RF Generation Message Board

During the 90's, when the shoot-em-up genre was transitioning from the old guard, of fast-paced, twitch dodging styled shooters, to give way to the danmaku, or bullet hell style, there was at least one Japanese developer that found a way to incorporate elements of both. Psikyo found a way to combine the speedy, targeted bullets of earlier shooting games, with the larger, more complex bullet patterns that would come to define the genre just a few years later. While their games tend to lean more toward the old school, they include unique elements that made each game a different experience every time you play. And the fast bullet patterns might not have the density of the bullet curtains seen in later games, but their fast speed and occasional frequency often substituted for that, leaving the player with a lot to contend with. Their propensity for random stage order also provided a lot of replay value.

Among the canon of Psikyo shmups, one of the more stand-out titles is Strikers 1945 II. Often considered as the best in the series, and lauded as one of the company's best shooters, Strikers 1945 II has all the hallmarks of classic Psikyo. The 1st 4 stages in the game are in a random order, and depending upon when you see each stage's end boss in that order, they get progressively harder. Improving upon the gameplay aspects of the original game, Strikers 1945 II sees you piloting 1 of 6 advanced fighter planes, including the mighty F-5U "Flying Pancake" craft, to take on the enemy forces of the F.G.R. faction, and stop their plot of world domination through mecha technology. Originally released in arcades in 1997, and available only in Japan for the Sega Saturn, a PlayStation version came to North America later, simply titled as Strikers 1945, via budget publisher Agetec, and even later in Europe, from Midas Games. The game saw a re-release on the PS2, in the Psikyo Shooting Collection Vol. 1 collection, along with its predecessor, and that saw a European release via publisher Play It. Since that time, the game has seen release on PSN, been ported to mobile platforms, and most recently, received a re-release on the Nintendo Switch, both in the eShop, as well as via the physical Psikyo Collection Vol. 2 pack, released in Japan and Asian regions, but region free, and with English language support. Come join the RF Generation Shmup Club in July 2019, to take on this Psikyo classic!

Participants:
MetalFRO
Addicted
zoydo
EZ Racer
VicViper_Mk2
Duke.Togo
Mr_Stubbes
coin_tengoku
Christapp76
Nefarious Wes (via Twitter)
Ser Flash (via Twitter)

HIGH SCORES
Arcade:
Saturn:
PlayStation:
PS2:
Switch:

Gentlemen, expect my participation.

Of course! Who doesn’t want to fly a pancake!

I'll be on PS1

Oh Yes!!, I'm in for sure

Welcome to the squadron, gents!

I'll be in with the Saturn version. Maybe I'll stand a chance on Monkey difficulty ;)

You and me both! I never managed to "git gud" at this one when I bought it back in the day. It always seemed to pound me into submission. Hopefully this time around, I can have some measure of revenge :D

I'm not very good at shmups, but I'm in on this one! I'll be playing the switch version.

Excellent! Glad to have you aboard :)

Don't worry about being good at shmups - most of us aren't that good at them either  :laugh:

Hey guys!  Count me in on this one. I’ll be playing it on M.A.M.E.  No need to be good Mr. Stubbes.


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Add my please

Christapp76


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Welcome, coin_tengoku and Christapp76!

Well I’ll certainly try my best haha. I’ve been practicing every now and then when I get some free time.

Well, I'm not setting the bar that high, but I am only playing on Easy (level 4 in the difficulty selection):

[img width=640 height=480]https://i.imgur.com/CQJ5Jv0l.jpg[/img]

One thing to keep in mind, for those less familiar with the game, is that the stage order is fairly randomized for the 1st 4 stages, depending on which plane you pick. Even then, it's not the same each time. As you advance through the game, bosses that are easier to defeat in Stage 1 become more vicious and difficult in Stage 3 or 4. You'll spend time learning not only the base pattern, but then learning how to deal with increased bullet spam. I would also recommend taking out bosses as quickly as you can - don't skimp on bombs, and don't neglect to use your charge weapon when you have an opportunity. It can often be a lifesaver.

Thanks for the tip Metal!  I thought I remembered psykio games being random, but wasn’t sure about this game.


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I'm hot garbage at this, but I did sneak a few games in tonight.
[img width=700 height=933]https://i.imgur.com/BAn3L10.jpg[/img]

Got a better run today. Still getting a feel for which planes I prefer, but the Hayate seems pretty good.

[img width=700 height=933]https://i.imgur.com/PxF65jH.jpg[/img]

First trip to 1-3 (on difficulty 4). I had never played this before, and my initial impressions of it- Sometimes you just want to blow s[tuff] up, and this game does a great job of scratching that itch. Lots of fun so far. Hopefully I can make progress.

