Amazing SHOOT EM UPS of the 80s and 90s

[@ShmupJunkie]

✅ Subscribe To My Channel ➡️ Support my work on PATREON www.patreon.com/shmupjunkieslushfund I put a lot of love into this episode and made it universal and family friendly. Please use it to share with your friends, kids, and anyone that it may help spread the love of shmups! CHAPTERS 00:00 - Shmups are Shooters 02:29 - Console Wars 03:29 - Arcades 04:19 - Why Shooters are Amazing 05:29 - Two Classics 06:08 - NES / FAMICOM 8bit 06:57 - Sega Strikes Back - Mega Drive (Genesis) 07:57 - Super Nintendo - Quality over Quantity 09:43 - Rise of the PC Engine - King of Shooters 12:15 - Just getting started - Shooters on CD 13:24 - Peak Shooter - The Best of Days 14:35 - What happened? The Decline begins 14:59 - Enter the Street Fighter 15:55 - The Arcade comes home - Sega Saturn and Playstation 16:54 - What did you call it? First Person Shooters and the birth of Shmup 18:23 - What do we do now? 21:22 - The Future of Shmups

[@kellychuang8373]

Really good video and also another mention to this is the company NAMCO which helped get shmups or shooters off the ground though it can be debated if the games can be considered shmups or shooters like works of Glaxaian, Galaga and Xevious.

[@mulliganxable]

You deserve much more credit than you receive, hopefully you’ll continue to grow. Keep on it.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you. I know youtube takes time and you can't blow up overnight. Have to put in the blood, sweat and tears. I mainly just want videos like this to get out there as they can do a lot for bringing more attention to the genre. And I am really enjoying making them.

[@ThoughtformsOfTheSubconsciousM]

Man seriously, this almost brought tears to my eyes. What a phenomenal video, thank you so much for making this.

[@ShmupJunkie]

This video is still my all time fav that I’ve made so far and I always hope more people keep discovering it. Even though I made it, it’s one I can even go back and watch any time. If I ever became much better at editing I can see myself going back to this, remastering it, and trying to make it into a little documentary. Something that parents can show their kids on what it was like at the time and an introduction to the games.

[@foodmusttravel61]

@@ShmupJunkie , I looking for the title of an arcade game shoot em up from the early 80's in which after each stage, you need to connect the shuttle head onto the body, gradually connecting all. Please let me know if you know the title.

[@GowsGames]

Incredible video, with a romanticized and lucid vision on the part of those who experienced an entire era, thanks for the beautiful composition!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you. Yes nostalgia is very romanticized in our minds. We always remember the good and gloss over the bad as the years progress. That being said I sure wouldn't mind a trip back for a month or two if such a thing existed. But you can never recreate that first experience of something or relive it again, only remember how it was. The very definition of bittersweet.

[@KingAlexIII]

That intro hit me hard bro! What a time to truly be alive

[@ShmupJunkie]

Probably my favorite intro I've made to date, I can watch the first five min myself on repeat. I gotta do another vid like this one of these days as I enjoyed the heck out of making this one.

[@dewaynesutton440]

Abadox, Gradius, R-Type, U.N. Squadron, Raiden...bro my heart! I can still hum some of the tunes to this day! I love when he brought up the Super NES, the first stage theme of Gradius 3 started playing...LONG LIVE SHOOTERS!!!!

[@KingAlexIII]

@@ShmupJunkie you should. That intro was pure gold. You've even inspired me to go back and play some PCE shooters since I never owned or played that console growing up.

[@KingAlexIII]

@@dewaynesutton440 Bro!! And don't forget Life Force, Ray Storm, Section Z(the NES port), Guardian Legends, and Dragon Spirit(NES)....speaking of Dragon Spirit, I just played the PCE version a couple nights ago and I got destroyed on just the second level lol

[@dewaynesutton440]

@@KingAlexIII I STILL want to play Raystorm. One day I'll get it.

