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NEC PC-Engine/SuperGrafx => PC Engine/SuperGrafx Discussion => Topic started by: Spector on April 01, 2008, 08:52:16 PM

Title: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Spector on April 01, 2008, 08:52:16 PM
It's a great game and everything, but don't you think the first half is too easy? I played it a couple of times without looking at the instructions, then I read up on the power up system and the next time I played it I got to level 6. At no time in the first five levels did I feel like I was under real pressure.

It takes about half an hour to get going, and I can't be bothered with that. Maybe I need to play Side Arms instead.

I've seen a level select mode for Gunhed which involves pressing I and II then tapping select repeatedly, but I can't get it to work. Can anyone here give me a more detailed description as to what I should do so I can practice the later levels, which are the only ones that excite me?

Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 01, 2008, 11:33:59 PM
Hudson shooters in general are easier than average. I look at it as a nice break from getting my ass kicked constantly.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: sunteam_paul on April 02, 2008, 01:51:52 AM
The action is a bit sparse for my liking in the first few levels, I find SSS and the other Soldier games a lot more fun to play.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: elnino on April 02, 2008, 02:06:15 AM
The only criticism which comes to my mind is the unbalanced difficulty. The first few levels are way too easy and you manage to get on your feet after being destroyed in pretty much every situation in every level except the last one, which is about 634 times harder than all the rest put together. If you go down in the final stage you have no f*cking chance to get back on track. The 14'000 lives you've saved up until this time won't help you either since you go down again before you can rebuild your weapon arsenal, therefore I usually reset the game as soon as I lose a life. I find this very frustrating because I don't have to use much skill until the final level.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: MurderDate on April 02, 2008, 03:12:38 AM
I wouldn't say it's too easy at all.  I don't think it's too difficult either - just right.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: esteban on April 02, 2008, 01:33:46 PM
It's a great game and everything, but don't you think the first half is too easy? I played it a couple of times without looking at the instructions, then I read up on the power up system and the next time I played it I got to level 6. At no time in the first five levels did I feel like I was under real pressure.

It takes about half an hour to get going, and I can't be bothered with that. Maybe I need to play Side Arms instead.

I've seen a level select mode for Gunhed which involves pressing I and II then tapping select repeatedly, but I can't get it to work. Can anyone here give me a more detailed description as to what I should do so I can practice the later levels, which are the only ones that excite me?


In general, the first half is too easy. Sure, there are a few sequences where you have to be careful, but there are long stretches where you can mindlessly pick-off the waves of enemies that don't stand a chance against your powered-up armaments.

That said, I've always found stage 2 to be the most flawed: it is too long, with not enough action, and thus very long stretches of blahhhhhhhh....

I dig the music in stage 2, but even that can't save it.

I honestly feel that if stage 2 had been corrected, I'd feel much better about the game overall. Blazing Lazers was simply following the shoot-em-up conventions of the period by providing a.... hmmmm... is it a 40-minute game? I'm pretty damn sure that it is around 40 minutes long, although I honestly never timed it. It feels like a long game, anyway.

Now, as far a stage design is concerned, I feel that "themed" stages are a mixed bag: the rainbow bubbles are gorgeous and lots of fun. But, are they really substantial enough to carry the entire stage? Hmmm, perhaps it would have been better to provide a bit of variety, even if it meant recycling some bubbles for another section of the game. Otherwise, maybe the bubbles stage could have thrown a few more surprises at us.

I absolutely adore the music in the bubble stage. Did I mention that the entire soundtrack is great?

One of the later stages is a rehash of the first stage... hmm, surely a bit more could have been done to make it feel a bit fresher. At least it's a decent challenge, with a bunch of sequences that keep you on your toes (I love the relentless missile launchers).

My favorite song? I think it is the stage with all the brains soaring down the tunnel. Love that song.

Times have changed. I think that programmers were trying to put "rest periods" in these older shoot-em-ups, in an attempt to give players a rest and, perhaps more importantly, to build some tension and vary the tempo in games. Today, though, we simply refer to these sequences as "boring, uneventful" segments of a particular stage. Did Lifeforce do a better job at keeping things interesting and varied? I don't think so: Lifeforce suffers from the same problems as BL. In fact, they follow a very similar formula, IMO. I happen to love Lifeforce.

EDIT: So, let's see what the goddam Germans thought about GunHed...
GunHed review in PowerPlay Magazine (http://www.kultpower.de/powerplay_testbericht.php3?backurl=powerplay_datenbank_search.php3%3Fgame_id%3D%26start%3D0%26search%3Dgunhed%26letter%3D%26number_of%3D10%23686&swidth=703&height=513&im=gunhed.jpg).

