I can’t believe you sang the “Fish Heads” song 😂🤣😭.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Mark Smith Feel lucky I didn’t sing more of it 🤣. That’s a song you love and hate simultaneously. I got my boy singing it way back when he was younger. Gotta raise em right. I was wondering how many would catch that 😆

@IamMarkSmith

4 жыл бұрын

Shmup Junkie my reactions 😱................😂🤣😭.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

nuwavghost I still have old cassette tapes laying around with those recordings along with classics like Boot to the Head 😆

@IamMarkSmith

4 жыл бұрын

nuwavghost hey! What’s happenin?

@opaljk4835

3 жыл бұрын

Love Barnes and Barnes work with Wild Man Fischer

This guy came outta nowhere, quickly becoming one of my favorite You Tubers. You rock!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

That sounds about right haha, I've only been doing this for several months now. All I ever planned was making some good pc engine mini videos and hoped people would watch them, and people liked them so much I just kept going. Now I have so many other vids I still want to make I'm not sure where to start first. I hope to keep doing them long as I can.

That was a fantastically inspired selection and an honest assessment of the difficulty of the more intense Genesis shmups. Great job!

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

ostiariusalpha Thanks! Glad you thought so. Wish I could’ve included a couple more I really wanted to but I guess that’s more content for an upcoming video.

Wow! Great channel! I'm love old-school shmups and glad that I found such excellent videos dedicated to many of my favorite games.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks! I've been slaving away the last several months making about one video a week, so there is lots more content like this here. And I hope you enjoy it. It's all a labor of love (and pain haha).

Just picked up Undead Line and having an absolute blast! It's hard no doubt but really, really fun (and yes, those spread daggers are an absolute must!) I've actually really enjoyed almost all of these hard Mega Drive shooters though I don't think I like Gaiares as much as others. It's definitely fun but I feel like once I die on anything past the third level I should just turn it off and start over as powering up your weapon can be really, really difficult! But yeah, Undead Line, Grind Stormer, Air Buster and Eliminate Down are all so much fun and all jumped towards the top of my favorite Genesis/Mega Drive shooters. Great videos Shmup Junkie and we all look forward to more.

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Wow one of my first early videos from a couple years ago. I always enjoy people still finding them. I was having a grand ol time making them at the start. It was the same for me with Undeadline I found it super fun. It quickly became a favorite to play on the MD. All of these really even the Twin Cobra port which is honestly great. Just way too hard after a certain point and one I have no desire to complete ever again 😅

Found your videos the other day and loving them! The detail you put in is really good. Shmups don’t get enough love!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Awesome! I'm thrilled you found me and like what I've been doing. Shmups are definitely getting more love now! Between myself, Electric Underground, Mudprints and a few others. But we can always use more. I'm excited to see how the genre grows this year.

That Grind Stormer ost is freakish!

Great stuff! I think I'll definitely give UD another try now. It was one of the first games I picked up when I started collecting shmups around 2000, and I hadn't developed my skills to a point where I could manage it at the time. I'd like to see a whole video on the "walk-em-up" genre - Elemental Master, Twinkle Tale, etc, as I love that style of shooter.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Dojonpachi I enjoyed it way more than I expected it’s really fun. If you can nail down not getting screwed up by the item pickups I think you can take this one down no question. The trickiest boss was the mini Dracula boss right before the final. I save up my 3 bombs for him at the end as the final boss is easy once you know the pattern.. otherwise it can slaughter you quick. That is a good video idea actually! I’m going to note that down and see what others besides what you mentioned I can find. Not many but those are all cool. I always thought elemental master was great fun back in the day.

Eliminate down feels like the Gunstar Heroes of Genesis shooters, i love it! Thanks for the reccomend, Id never heard of it until now!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Yeah it’s fantastic. Pretty much copies all the popular games and mixes them but does it really well. It’s exorbitantly expensive for the original but the usual piece of cake on any flash drive.

Just started playing Undeadline. Think your summary here is spot on. Boy is it brutal to start with! But it's a right blast, and very rewarding too.

Great vid again mate. I’m not too clued up on shooters for the Megadrive. Eliminate Down looks awesome, I’ll be trying this out very soon.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

You'd enjoy ED it's a fantastic game. If you can take down Gradius 2 you can this as well with practice. Well, I don't think you'd enjoy ED but you'll enjoy the game lol.

I'm loving your videos :) . Great work!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks! I particularly enjoy making these top brutal videos, even if it's some serious work on the harder games.

Killing it! Another great episode. I had the V-V arcade PCB and could never finish it. Your videos are inspiring me to "get good"!

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Chad Ballew This game is hard as hell. If it wasn’t for me saving at the start of each level to practice then and improve it would take forever 😅. Long levels too and getting kicked back when you die is rough. Far as I’m concerned it’s the hardest on the mega drive I’ve yet played to beat fair. Not even going to think about a second loop 😂

Yet another amazing video man. I really don't know how you pull this off and in such a short time. I wouldn't be able to beat any of these in a year and you do it IN 1 WEEK and video editing on top 😅 I might have some ED problems cause I really enjoyed that playthrough 👏🏼👏🏼

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Bruno L I don’t know either 🤣 On other vids I’d beaten the games before so it’s not all bad. But this week had couple new ones I never had. To be fair I still save a state at the start of each level. So I can replay the harder ones a few times until I can perfect them. Or in the case of insane games like Garegga and DDP just get good enough to play it well and not look like an ass 😂. The recording and editing is a big time kill though too for sure. I need a stand in 😅

Best back shelf arrangement I've seen ... purely shmups ...

