How is the Cannon Dancer port?

[Bassa-Bassa]

I used to wonder why it's apparently so difficult for other devs to do what Hamster does with ACA: serious, disciplined, reference-standard home releases, with solid fundamentals and a minimum of frills. Particularly when their release frequency is typically a tiny fraction of ACA's, and their cost far higher.

Pretty sure it's the Mame effect. Add something really tangible and "unique" to the original code so that the people (or Mr. Publisher) can't say it's just Mame and 40 € a piece is somehow justified. Not surprisingly, it only happens with Westerners.

[Some-Mist]

that's a good point and something that I also didn't really consider... I paid it but $30 USD is kinda a lot

[BIL]

I used to wonder why it's apparently so difficult for other devs to do what Hamster does with ACA: serious, disciplined, reference-standard home releases, with solid fundamentals and a minimum of frills. Particularly when their release frequency is typically a tiny fraction of ACA's, and their cost far higher.

Pretty sure it's the Mame effect. Add something really tangible and "unique" to the original code so that the people (or Mr. Publisher) can't say it's just Mame and 40 € a piece is somehow justified. Not surprisingly, it only happens with Westerners.

Ha, good point! Funnily enough, there are several ACA titles that corrected long-standing (and in some cases, still-present) MAME issues. Most famously Contra's 3D stages, which were fixed only years post-ACA, but also more obscure things, like Omega Fighter's zako attack frequency (nerfed in MAME, fixed post-ACA), and Task Force Harrier's ship speed (still broken in MAME). But you'd never know this from Hamster themselves, who simply note they strive for accuracy. Class act.

that's a good point and something that I also didn't really consider... I paid it but $30 USD is kinda a lot

That's what really bugs me - I'd happily chuck anyone willing to do ACA-quality releases a few bones, certainly for games as special as Osman. 4x ACA price? No problem, there are dozens of ACA titles I'd have gone well over their impulse-buy threshold for, too.

But if the product is screwed-up in some way (not saying this is), I might as well stick with MAME, or hunt down a board. Or go play Scrabble with my grandma. Why pay for something that's better FO FREE? (yarrr )

[Bassa-Bassa]

I think it's safe to say that Gotch Technology has never used Mame in their code indeed. But likely they got doc. directly from Konami and others which sure helps. Sadly they've never been properly interviewed, would love to read that.

[Sumez]

I don't think not adding built-in cheat features to an arcade mode takes craftmanship.

You could argue that "yeah we're too used to high quality outputs, and that's a good thing". But my point was more in the line of it being the developer's intentions that worry me, rather than their actual abilities. As arcade fans, we want high profile arcade ports that enourage the arcade mindset.

[BIL]

I don't think not adding built-in cheat features to an arcade mode takes craftmanship.

I would say it does, in the sense of discipline. Ultimately, these developers' job is to transcribe someone else's work. Imagine ordering a silkscreen replica of the Mona Lisa, and when you receive it, she's got her tits out. Or firing up a 4k transfer of The Thing, only to be greeted by a S1kK DuB R3m1x of the opening credits theme. Craft is as much about staying one's hand as it is exercising it.

But my point was more in the line of it being the developer's intentions that worry me, rather than their actual abilities.

Oh yeah, I get that. Going out on a limb, I have the impression this release isn't merely arcade-averse, or arcade-ignorant; but instead, attempting to cater to AC diehards, while simultaneously dodging the casual "TOO EASY LMAO" / "TOO HARD WAAAA" Catch-22. Particularly with the emphasis on Cheevos (those silly, yet reliably casual-snaring things!) being locked to the SRSLY H@rdcor3 mode. I can't be too hard on the devs, if this was indeed the case. I'm always haunted by this developer anecdote of Squire's. As Bassa said, such scrubbery feels like a decidedly non-Japanese phenomenon we have to live with, as aficionado foreigners.

Brings to mind legendary Toaplan and Capcom personnel being surprised at credit-feeding players in US arcades... obviously, if players are just having a good time burning credits, that's A-OK; not when they then turn around and write off the entire arcade ethos as "lmao EZ" (continues used: 999), though!

I'm being quite forgiving here, I know. Someone mentioned the arcade mode not allowing continues, which I think is bad - credit-feeding is often a useful learning aid, for those aiming to 1CC/1LC or scoreplay - but again, I get why the devs might be wary of said Catch-22. (I can understand limiting them to two or three, as many console games and ports did/do)

The approach described here - optional upgrades, effectively "player assists" - actually doesn't sound bad at all to me. It sounds like a nice balance between outright cheating - god mode, pit recovery, infinite bombs etc - and regulation play. Also a nice degree of quasi-arrange mode innovation, for those who've mastered the original game, and might make artful use of a doublejump or burst invincibility.

