Got some Dreamcast games today...

[DaMadFiddler]

...specifically, Sturmwind and GunLord.

Sturmwind has nothing too unique in the gameplay department, but the visuals are quite impressive for an indie release. I'm quite impressed with how professional it feels.

GunLord is just downright fun. The graphics are a bit low-res, which was expected since all of NG.DEV's games start off as Neo-Geo projects that are pretty much straight ported. But it's nice to see them make something other than a space shooter, and this looks, sounds, and feels like the sort of title I would've poured hours into back in the days of DOS gaming. It would be nice if it was a little more Metroid and a little less Turrican, but that's just my preference. I know their next announced title is another space sh'mup, but I'd love to see the developer go more in this direction.

After briefly sampling each, I'm quite happy with the purchase. I'll dive into both games in greater detail this weekend.

[|darc|]

Sturmwind is a lot of fun. I really like its gameplay, especially its power up system (being able to repair yourself through regaining/upgrading weapons recovered from destroyed enemies). I also like that you can choose levels.


I got Planet Ring, Rush Rush Rally Racing Deluxe, GunLord, Fast Striker, and Last Hope: Pink Bullets in today.

[DaMadFiddler]

I almost bought RRRR a year or so back, but I'm not a big fan of top-down racers. Super Off-Road, even the first two GTA games... a driving game is all about immersion, and the top-down perspective just pulls me out of the action too much.

I am looking forward to Age of the Beast. However, there hasn't been any news from Senile Team in a long time; I hope the game is still on track.

[cube_b3]

I just got the NGDT Beginner's Bundle.

I have to say they make a nasty first impression. The Main Menu in the game is shockingly bare bones, it looks ugly. Extremely disappointing. I know it is an Arcade port but how hard would it have been to implement the quick reset command ABXY + Start. More importantly, I could not find an option to adjust sound and music volume. The music is really loud and the sound is really low, and you can't adjust it.

For a full priced game, that is really disappointing.

I will be writing hands on previews for each game, before an in-depth review.

[DaMadFiddler]

They develop the games primarily for Neo-Geo, then pretty much do a straight port for DC. That's part of why I only bought GunLord; the games are a bit pricey for what they are, so you should only buy the ones you really want.

[Christuserloeser]

It's 16-bit stuff. These are 1:1 Neo Geo ports. A wet dream come true if you grew up during the 16-bit era. If you prefer the PS2 generation of games (or up, like I know you do) these are NOT made for you. Like AT ALL. As much as Atari VCS 2600 homebrew game is not made for me - I prefer late 8-bit games (NES, etc.) and 16-bit games. Most mainstream Dreamcast games like Sonic Adventures or Shenmue are of little interest to me, too modern for my taste.


If we were to classify video game history like this:

Stone Age: Pong, VCS2600, pre-1983 hardware
The Golden Age: NES, Master System, Amiga, Mega Drive/Genesis, SNES, Neo Geo, MS-DOS
3D Revolution (aka The Dark Ages): countless 32-bit consoles, CD-ROM tech
Modern gaming: Dreamcast, PS2, PS3, etc.

it should be easy to locate yourself on the map. I'm firmly rooted in the Golden Age, but I also can't resist some 32-bit era games.

Dreamcast came out early enough to still receive a respectable number of 16/32-bit style games, especially after its cancellation in 2001. Releasing straight Neo Geo ports for a console that already is in the hands of so many fans of games from that era is a very clever thing to do.

[cube_b3]

Dear Christ,

I haven't really complained about the graphics or gameplay, all I said was that the menu's are atrocious. I have played a ton of Neo-Geo ports and Fatal Furry: MOTW is one of my favorite games of all times, which is also a weak port as it was SNK's last game and it was released towards the end of the DC life cycle.

I have even seen better menu's in the most indiest games on Dreamcast. While I don't play a lot of homebrew the original Beats of Rage had a proper options menu, where you could go and adjust the sound and music levels. Hell, good looking menu's with necessary options can be seen in 8-bit games as well.