Apparently, they were not as impressed as I was. Oh well...
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Keranu on April 02, 2008, 03:15:43 PM
If you go down in the final stage you have no f*cking chance to get back on track.
Generally I agree with this and I used to think that it was impossible to beat that level without any powers ups as well. Notice I used to think that, because I now know it's possible! At the shmup tournament at the 2007 Midwest Gaming Classic, there was a person playing Blazing Lazers, and I don't even think he was very familar with the game and he was dying in easy spots. However he made an incredible come back in the last level where he practically beat the whole damn stage using the default weapon! I kept saying there was no way in hell he was going to make it, but he totally Rambo'd it. An amazing sight.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: klausien on April 02, 2008, 03:26:33 PM
Gunhed isn't part of the Star Soldier series, though it is very similar. It is a Compile game, not a Hudson one. Play Space Megaforce/Super Aleste for the SNES and you will see the similarities.

There is a certain charm to the look, sound and feel of the game that makes it age better for those who were exposed to it back in the day. The same could be said about all games, yes, but Gunhed was a great vert in its time, and was definitely one of the best that received wider distribution in the US. It's all about audience. Games like Elemental Master on the Genesis, and the later Star Soldier games on the Turbo are peers, but most people who have more than a passing interest in games have played Blazing Lazers.

Yes it is easy, but that is definitely part of the charm. Also, there are few powerups out there that rock as hard as the fully powered up laser (Number 4) in Gunhed. The Ring Blaster is the ticket to the finale, but I like playing with the laser/Homing missiles combo.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Bonknuts on April 02, 2008, 04:35:26 PM
Quote from: klausien
Also, there are few powerups out there that rock as hard as the fully powered up laser (Number 4) in Gunhed. The Ring Blaster is the ticket to the finale, but I like playing with the laser/Homing missiles combo.

 Beginners usually use "III" right off the bat, but in the end "I" is the best weapon in the game. That with the two pods kicks ass, though homing missiles makes for a good second.

 Anyone have pics or video of the "secret" weapon you get from collecting nothing but orbs?
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: esteban on April 02, 2008, 04:42:54 PM
If you go down in the final stage you have no f*cking chance to get back on track.
Generally I agree with this and I used to think that it was impossible to beat that level without any powers ups as well. Notice I used to think that, because I now know it's possible! At the shmup tournament at the 2007 Midwest Gaming Classic, there was a person playing Blazing Lazers, and I don't even think he was very familar with the game and he was dying in easy spots. However he made an incredible come back in the last level where he practically beat the whole damn stage using the default weapon! I kept saying there was no way in hell he was going to make it, but he totally Rambo'd it. An amazing sight.
I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but the trick to the final stage is really knowing how to adjust your speed! Peashooter + adjusting speed is all you need. Yeah, it's nice to grab a few measly power-ups, gradually, but that's not the secret.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 02, 2008, 05:01:32 PM
Gunhed isn't part of the Star Soldier series, though it is very similar. It is a Compile game, not a Hudson one.

Can we verify, positively, Compile/Hudson involvement/non-involvement, and more specifically Compile/Hudson staff involvement/non-involvement in the Soldier series, especially the earlier games, and Gunhed? It kind of seems like Hudson could have just outsourced development of Gunhed since they wanted to publish as game in conjunction with the Gunhed movie, which was "produced in cooperation with Hudson", or something like that.

What I'm getting at is that Gunhed sure seems like a Soldier series game to me...
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 02, 2008, 05:05:49 PM
Quote from: elnino
If you go down in the final stage you have no f*cking chance to get back on track.

Every shooter I've ever finished from back then was a one credit clear. Even Gate of Thunder, which is probably my favorite shooter ever, has that problem where if you die once in the later levels you might as well just reset. Its a flaw for sure, but a flaw that effected virtually every shooter made up until the mid 90s.

I never once finished Lords of Thunder by continuing. All your money, life, and powerups are gone and you have to be a f*cking master of power metal shooting to finish the last level.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: nat on April 02, 2008, 05:18:20 PM
What I'm getting at is that Gunhed sure seems like a Soldier series game to me...

I agree.

It seems like Hudson simply outsourced (as you said) the development of Gunhed to Compile. Super Star Soldier was developed by Interstate/Kaneko wasn't it? Does that mean it's not part of the series either? Of course not; it's just another case of outsourcing. Only Final Soldier and Soldier Blade were developed in-house entirely by Hudson. Actually, Final Soldier is the only one I'm really sure didn't have any outside involvement.

People always insist on comparing Gunhed to Space Megaforce and the like, which is fine and all, but it shares just as many things in common with Super Star Soldier as it does with Space Megaforce.

