dinosaurgerms

dinosaurgerms, 5 days ago

@jake4480 was this the first matt sharp-less weezer record? 👀

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

admittedly i played the game a very long time ago, and i remember that the game isn't perfect (multi-directional whip negates need for sub-weapons, player sprite is too big, etc.) but THIS MUSIC! good god this is so good!

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

the "muffled-warm" sound of the snes sound actually works really well with moody stuff (!) can we have more moody, jazz-y OSTs plz

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

i feel like this is a perfect example of a OST that plays to the strengths of the hardware, going for an "organic" sound that you couldn't get on competing consoles at the time

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

ALSO! i remember the game being very "earthy" in color palette, but i didn't remember it having this much depth/beauty in its "earthy-ness". i guess the comparatively-huge snes color palette wins out here, since this would probably look really muddy on (again) competing systems

Gif form "Castlevania IV", showing the logo slowly move into frame onscreen. In the background, a worn, earth-y, stone wall is seen, with various insects crawling over it.

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

(and again, before someone says "but dino the game is flawed"- yes, i know, i agree that rondo is the best classic-style castlevania, i just never realized how much i personally vibe with this game's particular aesthetic + mood)

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

@jake4480 lol yeah i might be overdoing it in qualifying my praise, i'm just anxious about someone coming in and being all "EHRMMMM the multi-directional whip negates the DPS efficiency of the axe subweapon, making this game clearly worthless 😡😡😡"

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

normal brain: "wow, mode 7 on the snes!"

galaxy brain: "wow, transparent layers on the snes!"

Gif from "Castlevania IV" showing off transparent effects used for water in the game. They look really cool!

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

@jake4480 yeah i was really upset when i checked my switch online acct last night and realized that this is NOT on the switch online service lol

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

@jake4480 NO >:( i think maybe because it's on that collection. although maybe it's bc konami is just weird nowadays. contra isn't anywhere to be seen either :(

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

"Enforce" is a game where you drive a rather-silly-looking tank and shoot at things with two giant cannons. It's similar to other Taito games from the time period with sprite scaling, e.g. "Battle Shark"

Gif from "Enforce" (cinematic, 2D pixel graphics). A sprite representing the player tank (which look a bit silly- vertically oriented, rather top-heavy-looking, with large treads underneath) zooms straight at the screen (using a cool sprite scaling effect) and shoots into the screen with its laser cannon and gatling gun.

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

At the beginning of the game, a man moves into frame with a really cool strut and waves table tennis paddles at you

Gif from "Enforce" (gameplay, 2D pixel graphics, first-person perspective). The player sits in a tank from a first-person perspective, in some sort of high-tech hangar, and sees a man move into frame with a silly strut. The man waves what look like table tennis paddles at the player, and the player's view rises (as if they're on a giant elevator). The "elevator" stops once the player is on a dirt road above the hanger, and the actual game begins.

dinosaurgerms, 7 days ago

(apologies for personal post, I work really hard to keep my TL as on-topic as possible, just having an "crisis of identity" at the moment)

dinosaurgerms, 12 days ago

If your percentage is below 90%, however, the game gives you "remedial coursework"... which translates to "ridiculously-hard shmup level meant to break your resolve and steal your quarters". Seriously, look at this gauntlet

Gif from "Image Fight" (gameplay, 2D pixel graphics, top-down perspective, vertical scrolling). A small spaceship controlled by the player through deep space while attempting to destroy roughly a dozen other space ships, each of which fires lots of laser attacks at the player. The stage looks very difficult.

dinosaurgerms, 12 days ago

[Real talk, beating this stage should probably result in you beating the game, with a message to the tune of "You're pretty good" printed to the screen, but I digress]

dinosaurgerms, 10 days ago

At this point, the final three levels of the game take place in "the real world". They're a little underwhelming compared to the prior levels, since they take take place exclusively in space + space station environments. At least you get a cool launch-off cinematic for all your troubles thus far

Gif from "Image Fight" (cinematic, 2D pixel graphics, top-down perspective, vertical scrolling). Four small spaceships sit at the bottom of a large "launcher", which propels the spaceships into outer space one after the other. The player spaceship is the third to be launched, and upon doings so, blasts off using its rockets once reaching the end of the launcher.

dinosaurgerms, 10 days ago

Well, okay, there's a really cool part where you're flying above a planet in the shadow of the sun, which blots out the star field behind you

Gif from "Image Fight" (gameplay, 2D pixel graphics, top-down perspective, vertical scrolling). A small spaceship controlled by the player fights other spaceships while flying above a planet in the shadow of the sun. This planet effectively blots out much of the star field in the background.

dinosaurgerms, 10 days ago

The final level takes place in a space station, which features a cool variant on the "infinitely-deep vertical canyon" visual trope that's often seen in shmup games of this era

Gif from "Image Fight" (gameplay, 2D pixel graphics, top-down perspective, vertical scrolling). A small spaceship controlled by the player flies inside a gigantic space station. In the background, an extremely deep vertical "canyon" by the space station.

dinosaurgerms, 10 days ago

Meanwhile, the final boss is some sort of giant computer-y thing that appears to be covered in some sort of organic plant growth

Gif from "Image Fight" (gameplay, 2D pixel graphics, top-down perspective, vertical scrolling). A small spaceship controlled by the fights a boss that appears as a giant computer-like machine covered in organic plant growth. The "computer" fires countless projectiles on the player, while machines along the walls of the enclosure of the computer attempt to capture the player with "force field"-like weapons.

dinosaurgerms, 10 days ago

In the ending text, you find out that a "weird plant from another planet" (lol) grew in the central computer, and "deranged it" (???)

Wait a minute. This plot sounds weirdly familiar; a computer, subsumed by a nefarious force, out of control. I've heard it before...!!