Xevious already had a well-developed rank system back in 1982 and I'm sure it isn't the first.EllertMichael wrote:What's the earliest example? Zanac?
Why is "rank" called "rank"?
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Erik_Twice
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Re: Why is "rank" called "rank"?
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dunpeal2064
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Re: Why is "rank" called "rank"?
Xevois, Gradius, and the like had a pretty simple rank mechanic in place though. I believe it gets harder the longer you play on one life?
Zanac changed that up. The game gets harder based on how much you shoot. So, as far as I know, this is the first "controllable" rank, that actually encourages the player to hold back a bit and interact with the rank to control the difficulty. Gun Frontier did the same thing, using auto fire on that game makes it way harder. I performed much better in G&F without auto fire then with it, probably the only shmup I can say that about!
I think it was these games that lead to Battle Garegga and its infamous ranking system.
Zanac changed that up. The game gets harder based on how much you shoot. So, as far as I know, this is the first "controllable" rank, that actually encourages the player to hold back a bit and interact with the rank to control the difficulty. Gun Frontier did the same thing, using auto fire on that game makes it way harder. I performed much better in G&F without auto fire then with it, probably the only shmup I can say that about!
I think it was these games that lead to Battle Garegga and its infamous ranking system.