It seems to me in the case of Gunhed Hudson had an idea for a game series, or perhaps just a single game at the time, gave the outline to Compile and told them to run with it. "We want a game that has this, and does this, and looks like this. Now go build it." Then they did the same thing with SSS.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Turbo D on April 02, 2008, 05:25:44 PM
I have the gunhed comic book  :P
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Michael Helgeson on April 02, 2008, 06:01:35 PM
Quote from: elnino
If you go down in the final stage you have no f*cking chance to get back on track.


Every shooter I've ever finished from back then was a one credit clear. Even Gate of Thunder, which is probably my favorite shooter ever, has that problem where if you die once in the later levels you might as well just reset. Its a flaw for sure, but a flaw that effected virtually every shooter made up until the mid 90s.

I never once finished Lords of Thunder by continuing. All your money, life, and powerups are gone and you have to be a f*cking master of power metal shooting to finish the last level.


Because you are so awesome and have one credited shooters when all others have failed we would like you to present yourself with this award:
(http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a66/Amakusa666/ZetaShooterkingaward.png)

You are a true dedicated Star Soldier of shooters Zeta,so sit back,kick back,and enjoy a cold one in honor of yourself. You rock  :clap:  :clap:   :clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:


Seriously cant say anything bad about Gunhed. Its a top of the line shooter for its time,and for the hardware its on.
Look at it and at all other shooters released at the time for home systems,Gunhed easily stands as one of the best,if not the best in that time period and still easily holds its own today.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Bonknuts on April 02, 2008, 06:06:36 PM
Guess someone didn't read the new forum rules..  :-"
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Necromancer on April 02, 2008, 06:17:10 PM
Indeed, mal.  He apparently didn't read (or comprehend) Zeta's post either, as Zeta didn't say that he'd 1cc'd every shooter known to man, only those that he's personally completed.  But hey, who doesn't enjoy entirely off topic posts and vulgarity used to attack other members?

I have the gunhed comic book  :P

This sounds a bit familiar, but I'd greatly appreciate some elaboration.  :pray:
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Turbo D on April 02, 2008, 06:24:09 PM
well, apparently gunhed was based off of some sort of movie or anime. One day I was shootin through the bargin bin at the local comic shop when all of a sudden I saw them. I was like; wtf?!?!?!? So I bought them. Never read them though, lol. I'll take some pics when I recover my digital camera ( I seem to have misplaced it in a drunken stupor last weekend  :oops:.)
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Keranu on April 02, 2008, 06:31:25 PM
Even Gate of Thunder, which is probably my favorite shooter ever, has that problem where if you die once in the later levels you might as well just reset.
Actually I think Gates is one of the few shooters that is very "die-friendly". Maybe it's because there isn't much to power up on, but I definitely never had any frustration with losing weapons in that game.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 02, 2008, 06:34:04 PM
Indeed, mal.  He apparently didn't read (or comprehend) Zeta's post either, as Zeta didn't say that he'd 1cc'd every shooter known to man, only those that he's personally completed.  But hey, who doesn't enjoy entirely off topic posts and vulgarity used to attack other members?


Well what I was really getting at is that I don't know how you can beat old shooters any other way. If you die once you are completely f*cked. Gunhed may have this problem, but so do most other old shooters. OCCing GoT is rather easy in the grand scheme of shooters. Its a lot easier than SSS, IMO, which I've never even made it half way through.

I must say though, I've always sort of secretly wanted a psychotic stalker internet fan who would spend hours tracking my internet activity, doing horrible MS paint composites of me Jeff K/Meg Griffen style, and inventing a colloquial subculture that not even I understand, but now that I have one...its kind of creepy, isn't it? I guess it could be worse. They could be good MS paint composites. That would be extra weird.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 02, 2008, 06:35:02 PM
Even Gate of Thunder, which is probably my favorite shooter ever, has that problem where if you die once in the later levels you might as well just reset.
Actually I think Gates is one of the few shooters that is very "die-friendly". Maybe it's because there isn't much to power up on, but I definitely never had any frustration with losing weapons in that game.

Yeah, dying isn't so bad. Continuing is pretty harsh though.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 02, 2008, 06:39:00 PM
well, apparently gunhed was based off of some sort of movie or anime.

Its supposedly based off this crappy live action mecha movie called Gunhed that came out the same year. I have this movie on DVD. Its pretty bad, but not much worse than Roadhouse, or Tango and Cash or any of the shitty American action movies from that time. There are no space fighter ships in the movie from what I remember, so I'm not sure what connection there is other than the name. It really feels like the game was just something sitting around that they slapped the name Gunhed on at the last minute to try some cross promotion.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Michael Helgeson on April 02, 2008, 07:02:11 PM
Guess someone didn't read the new forum rules..  :-"
Indeed, mal.  He apparently didn't read (or comprehend) Zeta's post either, as Zeta didn't say that he'd 1cc'd every shooter known to man, only those that he's personally completed.  But hey, who doesn't enjoy entirely off topic posts and vulgarity used to attack other members?

