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This month for Together Retro, roll up your sleeves, blow the dust off your shotgun, and preparing to wade knee-deep through seas of undead hordes as we play the original Resident Evil.

History

In 1989, Capcom released a Japan-only RPG for the Famicom known as Sweet Home. In this game, five people exploring a mansion to photograph frescoes found themselves trapped inside and facing hordes of monsters and ghosts. The game is considered one of the pioneers of the survival horror genre, and though it didn’t make it outside of Japan, it would leave its mark internationally seven years later. Shinji Mikami, at the time a game designer working for Capcom, was commissioned to do a new horror-themed adventure game, similar to Sweet Home. It would be set in a mansion, feature limited supplies and horrific monsters, and even included loading screens of doors opening, just like the room transitions in Sweet Home. This new adventure game was to be called Biohazard in Japan, or Resident Evil throughout the rest of the world.

Legacy

Not only did Resident Evil become one of the biggest adventure series of the 32-bit generation(and continues to be one of the most well known franchises today), it would also bring the fledgling survival horror genre into the limelight. In fact, Resident Evil was the first to call itself survival horror, though games like Sweet Home, Alone in the Dark, and Clock Tower on the Super Famicom would precede it. And for several years afterward, many survival horror titles would be known as “Resident Evil clones,” often due to use of similar storylines, controls, and characters. Resident Evil is also listed as one of the reasons the PlayStation became the dominant console of the 32-bit generation, though it did see a release on the Sega Saturn.

Controls

Unfortunately, the controls have a tendency to make or break Resident Evil for people, primarily due to the “tank” controls used for movement, where up is forward in the direction your character is facing. What follows are the controls for the original PlayStation release of Resident Evil:

• D-Pad Up – Move forward.
• D-Pad Left – Turn left.
• D-Pad Right – Turn right.
• D-Pad Down – Move backward.
• Start – Open inventory menu
• Select – Nothing
• R1 – Hold to raise and aim weapon
• Circle – Nothing
• Square – Hold to run while moving
• X – Action button, fires weapon when R1 is held
• Triangle – Cancel, exits menus and files.

Ports

	Resident Evil (PS1, Saturn, PC) Released on PlayStation, the game also saw ports to the Sega Saturn (featuring many exclusive monsters, costumes, and a new game mode) and the PC (which included new weapons and costumes, as well as a color version of the original Japanese intro).
	Resident Evil: Director’s Cut (PS1) This version of Resident Evil was released on the PlayStation. It included a new “Arrange Mode” for those who had beaten the game, as well as originally including a demo of Resident Evil 2. New costumes were included, and there is now a chance to get critical hits with weapons. There’s even a beginner mode. The original Japanese intro was meant to be included, though the censored one was put in instead, supposedly on accident. In a bizarre note, the French and German versions of Director’s Cut include the uncensored live action intro. The version available for download on the PlayStation Network is believed to be Director’s Cut.
	Resident Evil: Dual Shock (PS1) Another version only to be released on the PlayStation, it included the features of Director’s Cut, but with vibration features and support for the DualShock analog sticks. A new soundtrack by Mamoru Samuragouchi was put in. A bonus disc with footage from what was supposed to be Resident Evil 2(now known as Resident Evil 1.5) was included with the Japanese release.
	Resident Evil: Deadly Silence (DS) A release for the Nintendo DS, this game was released o commemorate the tenth anniversary of the original release. This version included touch-screen support, a new game mode known as “Rebirth,” which includes more puzzles, usage of the touch screen, and even incorporates the DS microphone, and 4-player multiplayer. Some gameplay changes, such as the quick turn from Resident Evil 3 and the knife button from Resident Evil 4 were added.
	Resident Evil (Gamecube) Sharing the same name of the original release, this is the name of the remake for the Nintendo GameCube. Graphics were updated, the controls were largely redesigned, and all manner of new monsters(including the Crimson Head) and locations were included. There’s also plenty of unlockable game modes and costumes, and even a new self-defense item system, for when zombies get too close.
	Resident Evil Archives: Resident Evil (Wii) This is the Wii version of the remake of Resident Evil for GameCube. Functionally, there aren’t many differences beyond the name.

Of all of these versions, it is usually best to start with the original game if possible, though if you can’t stand the controls, try out the remake.

Emulation Help

If you need any help with attempting to emulate the game, post your problems in our forums and hopefully we’ll be able to help:

Together Retro Discussion

Instead of posting in the comments section of the blog, we will be using the forum for all of our discussion in order to keep things more organized. So play Resident Evil and talk to us about your thoughts and play experiences in the forums. We want to know your favorite parts, your successes and your failures!
Resident Evil Discussion

Presented by Ack

The RetroGaming 101 series is aimed at gamers who are just starting out in the classic gaming scene or are curious about an older console that they don’t know much about yet.  Those of you that are especially knowledgeable about the featured console, I encourage you to add any information that you think would be beneficial into the comments section. If you are new to the featured console, and still have questions, you can also use the comments section and I will do my best to help you out.

