Shooter games

[nintendonut888]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

Seriously...there are two places I really need to learn: How to survive the part of stage 3 once you reach the ship (specifically the part with the yellow boxes), and all of stage 5. Fuck stage 5. Stage 6 is SO MUCH easier.

I would have 2cc'd this time, but I foolishly tried facing the stage 6 boss' final attack.

[Aisha]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

Seriously...there are two places I really need to learn: How to survive the part of stage 3 once you reach the ship (specifically the part with the yellow boxes), and all of stage 5. Fuck stage 5. Stage 6 is SO MUCH easier.

I would have 2cc'd this time, but I foolishly tried facing the stage 6 boss' final attack.

Uploading an input file (replay) might help others give some advice for the parts you're stuck at. How to go about recording an input file is going to depend on which build of MAME you're using, however.

And hell, you might find it useful rewatching your own playthroughs to learn from them.

[Azinth]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

Seriously...there are two places I really need to learn: How to survive the part of stage 3 once you reach the ship (specifically the part with the yellow boxes), and all of stage 5. Fuck stage 5. Stage 6 is SO MUCH easier.

I would have 2cc'd this time, but I foolishly tried facing the stage 6 boss' final attack.

For the stage 3 ship part...

Wave 1:  Destroy the popcorn before they reach the bottom of the screen, and watch out for the bullets fired by turrets.
Wave 2:  Destroy the gray turret in the center, destroy the others while streaming their shots.
Wave 3:  Destroy the gray turret in the center, go over-top the red turrets and destroy them with your shield (you ARE using the laser shot, right?)
Wave 4:  Destroy one of the red center-turrets AS FAST AS POSSIBLE before they both spam you at once, then kill the other.  Watch out for the turrets on the sides, their shots can be hard to see.
Wave 5:  Destroy center turret, go over-top red turrets and destroy with shield.  Hopefully you destroyed the crates so you can get the 1-up.

As for stage 5... I haven't figured it out yet personally.  Right now I'm just using the tried-and-true 'don't waste the bombs' method to pull me through.

[shadowbringer]

Azinth: if I manage to maintain my chain up to the big central building before the tank midboss in stage 2, I would (iirc) laser the left side, then the middle, then the right, then attempt to laser the tanks that come at the right side from the building (dunno if it's better to destroy the tanks that are immediately spawned to increase the chain meter and then damage the central building, so that if it's destroyed, you have less chances of missing your chain before hitting the spawning tanks again before the large tank comes); dunno if this sequence is possible, because I haven't thought of it until now (and Prometheus' replay apparently sacrifices his chain in favor of bee collection, and doesn't do like I say )

Donut: for the 3rd stage, when you reach the big red carrier..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTOHnUALJOI#t=7m20s
- there will be flying enemies that will shoot aimed shots, just keep moving from one side to the other while shooting/lasering
- the turrets that spread 3-way shots shouldn't be dangerous, as their shots are slow (and predictable, if you're expecting them to appear)
- the turrets that shoot aimed streams of slow laser shots shouldn't be able to corner you (as they're fragile), just keep moving like you did for the ships and lasering them
- the turret that fires bursts of bullets while turning around will always start shooting at the left; don't worry with what side you should be, align yourself to the turret as soon as you see it and destroy it, you should be able to safespot it if it's needed (that is, just dodge the burst that's fired straight downwards)
- there will be one more turret like the one you've just destroyed, along with 4 turrets that fire straight downwards; these 4 side turrets aren't dangerous, as your laser has a large (I mean, wide) hitbox if fully powered, so you don't have to align yourself entirely to destroy each of these. Perhaps you'll want to destroy the central turret first if you for some reason can't destroy the side turrets on your way
- surprise, one more of these central turrets ^^ (surrounded by two power-up dropping ships)
- against the following double turrets, you'll have to choose one (I always choose the left one) and laser it before it can shoot (iirc), the other turret won't be dangerous if it's alone
- immediately after these twin turrets, there will be four turrets that can aim at you. Destroy these as soon as you can.
- and immediately after these, there will be cannons that fire bursts of bullets downwards, placed on both sides, and a central.. turret-thing that fires aimed lasers. You can lure its shots and then damage it until it's destroyed. You'll have enough time to destroy the remaining cannons if you want

Dunno how the 5th and the 6th stages are done, though..

[nintendonut888]

Thanks for the help, but frankly, I never even remember how I play each level. The stages are just so unmemorable in their patterns that I just act on impulse and do my best to remember what's happened in the past. That could be part of the problem... :V

[Azinth]

Thanks for the help, but frankly, I never even remember how I play each level. The stages are just so unmemorable in their patterns that I just act on impulse and do my best to remember what's happened in the past. That could be part of the problem... :V

Not to be all Devil's-Advocate like or anything, but DDP's stages are far more complex in design/enemy placement than any Touhou game's stages, so it would sort of make sense that it would be harder to remember parts of it at first. :p  But this dead horse has been beaten far enough in this thread, so let me digress...

