Progressing in Shmups, when to play a certain game?

[Erik_Twice]

Many shooting games aren't designed for the general uncultured public but for fans of the genre or experts and it can be a bit daunting to know which games to play. So I thought this would be nice to create a sort of "list" about what games you would recommend to play to a newbie or a relative fan of the genre.

For example:

Beginner Shmups: Anyone can enjoy it and beating it (1CC) should be attainable without rigurous training.

Ex.
Deathsmiles
Gate of Thunder
Gradius
Lords of Thunder


Average Shmup: Accessible but you'll need to involve yourself to a certain degree to beat it but probably no more than Mega Man or Castlevania.

Ex.
DonPachi
DoDonPachi
Gradius II
Xevious

Expert Shmup: You should already be acquaintanced with shmups and you'll probably need several clears to enjoy these games fully.

Ex.
Battle Garegga
Dangun Feveron
Gradius III
Ibara
Ikaruga
Radiant Silvergun

What do you think? When do you think someone should start checking out crazy Yagawa stuff? What Toaplan game teaches you how to play Toaplan games without getting murdered with Truxton? And yes, I think there's a huge jump between Garegga and any games in the "average" category that perhaps deserves another distinction.

Discuss!

[ExedExes]

Xevious can be beaten? I've gotten really far but never saw any real end.

I'm not the person qualified to answer this. The shmups I have 1CCed were mainly on consoles, not arcade, and those few I did I probably could use a hand to count out. Oddly enough, my best shmups are the ones that have no definite end (Galaga and other earlier arcade examples)

[Erik_Twice]

Xevious can be beaten? I've gotten really far but never saw any real end.

It loops after the 16th stage, so no, it cannot be beaten but kind of "can".

I'm not the person qualified to answer this. The shmups I have 1CCed were mainly on consoles, not arcade, and those few I did I probably could use a hand to count out. Oddly enough, my best shmups are the ones that have no definite end (Galaga and other earlier arcade examples)

I've yet to beat any! Hence why I'm interested in this.

[ExedExes]

In all honesty, even killing the mothership before it escapes (or you die) is victory enough. But I LOVE Xevious just because it's the right amount of difficulty for me. Even the ports are great (Arrangement, NES, Atari 7800)

Guess I can get serious. One shmup I have 1CCed was UN Squadron on the SNES. I think that's a good one to get started on too. It's easy enough and the weapons you get can really help out.

Gradius III on the SNES (since I saw you mention it on the "current shmup played" thread) I'd probably slot in the middle-range of your list. It's not easy. But, it's not real difficult after some memorization. Play it on Arcade difficulty for best results (as far as difficulty goes )

Darius Twin would go on the harder tier, owing to the series' already difficult reputation. I only play it with the 50 life code so I can see the end. That's obviously not going to be a true 1CC, but it's an easy completion that way.

That's all I got for now.

[Ack]

Well, since you're interested in further tiers, why not something like this:

Novice
Journeyman
Advanced
Expert
Insane

As for what games go in what tiers, I don't think I'm much help, since I've only beaten a couple. I'd argue U.N. Squadron and Super Earth Defense Force are probably both around Journeyman level - memorization and understanding of item or weapon selection helps immensely, but levels generally aren't too frantic. Super EDF I'd say is easier overall than U.N. Squadron, but has a few places that are much harder.

[ExedExes]

Aye, Super EDF is a good time, and I'd slot that difficulty around UN Squadron.

[dunpeal2064]

This is a very interesting topic! I've got a few questions reguarding the goal of this topic:

For example, with Deathsmiles... will it hit the list multiple times based on the difficulty setting chosen? Or, since this is a "where to start", are we going by the easiest difficulty available? Then there are the Novice modes, should these be considered?

Also, should we have subcategories? I personally would suggest Vertical and Horizontal games be seperate, and Bullet Hell shooters to have their own category. Playing Gradius won't get me good at Raiden, but I'd be better at R-Type. Playing Shienryu won't get me better at Ketsui, but it will help with Raiden. Playing Espgaluda will not help with Fire Shark, but I'll probably be more properly equipped to tackle DOJ, etc.

Then there is the survival/scoring thing. Is this list oriented towards a player that wants to score, or just try to get some clears? This is huge, and changes not only what games I would suggest for skill improvement, but also where each game falls in a difficulty category (ie DDP for survival 1-ALL is easy, DDP for score is difficult)



All that said, I think the best way to improve is to stick with the game you are enjoying, no matter its difficulty. If you are playing Battle Garegga (Which is advanced maybe, not expert ), and you are having fun, sticking with that game is the best way to get better, and improve your overall skills at the same time.

[GSZX1337]

What Toaplan game teaches you how to play Toaplan games without getting murdered with Truxton?

Zero Wing?

[dunpeal2064]

What Toaplan game teaches you how to play Toaplan games without getting murdered with Truxton?

Zero Wing?

Yeah, I'd say Zero Wing, Vimana, and Batsugun are Toaplan's easier games. Granted, not sure that they would get you better at Truxton.

Maybe Fire Barrel by Irem? It has the same type of enemy fire as the tougher Toaplan games, but much slower. The game is pretty easy overall, but I could see adapting what you learn there to stuff like Truxton or Fire Shark.

[Chempop]

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Battle Garegga (Which is advanced maybe, not expert  

Wow that's a bold statement! Have you cleared it?