While it wouldn’t actually be the first cartridge-based home game console, the Atari 2600 would prove to be the first big hit, ushering in the first golden age of home gaming while the golden age of the American arcade scene was in full force.  And though its popularity would inevitably decline with the onset of the video game crash of 1983, the console would still have appeal years later.

Background Information

• The Atari 2600 first entered the market in America, October 1977.  Though sales would fluctuate and inevitably decrease, its true final end of production was in the early 1990s.
• The Atari 2600 was originally known as the Atari Video Computer System, or Atari VCS.  It was renamed in 1982 to fit its part number in the Atari catalog(CX2600), which was the same way the Atari 5200 got it’s name.
• “Stella” was the original project name for the Atari 2600.  With Fairchild Semiconductor’s release of the Fairchild Channel F in 1976, Atari allowed itself to be purchased by Warner Communications so it could bring in enough money to commercially release Stella.  The name Stella was taken from one of the engineer’s bicycles, and was part of a long history of projects with female names.
• Arguments between Warner Communications and Atari, Inc. would lead Atari founder Nolan Bushnell to leave the company in 1978.  But by this time, Busnhell had founded Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza-Time Theater.
• The Atari 2600 remained a major tool of the company until Warner sold Atari’s Consumer Division to Commodore Business Machines in 1984.  Consoles were then deemphasized for the next few years as Commodore attempted to push Atari’s computers.

Historical Impact

• Lasting from the late 1970s to the early 1990s, the Atari 2600 had the longest active lifespan of any game console released in the United States.  Over 900 games were produced for the console.
• The Atari 2600 proved the viability of console gaming in the American market.
• The Atari 2600 also helped establish the idea of the “killer app” with its port of Space Invaders in 1980.  The game would help to quadruple sales of the Atari 2600.
• Space Invaders was also the first officially licensed arcade game, helping to start the trend of porting games from arcade to console as well as licensing from other media.  This would also lead to some of the worst games on the Atari 2600, including the likes of it’s Pac-Man port and the game E.T.
• The poor treatment of Atari engineers also lead to several employees leaving the company and forming others, the most successful of which was Activision.  This helped bring the rise of third-party developers.
• The Atari 2600 also brought about the first real protests against video games, specifically due to Mystique’s Custer’s Revenge.
• Unfortunately due to controversies like these, the Atari 2600 would help contribute to the video game crash of 1983, which would subsequently lead to the domination of the market by Japanese corporations.  American corporations would not again offer a major game console until the release of the Xbox by Microsoft nearly two decades later.

Strengths

• After several years of poor performance for both Atari Inc. and Fairchild Semiconductor, Fairchild gave up and effectively handed Atari the entire home video game market.
• Featured a large selection of games, including many with historical impact for various reasons. The first Easter Egg in a game was found in the Atari 2600 game Adventure, which is also credited as creating the action-adventure genre.
• The original unit came packed with two controllers and the game Combat, proving mutliplayer was a focus right from the beginning.
• The console features an active homebrew community that releases several titles a year, so people who think they’ve played everything always have more to look forward to.
• While it may not necessarily compete with today’s standards, for the time the Atari’s graphical ability was cutting edge and could be manipulated in interesting ways for enhanced performance by manipulating colors of sprites, to the point it could compete with the generations that followed it..  The audio capabilities may not be grand, but considering the quality, there are some quite memorable tracks from the era.
• There are many third party peripherals for the console, and many of them are interchangeable with some Japanese consoles of the era.  They can also be used on the Sega Master System and Genesis with some issue, while Sega’s controllers can be used on the Atari 2600

Weaknesses

• Unfortunately those graphics really haven’t aged well, and the audio can vary from quite good to making you want to claw your ears off..
• Games are generally simplistic, and story exposition and saving weren’t readily available.
• A large portion of the games on the console are garbage, created by companies with no business making games solely to earn them a few bucks.
• The console and games are very old, so some games are pretty rare, and fixing the console can be a difficult task.  Atari 2600s built in 1980 are particularly known to be difficult, and may experience problems if kept on carpeting due to static electricity.
• Controller maintenance can also be a problem, as people have a tendency to unwittingly abuse the joysticks by slamming the sticks about when getting into games.
• The PAL version has a limited color palette: 104 versus the NTSC’s 128.  Folks on the SECAM system got it even worse, only getting an 8-color palette, due to the Television Interface Adapter.
• While games will technically work on any region’s machine, though this will sometimes produce visual errors such as missing colors.

