by Dark Hell Company.

[d0s]

W-Ring for PCE has some pretty organic enemies/stages, Cyber Core for PCE and X68K is another one. Both highly underrated games imo

e: missed that cyber core was already mentioned

[Guardic]

I've always liked Nichibutsu's Armed Formation. Has a decent PCE-exclusive port, but arcade is better.

I own this one. Great game.

[Guardic]

W-Ring for PCE has some pretty organic enemies/stages, Cyber Core for PCE and X68K is another one. Both highly underrated games imo

e: missed that cyber core was already mentioned

I have Cyber Core, but W-Ring is hard to find.

[d0s]

W-Ring for PCE has some pretty organic enemies/stages, Cyber Core for PCE and X68K is another one. Both highly underrated games imo

e: missed that cyber core was already mentioned

I have Cyber Core, but W-Ring is hard to find.

Sometimes it's called "double ring", in ROM sets for example I think it's called that

[Guardic]

W-Ring for PCE has some pretty organic enemies/stages, Cyber Core for PCE and X68K is another one. Both highly underrated games imo

e: missed that cyber core was already mentioned

I have Cyber Core, but W-Ring is hard to find.

Sometimes it's called "double ring", in ROM sets for example I think it's called that

I usually don't go for roms, unless it's for something like the Amiga, or Commodore. If it's for a home game console, I try and find a copy.

[Guardic]

Well, on one hand, even bullet hells are based off of limited continues - that is, not using any of them (1CC), so I don't know if that complaint is really valid.

However, to answer your question:

Chimera Beast (arcade) - not a human in sight; 100% alien action

Cyber Core (PC Engine and X68000) - insects

Dragon Spirit / Dragon Saber (PC Engine, Arcade) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Elemental Master (Genesis) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams (PC Engine, Arcade, SNES, PS1) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Chimera Beast is a game that's entirely organic, iirc, so I'd start with that.

What I meant was I don't like newer shmups because the game gives you an unlimited supply of continues and if you die, you start back right where you died, even if you use a continue. There's no consequence for dying other than losing your score. I think it defeats the purpose of playing a game if you have an unlimited tries at completing it. At least the older shmups that did give you unlimited tries, made you start the stage over if you used all of your lives. With newer shmups, there's no reason to not die other than to get a higher score, which I have no interest in. With limited continues, you try harder to get better at the game, just so you can see all the levels, bosses and finally complete the game and see the ending you worked hard to get to.

But thanks for the recommendations. I'll have to pick up a copy of Elemental Master for the Genesis. I just recently purchased Truxton and Gaiares for the Genesis and Axelay and Darius Twin for the SNES.

[copy-paster]

Recca on FC/NES only have 1 organic level and few creature-based bosses.

[Squire Grooktook]

Well, on one hand, even bullet hells are based off of limited continues - that is, not using any of them (1CC), so I don't know if that complaint is really valid.

However, to answer your question:

Chimera Beast (arcade) - not a human in sight; 100% alien action

Cyber Core (PC Engine and X68000) - insects

Dragon Spirit / Dragon Saber (PC Engine, Arcade) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Elemental Master (Genesis) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams (PC Engine, Arcade, SNES, PS1) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Chimera Beast is a game that's entirely organic, iirc, so I'd start with that.

What I meant was I don't like newer shmups because the game gives you an unlimited supply of continues and if you die, you start back right where you died, even if you use a continue. There's no consequence for dying other than losing your score. I think it defeats the purpose of playing a game if you have an unlimited tries at completing it. At least the older shmups that did give you unlimited tries, made you start the stage over if you used all of your lives. With newer shmups, there's no reason to not die other than to get a higher score, which I have no interest in. With limited continues, you try harder to get better at the game, just so you can see all the levels, bosses and finally complete the game and see the ending you worked hard to get to.

When you continue, your score is blanked. Score represents progress, so clearing them with a continue means you didn't beat it.

[Guardic]

Well, on one hand, even bullet hells are based off of limited continues - that is, not using any of them (1CC), so I don't know if that complaint is really valid.

However, to answer your question:

Chimera Beast (arcade) - not a human in sight; 100% alien action

Cyber Core (PC Engine and X68000) - insects

Dragon Spirit / Dragon Saber (PC Engine, Arcade) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Elemental Master (Genesis) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams (PC Engine, Arcade, SNES, PS1) - Fantasy-themed monsters

Chimera Beast is a game that's entirely organic, iirc, so I'd start with that.