Well what I was really getting at is that I don't know how you can beat old shooters any other way. If you die once you are completely f*cked. Gunhed may have this problem, but so do most other old shooters. OCCing GoT is rather easy in the grand scheme of shooters. Its a lot easier than SSS, IMO, which I've never even made it half way through.

I must say though, I've always sort of secretly wanted a psychotic stalker internet fan who would spend hours tracking my internet activity, doing horrible MS paint composites of me Jeff K/Meg Griffen style, and inventing a colloquial subculture that not even I understand, but now that I have one...its kind of creepy, isn't it? I guess it could be worse. They could be good MS paint composites. That would be extra weird.

Sure I did,it said keep vulgarities to a minimum,and heated discussions were allowed as long as they stayed to a minimum,ect. No ones name calling here and def no heated debate going on currently....

Actually Zeta we were all poking fun of what you said in the shout box though. If you actually took the time out of your busy life to talk to us there directly you could have elaborated more on the theory of
Quote
f*cking master of power metal shooting
a tad bit more....

 Necro,I clearly didn't say he beat every shooter ever made either lol and the vulgar language his his own,not mine,see said quote:
.
Quote from: elnino
If you go down in the final stage you have no f*cking chance to get back on track.

Every shooter I've ever finished from back then was a one credit clear. Even Gate of Thunder, which is probably my favorite shooter ever, has that problem where if you die once in the later levels you might as well just reset. Its a flaw for sure, but a flaw that effected virtually every shooter made up until the mid 90s.

I never once finished Lords of Thunder by continuing. All your money, life, and powerups are gone and you have to be a f*cking master of power metal shooting to finish the last level.

Zeta is infact the one who coined this phrase
Quote
f*cking master of power metal shooting
,and its one of the funniest lines I have ever ,and I mean ever read. Esp considering it came from the same person struggling with Burning Angels.. I swear some of you have ZERO humor what so ever sometimes.... :( Also,I wasn't the first person on this thread to stray  off the Gunhed topic,Zeta was with the talk of other shooters besides Gunhed ect.. Also,Zeta,I swear there is no need to do the double and triple post my man,there is a modify option after you can use to combine all those post into one.

As for Gunhed movie,I remember one on late at night and I tried to sit though it but lost interest. Maybe I need to hunt it down and give it another go. I def don't remember what I saw of it having anything much to do with the game,but since I did not watch it all the way...... We will see. As I said,I don't see anything wrong with Gunhed. Its amazing for its time,the power ups,graphics,music,soundfx ect are all top notch and a benchmark for late 80ies home system shooters.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 02, 2008, 07:53:15 PM
Michael Helgeson, please read posts before responding to them. My point is that its *harder* to finish many of these games by continuing that it is to just reset until you learn the game well enough to OCC it. If you just drop someone unaided into stage 6 of Gunhed they have to be really really good to get anywhere.

If I used a level select code to get to the last stage of LoT but not a code to give me max money, I'd never be able to finish it because I am not the f*cking Master Of Power Metal Shooting that it takes to clear that final stage without all the money. That was the point all along I was not saying I'm awesome at shooters. Someone who is awesome at shooters would be able to win with a continue whereas I can only win with a OCC where I stay powered up the entire game. As soon as I see the continue screen in LoT I've already lost no matter how many continues I have left.

Lastly, "f*cking Master Of Power Metal Shooting" was a term coined hyperbolically on purpose. Its rather amazing that you have to be told this.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Michael Helgeson on April 02, 2008, 08:02:50 PM
Michael Helgeson, please read posts before responding to them. My point is that its *harder* to finish many of these games by continuing that it is to just reset until you learn the game well enough to OCC it. If you just drop someone unaided into stage 6 of Gunhed they have to be really really good to get anywhere.

If I used a level select code to get to the last stage of LoT but not a code to give me max money, I'd never be able to finish it because I am not the f*cking Master Of Power Metal Shooting that it takes to clear that final stage without all the money. That was the point all along I was not saying I'm awesome at shooters. Someone who is awesome at shooters would be able to win with a continue whereas I can only win with a OCC where I stay powered up the entire game. As soon as I see the continue screen in LoT I've already lost no matter how many continues I have left.

Lastly, "f*cking Master Of Power Metal Shooting" was a term coined hyperbolically on purpose. Its rather amazing that you have to be told this.

