Moon Dancer

This game has been bothering me for a while so I decided I should just recommend against it and I'll try to keep it short and simple. First of all, the obvious: Just like with Raging Blasters, a graphically upgraded version of this game will be released on the Nintendo Switch. The Steam version does not benefit from this upgrade, so that in itself is already enough reason to at least not recommend purchasing the Steam version. For survival play, Moon Dancer would be considered pretty easy by STG standards, with some additional enemies being added on higher difficulties, among other more minor changes. The score play of Arcade mode is where my main complaints come from. It's simply neither fun nor truly rewarding in terms of the amount of points you get. You can even see on the online leaderboard just how little difference there is between all the clear scores. In order to increase and maintain your chain you have to continuously hit enemies with your lock-on lasers before the meter depletes (which happens very, very quickly). It can be quite risky as it will require you to be close to enemies to even activate the lock-on. The problem with this is that there is barely any pay-off for this system. The chain multiplies the amount of points you get from defeated enemies but only very, VERY slightly. You also accumulate crystals which you collect during the course of the stage. These only give you points at the end of stage bonus. If you die you get set back to your most recent checkpoint with the amount of score you had at that point but your crystal count gets reset to 0. And the points you lose due to the crystal counter being reset is higher than the meager amount of points you may get through chaining. Ultimately, the chaining system is simply the very last thing you should be bothering with and not before you've already mastered the game. Combine this with the fact that there also is no Practice mode with which you could properly practice later stages and you're simply left with the arcade mode not feeling like it's worth bothering to score. However, if you're a score player the Caravan mode should absolutely appeal to you as it requires you to speed kill enemies for more waves rather than just use the aforementioned chaining system.

I've had the luck of testing this game prior to release so I saw it grow and improve in the process. The final result, considering the speedy dev time of Terarin, is nothing short of amazing. Riding hot on the heels of the previous title, Raging Blasters (which I also recommend to try since it's very beginner friendly), Moon Dancer opts for a simpler approach, mixing the lock-on mechanic (with three distinct types of guided laser missiles) of titles like RayForce but adding a traditional coating to it, including checkpoints, which are a trademark of older era STGs. There also is a loose chaining system that (thank heavens) doesn't require stage-long chains from you as well as hidden items and some bonus enemies you can destroy for extra points. Your score and difficulty also determine que extend thresholds so it's a good incentive to get you to score well and obtain a good stock of lives to face the final stages. Oh, and don't worry though: the checkpoints and stage structures are so masterfully crafted that recovery after death IS possible, unlike titles of that era and that, for sure, is an EXTREMELY welcomed change for those looking for a challenge. The three difficulty modes are also fairly accessible but those not used to one hit deaths may still find it difficult. Nothing that some practice and stage layout learning can't fix. Most stages are fairly short but intense and very well designed in their enemy wave patterns to keep you engaged. This is one of the most accesible STGs I have played in a while and that alone warrants a recommendation but the addition of an engaging and replayable Caravan Mode as well as an amazing OST (perhaps even better than Raging Blasters, especially the first stage theme!) certainly elevates the whole experience and warrants getting the game+OST bundle. Or you can head to Bandcamp and get it there too. Specs wise, you won't need a superpowered PC to get it running, it'll detect an Xbox One pad straight out and running it through Steam Link to play it on my phone proved extremely easy although you will want a bluetooth gamepad in that case. In short: very recommended!

Genialísimo shmup vertical muy en la línea de anteriores trabajos de Terarin, pero en esta ocasión, fijándose en el sistema lock-on (fijado de objetivos del plano del fondo) de la saga RayForce. Cuenta además con una jugabilidad muy directa inspirada en el mundo caravan de competición que fabricaba Hudson. Es como si Super Star Soldier y RayForce hubiesen tenido un descendiente común. Gran música, aventura muy bien balanceada y justa y un modo caravan realmente viciante, igual que el que incorporó RagingBlasters.