Game Library

• The Best Affordable Atari 2600 Games – Most of the best 2600 games are quite common and dirt cheap.  It’s easy to start a solid collection full of nostolgic goodness without breaking the bank
• The Rarest & Most Valuable Atari 2600 Games – on the other end of the spectrum, there are also a lot of super-expensive 2600 games that are some of the most desired games to collectors.

Hardware Specifications

• The Atari 2600 CPU is a MOS Technology 6507.
• Video is handled by the Television Interface Adapter, or TIA for short.  It lacks video RAM, only generated a single line of video at a time, and used different color palettes depending on the signal format of the television used.
• Audio is also handled by TIA, on two mono channels.
• RAM: 128 bytes, though more might be included in individual cartridges.
• ROM: 4 KB maximum capacity, though this could be bumped up to 32 KB or greater using a technique known as bank switching.
• RCA is the output for the Atari 2600.
• Most versions contain two motherboards connected via ribbon cable, though the CX2600-A only has one motherboard.

Hardware Variations

• The CX2600 Sunnyvale “Heavy Sixer” is the original release, featuring six large switches as well as an increased weight to the console due to an extremely thick plastic casing and aluminum radio frequency shielding. The molded casing is curved on the front edges, and the unit was originally constructed in Sunnyvale, California.  The Sears Video Arcade was the variation of this console for sale in Sears, Roebuck and Company stores.
• The CX2600 “Light Sixer” is similar to the original, though with less plastic molding to reduce weight.  A channel select switch is built into the bottom right of the console.  The casing also drops the curved front edges.  Again, six large switches are featured on the top of this console. These were produced from roughly 1978 to 1980, after production moved to Hong Kong.
• The CX2600-A looks similar to the Light Sixer, except the difficulty switches have been repositioned to the back of the console, so only four switches stick out on top.  1980 is the year these start production, going through 1982.
• The Atari 2600 “Darth Vader” is the first to actually use Atari 2600 as the logo.  It loses the wood paneling of previous consoles in favor of an all-black exterior, which is how it earned its nickname.  1982 is when these start production, though they are deemphasized in 1984, and replaced in 1986.
• The Atari 2600 “Jr.” was a redesign of the original console, released in 1986.  The console looks similar to the Atari 7800, with a smaller, cost-effective frame.
• The Atari CX2000 was a prototype intended originally for children, though it was never released.  It featured built-in controllers, and a black paint job which was later changed to blue.
• The Atari 3200, which featured a variety of codenames such as “Super Stella,” was also never released when it was discovered that the prototype was too difficult to program for.  Originally it was planned to be compatible with Atari 2600 games and feature a 10-bit processor.  The Sears Super Arcade II was a different name for this console.  Once it was canceled, Atari moved on to the next project, which would result in the Atari 5200.
• The Sears Tele-Games series is the official name for the Sears, Roebuck and Company variations of the Atari 2600 line, featuring several rebrands of Atari titles for these consoles as well as three games unique to the Tele-Games brand.
• To attempt to cut themselves in on the profits, Coleco designed an adapter for the Colecovision, as well as the Coleco Gemini, a console that played Atari 2600 games and featured Donkey Kong as a pack-in game.  Few of this console were produced.
• There are quite a few other knock-offs and clones, such as the TV Boy series in Europe, or the Dactar Video Game in Brazil, though while these package in quite a few games(127 on the original TV Boy), they suffer numerous problems and have been edited to remove copyright claims.
• More information on official consoles, variations, and clones can be found at the Atari Age website

Peripherals

	Starpath Supercharger The Starpath Supercharger is an add-on module, boosting the console’s RAM from 128 bytes to 6,272 bytes.  Games for it were all stored on audio cassettes, and featured catchy titles like Escape from the Mindmaster and Communist Mutants from Space. Find Starpath Supercharger on eBay
	Coleco KidVid The Coleco KidVid was an accessory that hooked to the second player controller port to allow audio cassettes to play alongside Atari 2600 games.  It’s also a portable cassette player.  Only two official games were ever made for it, Smurfs Save The Day and Berenstain Bears. Find Coleco KidVid on eBay
	Freedom Stick The Freedom Stick was a wireless copy of the NES Advantage that featured attachments to make it compatible with both the Atari 2600 and Atari 7800. Find Freedom Stick on eBay
	Joy Sensor Suncom released a controller similar to the Intellivisions, called the Joy Sensor.  It used a circular censor that was touch sensitive, and are apparently pretty well built. Find Joy Sensor on eBay
	Trackballs Several trackballs were released, including the official Atari 2600 trackball.  A really nice perk to the official one is that it featured buttons on both sides, so both right and left handed players could use it. Find Atari 2600 Trackball on eBay
	Atari G1 Light Gun The Atari G1 Light Gun was the official Atari Light Gun for the Atari 7800, though it was compatible with the Atari 2600 as well.  It’s still not as cool in design as the Crusader, which looked a bit like a machine gun turret. Find Atari G1 Light Gun on eBay
	Freedom Connection Competition Pro’s Freedom Connection allowed gamers to hook their controllers into it instead of the actual console, sort of a weird precursor to wireless controllers. Find Freedom Connection on eBay
	PointMaster Fire Control The PointMaster Fire Control, released by PointMaster, was a cheat device that hook into the controller port and then had the controller hooked into it.  When the fire button was pressed, the Fire Control would being repeatedly sending that signal, essentially giving the controller rapid fire. Find Fire Control on eBay