Most consider it to be harder to one credit a game then to continue,no matter where the spot is and how weakened you are but I do get what you are saying.There are def some spots in shooters that can seem impossible if you have died and lost power ups. There are some people who simply cant 1 credit a certain game though and continuing is the only option for them to beat it, so they would consider a 1 credit run as being a master level run through because the player had enough skill to never die at all,zero mistakes made,aka perfect run. Again,I simply stated the term you coined was funny. Just because you didn't think so doesn't matter,alot of us got a good laugh out of it either way.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 02, 2008, 08:16:01 PM
Quote from: Michael Helgeson
Again,I simply stated the term you coined was funny. Just because you didn't think so doesn't matter,alot of us got a good laugh out of it either way.

I did think so, that's why I coined it in the first place. Who says, "f*cking Master Of Power Metal Shooting" with a straight face?

jumping jesus on a pogo stick...
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: elnino on April 02, 2008, 09:05:20 PM
Quote from: elnino
If you go down in the final stage you have no f*cking chance to get back on track.

Every shooter I've ever finished from back then was a one credit clear. Even Gate of Thunder, which is probably my favorite shooter ever, has that problem where if you die once in the later levels you might as well just reset. Its a flaw for sure, but a flaw that effected virtually every shooter made up until the mid 90s.

I didn't mean that having a damn hard time coming back after losing a life is a bad thing in general and I wouldn't even consider this as a flaw. I like shmups which are hard and challenging a lot. The problem with Gunhed is the difficulty gap between the final stage and the rest of the levels. Every other shooter where you're doomed after you've died is basically challenging throughout the whole game. Gunhed, however, lets you sleep through the first few levels, requires maybe average skills in the mid-levels and then all of a sudden gets freaking difficult in the final stage. If the difficulty increased constantly I wouldn't have a problem with it but knowing that after reseting the game I won't be challenged until I get to the final level again is quite a frustration and makes me think twice if I should give it another try.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: elnino on April 02, 2008, 11:24:06 PM
Beginners usually use "III" right off the bat, but in the end "I" is the best weapon in the game. That with the two pods kicks ass, though homing missiles makes for a good second.

 Anyone have pics or video of the "secret" weapon you get from collecting nothing but orbs?

I prefer "IV" over any other weapon in the game, though it's quite weak until you've fully powered up. I haven't seen the secret weapon in action yet, maybe I'll give it a try. :)
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Turbo D on April 02, 2008, 11:27:54 PM
I like III with the focuser power-up. It doesn't work so well in the later levels though.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Sinistron on April 03, 2008, 02:29:50 AM
Hudson shooters in general are easier than average. I look at it as a nice break from getting my ass kicked constantly.

....

If you die once you are completely f*cked. Gunhed may have this problem, but so do most other old shooters. OCCing GoT is rather easy in the grand scheme of shooters. Its a lot easier than SSS, IMO, which I've never even made it half way through.

The PCE Hudson shooters are the Star Soldier series, Gate and Lords and Air Zonk.  Their name is also on Gunhed and the Raiden port though they've obviously had less to do with those games.  So when you say "Hudson shooters in general are easier than average"- do you actually mean what you say- or are you strictly referring to your GOT experiences?  Because if so- "in general" is more than a touch off.



Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Necromancer on April 03, 2008, 04:05:15 AM
Sure I did,it said keep vulgarities to a minimum,and heated discussions were allowed as long as they stayed to a minimum,ect. No ones name calling here and def no heated debate going on currently....

Yes, your edited post is an improvement over the original.

Necro,I clearly didn't say he beat every shooter ever made either lol

Not in exact words perhaps, yet you implied that Zeta applied the 'master of power metal shooting' moniker to himself and that he believes himself to be god's gift to shmups; neither is true.

I swear some of you have ZERO humor what so ever sometimes.... :(

Cry me a river.

Also,I wasn't the first person on this thread to stray  off the Gunhed topic,Zeta was with the talk of other shooters besides Gunhed ect.

Wrong again; comparing Gunhed's difficulty to other shooters is not off topic.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Michael Helgeson on April 03, 2008, 04:46:31 AM
Sure I did,it said keep vulgarities to a minimum,and heated discussions were allowed as long as they stayed to a minimum,ect. No ones name calling here and def no heated debate going on currently....

Yes, your edited post is an improvement over the original.

Necro,I clearly didn't say he beat every shooter ever made either lol

Not in exact words perhaps, yet you implied that Zeta applied the 'master of power metal shooting' moniker to himself and that he believes himself to be god's gift to shmups; neither is true.

I swear some of you have ZERO humor what so ever sometimes.... :(

Cry me a river.

Also,I wasn't the first person on this thread to stray  off the Gunhed topic,Zeta was with the talk of other shooters besides Gunhed ect.