What I meant was I don't like newer shmups because the game gives you an unlimited supply of continues and if you die, you start back right where you died, even if you use a continue. There's no consequence for dying other than losing your score. I think it defeats the purpose of playing a game if you have an unlimited tries at completing it. At least the older shmups that did give you unlimited tries, made you start the stage over if you used all of your lives. With newer shmups, there's no reason to not die other than to get a higher score, which I have no interest in. With limited continues, you try harder to get better at the game, just so you can see all the levels, bosses and finally complete the game and see the ending you worked hard to get to.

When you continue, your score is blanked. Score represents progress, so clearing them with a continue means you didn't beat it.

As I said, I don't care about score. If I kill the final boss and see credits. The I completed it and the game is over.

[Squire Grooktook]

You could say the same about any cheat. If I enter a debug code and sail through with 9999999 lives, did I win just because I saw the ending? However you choose to define "winning", the point is you bypassed the whole game using a practice tool. You didn't experience it.

Go for 1 credit clears, those are the only "wins" recognized by shmup communities, and often the only ones recognized by developers. Infinite continues exist as a practice tool. Don't blame the game for something optional that the game industry basically forces them to include.

[Guardic]

You could say the same about any cheat. If I enter a debug code and sail through with 9999999 lives, did I win just because I saw the ending? However you choose to define "winning", the point is you bypassed the whole game using a practice tool. You didn't experience it.

Go for 1 credit clears, those are the only "wins" recognized by shmup communities, and often the only ones recognized by developers. Infinite continues exist as a practice tool. Don't blame the game for something optional that the game industry basically forces them to include.

The fact that unlimited continues are a standard in newer shmups and cheats are, well cheats. But devs didn't used to include unlimited continues. Also if using infinite continues is practice, then why does most of the newer shmups include an actual practice mode? Like i said, newer shmups are all about a high score. It would be nice if devs would include a classic mode where you get 3 to 5 continues, I would actually probably care to get better at the newer ones and try for 1cc.

[Squire Grooktook]

[But devs didn't used to include unlimited continues. Also if using infinite continues is practice, then why does most of the newer shmups include an actual practice mode?

Not true actually. It's been almost universal for arcade shmups since the early days of Toaplan.

As for the second quesiton, it's because unlimited continues allow you to practice the whole game at once. Measuring your overall progress, etc.

It's also pretty much mandatory. The current state of the industry is that you would never ever, ever get away with selling a game that 99% of your audience wouldn't be able to see the end game of, in some shape or form.

Even if you don't care about "scoring", the score counter still exists as an implicit completion/mastery tracker. Each enemy, each boss, you kill...each item you pick up, adds to your score as another part of the game completed. If it drops to zero when you continue, it's telling you "you have not completed the game, you have not mastered. This is practice mode only onw".

[d0s]

I don't understand what's so hard about enforcing the limit on yourself. I remember getting really pissed about Working Designs' butchered US PSX release of RayStorm that made it impossible to play past a certain stage (I think 4?) on difficulties lower than normal, just because they wanted to make the game "feel longer" and not deliver the ending too easily, as if anybody is playing to see the ending. Those easy modes are for practice and learning the stages, something pretty important for a home port of an arcade game, where you can have the flexibility to play around before going to the arcade and playing the real thing which costs money per play (one of the few STGs my local arcade had was RayStorm so it was extra frustrating). By imposing artificial limits they crippled the home port in the name of delivering an "experience".

I agree that modern shooters have their issues and in most cases I prefer older games as well, but offering flexibility to play around with and learn a game isn't one of them.

[Guardic]

[But devs didn't used to include unlimited continues. Also if using infinite continues is practice, then why does most of the newer shmups include an actual practice mode?

Not true actually. It's been almost universal for arcade shmups since the early days of Toaplan.

Well arcades were all about making money, so of course if you keep putting in quarters, the game will let you continue as much as you want because who doesn't like money.

As for the second quesiton, it's because unlimited continues allow you to practice the whole game at once. Measuring your overall progress, etc.

It's also pretty much mandatory. The current state of the industry is that you would never ever, ever get away with selling a game that 99% of your audience wouldn't be able to see the end game of, in some shape or form.

Even if you don't care about "scoring", the score counter still exists as an implicit completion/mastery tracker. Each enemy, each boss, you kill...each item you pick up, adds to your score as another part of the game completed. If it drops to zero when you continue, it's telling you "you have not completed the game, you have not mastered. This is practice mode only onw".

This is why I don't care for the direction the genre has went. The emphasis of the game is now placed on your score and not about trying to just survive to kill the final boss. I would take R-Type III over any new shmup any day.