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Yep, I started calling it the wall of shooters 😅. I have and play other genres but most of my physical games are STGs. Thought it would be cool to have a cabinet wall dedicated for them.

very informative videos! And that collection, its amazing!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

dezm101 Thanks! I just started watching the Gradius videos last night too. Good stuff so far. I get a free 30-40min every evening so I’m working through it. Already seeing some cool info I didn’t know before.

love it mate! keep up the good work! gonna use your Undeadline tips 😁

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Ronald kuijten Give it a shot! If anything it will help. I kept that same one weapon the whole game. I also did the levels in order the difficulty progression felt right. The bosses will take practice but once you get their patterns they are the easiest part.

Cool. I always loved Truxton and Raiden fighters. Ikaruga etc. Will be checking these out on emu.

I didn't remember that Grind Stormer is so graphically beautiful. I must play it again.

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

The arcade version especially is awesome! The art design was done by none other than Naora Yusuke of final fantasy fame and you can see a lot of the early influence.

Love you videos man! keep it up

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Detron Phillips Thanks! Hope you enjoy this one too 👍🏻

Brilliant video, really informative and entertaining. Top lad.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks. One of my very early ones when I was getting started but still one of my favorites.

Love these videos. Was really hoping to see Gaiares on this list, but glad you mentioned it. I was big into the TF games and MUSHA as a kid, Gaiares was the first shmup I played where it felt like eating hot sauce just to brag about how hot it was instead of because I actually liked the flavor.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Michael McClenney Guilty here of eating way too much overly hot sauce 🙋🏼‍♂️😁 I feel like I’m not done with the MD games yet and I may do a shorter follow up next video with 2-3 more I don’t want to miss, Gaiares being one of them. Then see if it displaces any from this week. TF is one of the all time greatest if I ever did a best shoot em ups 3&4 along with Musha would be there.

@qwpeoriu

4 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie please do, i would definitely look forward to that!

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

@@qwpeoriu Just played through it this morning and recorded all the footage. : ) In the works. I'll tell you though I played Twin Cobra next and what an insane game that was... hardest I'd played for the MD aside from Grind Stormer. I was doing quite a bit of cursing but it will make for some funny commentary haha.

Thunderforce IV played on mania is the hell in life

Good stuff as always man

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

SegaSaturnSNK Thanks 😊 hope you enjoyed this one. And thanks for sharing!

I've never played Air Buster, and I was digging it, and then you mentioned zero gravity. That killed it for me. I'll still give it a shot, but I won't go out of my way looking for it.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Nefarious Wes I’ll admit those stages take some work to get the hang of. It’s a trip trying to dodge with momentum in your movements. Funny you mention this game as I’m doing a battle of the ports video this week that’s almost done comparing this one to the Turbo port... and man is that version sadistic!

@NefariousWes

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie That should make for an interesting video. I'm taking care of toddlers right now, so may take a bit to get through this video, but I'll get there.

I just recently discovered Grind Stormer. Absolutely love it. You can tell it's from the same team as Truxton for sure. The music is too damn good!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Ken Murawski It’s a truly kick ass game that’s pretty unbelievable for a mega drive port imo. Lots of aspects impressed me. From what I understand now (and didn’t know when I made the video) Tsuneki Ikeda from Cave was one of the programmers. That explains its similarity to Donpachi for me when I played.

I would say this is pretty accurate, Eliminate Down gets vicious towards the end. Good video

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Mega Drive Profile Thanks. I missed a couple really tough ones here so I did a follow up with those two more in a part 2 with Gaiares and Twin Cobra. I just checked out your Gaiares review so I’m sure you’ll appreciate me adding that one in. But Cobra was the real beast it threw me for some loops after having played other versions.

THUNDER FORCE 3 and M.U.S.H.A my top 2 on the MEGA DRIVE

I picked up Twin Cobra at a thrift store for $3 about 5 years ago. It is a challenging shmup and it has taken me a while to warm up to it. When I bought it, I had no idea how good of a game it actually was.

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah challenging is an understatement on the mega drive port. It is a great game. People see the basic graphics and write it off, but it sounds great and has the gameplay chops.

Wow killer video dude, very cool.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

FightGet Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it. Spent a good bit of time on it.

Twin Cobra Genesis Port is a awesome port from arcade and is hardest game that I'm try hard to get high score in arcade style

Been playing Undead Line for hours today. It really is super hard! Pro footage here, damn. The item grabs are definitely the hardest part of the game

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

If it weren't for those items it would totally be an easier game. Playing with auto fire enabled is kind of a must, but it makes getting the right item really touch and go. The bosses can totally be figured out well, but the levels can always get you with an errant pickup. Just something about the game I find really fun though regardless.

brilliant vid once again mate. Ill be looking to pick up a couple of these now... maybe not ED though, im too young for that.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Minty Retro Never too young for ED my friend 😂 just don’t overdo it on the crack like I do. The price of the game will give your bank account ED

Keep the high quality content coming

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

wlados22 I’m trying! 😂 working on a really funny one this week... well at least to me 😅

Love your video’s! Big fan. Keep it up.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Fabian Carta Thanks! I plan to. Just gotta stock up on more of that butt paste to keep the thumb from leaving me 😆

