#shmup
#shmup
by Amr (@siegarettes)
Compared to other shooters, HellStar Squadron is almost…chill. Screenshots might give you the impression that of an aggressive, intense shooter, but HellStar Squadron rarely reaches that point. Bullets and enemies move at an almost languid pace. Shooting is straightforward–there’s a wide firing gun, a concentrated laser, and a screen clearing bomb, standard stuff. There’s definitely a few aesthetic touches from its bullet-hell cousins, but for the most part HellStar Squadron is about being patient and keeping a cool head. I died quite a few times but it rarely felt as if it tested me. It demanded just enough attention from me that I couldn’t zone out and play automatically.
A storm of pulsing beats and raucous feedback, Rym9000’s psychedelic visage obfuscates what is otherwise a straightforward shooter. Its draw is in the aesthetic exercise. Its unrestrained use of color creates an intense energy that never lets up, and the soundtrack continues that high. The waves of enemies come in familiar patterns, smartly placed to provide a steady rhythm. Each explosion lets off another burst of blown out sound and feedback to complement that rhythm. All of this is covered in severe visual artifacts, distorting the view and giving Rym9000 the look of an image file trying to constantly recover its data from corruption.
by Omar (@siegarettes)
As of writing this there are two things that I’m sure of: Super Hydorah is a fantastic homage to the shooters I grew up with, and I might never be able to finish it. It’s obvious that Locomalito grew up loving the same games I did. The aesthetics, soundtrack, and even opening waves of enemies make his love for arcade shooters like Gradius and R-Type clear. The measure of a good homage, of course, is whether they make the originals their own, or simply imitate it. Hydorah undoubtedly makes the spirit of those games its own, but it brings the frustration of those early games along with it.
by Omar (@siegarettes)
Sine Mora was one of the most interesting shooters of the last generation. Interesting, in the way we reserve the word for games that have peaked our attention somehow, but don’t quite manage to get all the way there. Sine Mora EX returns to it, bringing a fresh coat of paint, small balance changes, and a few 2 player modes.
by Omar (@siegarettes)
There’s something to be said for games that confidently play with the conventions of their genre. Certain ideas tend to become ingrained into the dynamics of particular game genres, and the more niche the genre the harder it becomes to move away from them. Scrolling shooters are definitely a niche where this applies and it’s easy to see why most of them are indistinguishable to an outside observer. Enter Drifting Lands, a shooter that upturns almost every convention of the genre by combining it with the world of action RPGs. What results is a shooter with bite sized missions, a lengthy story based campaign, and an action loop that will keep you fighting for gear drops and upgrades for hours. It provides a fresh alternative for players not interested in chasing high scores or 1CCs with plenty of scenarios and abilities to tackle them with. Unfortunately, it breaks the conventions of the genre without understanding why they’re in place, and ends up with something more messy than it should be.
@siegarettes talks about how Rayforce (aka Gunlock aka Layer Section) builds a story that reinforces the use of its lock on mechanic.
By: Austin (@callBDole)
Super Galaxy Squadron brands itself as a “fast-paced vertical shooter designed for human beings as well as shmup veterans”. Surprisingly that description is about right the game offers a good deal of challenge and is fairly forgiving if you’re not concerned with playing on hardcore mode.
by Omar (@neo_graphyte)
I am at a philosophical impasse with Soldner X2. Formally, I cannot fault it. It’s polished, competent, and feature rich by genre standards. There’s a strong use of visual effects, unlockable stages to find, and ranks systems to incentivize replay. In other words, a well made shooter that is designed to encourage repeat sessions. So why do I feel so ambivalent towards it?