Going from Normal to Hard

[DgBarca]

Well I have beaten all normal and extra mode on Windows game (Still didn't do any PC-98 extra and HRtP normal (but I can't 21cc it in normal)) and I want now to switch into hard mode.
I have beaten EoSD but now PCB and all things ahead stop me because of lack of skill (extra are just one stage and thus it is extra practice, not like 6 stages).

So do you have any tips ? I don't know how to begin in hard mode...

[Drake]

Start playing instead of asking us how to ease your way into it~

[The Greatest Dog]

Go into IN, start playing on Lunatic, continuing all the way.

Then, with those spellcards you unlock, go capture EVERYTHING in spell practice.

And whatever Last Words you happen to have.

[DgBarca]

Start playing instead of asking us how to ease your way into it~

I switch between MoTK and PCB all the time.

Go into IN, start playing on Lunatic, continuing all the way.

Then, with those spellcards you unlock, go capture EVERYTHING in spell practice.

And whatever Last Words you happen to have.

Spell practice, hum...interesting but I think I have to gain more reflexes...maybe UFO extra...

[Alfred F. Jones]

One of the best things you can do for yourself (on any difficulty, really) is improve your deathbomb reflexes. Most everybody can use practice doing that.

[ebarrett]

It is more or less proven that the best way to improve from X to Y is by playing at Z.

[DgBarca]

It is more or less proven that the best way to improve from X to Y is by playing at Z.

Let's play easy mOSHIT Lunatic mode

[Ghaleon]

Well I have beaten all normal and extra mode on Windows game (Still didn't do any PC-98 extra and HRtP normal (but I can't 21cc it in normal)) and I want now to switch into hard mode.
I have beaten EoSD but now PCB and all things ahead stop me because of lack of skill (extra are just one stage and thus it is extra practice, not like 6 stages).

So do you have any tips ? I don't know how to begin in hard mode...

I tried lunatic EoSD before attempting hard anything else. It was long, grueling, and difficult. But I found it entertaining still because I still had most of EoSD freshly memorized after 1ccing it on hard. Harder difficulties on other Touhou games always screws with me more in the sense that I haven't memorized them yet like I did EoSD. So meh.

Just keep playing. there is no single way to improve though really. I really reccomend you practice the hard stages though. Don't torture yourself trying to 1cc over and over again, only to reset for the 50th time because you made a stupid error in stages 1-3 which you feel you shouldn't make.

[Scarlet Moon]

I started playing the harder difficulties of Touhou.  I was forced to after getting viciously handed on Extra in Perfect Cherry Blossom.  Slowly, I'm getting better.  I have to get the Deathbomb timing.

[Helion]

I started out an all games, except for UFO, on hard. So I guess just play?

[DgBarca]

Gonna start with SA Hard...Oh god Orin...

[ふねん1]

Gonna start with SA Hard...Oh god Orin...

Well, the majority of SA's bullet patterns don't ask for just pure dodging, like in some previous games. They can be figured out with practice, so if you have the patience, SA Hard is more doable than you may think (though that depends on what shot type you use).

[Menreiki]

Moving from Normal to Hard isn't that kind of a problem (except on IN and EoSD in which the difficulty curve changes a lot). Hard still is on the 'keep playing' status in my opinion, while Lunatic is more of a 'make a complete and perfect ruote if you want to clear'.

[Ghaleon]

I found EoSD normal to hard relatively tame compared to MoF and SA. GAH MoF took me along ass time to figure out on hard (though again I don't think I bomb as much as I should in MoF). And in SA.. Well, I only tried it twice, and let's say I didn't get even past stage 3 with a satisfactory amount of lives (and I had just 1cc'd normal with over 5 lives left earlier that day). I didn't flop that hard on EoSD hard on my first try! And that was when my general shmup experience was less than 1/4 of what it was when SA hard raped me.

[Sen]

Gonna start with SA Hard...Oh god Orin...

I actually think SA Hard is a good way to start. SA is a lot more fair than the other games. It's much harder, but everything is dodgeable and there isn't much in the realm of bullshit. EoSD has rank, PCB depends on your Borders, IN sucks UFO is pretty much random, MoF has a huge difficulty spike between Normal and Hard. SA's a good way to start!

[ebarrett]

Normal >>> Hard is tougher than Hard >>> Lunatic.

Normal still allows you to do completely moronic stuff all the time and get away with it without even noticing you were playing very, very badly, since there's room and time to twitch your way out of any trouble you can get into; hard is where you start being punished harshly and repeatedly for doing things without thinking, forcing you to either understand the game or always fail without really knowing why. Lunatic is, most of the time, just a bigger, badder, faster hard; you already know the game by then, it's just a matter of refining your abilities.