@fabiancarta

4 жыл бұрын

Shmup Junkie Could’ve used it a while ago after receiving my Core Grafx Mini 🤣

This is an *excellent* video, and not just because I agree with much of what you say. Of the games you pick, the one I found impossible to progress in is Undeadline. It couldn't believe you finished it. Clearly there's a lot about it I don't understand. And yeah, those bosses are intimidating as hell. I used to play Air Buster / Aero Blaster too and agree with all your points. It gets a bit much with the zero-gravity and spraying homing missiles. Congrats on finishing it - I've never come close. The game I was last working on myself a few months back was Eliminate Down, but I never quite cracked the stage 3 finale. What an amazing experience though, and what a pleasure to see some of those later sadistic set pieces captured. I'll definitely return to this one at some point. Some of the music is so hard, it's wild. Hellfire is an interesting one and definitely NOT a harder shooter IMO. Maybe my familiarity with it (I used to play the arcade game as well as the OG JPN Mega Drive release in the early '90s) made it more of a comfort game rather than a brutal assault but it really couldn't be too much friendlier IMO. Firstly, you have an overpowered ship that can flood the screen with its weapon in any direction in matter of microseconds. That's a lot of power it gives you (and being fully powered up looks more effective than actually is). Secondly, most bosses / enemies are a cakewalk with the first challenge perhaps being the sphere-based mini-bosses half way through the game. Also, the checkpoint system almost always allows you get powered up and even get maxed out really quickly. Sometimes I'll purposefully die immediately to get sent back even further to stock up on a shield and rack more points. It's a grossly misunderstood game and up there with MUSHA as one of the easiest shooters masquerading as a toughie. And I say this as someone who finds Thunderforce III - apparently an 'accessible' shooter - as hard as nails. The only part of Hellfire that can feel unfair to me is the final battleship run without any weapon upgrades. It's doable but the strategy required to make it is way more involved and challenging..but it's still nothing compared to how helpless, say, Gradius II or III can leave you should you happen to die in the wrong spot. About the dancing alien creatures that pop out sometimes: They're random as far as I'm concerned. I've 1CC'd this game in every regional format on Easy and Hard, 1st and 2nd loops ('rounds' in Toaplan-speak), and there really is no rhyme or reason explaining their appearance. I've had a run before where I've had 6 or 7 of them pop up consecutively - which sucks because they always replace a power up. They get old, and you'll wish you could kill them. I'd advise you to try the original JPN release if you can. There are some really nice visual touches they removed for the Western versions and I'm convinced the hellfire weapon itself is next to useless in the US/EURO ones. Lastly - I'd say that I much prefer the MD version of Hellfire over the PCE-CD version because it feels like the finished, refined article. Both home ports have simplified graphics and redesigned sections but I prefer the checkpoints and additional extras found in the MD port over a two-player mode.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

-SG6000- Thank you for all the detail I’m glad you found it entertaining too. Air Buster I have been playing since I was a kid. It’s very tough but the PCE version is even harder so I am used to it. Undeadline I never played before. But I found the bosses were the easiest part once you learn the patterns. Like the last boss looks hard but you saw in the video that you can work around it’s pattern. It’s just memorization. It was also my first time with Hellfire and I picked of because of reputation. But after I played I thought it was much easier then the other four. Good game but not super tough. So I made a second mega drive video and I added two more games if you ever see it. They are both good choices and much tougher than hellfire. If I had to pick I would say Twin Cobra takes the place of hellfire. It’s exceptionally tough. The PCE version of hellfire is sooo easy. I will do a video comparison but I can tell you I agree the MD version is the better game. Easily agree.

Gaiares should definitely be on here. It’s much tougher than Air Buster.

@ShmupJunkie

9 ай бұрын

It is! Check out part two of this video where I featured Gaiares and Twin Cobra. The TG16 version of Air Buster is definitely where it’s at in terms of brutality compared to the MD, man those last stages kicked my butt as a kid.

Fabulous choices, I will need to play Undeadline ASAP. I’m noticing a personal trend I like SHMUPS that are top down and aren’t the traditional space ship theme. Love the mechs and other fantasy themes. We want the smoke! 😎✌️

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Kortland12 I was always a sucker for fantasy themes. If I see a dragon shooter like Spirit or Futari I’m all over it. 😁 Someone else just mentioned the ground based type of shooter and that I should do a video highlighting some really good ones of that style. That’s a really good idea I think I will!

@ostiariusalpha

4 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie You might also make a passing mention about what separates a "Walk 'em Up" from a conventional top-down Run 'n Gun.

21:32 'If you pick up one too many Speed Boosts you'll be Bouncing off the Walls like a Crack Smoking Humming Bird!' . . . Legendary Analogy and So True about Megadrive Hellfire! 😂😂😂

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Was watching a hummingbird in my front yard the day before and what made me think of it lol, true story. Some of those early games were bad about balancing speed ups.

Great video! Air Buster - Losing all sense of gravity like asteroids would complete change the game mechanics and be extremely tough...not sure how I feel about that. 😂

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

RetroThunderGaming It’s pretty disconcerting to control haha. It doesn’t take time get moving like Asteroids but it continues moving like it if you aren’t manually changing direction. What’s funny is the effect is even more pronounced on the TurboGrafx version. And the last stage is another level of hard. It’s where 1CCs go to die. 😂 Is going to have fun doing a comparison of the two ports sometime soon

I have my MD with overclock mod so no more slowdowns and while is damn good to play the games that way it just shows how brutal those really are, specially V.V, damn that thing is hard, not impossible but almost lol

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

I never thought about overclocking mine but it would be really fun to do that with my extra and see how some of the games feel. V-V-V definitely has slowdown as it's pushing that console way harder than it was meant to be back then. It really was ahead of it's time. I can only imagine how it plays without any as like you said, it's insanely hard. Hardest game I ever played on the system imo.

I love Genesis sound and graphics so much. It really has the perfect retro look and feel.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Nostalgia is the strongest aphrodisiac, it's what we grew up with that we usually remember and enjoy most. That's how I feel about old NES games myself having grown up playing the original Contra, Vania, Ninja Gaiden etc. on there. I'll never get tired of going back to them.