And this barely begins to scrape the surface, considering the massive amount of joysticks, keyboards, keypads, and other peripherals available for the console.

Emulation

• MESS -  The Multi Emulator Super System handles the Atari 2600 library, along with just about every other Atari console, with attention paid to accuracy.  It’s ideal for the homebrew community.
• The Stella emulator, originally known as Stella 96, is an open-source multi-platform emulator built in 1996 by Bradford W. Mott.  It can emulate most of the console’s peripherals, and can support NTSC, PAL, or SECAM versions of games.  While it was built using C++, JStella is a modified version to allow it to play in Java applets over the Internet.  It is also well-designed for the homebrew community.
• PC Atari Emulator was created by John Dullea in 1996.  It can be used with MS-DOS or Windows.  It also emulates various controllers, though it is almost entirely incompatible with cassette-based peripherals.
• z26 features versions for Windows and x86 Linux, while an older version is compatible with MS-DOS.  This emulator is specifically capable of handling cassette-based Atari 2600 games, especially the Coleco KidVid games, though since it is a command-line program some may find it daunting.  A variation, x26, includes a GUI for Windows.

Affordability

• Game prices are mostly towards the cheaper end of the spectrum, with some cartridges having values as low as $.75 according to Video Game Price Charts.  A few do get up there into a hundred dollars or more however.
• Consoles fluctuate in price, but $50.00 will get you a console, controllers, all the necessary cables, and usually a few games included.  Some people will ask for a lot more than that though.

Presented by Racketboy & Ack

To complement the comprehensive guides to the impressive Sega Saturn and Playstation Shmups libraries, we’ve updated and expanded this Dreamcast 2D Shooter guide.   We now have more of the newer post-mortum shooters included and hopefully made it a bit more informative.  If you have anything to add, just let us know in the comments!

While it only started out with a few shooters from Psikyo and Capcom (most of which looked like nice 2D Saturn games), the Dreamcast gathered quite a library by the end of its life. In fact, MOST of the 2D shooters for the console were released well after the Dreamcast was “dead” in the United States.  So yes, if you wish to play most of these, you will need to learn how to play Dreamcast imports. But if you are a shooter fan, you will not regret investing in some of these Dreamcast gems.

Ikaruga

A pseudo-sequel to Treasure’s Radiant Silvergun, this mind-bending shmup is incredibly popular and combined high-precision shooter action with the color-matching gameplay element found in Treasure’s adventure game, Silhouette Mirage. Ikaruga still blew away every expectation that the shump community had while the rumors of a Radiant Silvergun sequel were discussed. Ikaruga is brutally difficult, but the gameplay is refined to near perfection. It has developed a strong cult following (much like other Treasure games) and is a common way to show up a shmup expert’s skills.  Treasure understood this challenge and included tutorials and a trial mode.

Ikaruga is a traditional vertical scrolling shooter like Radiant Silvergun, but there are a few twists. Like Silhouette Mirage, your ship and every enemy is assigned one of two polarities: dark or light. While your ship can switch back and forth between light and dark, the enemies are static. White enemies fire white bullets, and black enemies fire black bullets. As the player you have a choice: by choosing the same color as an enemy you can absorb their bullets and charge up your super weapon. By choosing the opposite color as an enemy you can double the damage you inflict, but their bullets will kill you. If you want to score big you need to kill enemies in groups of three according to color, “chaining” these groups together.  Since bosses retreat after a set period of time, it’s also possible to make it through the game without firing a shot, so some attempt to make it through by merely avoiding one color while absorbing the other.

The challenges in Ikaruga are nearly endless, and Treasure did an unbelievable job of presenting the player with all sorts of interesting and unique situations. The game even features a TATE mode where   the game can be rotated into a horizontal shooter and artwork featuring ship designs.  While every gamer will not be up for this gaming wonder, it’s definitely worth looking into if you want a challenge.
Find Ikaruga on eBay

Under Defeat

At the time of its release, Under Defeat was billed as the last Dreamcast game to be officially released.  And while this claim was a bit premature, this title would definitely have been a high point to end on.  Under Defeat is a retelling of WWII, where you play as a German-speaking helicopter pilot in a uniform reminiscent of the Nazis.  The enemy is a group known as the Union, who speak English and use WWII-era equipment and vehicles in an attempt to take you down.  The gameplay is done in vertical SHMUP style with 3D graphics, and follows a traditional system of controls.

