Fav/best shmups on iPhone?

Discussion in 'General Game Discussion and Questions' started by Appvism, Nov 4, 2013.

  1. Appvism

    Appvism Well-Known Member

    Feb 9, 2013
    179
    0
    0
    UK
    Hi there,

    I am currently building a simple shmup - cute em up even - for the iPhone and rather surprisingly, i haven't played that many iOS shmups (not even for research purposes)...

    I want to ask if anyone here can recommend or suggest what they consider to be their favourite or best shmup on iOS? Particularly from a gameplay/controls point of view...

    Any suggestions?

    Thanks,

    PS. the game must be compatible with iPhone 4 and iOS6...
     
  2. Exact-Psience

    Exact-Psience Well-Known Member

    Jan 12, 2012
    22,664
    2
    38
    The Work-At-Home Guy
    Philippines
    Not sure which ones are iphone4-up though.

    Phoenix HD
    Danmaku Unlimited 2
    Shogun
    Space Deadbeef
    Dodonpachi Resu
    Deathsmiles
    Plasma Sky
    Dariusburst
    Sine Mora
     
  3. Cave games are the best shmups. Out of the non cave shmups, Dariusburst is best.
     
  4. Aww, shucks #
     
  5. slamraman

    slamraman Well-Known Member
    Patreon Gold

    Aug 27, 2011
    2,511
    5
    36
    Gridrunner
    Super Ox Wars
    Minotaur Rescue
     
  6. Appvism

    Appvism Well-Known Member

    Feb 9, 2013
    179
    0
    0
    UK
    Thanks guys!

    Heard good things about Dodonpachi and Sine Mora (at least the names ring a bell!), might check them out then as well as Dariusburst...

    By the way, which ONE game would you recommend that you feel has the best gameplay/controls and is a horizontal shmup (not vertical/portrait mode)?

    Cheers,
     
  7. Exact-Psience

    Exact-Psience Well-Known Member

    Jan 12, 2012
    22,664
    2
    38
    The Work-At-Home Guy
    Philippines
    Dariusburst, no doubt.
     
  8. Royce

    Royce Well-Known Member

    Mar 22, 2011
    4,239
    179
    63
    Definitely Dariusburst SP.
     
  9. Appvism

    Appvism Well-Known Member

    Feb 9, 2013
    179
    0
    0
    UK
    Right, you've all convinced me - i'm going to check out Dariusburst!

    Still all ears however for other suggestions, preferably horizontal scrollers. Any cute em ups worth playing?

    Cheers,
     
  10. strivemind

    strivemind Well-Known Member

  11. unicowz

    unicowz Well-Known Member

    Oct 22, 2013
    68
    0
    0
    no one mentioned toon shooters?, that game is extremely good, its free
    but the cartoony graphics are just beautiful and the bossfights feel solid
     
  12. Plato

    Plato Member

    Nov 4, 2013
    8
    2
    3
    Having played almost any SHMUP worth anything on IOS, Cave is by far the best.
    It's not even close to be honest with Dodonpachi Resurrection being the best of the best.
    Other great non-cave vertical shooters include Shogun, Raiden Legacy, Space Invaders Infinity Gene and Phoenix HD which are the best in my opinion.

    Horizontal shooters don't play nearly as well as vertical ones do because of the touch interface.
    The best in this category is yet another cave shooter in Deathsmiles.
    The best of the rest are R-Type, Vritra and Dariusburst.

    If I had the ability/knowhow to make a SHMUP, I'd look to include the following:
    1. Vertical is king on IOS
    2. The best SHMUP's are those where you actually get satisfaction out of taking down enemies. I don't really know how to explain it but Cave does it perfectly. Lightning Fighter and many others fail at this on the other hand.
    3. Good variety of ships or different types of firing option.
    4. Varied enemies.
     
  13. Appvism

    Appvism Well-Known Member

    Feb 9, 2013
    179
    0
    0
    UK
    Whoa - err, is Dariusburst worth £7.49?! Seems a bit expensive for an iOS game (i'm poor).

    Thanks for your thoughts regarding making a shmup, appreciate your comments! I'm building a horizontal cute em up and am about to release it on the app store but i can clearly see its failed some of your points you mentioned! :p But at least, its given me some food for thought.

    Cheers,
     
  14. Selachii

    Selachii Well-Known Member
    Patreon Silver

    Nov 13, 2009
    659
    6
    18
    Game Designer
    Netherlands
    Always nice to see new entries in the genre so good luck finishing your game. If you have any questions or ideas that need an outside opinion, by all means post them.

    Very wise to make it in landscape btw :)
     
  15. Appvism

    Appvism Well-Known Member

    Feb 9, 2013
    179
    0
    0
    UK
    I guess its just a matter of personal preference really whether people prefer vertical scrollers or horizontal ones when it comes to iOS shmups! I can understand, especially taking into account the touchscreen device.

    My current game i'm building is horizontal scrolling but i've simplified the controls a bit to try and better tailor it for the touchscreen. Its an endless runner meets shmuo/cmup!

    Cave shmups seem to be the general benchmark in terms of gameplay and controls, and i guess i should really try them! I use to play shmups a lot but that was a while back..

    I still like shmups as a gameplay mechanic though.

    Cheers,
     
  16. Selachii

    Selachii Well-Known Member
    Patreon Silver

    Nov 13, 2009
    659
    6
    18
    Game Designer
    Netherlands
    <disclaimer mode> I developed Phoenix HD </disclaimer mode>, but I can recommend it for being 'endless' and not story driven like the Cave games. It's free anyway.

    I feel Portrait is better suited for the 'phone' situation, but horizontal is definitely more suited for display on a large (tv) screen (hdmi out/airplay) and for what we have currently seen in the news about the iOS7 controllers. Curious to see how that pans out.
     
  17. unicowz

    unicowz Well-Known Member

    Oct 22, 2013
    68
    0
    0
    5. Boss fights, imo these are the things i enjoy most in shmups, bug princess 2 BL has a lot of good bossfights and a bossrush mode which is very good, btw can anyone answer my question?: is raiden legacy any good?
     
  18. Plato

    Plato Member

    Nov 4, 2013
    8
    2
    3
    I personally like it.
    It's well ported and although difficult, it's very satisfying.
    I prefer it over Rayforce, which I think is a game it can be easily compared to.
    It has a good number of ships, a lot of content with all the separate games included and is optimized for 5 unlike Rayforce/Dariusburst etc... which is obviously great.

    Agreed on the bosses and on BP2. Great game.
     
  19. NAFNA GAMES

    NAFNA GAMES Well-Known Member

    Apr 9, 2013
    72
    1
    0
    do stuff during the day. indie developer at night.
    Barcelona.
    watch out for the finger!?

    i love shmup´s especially if they have a comic touch ... my favorite would be toonshooters.

    my advice would be ... take care of the control, scrubbing the screen for a long time gets annoying and dont let the finger/thumb block the vision of the game ...

    and good luck
     

Share This Page