Wrong again; comparing Gunhed's difficulty to other shooters is not off topic.
I didnt edit my original post to remove anything Necro. I added to it :P Get your facts straight or Ill have to send you back to robot hell.
I never had my own vulgarities in the post,and now all your doing is side tracking this thread worring about me. How do you know what Zeta thinks about himself,are you emotionaly involved with him,are you a mind reader? Only he knows wether he feels he's a shooter god or not.

Seriously do you think your really that adept to knowing what everyone is feeling,you not having a sense of humor doesnt hurt my feelings,dont assume to think Im really sad just because of  a frown face,and dont hold your breath waiting for tears to show,youll end up dying for lack of breath.

Wrong about changing topic too, the fact that he started talking about others shooters completely and lost focus is a change of topic. The threads about Gunhead itself,one of the best shooters made for PCE. Enough chit chat here though,I cant say anything more about the game then I already have.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Necromancer on April 03, 2008, 05:23:25 AM
How do you know what Zeta thinks about himself,are you emotionaly involved with him,are you a mind reader? Only he knows wether he feels he's a shooter god or not.

I try to base my posts on what other's have stated; I see no reason to skew others' statements for use in personal attacks.

Seriously do you think your really that adept to knowing what everyone is feeling,you not having a sense of humor doesnt hurt my feelings,dont assume to think Im really sad just because of  a frown face,and dont hold your breath waiting for tears to show,youll end up dying for lack of breath.

Yes, everything must be 100% serious.  Thanks for the notice; I'll start breathing now.  :roll:

Wrong about changing topic too, the fact that he started talking about others shooters completely and lost focus is a change of topic. The threads about Gunhead itself,one of the best shooters made for PCE. Enough chit chat here though,I cant say anything more about the game then I already have.

Comparing one game to another within a genre and on the same system is most definitely not off topic.

Just one punks opinion.


well, apparently gunhed was based off of some sort of movie or anime. One day I was shootin through the bargin bin at the local comic shop when all of a sudden I saw them. I was like; wtf?!?!?!? So I bought them. Never read them though, lol. I'll take some pics when I recover my digital camera ( I seem to have misplaced it in a drunken stupor last weekend  :oops:.)

Much thanks, turbo D.  I look forward to enjoying the pics.  8)
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: nat on April 03, 2008, 05:25:56 AM
well, apparently gunhed was based off of some sort of movie or anime. One day I was shootin through the bargin bin at the local comic shop when all of a sudden I saw them. I was like; wtf?!?!?!? So I bought them. Never read them though, lol. I'll take some pics when I recover my digital camera ( I seem to have misplaced it in a drunken stupor last weekend  :oops:.)

Much thanks, turbo D.  I look forward to enjoying the pics.  8)

He must have recovered his camera, because he took pictures of his newly painted SNES in that other thread.

So where are the Gunhed pics already?
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 03, 2008, 07:03:46 AM
Quote from: Sinistron
So when you say "Hudson shooters in general are easier than average"- do you actually mean what you say- or are you strictly referring to your GOT experiences?  Because if so- "in general" is more than a touch off.

I consider Gunhed to be part of the Solider series, and a Hudson game. Details of my deranged reasoning are explained above. The same goes for GoT, LoT, and Sapphire. These are all relatively easy games with Sapphire being by far the easiest. These games are on the easier side of shooting for sure when compared to stuff from Naxat, Cave, Treasure, Raizing, etc, at least in my opinion, and I appreciate it because the harder stuff takes so much effort to clear and to be blunt sometimes the game just isn't worth that much effort.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 03, 2008, 07:14:48 AM
Quote from: elnino
I didn't mean that having a damn hard time coming back after losing a life is a bad thing in general and I wouldn't even consider this as a flaw. I like shmups which are hard and challenging a lot. The problem with Gunhed is the difficulty gap between the final stage and the rest of the levels. Every other shooter where you're doomed after you've died is basically challenging throughout the whole game. Gunhed, however, lets you sleep through the first few levels, requires maybe average skills in the mid-levels and then all of a sudden gets freaking difficult in the final stage. If the difficulty increased constantly I wouldn't have a problem with it but knowing that after reseting the game I won't be challenged until I get to the final level again is quite a frustration and makes me think twice if I should give it another try.

I'm kind of going off on a tangent here....I think that at the time developers were maybe having a hard time adjusting from the arcade mentality to the console exclusive mentality. One of my favorite shooters in the arcade as a kid was Twin Cobra. In that game it was also f*cking impossible to come back from death with grace but could be beaten with the GWB method (throw money at it until either you win or they kick you out). With a console though you have to strike some sort of balance. You won't want a Sapphire or Gunbird 2 approach where you basically just have the JAMMA with an insert coin button because thats a guaranteed win regardless of skill. On the other hand you don't want it to be like playing Pulstar on an AES, which was limited to four credits and therefore *extremely* hard to clear.

