gojiguy

@hste why are you even here?

These are always a better deal than going with individual ACA releases but... What could be coming that isnt on the carts already? Surely we won't get 10 new original titles?

@mjparker77 Yeah I mean, assuming this already has Taito F2 stuff in it (and that Evercade runs PS1 games) I assume shmup releases aren't impossible?

Why are the taito collections allergic to shmups?? Taito invented the genre!

Never even heard of these folks (or their games) until they started dumping this slop out.

No thanks.

@PopetheRev28 if you keep playing for a clear it may start to get annoying. It did for me.

@PopetheRev28 I cleared ZPF the day I got it in the mail. Here are my main issues:

• level design is very bland, simple, repetitive, and overly long. Sometimes the game just throws empty sections at you with nothing but one or two enemies spawning at the far end of the screen. The action is pacecd horribly.
• Bullet visibility is a serious issue in multiple levels as the backgrounds are way to garish and the bullet colours dont adapt well enough to stand out.
• The shop system encourages you to simply play the game less- turn down the number of bullets? Why? this is like admitting the game isn't fun.
• bullet patterns are not exciting or fun to dodge. Enemies aren't fun to kill, and bosses are boring (and also you can just bomb the boss and kill it instantly, a huge oversight).

Overall it feels very euroshmup and amateurish. I dont absolutely hate it, but there are so many better games even on the same hardware. The worst a shmup can be is boring, and ZPF is unfortunately quite boring.

@Edd-O Tom does seem like a player with real interest in the genre, but I feel like a review of any STG should involve a full on input lag test (even if rudimentary) and a comparison of the original port. Knowing that he actually plays STGs for the clear leads me to believe he understands how important slowdown accuracy and input lag are but I dont see them in his reviews. Maybe its asking too much given the deadlines for these reviews? idk.

This is why I have to take shmup reviews with a grain of salt. Like reviewers glazing ZPF when it is the worst shmup I've played all year.

I wish NintendoLife, TE, and Pushsquare would hire shmup players to review these games.

As of now, I will not be purchasing this unless a fix is announced. Slowdown is essential to a game like this.

Looks like Dariusburst (which is NOT a bad thing!)

I backed this game and I definitely wouldn't call it "one of the best Sega Genesis shmups"- not even close

Game is rough/unfinished.

The level design is weak, the patterns are boring, and it's euro as hell.

Avoid avoid avoid, trust me.

@JoakimZ They are all getting re-released, thankfully! Reissues of vol 1, 2 and 3 are coming out very soon so if you missed out you can grab them.

Either way, even without any of the add on carts, it has 40 games built in.

The Egret II Mini:

• costs less
• has 40 games pre installed PLUS cartridge support
• TV Out
• a MUCH better selection of games (Darius Gaiden, RayForce, Night Striker, etc)
• supports peripherals

I WANT to like this product, but it feels like such a half-effort from Evercade. Taito has some of the greatest arcade games out there, and they can't manage to pick a single game from the 90s?

If you're going to position a lineup this weak, at least include more than 10 games...

@smoreon I mean its less about specific releases (though we did get the Amiga CD32 while the states didn't) and more about differences in culture and taste and people.

We had our own arcades, our own meet ups, our own preferences. Hell, there are games that wouldn't exist without a Canadian audience (like NHL on Wii).

There's also the fact that Canadians make up a hug portion of the development community of games small and large.

Its a region with its own culture & history, not just "USA but cold."

I don't think these people understand that using AI-Generated images gives me LESS faith in a kickstarter, not MORE.

Is this the first AI slop retail cover?

If they made a smart flip phone with real buttons (like a CAT S22 flip) I'd buy it.

If its just another smart phone then whatever, who cares.

@Guru_Larry So even worse than I thought. Why are people so mad about these disappearing?

Just use an emulator, no?

Bring on the slop!!!!!!

Cant wait for the inevitable comment from that dude who will complain this is "AI fearmongering"

Very cool! I was hoping it would allow for Mexican and Canadian submissions but alas.

Still stoked for the book.

I'm confused... wasn't SEGA forever just a bunch of kinda mid smartphone ports of SEGA games?

Whats all this talk about SEGA Forever being more than that?

