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Post by Joseph Joestar on Mar 20, 2015 16:23:09 GMT -5
Has anyone else tried the 3ds version? I ended up buckling down and getting it so I could check it out and talk about it. It's definitely not worth $30, but if it ever goes on sale again for $15 I'd recommend it.
It has a lot of the changes from the GBA version, like the redistributed powerups - in the original you'd reach the max level pretty early, while in this one it's closer to the end of the game. Some of the bosses have changed; I definitely preferred the original Level 1 boss with the weird extendo-cannon. The zeppelin is definitely more powerful in this one as well, but has a different arc for the bombs (which takes away its advantage against the Level 3 and 5 bosses). The escape in Level 2 is a lot more interesting, with different paths to take rather than a single winding one.
Graphics are nice, and all of the little details on the vehicles look great - my only problem is that they took away one of my favorite animations in the original (and GBA), since the zeppelin gondola doesn't shift when you move backward or forward.
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Post by Feynman on Mar 20, 2015 16:52:20 GMT -5
Graphics are nice, and all of the little details on the vehicles look great - my only problem is that they took away one of my favorite animations in the original (and GBA), since the zeppelin gondola doesn't shift when you move backward or forward. Yes, the way that part of the zeppelin shifts when you move left or right in such a great bit of detail in the original game. Shame the 3DS version lacks it. On that note, I've played the 3DS version as well now. It's pretty good! Lots of balance changes as well. They put more effort into making the zeppelin and plane more different from each other, and the changes made to the Zeppelin's bombs are for the better, I think. They're a lot more consistent in where they land, and they fire in faster clusters, bringing them in line with the plane's arsenal and rewarding skillful positioning better than the zeppelin's bombs in the original game do. I like the zeppelin a lot more in the 3DS version than in the original. A lot of the boss changes are welcome as well. The missing cannon on the train boss is a bummer, but most of the boss changes are for the better. One thing I really don't like, though, is that it can be really hard to tell when you're damaging a boss. In the Genesis version, you get a nice obvious flash when you hit a target, which makes individual targets and weak points obvious. But in the 3DS remake you only get a small red lighting effect that seems to occur no matter what you're hitting with your attacks. It is often difficult to tell which individual parts of a boss can be targeted, and what the weak spot is, and that annoyed me greatly. |
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Post by Joseph Joestar on Mar 20, 2015 16:57:27 GMT -5
Graphics are nice, and all of the little details on the vehicles look great - my only problem is that they took away one of my favorite animations in the original (and GBA), since the zeppelin gondola doesn't shift when you move backward or forward. Yes, the way that part of the zeppelin shifts when you move left or right in such a great bit of detail in the original game. Shame the 3DS version lacks it. On that note, I've played the 3DS version as well now. It's pretty good! Lots of balance changes as well. They put more effort into making the zeppelin and plane more different from each other, and the changes made to the Zeppelin's bombs are for the better, I think. They're a lot more consistent in where they land, and they fire in faster clusters, bringing them in line with the plane's arsenal and rewarding skillful positioning better than the zeppelin's bombs in the original game do. I like the zeppelin a lot more in the 3DS version than in the original. A lot of the boss changes are welcome as well. The missing cannon on the train boss is a bummer, but most of the boss changes are for the better. One thing I really don't like, though, is that it can be really hard to tell when you're damaging a boss. In the Genesis version, you get a nice obvious flash when you hit a target, which makes individual targets and weak points obvious. But in the 3DS remake you only get a small red lighting effect that seems to occur no matter what you're hitting with your attacks. It is often difficult to tell which individual parts of a boss can be targeted, and what the weak spot is, and that annoyed me greatly. Yeah, the "damaging" effect was weird and hard to recognize at first, I thought that was unfortunate. Overall I like the changes that they made to the game, although it really does make the game much easier. I wish they'd have changed up the final boss, though - it's still as big of a slog as on the Genesis (although they make what you're supposed to do to avoid the last attack pattern more obvious, which I liked). So far I'd say I like the 3DS version the best, but Genesis/MD a close second. The Genesis game looks really good, but it's so dark! One thing I thought they improved was the color choices and lighting on 3DS, since you can actually see stuff for once. The GBA edition isn't a bad game, but it's far inferior to the other two I felt because of how crowded it feels. |
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Post by Joseph Joestar on Mar 21, 2015 23:24:40 GMT -5
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Post by Feynman on Mar 25, 2015 22:56:53 GMT -5
That is a good interview! It gives a lot of insight into the thought process that went into Steel Empire's design. It isn't often that one sees somebody cite Dragon Quest as an influence on their design for a shmup.
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Post by kal on May 5, 2015 9:23:34 GMT -5
 How are you supposed to even make art for Shmups. |
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Post by derboo on May 5, 2015 14:46:50 GMT -5
How are you supposed to even make art for Shmups. Let Cave help you with this question...  ... your take is just as glorious, though! |
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Post by kal on May 6, 2015 3:46:21 GMT -5
How are you supposed to even make art for Shmups. Let Cave help you with this question... ... your take is just as glorious, though! I really only have more questions now. |
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Post by shadowzero128 on Jun 7, 2015 0:08:15 GMT -5
Thanks for the awesome episode! I'd like to name-drop another vintage SHMUP that is *all* about shooting in multiple directions - Toaplan's Hellfire. It saw a 1989 release in the arcades followed by a 1990/1991 Megadrive/Genesis release. I was never very good at it, but it has a very Zero Wing-esque vibe.
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