[@kumrogames]

AMAZING Video sir! 100% agree with everything you said. As a Indie dev myself you really got me thinking about what type of Shooter to do next and I think it would be awesome to have some collaboration on a new game to keep the genre alive!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Wouldn’t it be sweet if big developers put money into financing indie projects? Kind of like Netflix does. Hands off they just get a piece of the profit. Some of the best new ideas come from independent creators.

[@Alucard2089]

Wow what can I say? This video is nothing short of a masterpiece. I can’t tell you how influenced I am right now. Especially as a content creator myself. You’re doing amazing work. I have an idea for a shooter that has never been done. I’m an artist but no programming skills at all. Maybe one day I can build a small team of people who love shooters to make that game happen. But until then, I’ll keep spreading the shooter love and streaming these games on my channel. And with enough luck, make content that is compelling as this video. Thanks for your time and effort you put into this ShmupJunkie. I can’t wait to see what you have in store next.

[@ShmupJunkie]

I’m really glad you enjoyed it and it’s been a pleasure having you in the omega blast competition, as well as the discord group. You just may meet the right people to help you on your project as well. I think many of us dream of making our own shmup, but for now I’m content with promoting the ones that get made. We all have a role to play. And at the moment I’m the crack dealer 😅

[@ClockedIt]

Well...that was pretty amazing! Nostalgia overload. It's funny. I've loved shooters all my life but then I see videos like this and am once again reminded that there are a wealth of shooters that I missed, but still, they were and still are a big part of my life. I'm surprised you didn't mention games like Star Fox or Panzer Dragoon, which in many ways evolved shooters by delivering character and story rich worlds, but also entered the 3D era with great success. Amazing video though, best one I've seen in a long time! Subbed!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks! Yes I was going for an overall macro view of the time so I kept pulling myself back from adding more and more. I wanted to talk about the great PC shmups of the time on Amiga, x68K, and PC in general as there were many. And spend more time on arcades too. In the end I wanted to keep it at 20 min so I had to keep stopping myself from adding and adding and making it too detailed versus something even non shmup fans can watch. I always did consider Starfox a 3D shmup since you have full control of your ship vs Panzer which is beautiful, but it's more of a shooting gallery with limited control of your dragon's movement. But I am with you all the way on the story aspect. Those games and the later gens started trying to add immersion during the game itself. The first time I really started seeing story in more games including shooters was the PC Engine CD/Duo. Many of those shooters had story sequences in between stages, especially games like Download that went full out story mode, even sometimes during the game as well. It was very common for any pc engine cd game to have a ton of cut scenes and it added a lot for me personally. Especially back then when it was the first time games ever had them along with full voice acting.

[@RetroMoments]

R-Type with VR would be freaking amazing! I really like how you did this video! Great formula.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you. I was trying something new and learning a couple editing techniques that will be useful for future vids. I'll be first in line for that RType VR experience when it's done right.

[@IamNevG]

@@ShmupJunkie I loved how you had all of those active videos of the games you were calling off onscreen overlapping at the same time. That really made an impact on me for your dialog during those segments.

[@hooksnfangs6006]

Great vid Junkie! My introduction and love for the genre started off with the Slowdown King, SNES Gradius 3. And the game got even BETTER with the no slowdown hack!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Oh man that hack is incredible. It put the game into my top 3 on the SNES. It was already brilliant I just never liked the slow gameplay, but once that was fixed it's just a complete banger. If anything, it could use just a tiny bit of purposeful slowdown like Konami implemented on purpose. But I would rather have it this way than like playing through molasses in some sections. It brought the rush back.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

My dude, you went HAM on this one!! Also shout out to capcom s 1943 series, I recently played it at an arcade and was really impressed.

[@ShmupJunkie]

😂 Very aptly put. Both HAM in the traditional sense hamming it up with the nostalgia, and HAM in the urban dictionary sense 😅 Two weeks of work but it was worth it. That's awesome you still found 1943 in an old arcade. I haven't seen it around in ages. Speaking of 1943, have you ever tried 1943 Kai on PC Engine? It's a suped up version, graphics a bit improved over arcade and the tunes as well. But the main thing is a few extra stages (4 or 5 I think) where it becomes like a totally different game and on wild mode, suped up plane and all. It's like Naxat said OK we've made a nice port and have extra time, lets make some kick ass levels that blow the first part of the game away. It's hard to explain but if you liked 1943, you would totally dig what Kai does with it's final few stages not in the original. Even the graphics change and become next level with more parallax and other effects. Really quite unique and a reward for those that can get there.