I just finished up eliminate down, this may be my new favorite shooter on the MEGADRIVE, i acctually felt like everything was trying to kill me instead of just a pattern, cant believe i passed this up for 30 years. REDICULUSLY UNDERATED

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Right? It’s one of the few crazy expensive and rare games where the juice is worth the squeeze. I love it as well. Even more wild it was an obscure developer that didn’t make any other games. I would’ve loved to see more from that team whoever they were.

@StevenCusic

Жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie on mobygames it says they released Nakajima Satoru Kanshū F1 Super License (1992) Lords of the Rising Sun before eliminate down one of which has a port too the cdi interesting enough i kinda cheated but also made it harder on myself, i used the emulator genesis plus GX wide and created the wide screen mode, but i also overclocked the game so i had no slow down lol

Looking forward to watching your take on Gaires later. Hopefully you touch on that infamous magazine ad! 🤣🤣🤣 Such an interesting Kirby-like mechanic in that game.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

😂 Once you see my thumbnail I made for the next video with Gaiares, you will immediately have an answer to your question! It was impossible for me not to do it.

@user-ow3hz8wx2k

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie I just saw it! 🤣🤣🤣 I kept having Gaiares autocorrected, so thats why I couldn't find it. Typical katakana to English problem: the game should really be called Gaia Less.

Now i need to buy everything... 😭 Great video as always

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Mat Ten haha yeah some of these games rock. Don’t buy Eliminate Down though it’s like a retirement fund. A repro will do or on the Everdrive. But it’s so good can’t go wrong with it.

Knock out video again brother! 👊. I need to replay all of these. It's been ages. The Genesis/MegaDrive has always kicked ass with Shmups and this is a great showcase of that. Excellent gameplay capture too! Tons of nostalgia watching this video man. Thanks for sharing! Fish heads, fish heads 🐟🐡😂

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Mark M Eat them up Yuuuum 🤣. I love and hate that song haha. Thanks again glad you enjoyed it. I thought it was a pretty stellar line up of games too. The hardest aren’t always the best so I was glad to showcase some good and rare ones here.

The discs of saturn level of eliminate down looks awesome

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Mat Ten Eliminate Down is a beautiful game. I love that level too it’s so cool 😎

I have a repro of Eliminate Down that I still need to finish. When I bought it years ago I played it for a few hours but back then I couldn't hang. It is such a great game though. Another fantastic video!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Same here mine is a repro. It quickly became one of my fav on the mega drive but the price is out of control. A lot of people hadn’t heard of it that watched the video and later got to trying it out via roms. So mission accomplished. Getting people to discover new shmups was why I started this whole endeavor.

@ahgodamit

3 жыл бұрын

Yeah, it is definitely working because if I didn't already know about it, I would have gotten it after seeing this video. Haha.

thanks for the great tips! I recently finished ED on easy and it was already pretty demanding. Will give a try on normal

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Schlarp Tarf any time glad it was helpful. That’s awesome ED is such a cool game. It’s so obscure I try to tell people about it whenever I can if they’re looking for a good MD game. I’ve not tried it on easy before but I’ve no doubt it’s still difficult toward the latter half.

Picked up a Sony Trinitron from 2005 recently that is just perfect condition locally really lucked out but it’s been giving me a chance to really go back and enjoy the Genesis the way I want to and man it’s so good. Eliminate Down is one of my new favorite Shmups, never heard of it before your vids so thanks for that. They have some crazy details, did you notice the dead floating astronauts in the asteroid field that explode with alien wriggling tentacles if you get too close. Can’t wait to finish this one as I’m just getting into it.

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Glad I could get one more person playing Eliminate Down that game rocks. Definitely a top 3 or 4 on the console for me too. Nothing like playing it on a tube either. I think I even mentioned that alien worm and astronaut in the video segment, or at least in one of them I did for the game. It’s wild how this no name dev made the game with no prior releases and then disappeared after. Would’ve loved to see more from them.

Over $1,000 for ED?! I'll see if I can track down a repro. And Hellfire has been on my list for a while, but I never see it in the wild. I love its Masaya-styled HUD. Great video, man! I've been a big shooter fan ever since the Genesis, but haven't played 'em all, so it's cool to see some new ones. I've covered a few Genesis titles on my channel like MUSHA, Thunder Force III, Elemental Master, Wings of Wor, and maybe a few others. Been a few years since I've covered a Genesis shooter, though. I need to get back on it. Looking forward to checking out some more vids!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Nefarious Wes My copy of ED is a repro as well. Awesome game though I’m a fan. I’m actually checking out your turbo mini video right now 😁. Enjoying it so far esp the games section. Glad you found me on here I’ve only been at this for 2-3 months and it all started with my mini review.

@NefariousWes

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Cool, man. Someone shared this video on Twitter, so I had to check it out since it was on Genesis shooters.

Just two minutes into this video and you my Adrenalin pumping ! What good times and that Mega Drive Sound , Love ! Need to dust off Undeadline and play again ! :)

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

This one was super fun! I especially enjoy Eliminate Down and V-V. And it was one of my first experiences playing Undeadline proper and I loved it much more than I expected, as I know it's a love it or hate it kind of game. The frantic pace of it though is right up my alley. That last boss seemed impossible at first, but once I just practiced him over and over I figured out the pattern to take it down. I wish I was dusting my copy off I'd love to have a physical of it. Really went up in price before I knew well enough to get it.

@wizards-themagicalconcert5048

3 жыл бұрын

​@@ShmupJunkie I can imagine ! Just looking at those gameplay clips brings back lots of good memories. But at the same time I must think how times flies ! its been already over 30 years :( Glad you enjoyed your experience with Undeadline more this time around, and yeah that last boss kicks ass. Back then I enjoyed techno softs elemental master much more. They had the better music imho that kept you in full power mode. Made you feel like nothing can stop you ! Haha Eliminate Down I stumbled by accident over back then, a friend who went to Japan bought it and disliked it, so he sold it to me. Never heard of it but i liked it a lot ! You are right, sadly a lot of those games are up in price these days. Just feel lucky I started collecting in the early 80's already with the Atari and C64 ! I will keep my eyes open for a cheap and good copy of Undeadline and let you know if something comes up !