That said, it also features different optional weapons with varying levels of firepower and recharge rates.  The weapons not only can deal massive damage but serve to add additional multipliers to score, so figuring out the best way to get points is part of the fun.  Multiple resolution modes can be jumped through on the fly as well, so there’s a large variety of ways to view the game, which is pretty cool for a game generally considered traditional.

And while the bosses can be a challenge, the player doesn’t actually have to kill them.  With each one comes a countdown.  Once it hits ‘0,’ the boss self destructs, for fewer points than would be given for beating them.  There’s also an alternate game mode known as 2-1 which flips the stages and increases the difficulty for those who make it through the game.

Three versions were presented when the game released, though they were functionally all the same.  The Limited Edition included a bonus soundtrack, while the Sega Direct version included the soundtrack, a poster, and a sticker.  The standard version was game-only.
Find Under Defeat on eBay

Bangai-O

Originally released for the Nintendo 64 in 1999, Bangai-O(or Bakuretsu Muteki Bangaioh) is much better known as a Treasure release on the Dreamcast.  The game features 44 levels, where a brother and sister named Riki and Mami pilot an enormous robot named Bangai-O as they fight a group known as the Kosmo Gang, know throughout the universe as an evil band of fruit smugglers.

Ok, so it’s a little odd, but what you end up getting is a non-traditional title with large stages, two characters you can flip between with different attacks, and a massive amount of firepower.  If you like quirky Japanese storylines and getting to destroy a lot of stuff, this is probably the game for you.  The Dreamcast version added new enemies, bosses, different level layouts, and utilizes an ‘Explosion Meter,’ which keeps track of the number of explosions to give better fruit from killed enemies.

Keep in mind that when you start playing, the starting AB control scheme is considered terrible(even the manual acknowledges it isn’t as good).  Changing to the ABXY scheme is recommended for everyone, and is the preferred.
Find Bangai-O on eBay
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Border Down

G.Rev’s first post-mortem Dreamcast shmup featured a new twist on the shooter genre. Your performance actually determined the branch of each stage you would play in.  The game is a horizontal shooter with a system of keeping score based on time, number of points accumulated in a stage, the hit-counter from boss fights, and so on.

Border Down features a unique “border system”, each stage has a green, yellow, and red border and these have 3 parts. Consequently, there are three different paths you can follow, each with different challenges. If you die, you go down a border: green to yellow, yellow to red. If a player dies on red, then the game ends.  One border is not necessarily harder than another(though enemies tend to fire faster on yellow and red, these versions also tend to be shorter), its a matter of personal preference and it differs from level to level.

The bosses in Border Down look especially cool and the explosive effects are very satisfying. In some stages you see battles occurring in the background and that makes you feel like part of a group rather than a lone fighter against a vast armada. Overall, the game looks very slick as you would expect from a late Dreamcast shooter.

A limited edition of the game was released, including a soundtrack CD and different cover art.  Both versions received a very limited release.
Find Border Down on eBay

Zero Gunner 2

Zero Gunner 2 is actually one of my favorite shooters, but that’s mostly because I’m not very good at most of them. This helicopter shmup is not overly challenging, so I find it to be the game I pop into the Dreamcast when I need to blow some stuff up without having to stress out. I would also recommend Zero Gunner 2 to those looking to get started in the shooter genre.  It offers nine levels of difficulty to play on and includes three different helicopters to play as.  There are 7 levels, which is brief enough for those who aren’t used to the genre to continue to the end.

One of the best parts of this game is the ability to change the direction your ship can fire. Holding down X or B prompts a cross-hair like cursor in the center of the screen, and using the D-pad while the cross-hair is visible rotates your ship around the cross-hair. If you have enemies coming in from the back left and right diagonals, simply rotate your ship around to fire at them instead of waiting for them to come into your line of fire. This also serves to spice up the conventional vertical or horizontal scrolling most shooters must abide by.

Certain parts of the stages, mostly during boss battles, will occur from a diagonal position, and the direction is constantly twisting and turning, adding a very fun but not frustratingly difficult aspect to the gameplay.

While Zero Gunner 2 has 3D styling, it operates on a flat axis with no vertical movement, so it is a pure 2D shooter at heart. While your ship itself is small, everything else is beautifully detailed. Enemies are characteristically tremendous, and litter the screen with weapons fire.

Overall, the gameplay feels comfortable after only a few levels, and definitely serves to breathe new life into what some call a tired genre.
Find Zero Gunner 2 on eBay

Mars Matrix

If you are looking for a challenge that depends more on dodging and a never-ending rain of bullets as opposed to the puzzling elements of Ikaruga, Mars Matrix is where you need to look.