[quote=]Steamキュレーターでも紹介 - [b][url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/34218308-Game-19XX/]Game-19XX[/url][/b] スクショ・動画付レビュー（外部サイト） - [b][url=https://note.com/spread_bomb/n/n92ae84580221]note[/url][/b][/quote] 「ロックオンレーザー」を主体とした、縦スクロールSTG。 プレイヤーの武器は、前方と斜め4方向に撃つ5WAYショットと、ターゲットに照準を合わせて発射・自動追尾してダメージを与えるロックオンレーザーの2種類。 レーザーは3種類、高速攻撃の「スピナー」、攻撃力が高い「ナパーム」、360度全方向ロック「マルチ」がアイテム取得で切り替え可能。またパワーアップアイテムでショットを4段階まで強化できる。 操作はレバーと1ボタン。コントローラーでどのボタン・トリガーでも、押しっぱなしでショットを撃ち続け、ロックオン時に「押す」「離す」「2つ以上押す」でレーザーを発射する。 例えば、ショットを撃ちながらロック時に「ボタンを離す」もしくは「ボタンを2つ以上押す」でレーザーを発射、ショットを撃たずにロックして「ボタンを押す」でも発射する。 つまり、ショットとレーザーを「[b]1ボタンで[/b]」「[b]2ボタンで両方[/b]」、また「[b]レーザーのみ1ボタン[/b]」の全てが可能になる。 [h1]スピードを味わい、乗り越え、スピードを制する[/h1] ステージは、月を背景にした宇宙空間の戦闘から始まり、土星では無数の岩石が飛び交うアステロイド地帯、地球の大気圏を突破して雲の間を突き進む、太陽では炎が舞うなど、太陽系の惑星を舞台に、あらゆる場面を超えながら敵の本拠地へ進む。 それらが高速に、ステージを駆け抜けるように突き進み、敵が次々と出現して攻撃を仕掛ける、それを連続でロックオンして次々と破壊する。 スピーディーかつスマートに破壊する爽快感、この「スピード」が大きな魅力だ。 だが、その[b]スピードが逆に「壁」でもある[/b]。 ボス戦などでは動きの中で突然制止してレーザーを放つ、流れに逆らう動作でフェイントをかけるなど、スピードを逆に利用した攻撃も多い。しかもミスすると直前の位置まで戻ってやり直し。残機やコンティニューでゴリ押しはできない。 そのスピードに対する攻略は、いかに武器を使いこなして攻撃するか。 レーザーは「マルチ」で真横や後ろから攻撃したり、ボス戦では「ナパーム」の攻撃力を利用するなど場面に応じたものがある。武器が出現する場面と種類は全て決まっているので、まずは[b]特性とパターンを知る[/b]。 敵の攻撃も、誘導ミサイルなどはショットで破壊できるので、[b]撃てば道は開ける[/b]。 敵を倒せば撃ってきた弾と共にポイントターゲット「クリスタル」に変わる、[b]先制攻撃は敵の攻撃を抑える[/b]ことにもなる。 知る・撃つ・攻める。まさに「[b]攻撃は最大の防御[/b]」だ。 [h1]STGが持つ、もう一つのスタイル[/h1] その中で、本作はもう一つの姿がある。[b]ハイスコアを求めれば進行が大きく変わる[/b]ことだ。 これは本作に限らず、STGそのものの魅力とも言える。 ロックオンレーザーによる攻撃は、途切れることなく連続で行うとチェインボーナスとして、加算されるスコアが×2、×3…と次々と上昇してスコアが跳ね上がる。ただし、ショットを撃ち続ければレーザーを当てる前に破壊してしまうので成り立たない。 更にポイントターゲット「クリスタル」は、ステージクリアするとスコアとして加算されるが、途中でミスすると取得数がゼロに戻される。 だからハイスコアを目指すなら、ショットを最小限にとどめて多くの敵をロックオンレーザーのみで、チェインが途切れないようにタイミングを合わせて破壊する。ショットを撃たないから敵の攻撃は避けるしかない、それをノーミスで行わないといけない。 プレイヤーが何を目指すか、その意識だけで限りなくストイックで高難易度のプレイスタイルに変わる。それがSTGにおける楽しみ方の一つでもある。 本作はその楽しみ方を、ショットボタンの「押しっぱなし」から「タイミング押し」に変えるだけ。スピードと破壊の爽快プレイとストイックに高得点の高難易度プレイ、[b]2つのスタイルを1ボタンの押し方だけで味わえる[/b]。 本作は更にハイスコアを追求した、3分という制限時間以内にどこまで高得点を叩き出すかを競う「キャラバンモード」も搭載されている。 本編・キャラバン共にネットランキングにも対応しているので、本作の「全プレイヤーの中で1位」を狙うことも一つの楽しみだ。 「撃って破壊」に対する楽しさ、「攻略」に対する挑戦、「スコア」に対する追求、それがSTGの魅力だが、本作はその全てが備わっている。 まさに、[b]STGらしさを引き出したゲーム[/b]だ。