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

@@wizards-themagicalconcert5048 If you are a collector too, do you post your stuff anywhere and chat like on a particular FB page or IG? Just curious. I connect with quite a few in both places so was curious if you frequent any of those so I can find you.

@wizards-themagicalconcert5048

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Yeah a natural collector as well so to say ! :) But never posted anything of what I have collected over the years. A few years back I moved to China because of my work and with many sited blocked here and I am not to familiar witch sites are good for shoot em ups. Any directions ? Would be nice.

@NLSagat

3 жыл бұрын

@@wizards-themagicalconcert5048 maybe on the shmup junkie discord, in love seeing collections as well (most retro gamers do i think)

I find some later levels in sol-deace to be an absolute hell, there is one boss that pursues you with lasers that can drain all your lives.

OMG... before I watch this, a quick story about Undeadline.. I used to shop at Die Hard whenever I could, and one time they had the MD version on clearance for like $10. It looked cool from the art, so I bought it. And WOW was it tough! I mean, learning the correct powerups at any givel point, you can make it more manageable, but going in cold was just BRUTAL. Not only that, the overall theme is downright spooky and creepy, which somehow made it more stressful! Eventually I cleared the menu of levels, only to find... MORE levels! I just about died IRL when I saw it wasn't over yet. I still get PTSD from just watching this game! But I still have my cart, I will master it someday...

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Dang man that's a truly great story, I love hearing those. If only I was lucky enough to grab a copy and keep it. I still don't have a physical of it but would love to, but at a few hundred bucks I keep holding out for a deal. I was honestly dreading it, as I had heard it's reputation, but when I really enjoyed how fun it was, that all fell away. The bosses seem super hard but once you figure them out were the easiest part, even that last boss. It was actually the vampire mini boss before the final that I found much harder and used up my saved stock of "bombs" The stages were tricky and especially the treasure chest pickups, just messing up and not getting the right item, or trying to shoot them just right while trying to stay alive. But I love manic games like it so it became one of my favorite. I heard the x68K port of the game is much enhanced and very, very good so I have been wanting to try and emulate it next. Emulation is very hit and miss on the 68K. I've been wanting to do a video on enhanced 68K ports of classic games, as so many are the best versions of the game. But the MD port is still great fun I was glad I tried it.

@jameshakola3603

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Your vid definitely made it look easier than I ever found it to be, I need to try again I think. You're right about the power up chests being a cruel joke, that's definitely a big factor! I did luck out on a few games that turned valuable later... This one, MUSHA and Android Assault were my luckiest scores

Eliminate Down, Gynoug, Truxton, Hellfire, Gaiares would be my top 5.

Im slowly going through your back catalogue of videos. Ive always been a shump fan and your channel is an absolute dream to watch. I do hope you expand further into other platforms like the 8 bit machines, id love your take on those games I've never owned a Mega drive but i do plan to play some games on emulation as ive noticed I've bypassed a load of gems, Eliminate Down is an incredible, colourful and variety laden shump which looks sensational. Great video 👍

@ShmupJunkie

11 ай бұрын

Thanks and yes, I absolutely will bit by bit. I love the old 8bit consoles and grew up with them so I’ll enjoy showing those too. I had a lot of fun making these older videos so I’m glad some people are still going back and finding them to enjoy. The quality of the editing and audio has come a long way since these early vids but you can tell I was having good ol time with them. ED is a top 3 shmup on the system for me so I really try to show the game off every chance I get. Shame that developer only made the one game.

Just played Hellfire today while I played Eliminate Down all evening yesterday as both games have some similarities, your review is on point! I had to use the game genie to go to the end and was wondering what others were saying here! Can’t manage to go far w Hellfire while I can get some rythm in ED. 🤓

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Hellfire is very memo heavy aside from some tricky stuff like the stage 3 orbs. It's even worse in the arcade and quite tough. Definitely one of the harder games on the console. I did a part two on this video later adding on Twin Cobra and Gaiares, two more pretty brutal games... especially Twin Cobra yikes!

I thought Air Buster was fairly simple until the difficulty was amped on the 3rd level

Adjustable speed in the pause menu is a really nice touch

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

It’s the only game I know that had it that way. Usually it’s live while playing. It’s a nice feature that would’ve been nice in many other games where getting too fast is an issue.

My opinion is, Gaiares is the difficultest shmup. And Elemental Master...😅 Thank you for your great Inspiration to this unbelievable Games!

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Yes Gaiares is tough! I did a part two for this video with that game. Elemental Master just has amazing music too some of the best ever.

@xiom71

Жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Yeah, the music from Elemental Master was unbelievable. And the Tracks from Hellfire are for ever in my ears, i played this Game first 1991...😅😅😅

I think I would put Gaiares over Air Buster (maybe also Twin Cobra but didn't care for it anyway), but I agree with the rest from what I can remember. TF4 on hard is also up there. Good stuff! I see now you made a p2 hehe.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

I did! And I put Gaiares and Twin Cobra both on there haha. They both deserve a spot, although Twin Cobra also deserves a special place in hell 😅

Funny thing about these lists is every game I bought as a kid is on them. Never really got into SHUMPS. Maybe that's why.

Still watching all your vids and loving them, even though I suck at shmups. Lol. But I did wonder why you call the systems by their Japanese names if your from the US. Not originally from the US or maybe just a preference for those names? Obviously not important, was just wondering. Oh and btw, you always manage to pick the best songs for the background music during your narration!

