We got a chance to chat up Max from 24 Caret Games this past weekend about their unique rhythm game, ‘Retro/Grade’ (interview to come). Now, I think ‘Retro/Grade’ fits within the category of ‘SHMUP’ but guest bot, Vourtron disagreed with me and decided to write something about it.
I am on a quest for Shmups at PAX in Seattle. Do you think I’m some kind of pervert? maybe you don’t know what Shmups are: “Shmup” is the British slang for “shoot’em up” from the 80’s, and incredibly, the only word for this amazingly tight genre*. Shmups are games where the background scrolls by, while your guy-plane-spaceship-whatever shoots one direction and the bad guys come from the other direction and shoot towards you. You also have to be able to fly around freely. Contra- not a Shmup, Toobin- not a Shmup, Galaga- proto Shmup (not a shmup- they call that a “slider”). 1943, Raiden, R-type, Lifeforce, Dodonpachi’s- these are Shmups.
Unlike many modern games, which are played for fun, and are designed to be played through until the end and last forty hours. Shmups are played for a high score, and are designed to beat you as quickly as possible and last two to five minutes. Unless you’re me, who can last for 25 minutes. Nothing else requires the rudimentary amount of physical control and basic visual comprehension of Shmups. They are not about timing your jumps or learning the physics of a game. They are just about dodging and shooting in a primal kill-or-be-killed setting with your demise clearly in sight and the high score the only thing really on your mind. Just like life.
In Buddhist Japan, it’s fun to repeat and enjoy the same experience over and over and attempt to do a better job each time. They still make and play Shmups over there. In Christian America, it’s fun to go through the story once, overcome challenges, get the good ending or the bad ending, and never play it again.
This year at PAX, the huge convention of all the hundreds of games coming out this year– NO SHMUPS!!!!!!!!
After my three day search, here’s what I found:
1. Sina Mora
This is actually a great Shmup that came out LAST YEAR. The new element of this one is that you’re on a timer, you die when it hits zero, and killing enemies fills the clock back up, so there is a compulsion to kill as many enemies as quickly as you can (see cubes in Mars Matrix).Besides that, it’s a very traditional Shmup. The time death (rather than a bullet death) can feel a little euro-Shmuppy (look it up), and the strat can supersede the dodge sometimes, (see Radiant Silvergun). Also, it was originally presented (last year) in wide screen LETTERBOX format– so a very wide and narrow playfield (its a side scroller). Maybe they were planning on putting it in a Darius Burst cab in Japan or something.
Anyways, it came out last year as an Xbox live download, and it was only there this year because it’s been ported to the PSP Vita. THERE WERE NO NEW SHMUPS AT PAX THIS YEAR.
2. Retrograde
This is not a Shmup, it’s a rhythm game featuring space ships and scenes. The game begins with a few PRETEND SECONDS of real Shmup as you go through the motions of blowing up the final boss (see Bee Storm), followed by a fake credit roll. Then, the game goes in reverse and the screen is divided up into 4 or 5 horizontal tracks (of movement), and you move up and down the middle of the screen (amidst a backwards-running Shmup-like, side-scrolling action scene). You need to press the button as your returning shots hit the nose of your ship from the front and dodge enemy shots return to their ships (from your rear- that they shot past you). The constant up and down tapping with the left thumb and the anticipation of the converging bullets (while “catching” yours and dodging theirs) from two different directions, as well as the lining up or “aiming” element make it feel very Shmup-like. Mostly the dodge taps. The game was absolutely amazing, and the combination of Shmup-dodge and rhythm-tap worked very, very well. Phenomenal music, too.
Type “Shmup” into your iPhone to play any real Shmups this year (if you think fingertip Shmups count), or boot up your 90’s console, computer, or arcade machine.
And remember: is the game trying to beat you, or trying to let you beat it? It’s called honor.
*There’s another word for Shmups, its “STG” which is the japanese slang for “Shoo-Ting Game”. Cool people call them Shmups. Other words allude to the genre, or refer to sub genres, (like “Bullet Hell Shooters”, “Space Shooters”, “Top Down Space Blasters”, “Side Scrolling Shooters” or any other dumb batch of words) but Shmup and STG are the only proper terms for the whole shebang. Too bad there’s not an easier term for “Side-scrolling Beat’em’up”.
For research: Check the forum at shmups.com (if you want to lighten them up- a lot of anal Shmup super fans over there). Or load up your MAME emulator and check these: Darius Gaiden, Dodonpachi’s, Mars Matrix, Stikers 1945’s, goog “MAME Shmups”, goog “Dreamcast Shmups”, goog “Cave Shmups” (Cave is a company that still makes Shmups in Japan) go crazy. There are soooo many good Shmups from the PAST.
-Vourtron
Retro/Grade is out now on PSN for $9.99.
http://www.retrogradegame.com