Mars Matrix fills the screen with intricate backgrounds, dozens of independently moving objects, and intense arcade action. Your tools in dealing with an onslaught of bullets from all directions are a fairly standard laser gun, a powerful pulse weapon, and a special attack that can allow your spacecraft to inhale incoming fire and return it in a fierce volley.

Mars Matrix also offers a 2-player mode where two pilots can lay waste to the Red Planet in tandem. And then there’s the glorious Shop Mode. Picking up the gold cubes also nets you experience points, which you can then spend in the extensive Shop to buy more levels, ships, continues, options like ship speed and GHB gauge speed, and even ship and background colors. Mars Matrix has an extremely high replay value at it will be quite a while before you unlock everything.
Find Mars Matrix on eBay
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Triggerheart Exelica

This is one of the more recent releases for Dreamcast, not seeing release until early 2007.  The game focuses on Exelica and Crueltear, two ladies in the Triggerheart team fighting a war against the Ver’Mith.  A portal opens and the two are accidentally sucked in, finding themselves trapped on Earth.  While making themselves comfortable on their new home, a second portal opens, and the Ver’Mith come streaming through.  So now it’s up to the two of them to save our planet.

The game is a vertical shooter with 3D style, though it’s a 2D experience.  While it’s graphically not as impressive as the Xbox Live port, the Dreamcast version did add a Story Mode and Arrange Mode to add more replay value to the game.  Players must choose which of the two leads to run through the game’s 5 stages, with both having different standard weapons.  To add more meat to the game, both characters can fire anchors to catch enemies, and can then use them as shields, clubs, and even projectiles by hurling them into other enemies for better scores.  Just watch out, because the higher the score you acquire, the harder the boss at the end of the level.

When it released, Triggerheart Exelica also had a special edition release, including a guide book and soundtrack.  A phone card and poster were also included if ordered from Sega Direct.
Find Triggerheart Exelica on eBay

Castle Shikigami 2

This beautiful shooter is the sequel to the game known as “Mobile Light Force 2″ in the Western territories. Castle Shikigami 2 enables players to control flying humans instead of ships. It isn’t ground-breaking in any respect, but is a good game to pick up for shooter fans.

The scoring device for this game is called a Tension Battle System (TBS). Your score multiplier increases the closer you are to an enemy or bullet. Therefore, to get the highest scores, you must destroy enemies while brushing up near an enemy bullet or enemy (Think of it as Crazy Taxi meets shmups). To compensate for putting your character in harm’s way, your character’s shot power and shot pattern are enhanced while you are close to your enemies and their bullets.

In addition to the TBS system, some basic mechanics of the shmup genre have been altered. For one thing, you have a life bar, as opposed to dying as soon as you are hit, as in most other games of this type. You can be hit twice and still live; get hit a third time, and your character dies. Also, your “bomb” is not what you may think. As opposed to the usual “blow everything on screen up” type bomb, you have a character-specific move that, while powerful, requires a bit of strategy to use effectively.

There are five difficulties to play on, and an unlockable “extreme mode” for those who make it through the game.  Once again, a special edition released in Japan with a soundtrack and trading cards, while the Sega Direct version included a phone card.
Find Castle Shikigami 2 on eBay

Psyvariar 2

To earn points in Psyvariar 2, you must destroy your enemies and also “buzz” their attacks, meaning get as close as possible to their bullets without actually getting hit.  Large portions of your ship are invincible, save for a couple of pixels in the center.  This means to get the best scores, you have to willingly risk death and pray you take nothing straight up the middle.

While the original Psyvariar was disappointing, Psyvariar 2 brings the real deal to the Dreamcast. While the shmup is flooded with a tremendous amount of “bullet hell”, the game’s controls are tight and responsive enough to give you a chance at staying alive.

Also, between the 2D/3D backgrounds and the wonderfully polished character/mecha designs, Psyvariar 2 also features a great deal of eye candy to keep you entertained.  Unfortunately the Dreamcast version would go without some of the features made available in the PS2 and Xbox ports, but that doesn’t mean the game was unpopular.  In fact, the Dreamcast version’s the most sought after.
Find Psyvariar 2 on eBay

Twinkle Star Sprites

A port from the Neo-Geo original, this game wonderfully combines gameplay elements from both the shooter and puzzle genres to make one charming game.   Twinkle Star Sprites plays like a vertically scrolling shooter, but you actually play head to head against another player in split screen fashion. By destroying lots of enemies in one go (chain combos) you send more bad guys over to your opponents half of the screen. Once this process begins, it is very similar to modern competitive puzzle game like Puyo Pop Fever and Tetris Attack.