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Honestly I don’t know it’s just what I’m used to. Like with Nintendo I tend to use NES and SNES not Famicom. For pc engine depends on what I’m talking about, sometimes I use Turbo. Genesis is a weird one as that’s what I used to call it forever though I knew the original name. Once I got into collecting a bit more that community almost exclusively uses mega drive. So I got used to that over time and it became the default. So no real reason honestly aside from what I’m used to for various reasons. Though if I talk about a game that’s only from a certain region I try to use the right one. Like I wouldn’t call Tatsujin a Turbo game cause it just isn’t.

@ChaossX77

Жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie ah I see. That last part makes a lot of sense and I never even thought of that. Appreciate the reply. Just wondered like I said I'm sure 99% of the people that watch your channel know what you mean so it's not like it's an issue either way anyway.

I like a good challenge! After getting my MD Flash Cart, I booted up Eliminate Down and it became the first Shmup I ever beat. Kicked my balls tho haha

Excellent as always 👏👍 but I find that Thunder Force IV should have been in your ranking 😉 (personally I find, for example, Hellfire much easier than TF IV)

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Prehisto Geek Thunder Force 3 & 4 belong in the greatest shooters of all time category 🤘 💥. I expected Hellfire to be harder than it was from all the online reviews and videos. I think when I do my next video and play Twin Cobra and Gaiares it may lose its spot BUT it was still really fun. Of course not on the level of Technosoft masterpieces 👍🏻

@prehistogeek7090

4 жыл бұрын

Shmup Junkie 😁😉

I regret not getting all these while I had the chance!!!

I thought I was a fan of the Genesis/MD but I've never seen or heard of these! (save for Eliminate Down) definitely want to play these though

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

There are always some crazy obscure ones that many haven't. Undeadline especially is uncommon and it's an acquired taste, but I really had fun with it. ED is awesome and it's the one you know. I figure you'd heard of Air Buster too it was pretty popular. I even missed a couple really hard ones that I wanted to add on, so I did a part 2 to this video with Gaiares and Twin Cobra.

Makes me wanna play Mega Drive games!

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

The_Chronicles_of_a_Gamer if watching some of this brutality makes you want to play them instead of run away then my work here is done 😆

Big respect for completing and 1CCing many of these extremely tough and demanding games...they are really no joke....nowadays people get upset if hard games don't have an easy mode...Dark Souls is easily completed compared to these shmups, where 1000 deaths mean nothing. I ordered an Sg Mega (arriving tomorrow from the U.S., $50 shipping grr) to play/replay the MD/Genesis shmup library. Can't wait to play the Toaplan catalogue. I'm over 40 and a bit slow, but I don't mind replaying a lvl 100 times if I like the game and soundtrack! Nice work!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Jan-Niklas Hoffmann Thanks for the feedback I do appreciate it. No question it’s rare to find much these days as tough as these older games. I’m just over 40 now as well and my reflexes aren’t what they used to be either 😅. It takes more effort and some games I’m losing ground lol. Full disclosure I’m not always 1ccing all these but I’ve beaten them fair over the years. Making a video means I have to save when possible at key spots etc to show certain footage for the recording. So it doesn’t really count. Even if I can and have in general. The mega sg is awesome I use mine a ton. It works great with a flash cart and you can use original controllers. I love their stuff!

@bix64000

2 жыл бұрын

'78 gen here 😎 we rock. Megadrive and mega SG on CRT is the way to go! I love it and my wife ... Well she doesn't 😁 For me Gaïares gave me nightmares. I remember being scared to even start the game 😅

What do you think of Gynoug? I was always in awe with it. Not being a super player like you i never passed the 3rd or 4th stage 😅. Also the gameboy being my favorite system, i finished Parodius Da! on it last April, thanks to the confinement. I had a great time with it! The last boss was a real pushover! It's the giant octopus and it just stands there not attacking you, waiting for you to kill him lol

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Mat Ten Gynoug is super cool and really creative! Don’t feel bad it’s actually a tough game also toward the end it’s not a push over. Yeah the ending of Parodius is a parody on Gradius. The final boss brain of Gradius 2 also does nothing and you just kill it 😊. Getting to it is the hard part that’s a gorgeous game but very hard. I think I showed it in my pc engine hardest shooters video but I don’t think I showed the final “boss”. It comes right after the spider walker.

@CousinHubertRetrogaming

4 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie ahhh thanks for the info!

Bizarrely Eliminate Down's developer has virtually no credits to their name. They just showed up and dropped the mic on the Mega Drive then disappeared.

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

It's been a while, but I thought they were not even Japanese devs. I can't recall if they were Korean or from somewhere else. I guess since it wasn't huge and didn't sell well I can see them not making any more. Especially when the product was so well done.

For me, the most hard shmup on MEGADRIVE are Battle Squadron, Gaiares, Undeadline. And perhaps Thunderforce IV on maniac. I finished Hellfire with no damage ;)

I love hellfire. Musics are top tier, the weapon system is very smart AND the levels are designed around it. I struggle with stage 3 bosses where things happen too fast for my brain, and I don't remember ever getting to stage 5. Will have to get back to it with a little more shmup training.

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

The very definition of what made all those early Toaplan games so good. The design was impeccable. Especially impressive given it was their first ever horizontal shooter they developed. Hellfire is definitely underrated, even by Toaplan themselves!

Im surprised I didnt see Gaiares. I thought that one was pretty hard.

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Oh it’s in part 2! I did a follow up, Jamie Bunker would be proud.

