Cobra Kai Posted April 3, 2017 Share Posted April 3, 2017 I play alot of shmups. Not as many, or as well as the regulars of shmups.com, but I play quite a bit. I find myself gravitating to Vertical perspective games the most, such as Raiden or the Strikers series. I truly have a more difficult time playing the horizontal style, like Gradius or Blazing Star etc... I really think the perspective affects my play, I just don't get the natural smooth strafing action using the up and down motion (don't be perverted) on a game like Gradius, my brain doesn't seem to process it as well. When I play a vertical shmup, I'm more naturally inclined to just play it better and have better reactions with the controls. I kind of also tend to like the graphical style of the top-down perspective of destroyed cities and landscapes that come with a vertical shmup. Horis are cool, I have nothing against them other than I'm not as good at those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippy B. Coyote Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 I've got a strong preference for vertical scrolling shmups as well, and I know I can play them much better than horizontal scrolling ones in general. That said, I won't turn up my nose at a really well made horizontal shmup and have found a few that I really enjoy. Thunder Force III is one of my favorite shooters, but I still prefer Xevious, Raiden, and the like if I have my pick. My all time favorite game in this genre is Solar Striker for the Game Boy though (thus my user title) so I'm not exactly the best representation of your average shmup fan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fiddlepaddle Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Yeah, I also do better with the vertical shooters...just seems more natural somehow. A person could probably test out a theory on this by tilting a monitor 90 degrees (or by playing lying down on the couch) and remapping the controller directions... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Vertical here too. It's not even just shmups, it's other kinds of games too. Every sports game I play, I always set the camera to vertical, even if the game was developed with horizontal in mind. I just can't do horizontal. (this line reserved for future sex joke) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariLeaf Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Yep vertical for me. I'm sure this stems from my early gaming career featuring games like Space Invaders, Galaxian, and Phoenix among other classic vertical shooters. I played a lot of Life Force on the NES but I didn't like it quite as much. When I got a TG-16 I was blown away by Blazing Lazers which to me is still the pinnacle of 16-bit shooters. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+save2600 Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Shoot 'em up's are great no matter what, but when forced to really think about which style, gonna have to say I prefer horizontal shooters. R-Type, U.N. Squadron, Gradius, Last Resort, Vanguard, Scramble, Darius, Forgotten Worlds, Dragon Breed and the list could go on and on and on. I tend to dislike some of the things vertical shooters do, like unnecessarily fast scrolling backgrounds, excessive number of bullets floating around and scrolling playfields (hate that about Raiden actually). Now, old fashioned vertical shooters like Ghost Pilots, 1941/2/3, Space Invaders, Galaga, Gunsmoke, etc... love those! But all in all and game for game, really will have to go horizontal on this one. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanooki Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Don't care, depends on the game itself. Take my Neo-Geo for instance. I have Blazing Star (H), Iron Clad (H), Sonic Wings 2 (V), Sonic Wings 3 (V), and Strikers 1945 Plus (V.) 2 Horizontal and 3 Vertical, care for them all quite a bit. Going back into that same era (I loathe modern shooters as they're all about bullet hell asininity it seems) I've got on SNES Gradius 3, Space Megaforce, and UN Squadron (and when I had a larger collection of more including SFC games there were quite a lot, more of them though were horizontal but the SNES seemed to play into that more.) NES I had a pretty even split too with your stuff like Life Force doing both, Gradius and 2(FC), Parodius, Taiyou no Yuusha Fighbird, Crisis Force, 1942 and 1943, Gun Nac, Gunsmoke, Xexyz, Star Force, and others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 No preference on my end. I do understand the higher perceived difficulty of horizontal shooters though. It doesn't seem as natural to press up and down to dodge, versus the more common left and right movements in verticals. Sprites also tend to be more oddly shaped on horizontal shooters, making fine-tuned dodging more difficult in many cases (example: the thinner, but longer planes in U.N. Squadron, versus the shorter but fatter ships in Raiden and Truxton). However, I have noticed that certain horizontal shooters often require less intense dodging maneuvers, and a simple tap on up or down may be enough to get you through what looks like a wall of lasers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbd30 Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 What about shooters that are both such as Life Force and Legendary Wings? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyHW Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Vertical feels more natural. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyHW Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Why was there no option for diagonal, like Zaxxon? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbd30 Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Why was there no option for diagonal, like Zaxxon? And Viewpoint and Isolated Warrior. (The latter is a unique shmup with great graphics for NES that people should definitely try if they haven't.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icemanxp300 Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 I like both but I have found my favorite shmups are vertical. Although the genesis/megadrive have me really rethinking this as of lately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hyperboy Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Vertical feels more natural to me. Sent from my non beer holding hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Vertical forever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7800fan Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Horizontal, more "room" to see oncoming enemies. The last part of Life Force (or Salamander) was a pain in the butt, being vertical and not getting much warning where to move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killersquirel Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 Where is the love for Vanguard that does both? How about games like bosconian or time pilot that allows free roaming movement? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_convoy Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 R-Type gripped my 9 year old heart in 1987 or so, so my preference is horizontal, altho' I like both, and the best shumps are mostly of the vertical inclination. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eltigro Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 I'm in the no preference category. I feel like I am better at the horizontal ones than the vertical ones, but I have no empirical evidence to back that theory. Last night I played two horizontal (R-Type and Psychosis for the TurboGrafx) and one vertical (Raiden). I got farther in both horizontal ones than in Raiden, but then I've had more practice on them than I've had on Raiden. Also, and I've noted this before, this version of Raiden seems harder than most others I've played. /shrug. But despite all the horizontal shmups I like, there are plenty of vertical ones that I enjoy, such as the 1942/1943 series and Blazing Lazers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reaperman Posted April 5, 2017 Share Posted April 5, 2017 (edited) I have this weird thing for the 'people look like ants' top down view, so it's vertical all the way to me. It's a really neat perspective, and I rarely get to see the world that way. Even more than that, shmups are one of a number of genres that I play mostly for background scenery, and IMO, side view doesn't have as much room for interesting stuff on screen. I've seen some fine shmups in both camps, but if I'm handed two games with no other info than which way they scroll, I'd start with the top-down one. I regularly play Aero Fighters 2 over Blazing Star. Edited April 5, 2017 by Reaperman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoshiChiri Posted April 5, 2017 Share Posted April 5, 2017 I have just the slightest preference for horizontal, I assume growing up with Lightening Force caused that one. I really don't care that much though- as long as it's good shmup, I'm happy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor Gull Posted April 5, 2017 Share Posted April 5, 2017 After looking at my shooters I have more Vertical than Horizontal but also some that don't do either like Sub-Terrania ( seems like a shooter to me). Could we ask how would we classify Asteroids as well then? I do like the Striker series and Giga Wing though but yeah Legendary Wings came to mind as well as an oddity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Dangerous Posted April 5, 2017 Share Posted April 5, 2017 Vertical feels best to me. You have less room to see oncoming enemies but you have more room to move around side to side. Also graphically I think vertical games can be more interesting via layering and various 3D effects that can be achieved. That being said there are some great horizontal games which I will always enjoy. A good game is a good game when it comes down to it, no matter what the screen orientation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eltigro Posted April 5, 2017 Share Posted April 5, 2017 There are lots of different sub-genres that could be talked about... pure vertical like Raiden or 1943... pure horizontal like R-Type... single screen shooters like Galaga and Space Invaders... free roaming like Bosconian... free roaming mixed with horizontal like Thunder Force II... alternating horizontal and vertical like Lifeforce or Legendary Wings... vertical mixed with something else entirely like The Guardian Legend... rotational (?) ones like Gyruss and Tempest... pseudo 3-d "into the screen" types like Space Harrier and After Burner... pseudo 3-d "into the screen" types mixed with pseudo 3-d vertical like Thunder Blade... (yeah... since we're breaking it down... how would Thunder Blade be classified?) There are as many different sub-genres of shmup as there are people who create them, it seems. But I think it's reasonable to restrict a conversation to horizontal and vertical since it seems the majority are one or the other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gentlegamer Posted April 5, 2017 Share Posted April 5, 2017 Vert: you don't die when you touch the sides 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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