[@TheElectricUnderground]

@@ShmupJunkie yes I have tried kai! I 'll have to try out the pc engine version!

[@jqr8049]

This is MLiG quality stuff! As someone born in the early 80s and instantly captivated by the likes of Life Force, Contra and 1943 I loved every minute of this!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks that’s quite a compliment. I think one of them is a pro editor so I’m just an amateur slowly learning more editing skills. I can see why they release videos rarely it’s a lot of editing work. This one was for the fans. Old school shooter vets that grew up in that era. I made something that I know I’d enjoy watching and something us older folks can show their kids.

[@thegreathadoken6808]

What a love letter to the genre, as is every video you make.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you. This is still one of my old, all time favs that I made long ago. I’m currently working on another with a very similar theme and vibe to this one. I’m a sucker for nostalgia 😅

[@viewtifuljay2531]

Not only was this a wonderful mini documentary, but a passionate recollection of shooters and their roots. This was a beautiful video

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks! This is still one of my old favs I made long ago. It pretty much inspired my most recent video to do something similar only more general. I had a blast making this especially the intro.

[@cynicaldudeMe]

where is B-Wings??!!! great music, great mechanics where you could abandon your wings when you see a better one floating on the screen..... B-Wings!!!

[@chev9632]

One of most beautiful video of internet ! A love letter to players. Thanks for this masterpiece !

[@ShmupJunkie]

You are very welcome and it’s a pleasure to hear. Now I can enjoy it myself as well. 😁

[@martinholden9686]

Fantastic work here! 👍 don't think the era could av been summed up better than what you served us all with this. As a huge fan of space shooters myself, the primary reason i adored my Megadrive as a kid, you hit me with one of my greatest nostalgic moments in this video. The Thunderforce 4 title screen is a trip itself. The incredible title tune blasting away as the Rynex weaved in n out of gunfire as Thunderforce 4 rolls across the screen! My 14 yr old self nearly exploded with excitement 😊 again, great work here Junkie!

[@ShmupJunkie]

I still feel that excitement whenever I watch that intro. One of the greatest ever. No need for complexity. It does all the right things to hype you up to play and you're left ready to tear into it. It's flawless. And I'm glad you enjoyed it. I was going for that same hit of nostalgia and excitement

[@joshmiller887]

Love the docu-style video! My love for shooters is newly found but it’s great to see why you love them so much! Keep it up as always!

[@ShmupJunkie]

It was the right style to go on this one. I didn’t want to make something about me or around a personality, but something anyone can watch years from now like a nostalgia video. I just wanted to narrate. Although I do wish I had a better narration voice with an interesting accent. The wife says my voice puts her to sleep 😅

[@joshmiller887]

@@ShmupJunkie well, I totally dig it. Maybe not always but it totally fits what you were trying to achieve. I don’t know man, some of those Brits put me to sleep with that monotone slickness with some narrations. Like watching National Geographic in class ZZZzzzz.

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@joshmiller887 if you recall my British accent from the lords of Thunder video you know we don’t need me doing more of that! 😂

[@alexrain1188]

Sharing your video. You described it perfectly. This video brought a tear to my eye. As if you pulled a piece of my childhood heart onto the screen.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you. I really enjoyed making this especially the intro. I’m working on a very similar video right now actually on what it was like gaming and growing up during that time.

[@coffeeandshmups]

Remember watching this video when it first came out .....I don't comment often but man this is one beautiful video..... Still your best one in my opinion

[@ShmupJunkie]

It's still my all time favorite one too! I really love how the intro came out. My editing wasn't on the same level yet I was still learning, but it just worked. It's the one I can even still rewatch myself and enjoy.