Eliminate Down = unofficial sequel to Hellfire

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

David Medina And the better game far as I’m concerned... Hellfire is fun though. One of the few where I prefer the gameplay on the MD vs the PCE which feels like a weekend stroll through the park. It has waifu though 😊

Ever play Sub-Terrania on the Genesis? That one deserves to be on this list. Gravity is your worst enemy there as it’s basically a love letter to the old Atari arcade game Gravitar.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

I’ve always known it but never played it enough. It looks so familiar though like I played it on PC. You know if it ever released that way too? I watched some footage and it definitely looks like a pain in the ass but honestly also fun. It’s the kind of game I’d have played for sure if I knew it at the time.

Them crack smoking humming birds will be the death of me

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

I wonder who keeps putting that stuff in my feeder? 🤔

@darvon906

2 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie thanx it's awesome getting a reply from a video over a year old , going to subscribe 😀

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

@@darvon906 To be fair my channel is still less than two years old. But despite my newer videos having much improved production values, I had a blast making these old ones and am really glad people are still finding and enjoying them.

My favorite scrolling shooter will probably always be "Dragon Spirit" which is actually easy on the NES but hard if you play the original arcade version. I admit I can't fully explain why though, I just love it. (Edit: I also fondly remember playing "Solar Striker" on the game boy as well. A relatively easy and basic shmup compared to most too.)

15:35 Damn, who'd want to pay so much just to get ED?! 😂

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Especially when they can get it for free by simply playing Xenon 2 lol

@ChaossX77

Жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie 😂

the hell with #2 : O

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

#2? I love Air Buster it’s such a great game. Yeah it’s hard. You should see the turbografx version! 🤣

Hey SJ. The dancer chick in Hellfire is dancing to the bad ass soundtrack. If you beat the game on every 3 difficulty you get a different ending. The 3rd difficulty requiring a easy laughable code....

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Right on. That's exactly what she is doing haha. I didn't know there was a code to unlock that last difficulty that's cool... I always thought you just had to complete the game first on HARD.

You are so extra, and I love it.

Extermination by Taito needs to be on this list. If you dunno what you're doing with your powerups, you're screwed and even if you do, you're still screwed,

@crtgamer2355

11 ай бұрын

I missed the Megadrive part, lol Extermination is arcade only.

@ShmupJunkie

11 ай бұрын

Cool side note. I own the Extermination PCB and yes that game is brutal. It made a cameo in a video I did called Arcade Exclusive Games. I think I’m going to feature it in an upcoming video.

@crtgamer2355

11 ай бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Awesome, it's rare to come across someone who knows Extermination let alone played it. I first started playing it in the 80s at a shop that had it, and today I'm in my 40s and still can't finish it LOL Yet there were kids back then who could complete it with a single credit and max out the score. It is a hidden gem for sure if you can learn to master it. Problem is some of the powerups you really need sometimes is random, so that adds an extra layer of difficulty. You're very fortunate to own the pcb, what a rare gem you have :)

@ShmupJunkie

11 ай бұрын

@@crtgamer2355 It’s absolutely killer on my hand without auto fire and my Supergun doesn’t get the setting correctly for me to play it for extended lengths of time. So although I own the pcb it’s easier for me to play it emulated with proper auto fire lol. My hand can’t take the pounding anymore.

@crtgamer2355

11 ай бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Haha! That's why the first priority is to get the laser, which auto fires. But yes I agree, without the laser, you are screwed especially later on in the game. I'm using GroovyArcade with a cheap VGA to Component converter from China, connected to a CRT tv with component. Works really well, but overscan is a problem, as I don't have access to the V and H pots in the tv, but 320 x 240 games always fits the screen. Also it plays the games at the intended refresh rate and resolution automatically. I use Retroarch as a frontend.

The Donpachi similarities in V-V are no coincidence, it's directed by Ikeda founder of Cave and director of the Donpachi series. V-V is awesome.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Aureate Seigneur So I’m not crazy then to see all the early similarities to it. I just don’t think I’ve ever seen the connection mentioned before in articles I’ve read and didn’t realize he was directly involved in V-V. There were just so many little things that felt familiar. Thx for the aha moment 😁

@aureateseigneur5317

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Not even slightly crazy. Ikeda's style is pretty recognizable and it's all over V-V. Great call.

Undeadline is like Elemental Master on steriods.

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Elemental Master is awesome definitely a more refined game. And that soundtrack! Undeadline is just brutal but I grew to really enjoy it. I still need to play the Sharp 68K version as I’ve heard it’s another level of awesome with even more stages and of course enhanced graphics.

Did you ever find out where the dancing guys in Hellfire's first level are coming from? Easter egg or something? I've always been wondering and couldn't find any documentation about it online.

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

The little dancing pixies? That’s one of those questions I may be able to ask one day from the old Toaplan guard I have it on a list. It was likely just for a goof but I too want to know if it had any other meaning.

I think the Adventures of Batman and Robin for Sega Genesis counts as a shooter. Sorta like Metal Slug

Grind Stormer is ROUGH! I actually have the V-V version. Toaplan didn't mess around with difficulty. I didn't know that V-V is different from Grind Stormer.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

Nefarious Wes you can access both versions I believe from the title menu. I prefer V-V and yeah it may be the hardest MD Shmup I’ve played. Grind Stormer removes the weapon select bar and is more traditional. They’re both hard as hell but I find V-V more fun just from the Gradius style weapon mechanic.

@NLSagat

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie was looking for this as V-V defaulted to grindstormer on my mister even when set to japanese...will look for this option!

V-V... I own the arcade Pcb, hate that game, didn't remember it had a MD version, funny because I also had that one back in the day.