More advice:  get a version of MAME with a savestate feature (I use MAME32ui and they work, there might be other options), and learn how to chain.  In fact, if there's one thing more than anything that would help you get better at the stages, it's learning how to chain.  Besides, if you want to see Hibachi, it's either that or 3LC the first loop, and I think we can both guess which method is easier. :V

[nintendonut888]

Oh, my goal is to 1cc legitimately. When it comes to second looping, I'll use every goddamn resource needed to do so. Where's a link to the emulator that works with savestates again (it's alright to ask for the emulator, just not the ROMs IIRC)?

And let me rephrase that: One of the beauties of Touhou that actually draws me to it so much is how the stages are meant to synch with what's going on. You can actually use the music to remember where you are in a stage and what's coming up. Dodonpachi's music isn't bad (the stage 1/4 themes and the boss theme in particular are pretty nice), but it's not made for this at all, making it much harder to remember what's coming up.

[Aisha]

Oh, my goal is to 1cc legitimately. When it comes to second looping, I'll use every goddamn resource needed to do so. Where's a link to the emulator that works with savestates again (it's alright to ask for the emulator, just not the ROMs IIRC)?

Here is one that's known to work. It might actually improve input lag as well.

I'll reiterate my suggestion above in case you missed it--figure out how to record and play back replays with whatever build of MAME you settle down with. They'll be just as useful here as they are in Touhou.

And let me rephrase that: One of the beauties of Touhou that actually draws me to it so much is how the stages are meant to synch with what's going on. You can actually use the music to remember where you are in a stage and what's coming up. Dodonpachi's music isn't bad (the stage 1/4 themes and in particular are pretty nice), but it's not made for this at all, making it much harder to remember what's coming up.

You're looking for the wrong cues. In DDP (and almost every arcade shooter), you can actually use the stage backgrounds, stage chokepoints, and placement of significant enemies and formations, to know what's coming up. Not only will doing so help you get through difficult parts, because you'll know where to position yourself and which enemies to prioritize, but it's absolutely crucial if you're ever going to chain well (although I'd personally not recommend trying to chain until you're comfortable with the first loop). So really, it's not like there's nothing there to guide you along; you just have to shift your focus. In more modern shmups, the stages become even more extravagant and engaging.

[LtC]

And let me rephrase that: One of the beauties of Touhou that actually draws me to it so much is how the stages are meant to synch with what's going on.

They're not particularly synced really, at least most of the parts. You just remember it by the music, I guess the music helps you not to fall asleep during the stages too, you don't need that for DDP luckily. You'd have to play HELLSINKER to know what means music synced with the game.

And yes, Wolfmame.99 for savestates and recording inputs. Use Play and record input when you start the game and use playback input to view the replay. As for input lag 0.99 has the same input lag as newer versions of MAME (1 frame) so it shouldn't really change unless you mess up v-sync and triple buffering.

[Matsuri]

And is that slowdown also there in the original arcade system? Please say it's so, because damn it this computer is recent and shouldn't be slowing down like this.

EDIT: ...Is this really what most shmups are like? There's so little variety in the attacks! After a point I cannot tell any difference between the levels because they're the exact same. I'm not going to be like Zengeku and curse out Cave, but...there's a reason I fell in love with Touhou when I had never been interested in shmups before.

Slowdown, especially in danmaku shmups, is most often intentional.

And no, most shmups are not like CAVE shmups. There are tons of different games out there to try, and frankly, Touhou stages bore the hell out of me-- when I enjoy playing stages of arcade shmups. Saying that they're all exactly the same is exaggerating by a long shot.

[Aisha]

How does Ibara look and play on the PS2 emulator (which I need to get around to setting up...)?

[Matsuri]

If I had Ibara, I'd tell you

Either way, I couldn't effectively make a PS2 emulator work on my laptop, even after I ripped the iso from my Mushihimesama disc. With any prediction, the framerate will be subpar. =<

[BoLaD]

RAHHAHAHAHAH! AHAHAHAHAHA! IN YOUR FACE DODONPACHI! 1CC!!!!
Yea... I told you if I got that 20mil life I could 1cc this game.

[Matsuri]

Got any screenshots to prove it?  :smug:

[BoLaD]

Got any screenshots to prove it?  :smug:

... Shit...

Now I gotta play Dodonpachi again and get a screenshot of me winning...

[nintendonut888]

Okay, I downloaded that emulator, but I can't seem to run it. How do I get it to run the ROMs?

[Matsuri]

Gaah, what's wrong with me? I was doing so well with Mushihimesama yesterday, and now I'm losing lives left and right! ;;

[nintendonut888]

Er, another problem. I found out the problem that made it not run, but now that it DOES run, the graphics are rather wonky. It isn't full screen (as in it's squished now), and the borders are...not straight is the only way I can explain it. It's a little wavy. Any way to fix this?

