^Me too. For whatever reason, these games from Cave activate endorphins in me that no other games can. Like a videogame drug or something..
I'd probably actually go with Mushihimesama Bug Panic. Such a unique spin on the genre, and it has a killer online multiplayer mode. Bug Princess and Dodonpachi are more fun than Deathsmiles and Espgaluda though.
My favorite Cave game is M.Bug Panic..but I don't really consider it shmup. I'm more of a dual stick shooter person, even though Bug Panic's not exactly dual stick shooter either. Loved Deathsmiles (slightly awkward controls, but love the Castlevania vibe; doesn't satisfy my "bullet hell" bullet patterns itch though). Bug Princess is fun, but for some reason I don't feel compelled to keep replaying the game (only played it a few times since getting the game). I don't have the other 2 though...
I'm going to have to go with Bug Princess. Espgaluda II trailing right behind it. And in third Bug Panic
Deathsmiles is my fave, followed by Espgaluda 2. Love the vibe of Deathsmiles, and the fact that it's side scrolling as opposed to top-down. Can't wait or Dodonpachi Blissful Death
For the shmups, these would be my top two as well. If we're counting all Cave games, then Mushihimesama Bug Panic would be pretty high on my list, either 2nd or 3rd.
Right now I like bug princess the best I guess because I know how to play it. I can still can't figure out aweking mode in ESP and I don't know how to use the special in dodonpachi,also i don't like the lasers stuff. Deathsmiles is fun too but it's not top down..
Well, in the bullet hell group, we recently had a discussion of our favorite Cave iOS games after Bug Princess 2 came out. I'll copy and past people's reponses in this thread to help people new to bullet hell/Cave games decide on which of the Cave's games to get. I hope its ok if I make a multi post..one post for each of the Bullet Hell group member's response.
Bullet Hell Group's favorite Cave games reponse: tops2: 1. Bug Panic - A dual stick shooter like game thats intense and fun. This game has a lot of bullets, so its almost a "bullet hell" of dual stick shooters. The levels are huge, and the boss fights are intense, especially the last boss. The multiplayer really shines..the games are short, but fast and intense. The only downfall is its hard to find multiplayer games. 2. Deathsmiles - People seem to either like this game, or rate it low among the iOS Cave games. Its the only horizontal shmup/bullet hell iOS game from Cave. The enemies comes from both sides of the screen, and theres not way around it..sometimes enemies get blocked by your fingers. I'd say this is one of the most awkward setups..but I got used to it. The main thing I love about the game is the Castlevania feel to the game..and the iphone mode has an "rpg-lite" item collecting element. The items actually can greatly affect the game. 3. Bug Princess 2 - This game is great. The levels are varied and the game is straightforward enough for me. I've only recently gotten this game so I don't have too much experience in it yet though. Other's have more experience with this game so I'll leave the reponse to others. These are the rest that I either recently got, or haven't spent a lot time with so I won't rank them. I've only done one or two runs with most below..but the one that I have the best feel form is Espgaluda 2. Espgaluda 2 Bug Princess Dodonpachi Resurrection Dodonpachi Blissful Death I'd say for people new to bullet hell..I'd recommend Bug Princess 2. Its easy to get into, the levels are varied, multiple difficulties, and the "wait mode" (action slows down when the game gets intense).
Bullet Hell Group's favorite Cave games reponse: syntheticvoid: Favs; ESPGaluda II Bug Princess 2 Bug Princess DoDonPachi Resurrection DoDonPachi Blissful Death Deathsmiles I'd put Bug Panic right under BP 2 ATM... But it might work its way back to the #2 spot after I've played through BP 2 another 30 times... =oP Hmmm... The more I play Blissful Death, the more I like it. I still can't chain to save my life... But just playing through for survival on hell difficulty is pretty fun. I really should spend more time with it, cause I know if I get the chaining down, it could very well go above BP1.