I finally managed to make it to Stage 5...once:
[img width=640 height=480]https://i.imgur.com/gfVuMXdl.jpg[/img]

One of the things that bothers me about the Strikers games, with the random stage order for the 1st 4 is, it's difficult to memorize the stage action when the bullet counts go up, and patterns get bigger and more complex as a particular stage is slotted in at 3 or 4. I can get the basic enemy placement down, but when I'm not powerful enough to take out everything as soon as it comes on screen, there will inevitably be "bullet barf" from some enemies, and with the large hitbox for each plane, it gets difficult to weave through stuff. The general consensus is that you need to "macro dodge" bullet patterns in Psikyo games, meaning, go around them. But that becomes difficult to do when you have 2 or 3 enemies throwing spread patterns at you from more than 1 place on screen, and the bullet patterns cross over one another, making it even harder to do. And some bosses throw out really large, complex, fast patterns when they're higher level, so it becomes increasingly important to destroy their final form as quickly as possible. It can be quite frustrating to navigate all that.

I agree. There are some levels that I am much happier in seeing earlier in the rotation rather than later. I think it would be better balanced with just a standard level layout. I guess the upside is that I don't get burned out since I don't keep hitting the same brick wall.

Hey guys. I'm a bit late, but i had a very stressfull week at work and barely time to play.

But i still managed do do a few runs :

[img width=375 height=500]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48218941396_47ac831b5b.jpg[/img]

This game is awesome. It's an adrenaline thrill ride, but I can tell I've gotten better at shmups in the past year in some of the ways I'm tackling the levels here. Love the soundtrack, love the graphics and theming. Love the little details that make it more playable, like only losing power levels if you touch other craft, and getting at least one powerup right away upon death.

Really only 2 complaints so far- Flying in the lower left edge of the screen can be difficult because the power meter covers up your ship, and I wish you didn't lose all your bombs when you die.

I tried all planes and kept track of the level order. All the planes feel comfortable and have their strengths, but I've been doing best with Flying Pancake and Hayate so far. The only plane I feel like I struggle with is Shinden, and even then I could it being a very good choice for an expert. I also have noticed that both times I made it to level 5, I played the Iron Casket stage last.

One last note, on my high score run I was excrutiatingly close to reaching 1-6. I died at the boss of 1-5, and after dying my last shots connected with the boss and triggered its explosion sequence. So close.

Goal is to reach 1-7 on 1C. I've used continues to reach 1-6, but man is that level hard.

Great score, EZ Racer! That's going to be a tough one to beat - you're in the lead by a decent margin at this point!

I’ve been able to make it into the third level a few times. I feel like I’m improving every attempt, so hopefully that continues.

[img width=700 height=933]http://i.imgur.com/7ZcBDbD.jpg[/img]

I just wanted to experience the whole game, so I got a clear on Monkey difficulty. I really enjoy playing the game this way as it's a lot of fun just to shoot things. Great game.

[img width=700 height=933]https://i.imgur.com/0xri2hJ.jpg[/img]

So after my last post of scores I realized that most had upped the difficulty to 5. Got this middle of last week but hadn't gotten it posted.

Also, yesterday got a chance to play it 2 player for the first time, and it really works well as a 2 player game. Bullet patterns and frequency seem to be exactly the same as 1 player, and the hardest change for me was that I would get confused as to which plane I was controlling, as there was so much action on the screen. The other thing I noticed about 2 player is it works better if you coordinate bomb attacks and call out powerups during play. We did a full run-through on difficulty-4 with continues, and I can't imagine getting through some of the later stages 1 player 1CC. Still awesome though.

I managed to get a clear on Monkey, like Duke.Togo did.

Here's my Monkey high score.

I also managed to get pretty far a few times on Child difficulty, so here's my best score so far.

no progress on normal so far, but i got a monkey-clear yesterday. :toilet:

[img width=362 height=500]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48295988496_db15a4e235.jpg[/img]

Well, after a ton of practice with all 6 planes, I finally managed to 1CC it on the 2nd loop on normal difficulty. Despite liking the Mosquito more I ended up getting more points with the Hayate instead. To be fair they're both very balanced, but the Mosquito is more direct with it's fast missiles.

Once 2nd loop starts, you're glued to your seat, everything becomes memorization, this was especially hard for the slower planes like the Focke wulf and Lightning, both of which I had to run through multiple times before I got the hang of it.

[img width=640 height=632]https://i.ibb.co/r5HVzxB/IMG-20190716-230955.jpg[/img]

Congratulations, Vic! Amazing achievement! Great score, to boot!

Good job vic, that's really impressive! Congrats  :beer:

Got the clear this evening on Child difficulty, and right before my move! Here's the stream, for anyone interested:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyvOcdfIkZc

I also reached stage 1-5 on Very Easy, and got over half a million points. I'm starting to find some level of groove with this game, but some runs just end very quickly because I get sloppy.