pew pew caravan, missiles go brrr and then you hit em with the chain to get that sweet score. good gam

1ボタンで楽しめるシンプルなロックオンシューティング。 お手軽ながら、ロックをつないで稼ぐ遊び方もできます。慣れてきたらキャラバンモードでスコアアタックしてみるのも楽しいかも。スコアアタックはオンラインランキングです。 BGMが通常のものとチップチューンアレンジが収録されており、これも良い感じです。

Vertical space shooter. Tight controls. Arcade gameplay. Caravan mode and chain score mechanism. Interesting weapons. Great pixel art and fantastic audio. Lots of replayability. It's good. [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/40858110/]Listed on the Shmup Database[/url]

A wonderful indie shmup from Japan with a rare lock-on mechanic that I think most people know from (pseudo-)3D rail shooters like Sega's After Burner (Arcade, 1987). However, there is also Taito's Ray series, started with RayForce (Arcade, 1994), that transported this mechanic successfully into the 2D shoot-'em-up sector. Moon Dancer has two types of lock-on systems: the standard one works just like in RayForce through a fixed reticle above your ship that moves along with your ship movement; the second one is a power-up that initiates the system of Terarin's previous game Missile Dancer (or of Edelweiss' Astebreed), where a circular field surrounds your ship in that everything gets locked-on. Like Terarin's previous games, Moon Dancer plays sharp and fast, prefers classic STG (where fast attacking/aiming is an important thing) much over bullet hell (where defensive dodging is your first duty) and favors Compile-style fast background scrolling. While the graphics are rather simplistic, they are nonetheless really beautiful (I especially like the huge plain-colored planets in the background). As the store page says, the NES color palette was used, giving the game the distinct darker tone of a NES shmup. Fittingly Moon Dancer features (as an addition to its regular OST) a NES-style chiptune soundtrack. What some people may dislike and others may find challenging is the old-school way the game deals with lives: if you die, you don't just respawn but the progression stops and then restarts from a checkpoint (there're several per stage). This, of course, makes a playthrough considerable more difficult. However, the Normal mode isn't too hard – with the exception of the last stage maybe, [spoiler]which is a kind of boss rush[/spoiler]. Like all recent Terarin games Moon Dancer has a Caravan mode, a special kind of short and intense score attack, once created and established by Hudson Soft in the NES/Famicom days especially for real life tournaments: https://shmuplations.com/takahashimeijin/ However, Moon Dancer has also online leaderboards for everything. [code][url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/39372135][b]Lists of Niche[/b][/url] is dedicated to finding games on Steam with roots in classic consoles, computers and arcade machines. We categorize them in helpful lists that will hopefully grant some insight into gaming's history, too.[/code]

That was fun! Fast-paced and aggressive! The different lock-on power ups surprisingly gives distinct functions. Much recommended for those in mood for more shooting than dodging.