There are also bosses to contend with, Death Attacks if the match stretches on too long or if a player is idle for thirty seconds, and different kinds of attacks which can be created by reflecting enemy shots(creating Reverse Attacks or Extra Attacks).  To further instill competition, whenever a player takes damage, their opponent gains back half of that amount in health, helping to extend the match.  If you are a shooter fan that is stuck in a rut, nothing will give you a breath of fresh air like Twinkle Star Sprites.
Find Twinkle Star Sprites on eBay

Last Hope

This game started as a homebrew project for the Neo Geo AES  by German independent game developer NG:DEV.TEAM.  The DC version was published via redspotgames.  It centers on the impending destruction of Earth, which can only be defeated by a single ship, the Z-42 Warpstar, which can be warped behind enemy lines to destroy the alien leader.

To do this, you have to pilot it through horizontally aligned levels, wielding a shield that can be rotated around you in full circular motion to deflect enemy fire.  The game is similar to R-Type in presentation, but features fully hand-drawn backgrounds across its six stages, and it runs at a smooth 60 frames per second.  Controls are simple, with one button to shoot and two to rotate the shield pod to the left and right.  The game features four difficulty settings.

Unfortunately, it’s difficulty has actually been one of its greatest criticisms, as shrapnel from exploding enemy ships was often the same color as enemy bullets.  To counter this criticism(as well as a few others), the development team has been working on a retooling, known as Last Hope: Pink Bullets, which does include pink bullets, as well as faster ship speed, lower difficulty, and slightly altered colors to make the game brighter.  The original version released alongside a limited edition version, which included the soundtrack.
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Trizeal

Trizeal is a vertical shooter ported from the Naomi board arcade version, combining 3D graphics with classical 2D gameplay. In the game, your spacecraft can be morphed into 3 models supporting different shooting types, including front missiles, homing rockets and wide shot.  Backgrounds are also played with a bit to show distant ships or things coming in from various angles, giving a sense of depth to the screen.

Trizeal delivers a steady stream of enemies to blast through. Bonuses can be “chained” together in combos to build up your weaponry, so you won’t want to share too many of them with your friend in two-player mode.  Also included in the Dreamcast port are several levels not in the arcade release, a score attack mode, and a sound test.  Both Omake Mode, where levels are short but enemy patterns are much faster, and Lifting Mode, where you have to juggle a stone on your ship to gain points, are both unlocked by beating the six stages of the game.  A ship from Triangle Service’s older game, XII Stag, is also hidden in the game.
While a sequel was released in 2007 under the name Exzeal, a Dreamcast port has not been officially announced.  That doesn’t mean it’s not rumored however, so keep your ears open for this one.
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Chaos Field

This vertical-scrolling shooter puts its own interesting spin on some aspects of the traditional shooter formula. Unlike most other shmups, Chaos Field features very few enemies on screen at one time. Large enemies that could be boss characters in other games are the majority of what you will see in Chaos Field — each with many points that must be destroyed before the player can advance.  Generally this style is known as “boss fest.”

In order to defend yourself, you have the traditional unlimited blaster, and a blade for clearing the incoming bullets (kinda like a windshield wiper). You will find this device indispensable, as often the screen becomes entirely filled with gunfire that must be eliminated to survive.

Finally, there is the ability to switch between an “Order” Field, and the namesake “Chaos” Field. Switching to the Chaos Field renders your craft’s fire more powerful, but makes enemy fire more damaging. Luckily, this is not a one-hit-you’re-dead affair. You are allowed to take more than one hit, and the amount is variable via the options screen.
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Gunbird 2

If you are familiar with Psikyo’s Strikers series of shooters, Gunbird 2 won’t offer you many innovations – in fact you will notice many similarities. While it is a typical Psikyo shooter, it  doesn’t have much to excite shmup fans that are addicted to Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga.

The game definitely looks a little long in the tooth graphically as it could easily pass for a Sega Saturn game like its prequel. In terms of gameplay, there is not much depth or strategy. You simply power your gun up as high as you can and try not to get shot.  Humor seems to be the real focus of the game.

To give you a little variety and replay value, players are offered the selection of four base characters, with two hidden characters, including Morrigan of Darkstalkers fame. Each character has their strengths and weaknesses that include differences in such categories as firepower, homing shots, and close range attacks.

Additional levels and more original gameplay elements would have made this one a must own title. Instead, we are left with a mediocre title that only keeps shooter fans mildly entertained.
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GigaWing & GigaWing 2

Giga Wing casts off the strategic elements that fans of the genre often look for in favor of exaggerating the action. Instead of shooting at you in big bursts, the enemies totally blanket the screen with fire that simply cannot be avoided with slick maneuvering and well-placed shots.