Closing in on the 1CC on difficulty 3. Forgot about the mini-boss's laser attack in 1-8. Haven't been to 1-8 much, but pretty consistently reach 1-7. I have settled in on using the F5U. It's excellent speed is nice, but it's real bonus is it's special powerup attack, when charged to level 3. Works awesome on bosses, and is better than the bomb attacks.

Side note- I had shown the game to my kids earlier in the month, and when I started the run, my 8-year-old daughter walks in and yelled excitedly, "You're using the pancake!" (Taught her well  ;))

Very nice! I've only managed to make it to 1-6 on Very Easy so far, but I don't think it's unreal to think I can make that 1CC by the end of the month. I almost want to try the game on the hardest difficulty, just to see how insane it is. Also, #raisingthemright

score update (normal)

[img width=375 height=500]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48330567842_e1df29e31c.jpg[/img]

So I've been focusing my time on two goals, getting a 1CC on difficulty 3 (very easy), and getting to 1-5 on difficulty 7 (very hard). Closing in on both goals. Died on the final boss on the Very Easy run.

Very Hard isn't as crazy as you might think, it's just that everything (and I mean everything) shoots, so if you don't take out enemies extremely quick it doesn't take long for the screen to be littered with bullets. Boss shots also move way faster. But it's really good practice for the easier difficulties, as actual enemy placement remains the same for the most part.

In all of my runs, I can definitely say that the Syumi stage gives me the most trouble out of the 1st 4, so I always hope I draw it first. Gliath is probably the easiest stage for me, but the boss battle has a different strategy if it's on 1-3 or 1-4.

Check one of my goals off the list. :D

EZ Racer, you're killing it this month! Keep up the great work!

Got the 1CC on difficulty 3 tonight. Surprised me too, because I used up all my spare lives getting through the 1-7 boss, and somehow managed through 1-8 without a death.

I have noticed one trick to help. On turrets (NOT planes or vehicles), once you get close enough to them they will not fire, so it's advantageous to get as close as you can as soon as you can.

Good job EZ Racer, congrats. :)


I'm done for July, here my results:
[img width=375 height=500]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48423526311_af1f02d2c1.jpg[/img]


Final thoughts:

"Oh look, a power up! Nice, just let me pick this up quic........aaaaawwww crap!"

LOL! That's definitely going in the podcast episode  :slick:

Sad to see this playthrough end-

Final thoughts- I feel like I could fill up a whole page of info on all the little details I noticed playing this game. But I think what drew me in the most it contains elements that you find in other successful game genres. One of the best parts about run n gun shooters is just going in guns blazing and wrecking havoc. This has that. One of the best parts about racing games is knowing the track or terrain, quickly reacting to changing elements, and with each playthrough finding ways to become just a smidge more efficient doing it. Strikers has that covered, too.

The aesthetics are fun, too, with its World War II meets Mechs vibe. The visuals and soundtrack are well done, the controls are excellent (and admittedly I didn't notice until the last day of the month that it was analog compatible), and it's one of the first shmups where every plane seems to be balanced, letting the player truly find the one that best suits their playstyle.

I think what I like most about this game is it rewards you for taking risks, giving you lots of ways through each level depending on where you decide to go. I think if you compared all the community playthroughs on a game like Gradius III, they'd look fairly similar in the way players approach each level. On this, I think there would be a lot of different strategies coming forth.

I know I'll come back to this game at some point in the future. Besides, it's one of the few games I have that I can attempt a passivist run (no shots fired). Thanks for the idea Duke.Togo!

One last comment- I was lucky enough to play this 2 player with a friend, and it was a fantastic 2 player co-op, other than if you think there's a lot going on with 1 player, imagine doubling that.

Thanks for introducing me to a new favorite!

The idea of a pacifist run is pretty interesting, and I'd like to see someone have at it. Maybe someone will give that a go for Blazing Lazers.

This has been my favorite game that we have played so far. I don't feel frustrated when I die, and it really has that "one more try" feeling that keeps you playing. The difficulty settings really allowed anyone to play and enjoy it, or challenge themselves. Really fun game.

It get's me every time, it's like i learned nothing from playing Psikyo-games. :D

I might be too late for the podcast but here is my last stretch on Strikers 1945 II. Tough game to strategize other than getting lucky. I noticed that bullets were sometimes faster on some levels than others on some of my runs with the same ship. I barely got to 1-7 and died right away. But still got to 1-7! But it took me all month! Overall I kinda got used to playing it even though the bullets were hard to see at first. I think it was pretty fun and would recommend it to shmup players. [img width=700 height=933]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190807/d4b27da1ccc02380c551a4e184a579a9.jpg[/img]


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@coin_tengoku: Awesome! Good job man.

I somehow don't got the patience. I played every day, but just a few runs and then lost it. I often experience that with the Psikyo games. But still i like them and think they're good shooters. Maybe i'm just too nervous...