Reminds me of GNG Resurrection's solution; designing an authentically arcade-tough game, then letting the player dial assists up or down as they prefer. Big difference is, ofc, Osman literally is an arcade game, making the lack of a straight AC mode jarring to us.

In this case, it sounds like the execution is merely eccentric ("here's arcade mode! wanna use assists? no? ok!"), rather than broken ("here's arcade mode! wanna use assists? no? fuck you!").

As arcade fans, we want high profile arcade ports that enourage the arcade mindset.

Maybe they should hide AC mode behind a secret cheat code. (nah... the scrubs would look it up, get thrashed, cue "TOO HARD WAAAA" etc)

[Strider77]

This thread is weird...

[Austin]

I got this over the weekend and dabbled with it for about an hour. At least, on the Xbox side (Series X).

The "Cheat" features for me were not enabled by default. When you pick your game mode, it pops up with a selection screen, but they were disabled by default. You just scroll down the cheats list and go to "start game", or whatever it is. It's not obtrusive.

For me the TV filters were applied by default, so the game looked pretty ugly on first play. I was able to disable that at least and got a 4X3 bordered window with razer-sharp pixels, the way I like it.

Input lag felt non-existent to me via the Series X on a low lag screen. I was only using the standard Series X controller, rather than an arcade stick, and I can't vouch for other versions.

This is my first time ever playing the game. I'm a huge fan of the original Strider and I can see the similarities. But holy hell, this game is insanely difficult compared to the OG Strider. I did end up getting the first stage down pretty well, but everything past that seems pretty brutal, with levels filled with cheap shots left and right. Not sure if I'll have the patience to learn this one, but it's great to finally be able to play it in a convenient fashion.

[Lander]

This is my first time ever playing the game. I'm a huge fan of the original Strider and I can see the similarities. But holy hell, this game is insanely difficult compared to the OG Strider. I did end up getting the first stage down pretty well, but everything past that seems pretty brutal, with levels filled with cheap shots left and right. Not sure if I'll have the patience to learn this one, but it's great to finally be able to play it in a convenient fashion.

Osman cuts a fine balance with difficulty - hard enough to give you the willies on first blush, but with a 1CC that's shockingly attainable once you've allocated bombs and memo'd how and where to abuse the afterimages.
I don't consider myself a particularly storied 1CCer (and, for the record, suck at Strider ) but managed to snag it after a mere weekend of focused attempts and superplay reference.

[Austin]

Osman cuts a fine balance with difficulty - hard enough to give you the willies on first blush, but with a 1CC that's shockingly attainable once you've allocated bombs and memo'd how and where to abuse the afterimages.
I don't consider myself a particularly storied 1CCer (and, for the record, suck at Strider ) but managed to snag it after a mere weekend of focused attempts and superplay reference.

Yeah, if I dig in further I'm definitely going to have to check out some 1CC clears for advice. Bombs are something I used approximately zero times, or at least not until I was seriously credit feeding every ten seconds, haha. Are there ways to replenish them outside of losing a life? The shadows/afterimages/whatever they are called, I could see there being strategy to those as well.

[Lander]

Yeah, if I dig in further I'm definitely going to have to check out some 1CC clears for advice. Bombs are something I used approximately zero times, or at least not until I was seriously credit feeding every ten seconds, haha. Are there ways to replenish them outside of losing a life? The shadows/afterimages/whatever they are called, I could see there being strategy to those as well.

Nope, no bomb refills, so you get 6 (+3 at the 1mil point extend) for the whole game. The main dogma there is to make sure you have at least one - preferably two - to wipe the penultimate fight, since it's an unpredictable three-way boss mosh.
I recall it feeling quite generous once I was into it, since that's enough to cover all the major bosses, and has the extra benefit of a health bar telling you when to panic-bomb.

I'd say the afterimages can be compared to R-Type's force - essential, but easy to lose since taking a hit removes one level of power. The strategy is mainly in spacing; jump in, tap kick a few times to lay them down, then back off and hammer the button (ideally while alternating up-down-up-down on the stick to trigger the pummel combo) to deal damage from a position of safety. There's also some region-specific hardcoded NVRAM magic (ON for JP, OFF for US, not sure for the rerelease) that determines whether they still do damage while flying back to you, which is worth noting for more situational uses.

Beyond that it tends to be a mix of abusing the powered-up kick hitbox + slide-throw iframes to carve through mooks, with memo to deal with the meaner cheap shots (a.k.a. Stage 4's Perfectionist Platforming of Peril )

[mikehaggar]

Those are the same guys who did GleyLancer. I found that to be too laggy. That being said, this isn't a shmup, so it's not as vital.

Can anybody who has personally played this comment on the lag? This is honestly the only thing that matters to me… If it has more input lag than the arcade version, I don’t want to play it. I guess this is most likely true since it’s not M2 or Hamster, but would really appreciate a confirmation from somebody who has taken the plunge…
Thanks in advance!