[|darc|]

It's 16-bit stuff. These are 1:1 Neo Geo ports. A wet dream come true if you grew up during the 16-bit era. If you prefer the PS2 generation of games (or up, like I know you do) these are NOT made for you. Like AT ALL. As much as Atari VCS 2600 homebrew game is not made for me - I prefer late 8-bit games (NES, etc.) and 16-bit games. Most mainstream Dreamcast games like Sonic Adventures or Shenmue are of little interest to me, too modern for my taste.


If we were to classify video game history like this:

Stone Age: Pong, VCS2600, pre-1983 hardware
The Golden Age: NES, Master System, Amiga, Mega Drive/Genesis, SNES, Neo Geo, MS-DOS
3D Revolution (aka The Dark Ages): countless 32-bit consoles, CD-ROM tech
Modern gaming: Dreamcast, PS2, PS3, etc.

it should be easy to locate yourself on the map. I'm firmly rooted in the Golden Age, but I also can't resist some 32-bit era games.

Dreamcast came out early enough to still receive a respectable number of 16/32-bit style games, especially after its cancellation in 2001. Releasing straight Neo Geo ports for a console that already is in the hands of so many fans of games from that era is a very clever thing to do.

I think you're pretty spot-on here. I'm also a Golden Age gamer, and I would call the 32-bit era the dark ages as well. Lots of great titles came out of that era and I was still a child/pre-teen in that time but in general I think it was a bad time for video game tech in particular. 3D was not mature enough for the focus it got.

I enjoyed the DC/PS2/Xbox/GC era, but out of those consoles I enjoyed the Dreamcast and Gamecube the most. I spent a lot of time with the Xbox, but that was mostly for its modding/hacking capabilities.

[DaMadFiddler]

Just wanted to reiterate my earlier support for Sturmwind. I've been slowly picking away at it, and each time I load it up, I'm newly impressed by what I see. This has got to be the most polished, professional-feeling indie release I've ever seen.

The visual design and effects are on par with the Dreamcast's best "official" releases. The levels, enemies, and environments are varied, inventive, and well-implemented. The music is pounding and catchy. The gameplay isn't unique, but it's well polished and adds a couple of fun twists in the control mechanics, as |darc| mentioned. And the entire package--from the FMVs to the menus to the little extras like unlockables, trophies, and leaderboards--just shines with professionalism.

On a system rich with sh'mups, I'd go so far as to say this is the third-best (though the first two, Rez and Ikaruga, are in a class of their own). It's a real shame this game wasn't around during the Dreamcast's official life, as it really deserves a wide audience.

[DaMadFiddler]

...just beat Sturmwind. The final boss was a bit confusing, but overall I enjoyed the game very much. My one real criticism is that with everything going on onscreen, it's sometimes a bit difficult to tell what's an enemy, what's a hazard, and what's just background.

Still, it's got to be up there in the top ten prettiest games for the system, and I stand by all my previous comments. I'd love to see these guys try their hand at a platformer.

[TheRedFox]

I also just recently beat the last boss of Sturmwind. Overall very well presented, but man is it ever hard for me. I'm new to shmups though. It seems like the biggest issue is that some of the bosses, I can't beat without dying once or twice, and occasionally I don't see the hazard that ends up killing me (not that I mind how detailed the backgrounds are, or anything).
I've been trying to get through the arcade mode, now that I cleared all of the stages, as sort of the next challenge to me (not even ready to try to unlock gallery 3, I don't think), and I keep consistently losing two lives during the level 2 boss, and then dying before reaching the boss in level 3.
Very addictive and fun game!

[cube_b3]

Did you beat Arcade mode or Normal Mode.

I have beaten both modes, but I couldn't beat Normal Mode with a single continue.

Oh and have you guys checked out the upcoming GunLord port for PC/WiiU/3DS.

This one looks bad ass not a quick Neo-Geo port:

[TheRedFox]

Well, I've gotten through all of the stages of normal mode, but I don't think I've gotten through more than one stage without dying and needing to continue (maybe once or twice).
On the other hand, in arcade mode I can make it to the 3rd stage (stage 4.1) before dying.
But I'm gonna keep it up. eventually I'll do it. I just need to keep trying.