[d0s]

This is why I don't care for the direction the genre has went. The emphasis of the game is now placed on your score and not about trying to just survive to kill the final boss. I would take R-Type III over any new shmup any day.

I actually agree with you that I find R-Type style shooters a lot more fun than modern stuff but it has nothing to do with the number of continues the game allows. R-Type would still be fun if it had unlimited continues, because it's gameplay is fun. You can set a limit for yourself, or use those continues to practice it so you can beat the last boss with one credit which is a fun thing to do no matter what style of game it is or no matter if you care about the score you get. Also caravan shooters are oldschool and insanely fun and they're also all about score. Personally what tires me out about modern shooters is too much emphasis on danmaku stuff which isn't a bad style, I'm just tired of it (though I play a ton of Crimzon Clover)

e: I guess it just seems like you lack self control and want the developer to force you to not "cheat" which is kind of the opposite of what most STG players, new or oldschool want. Most people want to flexibility to come at the game from every angle and learn it inside and out, these are very short games and the replay value comes from mastery not beating it once and putting it on a shelf.

[Squire Grooktook]

[But devs didn't used to include unlimited continues. Also if using infinite continues is practice, then why does most of the newer shmups include an actual practice mode?

Not true actually. It's been almost universal for arcade shmups since the early days of Toaplan.

Well arcades were all about making money, so of course if you keep putting in quarters, the game will let you continue as much as you want because who doesn't like money.

So are console games. It's all about making you buy more games. Everything being sold is all about money.

However, they included the score counter and such so that people would know that they're not getting the full experience if they credit feed. They encouraged people to come back and clear it with less and less credits till they could master it.

This is why I don't care for the direction the genre has went.

As I said, it's not the direction the genre has gone. It's been like this since the 80's.

The emphasis of the game is now placed on your score and not about trying to just survive to kill the final boss. I would take R-Type III over any new shmup any day.

No, the emphasis is on 1 credit clearing the game, thus beating it with the lowest amount of resources that the game is based and balanced around. You still kill the final boss, and it's more exciting when going for a 1cc.

Also killing the final boss is, again, meaningless if you cheated or used a practice tool to get there. Unless you play for the story. But there are far better genres for that.

You can tell yourself you beat the game if you credit fed, but at the end of the day, semmantics are worthless. You didn't get any excitement out of it, and you didn't master it. It's nothing. Play for a 1cc or enjoy cheat coding your way through.



*now, of course, if you somehow enjoy playing the game with unlimited credits, more power to you. But, deriding 90% of the genre (both new and old) for the presence of an optional practice tool that the game itself does not recognize, just because you can "see the final boss with it" as you would with any cheat device, is...well it's really irritating considering some of the games you condemn for this are masterpieces, and it is truly heart pounding see the final boss and beat it...if your not continuing.

[d0s]

As I said, it's not the direction the genre has gone. It's been like this since the 80's.

It's been like this since space invaders

[Guardic]

This is why I don't care for the direction the genre has went. The emphasis of the game is now placed on your score and not about trying to just survive to kill the final boss. I would take R-Type III over any new shmup any day.

I actually agree with you that I find R-Type style shooters a lot more fun than modern stuff but it has nothing to do with the number of continues the game allows. R-Type would still be fun if it had unlimited continues, because it's gameplay is fun. You can set a limit for yourself, or use those continues to practice it so you can beat the last boss with one credit which is a fun thing to do no matter what style of game it is or no matter if you care about the score you get. Also caravan shooters are oldschool and insanely fun and they're also all about score. Personally what tires me out about modern shooters is too much emphasis on danmaku stuff which isn't a bad style, I'm just tired of it (though I play a ton of Crimzon Clover)

To me, challenge is what makes a good game (Dark Souls is a good example of a newer game) but not the only thing. Gameplay is obviously the important part, which challenge is part of the gameplay as well, but I think the lack of a limited continue system just makes the game less rewarding (for me anyways). I can understand that people like to try and get a higher score than someone else, or try and beat there own, but I simply don't care about a score. I had my feel of getting a high score on the Atari 2600. When the NES came along and pretty much every game could be finished and had an ending with credits was just amazing.