@ShmupJunkie

Жыл бұрын

If you hate it you could sell it for some good money. Think it’s an expensive board these days. I actually really like the arcade version it’s one of my Toaplan favs to play along with Tatsujin and Outzone. Still hard as hell though lol.

Ball Buster on Genesis is really Ball Buster EX because of that loading screen between levels.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

David Medina oh you know I’ll be mentioning that loading screen when I do the head to head vs pc engine. 😁 Turbo AB is the king of ball busters. I think the stage 4 physics are even more extreme and that last level is where 1CCs go to die. It’s insane.

Mention of Undeadline? => Video is legit.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

It deserves it's place among the best and the nastiest. I heard the Sharp x68000 version is awesome which makes sense, so I've been itching to play it next.

Hellfire was my hell too. My second hell would be Truxton/Tatsujin. Fireshark is not that hard, but when i got full power, and then died, the game mercilessly restart from the beginning of the stage. Proudly mention i have beaten Air Buster. I have no idea other titles in this list existed lol, ill youtube the walkthrough.

For me Tatsujin would make my list, man is that game tough.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Hyper Trigger Ex oh for sure! And I realized too later I forgot to mention it. The only reason I didn’t include it as I just did it already on my pc engine video. And forgot to mention it here 🤦‍♂️. Guess that’s what the next video is for 😅

@HyperTriggerEx

4 жыл бұрын

Shmup Junkie cracking video though and bow to your shooter knowledge. It would be cool of you to follow the Sega theme and move on to the DC next :).

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

Hyper Trigger Ex As soon as I can get the top 5 toughest picked out for it I will for sure. I’ve got quite a few waiting and asking for Neo Geo as well. I’m actually looking forward to the Master System as it’s undiscovered country for me. I’ve played almost no shooters for it besides Power Strike II and that one is so cool. Dreamcast I only have one spot guaranteed so far and that’s Ikaruga. Mars Matrix and Giga Wing are tough as nails too last I played them. So it’s going to be fun.

@ostiariusalpha

4 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie R-Type is the other tough SMS shmup, Sagaia is good for a solid challenge, Submarine Attack has respectably aggressive enemies, Aerial Assault is more pedestrian till halfway through, Scramble Spirits is tedious basically the whole way through, Xenon 2: Megablast is so jerky that I actually prefer to play it in emulation so that I can accelerate it and smooth the movement out a bit, Fantasy Zone II steps up the challenge, and Astro Warrior is not exactly pretty, but at least the enemies put up a fight; I've never played either Bomber Raid or Cloud Spirit. Choplifter and Air Rescue are short, fun rescue shooters, but patience and a little memorization can solve their last levels; neither is as manic as Defender.

@ShmupJunkie

4 жыл бұрын

@@ostiariusalpha Those are some great suggestions thanks, there are many there I'm not familiar with. RType is a given it's hard on any console... it was one of my picks on the pc engine video. I just saw the special stage on the SMS version though so I'm looking forward to checking that out.

Dude you are a shmup master. How do you handle all that SPEED??

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

KBXTheGameMaster 😂 I dunno man I just enjoy reflex dodging. I like to pretend I’m an Ace pilot when in fact I’m just sitting on a couch 😆. I watch players daily that put me to shame so I guess I don’t see myself the same. I’m good but not great. But I do have one hell of a time playing usually. If you like seeing the fast gameplay check out battle garegga in my Saturn video. That game is nuts. I think you already saw the super nes video with Gradius 3 rom hack. That one was wild too 😅

@kbxthegamemaster06

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Ok I will 😎

Hellfire, project X2 from team 17

@NLSagat

3 жыл бұрын

@shmup junkie do a top 5 brutal amiga shmups purdy please!

Splatter house references?!

I thought Thunder Force 3, Insector X, Bio Hazard Battle (Crying) Trouble Shooter (Battle Mania) and The Steel Empire were on the list

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Thunder Force III, Battlemania and Steel Empire are probably some of the best beginner shooters on the mega drive. All fantastic, but definitely not on the brutal/hard list. I actually had Battlemania in my Best Shmups for Beginners video and Steel Empire too.

dude grind stormer is like a playable demo-scene rom

@ShmupJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Grind Stormer is a killer game way ahead of its time. If it ever looked interesting I recommend people try the arcade version emulated. They made a valiant effort porting it but it’s more than the system could handle at the time.

I didn’t even know V-V existed. It looks (and sounds) super rad.

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

It's pushing the system beyond it's capability but yes, aside from easily being the hardest damn game on the mega drive, it's extremely cool. An arcade port they did an admiral job of getting to run at all and compromised little as possible.

@robertrada6040

3 жыл бұрын

@@ShmupJunkie Is it a Toaplan game? Why am I so poorly versed in Toaplan’s output? In 2019, M2 said that in 2020 they would put out every Toaplan game except strip mahjong. So, I guess I have something to look forward to in 2020. I predict it’s going to be a great year! 😇

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

@@robertrada6040 Yes it is and Ikeda’s debut game before Batsugun and later the famous Donpachi series. That’s why it feels so much like an early bullet hell and has many of the conventions. Many claim Batsugun as the first but I personally see it here. Think I mentioned it in the vid segment too. It feels like an early DP game way before it’s time but plays faster. I wouldn’t hold my breath on M2 making their promised date on the Toaplan releases but I’m sure they will sooner or later. There isn’t anyone else we’d rather have releasing those. And yes the arcade version of this and Tatsujin Ou are the two I’m most looking forward to. Or not because they’re both horribly hard lol but also awesome.

Undeadline is BRUTAL!

@ShmupJunkie

3 жыл бұрын

The stages especially. The bosses seem really hard at first but they all have an exploit. The harder stages and those chests though 🤦‍♂️. I’m jonesing to try the x68000 version I’ve heard it’s an incredible port.