Gunlord does look like a really fun game. I've gotta pick that one up, some day. Probably not for a while though. Haven't looked at the demo of the upcoming remakes, but I'll try to at some point.

[DaMadFiddler]

I just beat normal; I'm not good enough to get all the way through Arcade yet. In Normal, I had to continue every 2-3 levels (and a few levels took several tries), partly because I relied heavily on bombs to get through boss encounters.

Is it just me, or did it seem like some of the end-of-level bosses were more difficult than the standalone bosses?

[cube_b3]

I don't know haven't played the game in a while.

You just need to find the weak spot for every boss. It did randomly get difficult due to a complete lack of impact sound in boss fights. That was really weird. Now that I think about it some of the bosses were pretty weird.

That said, I am happy to report I have beaten the Arcade mode in hard difficulty.

I even went on to beat Fast Striker in Beginner and Normal Modes. Don't think I can do anything more than that.

Last Hope on the other hand is simply not worth playing.
_____________________________

So whose ready for Redux: Dark Matters?
I have actually ordered Dux, Dux 1.5 (via Redux LE) and Redux.

[DaMadFiddler]

I like sh'mups more than some people, but I'm picky about them. The only NG.DEV game I bought was GunLord, for example.

I enjoyed Sturmwind quite a bit, and I do want to beat Arcade mode, but I'll probably switch over to another game for a while first. Other sh'mups I've enjoyed (and you'll notice I'm being just a little bit loose with the term):

Child of Eden (PS3/360)
Fantasy Zone (Master System)
Geometry Wars (360/Wii/iPhone)
Ikaruga (Dreamcast/GameCube)
Iridion 2 (GBA)
Nanostray (DS)
Planet Harriers (arcade)
Pocky & Rocky (SNES)
Radiant Silvergun (Saturn)
Raptor: Call of the Shadows (DOS/iPhone)
Rez (Dreamcast)
Soldier Blade (TG-16)
Space Harrier (Master System/arcade)
Star Fox (SNES)
Star Fox 64 (N64)
Sturmwind (Dreamcast)
Super Stardust HD (PS3)
Under Defeat (Dreamcast)
Vertical Force (Virtual Boy)

I feel like I'm missing a few, and I've certainly played many others, but those are the ones I can think of offhand as things I'd want to revisit.

Usually a sh'mup has to have some sort of hook to draw me in, though especially pretty graphics or unique design can also serve that purpose sometimes.

[cube_b3]

Sturmwind was the first Shmup I played since I turned 20. (I am 26).

So I am not a fan of the genre, I did play Mars Matrix and GigaWing during my teens but that was it. I tried Rez couldn't get into it would certainly like to revisit it. But I think best to support the new ones first before delving into all the oldies.

[TheRedFox]

@DaMadFiddler: I have also noticed that the end of level bosses were harder much of the time as compared to the standalone ones. However, there was one end of level boss (can't remember which) that I was able to kind of find a sweet spot on screen a few times where I could hit it with the Nordwest and not be vulnerable to its shots. Actually, the Nordwest seems like the best weapon in general for many of the bosses. I thought the bosses were pretty cool, if weird.
As for your list of sh'mups, I've heard the term "offshoot" used to describe games that are very similar to sh'mups, but have one or two differences as well, for example games like Rez, or Space Harrier that are basically forward-scrolling versions of sh'mups. I'm not really bothered by calling them sh'mups tho.

I was wondering, does anyone know if there is a plot to Sturmwind, and if so, what it is? It's not really important, but I'm just kind of curious. 'Cause there is a lot of german in a couple of places that might be exposition if I could understand german. most of it is just "achtung" though, and that I do understand.

I was kind of thinking I might look around the internet for a decently priced copy of Gunbird 2 or Gigawing, one of these days, just to see if I can get into them. Sh'mups were just never really on my radar as a kid. I think they had kind of gone out of favor by the time I was playing videogames in earnest (2D games in general had, though I've always preferred them).