Discovered "New" Genny shooter: Grind Stormer

[fiddlepaddle]

<p>For the first time in over a year,

 

 

I found a game I didn't already have for the Genesis, at an outdoor flea market.  There was a Genesis model II system and 7 or 8 games, and one of them was Grind Stormer/V-V, which I didn't have.  The guy wanted "fifteen bucks for everything!" but I didn't need another dirty system so I offered 2 bucks for the one game and he said OK.  I suspected it might be a shooter by the look of the graphics, and that's my favorite kind of game, so I was kind of excited to play it.

 

Got home, cleaned it up and started playing...  Yup, its a shooter, and it's pretty fun.  I was kind of shocked after looking it up and seeing how it's kind of rare, and also saw some reviews critical of it's slowdown and a flaw that apparently can cause the enemy bullets to go invisible at critical times (haven't run into that yet).  

 

It also has a feature allowing you to choose the Japanese version of the game "V-V", which is very similar but seems a bit more challenging.  

 

I wish this would happen more often, but I guess opportunities to discover a new fun game for a dead system will continue to diminish, and most of the the soon-to-be-dead systems don't inspire me.

 

I want to go back to 1999!  or 1985!  or 1977!  (well, not really).

[+thegoldenband]

Nice score! I haven't played Grind Stormer, but I know some people think highly of it and it's been on my list to try out for some time. I think you may have lucked out, as IIRC the game is notorious for dead carts.

[Gabriel]

I remember Circus World having a bargain bin which was roughly 25% filled with this title alone. They wanted $5 for it. I kept on passing on it, and so did everyone else apparrently.

 

I finally got my copy back when I would shop at Gamestop. They had quite a few copies of it. I think it was a $2 cart or something. Of course, being Gamestop, I didn't get a box or instructions or anything, and the cart is in dubious shape.

 

I also see it a lot at the used game stores I still visit. So, I don't think it's a rare game as much as simply no one ever looks for it. Either that or Central Texas is where all the Grind Stormer carts are gathering to cause the apocalypse.

 

I can't say I've played it much. It's just a little too bland nowadays to keep me playing. However, it certainly never struck me as bad. It was just sorta mediocre for the genre at the time. The shooter genre was mostly dead on the Genesis at this time, and what shooters there were gravitated to the more "hardcore" SegaCD. Compared to RoboAleste or Android Asault, which are Grind Stormer's nearest contemporaries, it's almost no wonder that when it was new the shooter fans plunked down $40 for a SegaCD shooter instead of $50 for Grind Stormer. And by the time it hit those bargain bins, no one was paying any attention anymore. Or at least that's my hypothesis.

[mister_pal]

Honestly I always thought it was a pretty bland game but getting it for $2 is a great deal.

[Austin]

Nice find for $2!

 

It's a solid shooter, IMO. It's very challenging though on stock settings. Visually the game is pretty good, with some of the largest sprites and bullets you will find on the Genesis. If I recall correctly, it doesn't slow down much either. The gameplay system is pretty unique for the time as well, with you being able to focus your pods at different angles (face them out for a weaker, wide shot, or inward for a concentrated, more powerful beam). The flicker is pretty apparent once you get to boss fights, and it can be distracting, but it's not a game breaker though like some people make it out to be. I feel the sound and music is weakest part of this package. It's no MUSHA or Lightening Force, that's for sure. My guess is that the sound is probably better in the arcade version, but at least the visuals translated over pretty well.

[MagitekAngel]

Just when I think I've seen all the shmups Genny has to offer, a few more come out of the woodwork.

Genesis was pretty much the shmup king, but the Super Nintendo gets honorable mention for having a game where the entire soundtrack is by 2 Unlimited. It's hilarious and awesome at the same time. Seriously, go check it out, the game's BioMetal.

[Drixxel]

Cool find. While sort of bland and unremarkable, Grind Stormer is still enjoyable enough. It has a little more character when played as V V, I feel the Gradius-ish power-up system does more for the game than the pieced out insta-upgrades. Also, could the power-ups in Grind Stormer possibly be any more boring than floating rectangles containing a text description of said power-up?