Shmup of the Month Club 2012

[noiseredux]

if you dn't mind me asking dunp, how much is a candy gonna run ya?

[ExedExes]

By score-based, I mean that you are getting score for something other than blowing things up and having lives/bombs at the end of the stage.

Scoring varience is my favorite, I love a game that can have a stage 1 score of 1 million, or 10 million, depending on how you play.

Sure, there is score in something like Gradius, but its directly related to survival time/checkpoint milking. The games don't feel like they were built with score competition in mind.

hope that makes sense. Its early, so I'm out of it.

Ok, so something like Battle Garegga and the special spot where you can get a ton of pts if performed correctly and optimally with the right character / bomb would be a scoring variance type of shmup?

Checkpoint milking -- like taking advantage of all the scoring opportunities in a certain area, dying and repeating, used efficiently in a place where score farming is possible?

If that is all what you mean, then Dragon Blaze has none of that. No end of level bonuses, no places to jack up the score except for skillfully picking up coins without dying, and no checkpoints since you come right back.

So it was just like Truxton in that kind of way then Axelay could have counted too, but I set too long of a pace

[dunpeal2064]

if you dn't mind me asking dunp, how much is a candy gonna run ya?

I'm looking for a New Astro or Astro

Astro $400-$500
New Astro $600-$650

I have a bite on a New Astro with some screen burn in and etching, unsure if I want it, awaiting pics. He's only asking $300, so if the burn in is not noticable durring gameplay, I just may go for it.

Those most I'm willing to drop is $800, which is about $500 less than the granddaddy of all candies, the Egret II, runs.

[mjmjr25]

I've got mine, brother.

I saw one on Otaku recently, but ship would be crazy.

What are you looking to spend? I think the one on ebay - that guy will deal off site and prob get it for $250 (shipped) instead of $280.

I think this is one worth owning. I'm actually digging it more than gunbird 2 - and I really like gunbird 2.

What kind of cab - share w/the class pleeeeze???

[noiseredux]

I think this is one worth owning. I'm actually digging it more than gunbird 2 - and I really like gunbird 2.

I'm almost prone to agree. I love both Gunbird games, but I'm actually amazed just how good DB is. I really didn't go into it expecting something this great.

[dunpeal2064]

By score-based, I mean that you are getting score for something other than blowing things up and having lives/bombs at the end of the stage.

Scoring varience is my favorite, I love a game that can have a stage 1 score of 1 million, or 10 million, depending on how you play.

Sure, there is score in something like Gradius, but its directly related to survival time/checkpoint milking. The games don't feel like they were built with score competition in mind.

hope that makes sense. Its early, so I'm out of it.

Ok, so something like Battle Garegga and the special spot where you can get a ton of pts if performed correctly and optimally with the right character / bomb would be a scoring variance type of shmup?

Checkpoint milking -- like taking advantage of all the scoring opportunities in a certain area, dying and repeating, used efficiently in a place where score farming is possible?

If that is all what you mean, then Dragon Blaze has none of that. No end of level bonuses, no places to jack up the score except for skillfully picking up coins without dying, and no checkpoints since you come right back.

So it was just like Truxton in that kind of way then Axelay could have counted too, but I set too long of a pace

The coins make a huge difference in score, the numbers just don't get as big as they do in Cave games.

The difference between a run with little coin grabbing and no tech bonus, and a good stage 1 run can be up to 80k points, and stage 1 can only weild about 160k, so scoring is still important.

however, Psikyo does as little scoring as possible. Just enough to make it a scoring game. Once you try some Cave/Psikyo stuff out, you'll see some very blatant scoring systems.

If you like how Garegga works, Raiden Fighters has a lot of hidden secrets and medal chaining as well.

Definitely way more score going on than Truxton or Axelay... but I don't really like checkpoint milking, for one reason.

Say stage 3 part 2 of r-type 2 has the most milking potential. If I want to score, I should spend every life milking that checkpoint. Then, until I reach the 2nd most valuable checkpoint, I only have one life. Even if I gain extends, losing any of them means less checkpoint milking once I reach that 2nd spot.

I don't know, it can still be fun, but its nothing like a good manic/bullet hell scorer.

Hey, Exed Exes has secrets and scoring, iirc

[brunoafh]

hope that makes sense. Its early, so I'm out of it.

It makes sense. I've never really tried getting into the intricacies of the scoring system of any shmup, even if it is a score-based one. I plan to with this game though, so it should be interesting to see what it will add to the game for me.

[mjmjr25]

I think were posting too fast

@Chaz - if that thing is running at $300 - grab it. You can part out the CP for close to that? If it has a working power supply and good or better condition CP, theres $300 - a decent bezel, coin doors / mech, and chassis - another $100+ EASY.

Hell, i'd actually consider minor IN-GAME burn for the price, and just use as a parts cab once you get a better monitor (and this assumes the monitor isn't very good, which it may be).

I have a boner for you. Well, not "for you - for you", but "for you"...boy, no way to say this really. Let's do this. I am excited at the prospect of playing side by side on the same games bruv. Side by side being 2K miles apart of course.

[dunpeal2064]

@ Mike: Those are loose pcb prices yeah?

I agree that although Gunbird 2 is great, this game is so much better. Gunbird 2 is evil in that if you lose your coin chain at ALL throughout the stage, you lose all scoring opportunity.

Plus, to spawn the secret item-spewing jars in Gunbird, you have to hover over a specific area, like a window on a house, and it can be hard to trigger. In DB, its just about killing that certain enemy correctly. Much more consistent, and less punishing over one mistake.

I really like this, probably my favorite out of the Psikyo catalog.

oh, I think the cab is a New Astro, he said an Astro 2

[ExedExes]

Ok, I see what you mean now. For me on DB so far, a good stage run is 80-100k w/ tech bonus. But I see what you mean too. There is no big scoring area or secret that is going to put someone far ahead of anyone else. The big scores will come from making it further and naturally that is what a good shmup should be designed to do, ultimately, without checkpoint milking or point farming for extends to keep going or what have you, or resulting to points in the millions and billions like Cave or Giga Wing does

In that respect, DB does its job and I do like the close bunching of all the scores so far. This is a fairly realistic scoring shmup. I got it now!

I will have to work on that 340k a bit later.

As I get more familiar with the game, I hope to offer up some tips on how to score better.

I love the Raiden Fighters secrets. DISCOVERED THE MICLUS/FAIRY! DEFENDED THE HOUSE! etc...

And yes, ExedExes has quite a few secrets. (the game that is, not me! What! Don't be looking here!)