OKAY! I fixed THAT, but one final problem: The savestates still don't work! I tried them, and it SAVED state, but it brings up an error whenever I tell it to load state.

Pfeh! Turns out you can load state by exiting and going "File -> Load state", but the mapped button brings up an error. I don't wanna do that every timeeee. D:

[Matsuri]

Thus the reason I prefer MAME32.

[nintendonut888]

Oh...oh that hurt. I got through stage 2 with only 2 bombs, somehow got a relatively good chain on the first stage, and then...died twice in stage 3 with multiple bombs in stock both times. But what hurts the most? I still very nearly make it to stage 6 before continuing despite this. I 2cc'd again.

Also I saved an input file of this. How do you view them?

[Matsuri]

With MAME32 at least, it's File -> Playback Input. If you're using WolfMAME now, I have no idea.

[nintendonut888]

Eh, I tried for kicks trying to record input in MAME32, and it crashed... :V

But right I forgot about that option. Still...ugh. I don't think I would have 1cc'd but I could have had a decent shot at it had I not died like I did.

[Matsuri]

I have no idea why you're having so much trouble with the program. I never have experienced any of these problems, and I've been using the exact program I sent you for ages.

[nintendonut888]

I've started a savestate run of Dodonpachi and am currently trying to sort out the last third of stage 4 without bombing. I have to say though, it's REALLY tiresome to have to exit the game just to load state. It may be only about ten extra seconds, but it adds up.

But it doesn't matter since Dodonpachi is my one true love and I want to marry it <3 <3 <3

Screw you Ruro.

[ruro]:3[/ruro]

Anyway, I've managed to keep all my lives until stage 5, but...the game has decided to go LOL U. Somehow the sound got corrupted and now the sound effects don't play. I'm not gonna restart just for this, but it's not Dodonpachi without the DODODODODODODODODODODDODODODODODONpachi.

Also, this is saying something: I'm on stage 5, restarting the same part over and over again, and no matter what I try, I can't do the second half without bombing.

[Aisha]

I've started a savestate run of Dodonpachi and am currently trying to sort out the last third of stage 4 without bombing. I have to say though, it's REALLY tiresome to have to exit the game just to load state. It may be only about ten extra seconds, but it adds up.

But it doesn't matter since Dodonpachi is my one true love and I want to marry it <3 <3 <3

Screw you Ruro.

[ruro]:3[/ruro]

Anyway, I've managed to keep all my lives until stage 5, but...the game has decided to go LOL U. Somehow the sound got corrupted and now the sound effects don't play. I'm not gonna restart just for this, but it's not Dodonpachi without the DODODODODODODODODODODDODODODODODONpachi.

Also, this is saying something: I'm on stage 5, restarting the same part over and over again, and no matter what I try, I can't do the second half without bombing.

Odd that the save state hotkeys aren't working for you. I quickly set WolfMAME99 up and had no problem. Did you set a directory for states? That's really the only thing I did. I'm guessing that if you don't, MAME won't know where to look for them. Also, save states can corrupt easily in MAME (it's supposed to be a faithful hardware emulator, first and foremost), so once you get a good one, copy it to another folder as a backup.

And there's nothing wrong with bombing. If you have to use one to get through a situation, then do it. You get so many bombs anyway, that you may as well.

[nintendonut888]

You say that, but even with savestating over and over and over to get the optimal outcome, I only just BARELY second looped by only dying twice. And then I realized that it is a hollow victory if I have no freaking sound at all, so I threw the last hour of work away and savestated at the very beginning of the game.

And I have to set up a directory now? How would I do that?

Wait, yeah, there is a directory. I simply have to manually exit the game and tell it to load state for it to register. Really annoying, I have no idea why the load state button doesn't work.

[Aisha]

Select Directories from the Options drop-down menu. Select State from the drop down menu in the dialogue box that pops up. Hit Browse, navigate to the folder that contains the save states, and set it to that. You might have to do the same for input files (*inp) to get those working correctly as well. Hope that works.

[Bananamatic]

Tried Dodonpachi.....doesn't appeal to me at all. It's just a bunch of streaming.
Never liked shmups either, but I love Touhou for some reason :V

[nintendonut888]

Nope Aisha, doesn't work. Nothing works. Clearly Cave hates me.

[BoLaD]

Oh...oh that hurt. I got through stage 2 with only 2 bombs, somehow got a relatively good chain on the first stage, and then...died twice in stage 3 with multiple bombs in stock both times. But what hurts the most? I still very nearly make it to stage 6 before continuing despite this. I 2cc'd again.

Also I saved an input file of this. How do you view them?

Now why would you have so much trouble with stage 2? Whenever I use a bomb in stage 2, I just reset the game. If you're talking about the final attack the 2nd boss uses, I personally keep shooting the boss until the game tells you "Just a couple more shots" and then I move into the boss' missiles while still shooting-prevents you from finishing off the boss while keeping yourself alive.  I wait until the boss starts shooting little blue lines and then I finish it off- it's very easy to micrododge that thing.