The winning formula seems to be what is the norm with shooters from the Radiant Silvergun era and up. This formula being that a timer or play counter increases the ship count, extend, credit count, etc as the player gets more experienced eventually resulting in a game that the person can actually finish. With Iakaruga I managed to finish the game shortly before the infinite continues option showed up. In other words I'm not very good at Ikaruga. :)
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Sinistron on April 03, 2008, 07:42:56 AM
That's right I left Sapphire out.   :oops:  Sapphire is pretty damn easy.  Great nonetheless.  Two-player's a bit tougher if you're playing with someone unseasoned as they'll drain all the lives.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: rag-time4 on April 03, 2008, 10:57:40 AM
I didnt edit my original post to remove anything Necro. I added to it :P Get your facts straight or Ill have to send you back to robot hell.
I never had my own vulgarities in the post,and now all your doing is side tracking this thread worring about me. How do you know what Zeta thinks about himself,are you emotionaly involved with him,are you a mind reader? Only he knows wether he feels he's a shooter god or not.

Seriously do you think your really that adept to knowing what everyone is feeling,you not having a sense of humor doesnt hurt my feelings,dont assume to think Im really sad just because of  a frown face,and dont hold your breath waiting for tears to show,youll end up dying for lack of breath.

Wrong about changing topic too, the fact that he started talking about others shooters completely and lost focus is a change of topic. The threads about Gunhead itself,one of the best shooters made for PCE. Enough chit chat here though,I cant say anything more about the game then I already have.

Speaking of sidetracking this thread, has anyone ever played the Gunhed Famicom cart? I bought it last year but I didn't spend much time with it (if any..??)

Appartently, it's a strategy game, based on the movie?

http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/nes/image/579593.html
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 03, 2008, 12:33:57 PM
Hudson's name isn't even on that one, but Toho and Sunrise are (they made the film). Interesting.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Turbo D on April 03, 2008, 01:58:28 PM
well, apparently gunhed was based off of some sort of movie or anime. One day I was shootin through the bargin bin at the local comic shop when all of a sudden I saw them. I was like; wtf?!?!?!? So I bought them. Never read them though, lol. I'll take some pics when I recover my digital camera ( I seem to have misplaced it in a drunken stupor last weekend  :oops:.)


Much thanks, turbo D.  I look forward to enjoying the pics.  8)


He must have recovered his camera, because he took pictures of his newly painted SNES in that other thread.

So where are the Gunhed pics already?


Yes, I have recovered my camera!  :) Now, for your comic enjoyment. I present; GunHed:

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcf.jpg)

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcb.jpg)

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcp.jpg)

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcad.jpg)

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcad2.jpg)
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: nat on April 03, 2008, 02:29:39 PM
This thread inspired me to whip the ol' game out and play through it today. See my unbeatable high score in the Gunhed High Scores thread.

Awesome comics, BTW.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 03, 2008, 02:35:59 PM
Wow, to have Kia Asamiya do a manga to promote the film, in color even (color comics in Japan being far less than %1 of all comics total) indicates a real desire to like...sell stuff.

The movie sucks though. The game is better, and I'm willing to bet the comic is too.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: sinfreealex on April 03, 2008, 03:57:18 PM
The movie sucks though. The game is better, and I'm willing to bet the comic is too.

I second that. I just got a hold of the movie a few weeks ago and it was excruciating to watch. From what I've read, the game originally had you control a tank instead of a space ship. I just couldn't imagine.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: TR0N on April 03, 2008, 04:24:35 PM
well, apparently gunhed was based off of some sort of movie or anime. One day I was shootin through the bargin bin at the local comic shop when all of a sudden I saw them. I was like; wtf?!?!?!? So I bought them. Never read them though, lol. I'll take some pics when I recover my digital camera ( I seem to have misplaced it in a drunken stupor last weekend  :oops:.)


Much thanks, turbo D.  I look forward to enjoying the pics.  8)


He must have recovered his camera, because he took pictures of his newly painted SNES in that other thread.

So where are the Gunhed pics already?


Yes, I have recovered my camera!  :) Now, for your comic enjoyment. I present; GunHed:

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcf.jpg)

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcb.jpg)

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcp.jpg)

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcad.jpg)

(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/photodavid/ghcad2.jpg)

Heh was i about to do that dig out my,Gunhed graphic novel to show here.

