Got my wisdom teeth out yesterday and have been home recovering since. Excellent opportunity to play some games without having to worry about much else. In the past 24-hours I've spent ample time with these titles, all STGs. This will surely go down as the year of the SHMUP for me lol
42. Gigawing 2 (Dreamcast): I will begin by saying that this game has some pretty cool features; I really like the 3D backgrounds and some of the ship design, as well as how each fighter you can select handles different, and has different shot types and different bomb attacks. The controls are also very smooth and precise, however this is kind of where the enjoyable aspects stop. The biggest issue with this game is one of its key gameplay mechanics which is let down severely by an very long lag, which in a game like this is unacceptable; I died far too many times because the bullet absorb attack, which is required to get through most of this game took nearly a full second to initialize between the time my finger hit the button for it and when it actually started. The other issue I have is regarding just how underwhelming and bland this game is. If it's main mechanic actually worked well and the enemy/boss variety was better then this game would have been far more fun but instead it just sort of stayed in the "meh" territory for me. (6/27/17)
43. Gunbird 2 (Dreamcast): Because this game was made by Psikyo, one my my least favorite SHMUP devs I didn't expect to be a huge fan of this game, and you know what, I was right. This is not my first outing with Gunbird 2; since purchasing it about 5-years ago I have returned to it again and again hoping that I'll like it the next time I play it, but it simply falls flat on me every time. The game is absurdly imbalanced and aside from some good sprite work and somewhat catchy music, the game itself is unremarkable boarding frustrating almost constantly. The later stages in particular are a huge mess, especially with the game sending you back to the beginning of the stage in the later levels if you use a continue. This is not a game I enjoy or would recommend. (6/27/17)
44. Soukyugurentai (Saturn): Before playing Soukyugurentai I assumed I would like it, but I did not expect to fall in love with this game as much as I did. There are very few shooters that have keep me on the edge of my seat like this one. Also, the games homing attack, of which there are two, add a layer of depth to the gameplay that very few other SHMUPs can match. The challenge is fair, the balancing is great, and the enemies, bosses, and stages are varied and interesting. Since getting this last week I have had a hard time putting it down and it is definitely a top five STG for me. (6/27/17)
45. Mushihimesama (PS2): First and foremost the presentation in this game is outstanding. Graphically and the cool, unique art style of insect and plant type enemies is a breath of fresh air in a genre dominated by space ships, disks that shoot lasers, and the occasional mech enemy. The soundtrack here is also really good as well. Gameplaywise is where this game sort of unravels a bit though; this game takes bullet hell to a whole new level, often throwing an insane amount of projectiles at you to the point of absolute absurdity, especially in the maniac and ultra difficulty settings. The game compensates for this by giving your character an ultra small hit box that will at times seem like you just passed right through an enemy bullet. While this is all fine and dandy, a significant portion of getting through this game without dying seems largely in part to luck, almost just as much as skill. If it were not for the deliberate need to manage the enemy crowds and having a general of idea of where you needed to be in general to avoid getting destroyed, this game would be a mindless, imbalanced piece of crap, which it certainly is not, but still, too much is left up to hoping you don't get hit in a series of seemingly hopeless scenarios that give you little option than to just move around and hope for the best. Maybe not worth its glorious reputation, but certainly an STG worth checking out and experiencing. (6/28/17)