ITs a shame they've just given up on doing 4:3 screen handhelds. A 1:1 screen would be great

@PopetheRev28 oh wow, I gotta look into that... thats VERY interesting and the first I've heard of it!

And hey, for what its worth which version of Dariusburst depends on what you prioritize as a player! For me, its the ACEX version.

lmfao this is insanely bad

@Blast16 volumes 2 & 3 were pretty great, but I'd still like to see a volume that includes:

Gridseeker
Gekirindan
Arabian Magic
Dungeon Magic
Akkanvader
Chase H.Q.
Aqua Jack
Galactic Storm

@PopetheRev28 Where did you hear about there being a native PS5 version of ACEX+?

And haha I think I know the video you're referring to... I made it!

This had a whole series of games that followed:

Midnight Landing
Top Landing
Landing Gear
Landing Japan

Its cool, and I'm hopeful more obscure Taito games get released via ACA (and eventually Taito Milestones 4).

@PopetheRev28 what do you mean by "good version" of Dariusburst CS?

ACEX+ is the best version out there.

This is cool, but I'm at the point now where I just want a ship date for the device...

@axelhander automating the process of making fake images to fool the masses is NOT a good thing.

Not an arcade I frequented, but sad to see all the same.

I'll stick with Taki Udon.

I don't like Palmer Luckey but he has the money to beat them to market and they have been asleep at the wheel.

I'm not interested in Analogue products, the company has a horrible rap.

Still, the superstation one is objectively better than either, so I'll stick with that.

@axelhander it's not fear mongering if it's accurate.

AI is probably the worst tech invention in history.

Why do people keep insisting physical is dead? Cyberpunk on Switch 2, released this very summer, had a whopping 75%+ sell-in on physical vs digital.

Is that a modern outlier? Sure, but physical is far, FAR from "dead."

Apparently the author is not a good person at all: https://bsky.app/profile/st1ka.bsky.social/post/3m276aidhg22e

As a huge Taito fan I have to say these evercade game choices are a bit of a letdown for me. Even the alpha bartop.

No shmups? Really?

RayForce, Darius Gaiden, Gekirindan, Metal Black, Gun Frontier... anything really from their shmup output would perfect (especially for a device with built in TATE mode!)

@FPGAguru I don't think it's even top 5: https://youtu.be/oYjYmSniQyM?si=afSd6oks72IByh7c

I mean, currently wont the faster memory only really have an effect on a handful of cores?

N64 core is already working incredibly well on DE10, so what does this mean... 3DO? Jag? Toaplan V2 maybe?

Even the Mister FPGA NES core isn't 100% accurate...

I Actually didn't hate the PD1 remake. It was unnecessary and not a scratch on the original, but it was playable.

But good lord did I hate the HotD remakes. They were godawful.

I'm gonna pass on further FE games...

Classic Nintendo fan reactions - "what do you mean you didn't play Nintendo?? They invented everything and are the greatest and most important ever!!!!!"

As they just completely ignore PC gaming, arcade gaming, other consoles (NEC, SEGA, SNK, etc)...

@slider1983 Euro shmup is a term used to describe sets of mechanics used by europoean shmup developers that are somewhat counter to classic shmup design (especially from Japan) and are generally looked down upon by arcade gamers. These include but aren't limited to:

• random clusters of enemies
• RNG spawns
• slow movement
• momentum based movement
• slow rate of fire
• shops and upgrades to power up your ship
• long levels
• repetitve patterns

Etc

@Beyerun what is political about this? Genuine question

I never planned on buying this or the Analogue 3D, but I have to say as much as I hate Luckey I am kind of glad Modretro is (hopefully) scaring some sense into Analogue about changing their ways re: communication and timelines.

Why am I not surprised this is Aspyr? Disgusting.

I have no idea why Pelekanos signed such a horrible deal with a horrible company. Its a real shame.

time crisis would be horrible on an LCD

MY vote goes to prop cycle and rave racer

Looks a bit too euro-shmuppy for me, but I'll keep an eye on it.

Would you folks consider doing a piece on existing barcades? I live near Toronto, Canada and there are a bunch of them here that could use some love!:

Antisocial Pinball
Freeplay
Zed*80
Tilt
8-Bit Beans
etc...

They couldn't even use AI to try to make something somewhat related to the games?

This is a surefire sign that no one behind the project cares or has the time or money to make something good.