Playing Ghost N' Goblins, Salamander, Abadox and The Guardian Legend and actually seeing text and an ending was astonishing back then and best of all, I didn't see the same screen eternally. A high score was the last thing I cared about and still don't. Then the Turbografx 16 and Genesis came along with R-Type and Bio-Hazard Battle and things just got better and better. SNES had R-Type III, Axelay and Space Mega Force. The Playstation had R-Type Delta, Thunder Force V and Einhander. Saturn had Darius Gaiden and probably some other shmups in the US, but none that I can think of right now, tons in Japan though. Playstation 2 is when I think the genre started to change to what we have now. There were some great ones on the PS2, like R-Type Final, Gradius 3 & 4, Raiden III and Gradius V. When the 360 and PS3 came out, pretty much everything converted back to the scoring system. Minus a few games.

[Guardic]

*now, of course, if you somehow enjoy playing the game with unlimited credits, more power to you. But, deriding 90% of the genre (both new and old) for the presence of an optional practice tool that the game itself does not recognize, just because you can "see the final boss with it" as you would with any cheat device, is...well it's really irritating considering some of the games you condemn for this are masterpieces, and it is truly heart pounding see the final boss and beat it...if your not continuing.

To me it's much more exhilarating to make it to the final boss and only have one life left. You either kill it, or you're playing the whole game over.

[Squire Grooktook]

Neither of us care about score. You keep on going on about that, but it's not the point. The game is most fun when played with 1 credit, so there's no reason not to limit yourself. I only bring up the score counter as proof that, even back in the 80's, the game doesn't recognize you as having beaten or mastered it. It recognizes you as having beat part of the game. Part.

I enjoy many games played for survival, and whether I can cheat through them with unlimited credits or cheat through them with an actual cheat device, or simply skip to the end via practice mode, or watch the final boss and ending on youtube, is irrelevant. It's exciting to beat the game without continuing, when the stakes are high. You seem to understand this concept of high stakes, but you're so caught up on "1cc = playing for score", or "a continue exists, so I must continue". You go for a 1cc whether you're playing for survival or not. It's the only kind of victory that has any meaning, because it's the one the developers balanced the game around. If you game over on the final boss, you restart. Simple as that. It keeps the tension high and keeps the game meaningful.

*now, of course, if you somehow enjoy playing the game with unlimited credits, more power to you. But, deriding 90% of the genre (both new and old) for the presence of an optional practice tool that the game itself does not recognize, just because you can "see the final boss with it" as you would with any cheat device, is...well it's really irritating considering some of the games you condemn for this are masterpieces, and it is truly heart pounding see the final boss and beat it...if your not continuing.

To me it's much more exhilarating to make it to the final boss and only have one life left. You either kill it, or you're playing the whole game over.

Yes, and when I fail, I do play the whole game over. Whether a cheat engine or unlimited continue system would let me do otherwise or not. What is so hard about that? Is it really worth passing up 90% of the masterpieces of the genre simply because you don't have the self control to quit when you game over?

If you game over in an arcade game. Hang up your hat and quit. Whether youre playing for score or you just want to kill the final boss, you might as well quit when that happens because there's no meaning in doing otherwise.

[d0s]

Can you explain why you don't just reboot the game when you've continued a set number of times when a game has unlimited continues? I totally get where you're coming from about liking the old stuff more but I have no idea where you get the idea that 1. those games were not meant to be played for score and 2. that what made those games good was a lack of continues/practice tools.

[Squire Grooktook]

Also, keep in mind, I'm not trying to bully or force anything, but like I said, you're talking some stuff about good games that's quite erroneous. You don't have to use them, and the game officially recognizes your achievement for not using them. You might as well complain that the game has easy or novice modes for beginners to play, and that they ruin the excitement of the game because you know you could just cheese through on easy mode to "beat the game". What meaning does that have?

There's really nothing wrong with having options. You don't have to take them. Especially if the game is balanced around not using those options (which they are) and recognizes merit/achievement for not using them (which they do). You have everything you need to get excitement out of these games, the presence of an optional practice tool shouldn't harm that at all.

And again, it's not about playing for score. Everything I just said applies whether you're playing competitively (score) or just to beat the game (survival).

[qmish]

Personally what tires me out about modern shooters is too much emphasis on danmaku stuff which isn't a bad style, I'm just tired of it (though I play a ton of Crimzon Clover)

For some reason, i tend to call Cave-style shooters "bullethell" and 2hou-style "danmaku". May sound stupid, but for me "danmaku" nearly lacks backgrounds, has more abstract enemies (or no enemies) etc.

[Obiwanshinobi]

I'm under impression home ports possible to ruin for oneself at your first sitting down to play them begun with the PS2 Cave titles. Not an issue with the genre itself; just the ports.

On topic - Apidya, Dragon Blaze. Air Duel may look mechanical to some, but the designs of everything are very enhomology-inspired (kind of like Darius borrows shapes from sealife).