To combat this wave of fire, you have a tool that creates a force field around your aircraft to repel the countless projectiles back at your foes and produce oodles of items to snatch. You can also wipe the screen clean with smart bombs, which produce similar results.

There are several different planes to choose from, each with different standard weapons which can be upgraded via appropriate power-ups, but not a great deal of variety is added to the game because of this, because fighting your way to the end is really just a matter of using your reflect force at every opportunity and dropping bombs whenever the screen gets cluttered.

You are given unlimited continues and when you use one you pick up at the exact same point you left off, so there’s not much incentive to be careful where you fly or to deploy your bombs conservatively. Pretty much anyone can pick up this game and beat it on their first attempt with the proper amount of patience.

You won’t find a huge difference between GigaWing and GigaWing 2 other than the fact that Capcom pushed the graphics a bit further. While the original GigaWing was based off the older CPS2 arcade hardware and looks like a Saturn 2D game, Gigawing originally ran on the Dreamcast-friendly Naomi arcade hardware. With this new hardware, GigaWing 2 took cues from games like Radiant Silvergun with its 2D sprites on top of 3D backgrounds. Unfortunately, the graphics alone weren’t enough to boost Gigawing 2 above its predecessor.
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Radilgy (aka Radirgy, Rajirugi, or Radio Allergy)

This is an odd game.  Much like Chaos Field, you have three different ships to choose from and the gameplay is said to be like a cross of Chaos Field and Mars Matrix. If you’re just playing for survival, it’s not a very tough game for experts. Going for the big score is another story though. It’s a huge challenge to keep the multiplier meter going, especially during a boss battle. It’s tough enough just to destroy the bosses before timing out.  The gameplay also borrows heavily from its brother, Chaos Field such as the ability of the player’s ship to swing a sword to cause damage, and destructible enemy fire.

The graphical style is very unique for a shoot-em-up as it sports an anime-style, cell-shaded look that some have compared to Jet Grind Radio, but I think it looks more like a hand-drawn, Macromedia Flash-like style.

Radilgy breaks the mold from traditional shmup style and will stand out in a crowd. While it’s not one of the better Dreamcast shooters, collectors will probably want to pick it up.  A Sega Direct special release included a phone card, while another included a phone card and a refurbished Sega Dreamcast.
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Karous

With this release, the Dreamcast was officially dead to third party titles.  Featuring a visual style and some gameplay elements similar to Radilgy, this vertical shmup included a strange system known as the D.F.S. Bomb.  Wheranever a bomb is used, a shield goes up around the player which can then be used to kill enemies, garnering more experience points for them.  Both the weapons and shield can be upgraded after getting so much experience points, up to level 100.  Weapon levels are also treated as experience multipliers, and the sword generates more so if you’re going for a high score, that’s the way to go.

To further gameplay, there’s an interesting item system which can upgrade weapons, affect speed, recover health and shields, or fill the SP meter, so the Bomb can be used again.  Enemies and their shots aren’t very quick, and there’s a very limited number of enemy types, so after a couple of levels, you’ve seen everything.  Enemy waves also don’t vary much, so don’t expect a sudden change in gameplay.
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DUX

DUX is a horizontal shooter, developed and released by HUCAST.net & KonTechs Ltd.  A mysterious new material, named DUX, has been discovered, and a ship has been built out of it to fight a war against a group known as the Spiritual Spacers.  However, the material isn’t exactly stable, so they have to find a real nut to pilot it.  That’s where you come in.

This region free game includes six levels, an upgradeable weapon system that can be charged up for more power, and an upgradeable shield pod(yes, like R-Type) device that can be launched as a weapon if necessary.  The scoring system features a similar risk/reward system to Psyvariar 2, though this time your ship’s a bit bigger than a single pixel.  The game’s graphics are an interesting point of contention: you either love them or you hate them.  Still, backgrounds can be disabled by choosing the “perfect” video selection in the Options menu, and if you really like the images, the game was designed with the Dreamcast VGA box in mind.

Unfortunately the game apparently had some bugs when initially released, though word is that replacements are free.  A special edition was also released that included the game’s soundtrack.
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Honorable Mentions

Drill
While it is possible to find the demo for this vertical shooter on the Internet, the production team making it apparently fell apart soon after its release when the lead programmer was given offers to work on titles for the Nintendo Wii.  So it appears Drill will never be released.

Rez
Some folks may debate whether this rail shooter should be on the list alongside all the scrolling shmups present on the Dreamcast.  That still doesn’t mean it’s not at least worth a mention, especially considering how many people seem to love this game.  REZ features the player as a hacker in a computer world, attempting to destroy viruses while stopping the central computer, Eden, from shutting down.  But killing enemies also adds beats, causing the player to affect the music.  Throw in the multi-colored wireframes that make up the game, and it makes for one unusual, but incredible, experience.