It's some thing it went from movie to game and a comic as well.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: esteban on April 04, 2008, 02:46:05 PM
You're probably the only guys who will appreciate this, so here goes: a dear friend of mind got a bootleg of GunHed at a convention shortly after the movie was released. It was pretty painful and I never watched more than a few minutes. He had turned me onto so many kool things (Guyver, Macross, Fist of the North Star, etc.) that He ultimately gave me the VHS. I never watched it.

Meanwhile, this friend LOVED, I mean, absolutely LOVED playing Blazing Lazers (he had NES). I was pretty sick of BL at that point, to be honest.

Anyway, it wasn't until a few years ago that I found out that Blazing Lazers = GunHed!

I kept saying to myself, "Why does 'GunHed' sound familiar?"

There is absolutely no connection between the game and the movie, outside of the logo, that is.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on April 04, 2008, 04:39:17 PM
Well I think there is some contrived plot line in the front of the manual...that's probably it.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: esteban on April 04, 2008, 05:15:17 PM
Well I think there is some contrived plot line in the front of the manual...that's probably it.
hahahaha. yeah, I'm sure you're right.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: romanoaj on November 04, 2011, 02:39:55 AM
Well I think there is some contrived plot line in the front of the manual...that's probably it.
hahahaha. yeah, I'm sure you're right.
I do not own the manual.  Does anybody have a scan or a link so I can use my limited Japanese skills to translate a possible justification for how this game fits the source material?
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Necromancer on November 04, 2011, 03:03:01 AM
I do not own the manual.  Does anybody have a scan or a link so I can use my limited Japanese skills to translate a possible justification for how this game fits the source material?


Video Game Den (http://www.videogameden.com/hucard.htm) has a scan of the manual as well as the text from Blazing Lazers.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: rag-time4 on November 04, 2011, 05:08:23 AM
It just occured to me that the term 'necropost' is quite the double entendre!!

I had forgotten where zeta coined the "master of power metal shooting" moniker! Great stuff
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: PunkicCyborg on November 04, 2011, 12:11:16 PM
this was a great old thread to read. those gunhed manga look pretty cool and are cheap on ebay. im even interested in seeing the movie
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: thesteve on November 04, 2011, 03:53:33 PM
ive always loved the game
havent seen the manual in years.
recovering from getting hit on the last level is not an issue, as long as you have been collecting the flashing orbs (from killing the changing powerups)
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SignOfZeta on November 04, 2011, 07:56:11 PM
Wow. This thread is amazing.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: fragmare on November 05, 2011, 05:45:55 AM
I really like Gunhed/Blazing Lazers.  Love it, in fact.  For coming out so early on in the system's life, it has a very "16-bit" look and feel, as opposed to to a lot of the stuff that was coming out in 87-89 for the PCE.  The only real crit I can find is that the levels can drone on at times, but that's Compile for you.  Pretty much all Compile shmups I can think of are the same way... with that being said, I still love Compile games.  And yes, level 9 is ball-smashingly hard in comparison with levels 1-8.
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: Mathius on November 05, 2011, 06:38:38 PM
This was one of my first "clears" on the Turbo. The rockin soundtrack kept me motivated. :)
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: rag-time4 on November 05, 2011, 06:46:43 PM
Wow. This thread is amazing.
the only thing missing is more discussion of the famicom cart!
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: SuperPlay on November 06, 2011, 01:47:24 AM

What Chris had to say about Gunhed (spida1a)


That's what I am talking about .....................

Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: romanoaj on November 07, 2011, 07:26:50 PM
I do not own the manual.  Does anybody have a scan or a link so I can use my limited Japanese skills to translate a possible justification for how this game fits the source material?


Video Game Den (http://www.videogameden.com/hucard.htm) has a scan of the manual as well as the text from Blazing Lazers.


Thanks.  I've been to VGD many times, but never realized there were PDF files.  Cheers. 
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: esteban on December 11, 2011, 06:54:38 AM
Wow. This thread is amazing.


Ha! I just re-read it, too. I honestly don't remember linking to the German review of GunHed. I love the picture of the reviewer in that scan.

(http://www.kultpower.de/powerplay_testberichte/gunhed.jpg)

I also had totally forgotten about Mr. H. and how antagonistic he could be (I still loved him, though, because when he wasn't spending 99% of his energy arguing with someone, I enjoyed reading his perspective on things.)

Also, re-reading this thread made me wonder where Sinistron was these days (he popped up at some point in the past year and said life was busy...or something along those lines).

Anyway, back on topic: Blazing Lazers remains a great game, and for folks who complain about the default difficulty level (it *is* too easy), they should select the "GOD OF GAME" difficulty level.

IT IS ABSOLUTELY, MARVELOUSLY INSANE. :)

 
Title: Re: Gunhed criticisms
Post by: rag-time4 on December 11, 2011, 12:52:29 PM
i would like to read more about the famicom cart in this thread.