[@coffeeandshmups]

@@ShmupJunkie you did well, be proud. Your names getting quite big across the communities.Keep that content coming man.....looking forward to more system Vs system games. All the best from across the water.

[@mikematei]

Awesome video. Really one of my favorite channels right here.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Man I had so much fun making the intro for this one. I still rewatch the opening 5 min sometimes.

[@actionhanz3420]

You certainly weren't overselling this nostalgia shot. I sat down to relax with this, and now i am hyped for something, i don't even know exactly what or why. I better bust out my TG16 and think on it more.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Ha! Mission accomplished. I am sure you may end up on either Blazing Lazers or maybe one of the Soldier games as I often do, but lately I have been trying to go back to others I also like that I don't play as often. Like Hana Taaka Daka is a truly excellent game.

[@ktown3733]

AAA video, one of the best videos I have ever seen on retro gaming.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you! That means a lot as I worked quite hard on it and spent weeks on the editing. I wanted it to be something watchable over the years. Much appreciated

[@ronniepatterson2827]

Spectacular upload & viewpoints from a shooter fan, for current shooter fans, to help inspire future shooter fans ; ) So glad im subbed here.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you so much I'm glad you did find it inspiring. That was the goal. And to leave the viewer with a sense that they are a part of the community that is making them more popular at the moment. Inspiring future shooter fans is my top priority and only us current fans can do it.

[@IamNevG]

Tuned in for watch #2. I love the background music you chose. It is excellent.

[@ShmupJunkie]

The intro music is what originally inspired me and got the ideas going in my head. It's by Zak Vortex and he has a channel as well. He was very kind to let me use the track for the video and it was perfect.

[@IamNevG]

@@ShmupJunkie it really was. I love that "Synth wave" style of music.

[@alexplane5359]

Thank you, looks the business 👌 just subscribed, right up my street this, used to love whip rush, quality game!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Welcome! You’ll find plenty of great shoot ‘em up and arcade content here. Hope you enjoy it. And you’ll find Whip Rush in my massive Every Mega Drive Shooter reviewed video!

[@alexplane5359]

@@ShmupJunkie cheers! Will be definitely checking that out and having a good look around your stuff 😉

[@revenanke3132]

I'm a younger lad born when this era ended. I used to be into Touhou and Cave shooters, but never knew about all that lay behind them. I'm so glad I found your channel and all your videos are so well made and entertaining. Thank you so much for making this content.

[@ShmupJunkie]

You're welcome and I'm glad you're enjoying them. You'd probably enjoy some of the later Toaplan shooters like Batsugun and Grind Stormer coming from Cave games, if you haven't played them already.

[@Supa.Nintendope]

That was exceptional, Shmup Junkie. Really, I’d love to see more episodes like this. I really liked the ideas you pitched for future shmup games. It would be awesome to get in the cockpit of a R Type VR game.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks dude. Just brain storming no idea if it works, but trying to think outside the box. If it played like a shmup and not a weird flight sim it would be awesome. Real question is can it be played without getting sick 😅

[@ShmupJunkie]

@Orzuum I’m hoping one day that type of 3D experience can be translated into more of a shoot em up vs a flight sim. Kind of like how platformers transitioned into 3D and expanded the genre, but still managed to maintain the identity of a platformer. Not sure if it’s feasible with shmups but it’s an intriguing idea.

[@Spinozin]

Shooters, Scrolling Shooters, Shoot em ups, Schmups. There are earlier non scrolling shooters in the history of gaming. The comeback you are looking for happenned with the xbox 360. It's most downloaded game was a shooter. Geometry Wars II, my favourite. When I was young, I remember older men having train sets in their attic, or garage. If they had youtube, they'd be trying to make a comeback too. There's one small store in the country dedicated to model trains. None to jukeboxes. Even today, the chess community yearn for their heyday of the past. Today, as the young have become old, they seek to create gaming rooms. Not with trains, but with computer games, consoles and cabinets. Tomorrow, there will be a channel dedicated to bringing back the tomogotchi. Thank you for making great content and sharing your history and enthusiasm. It's a joy to watch your videos x

[@ShmupJunkie]

Nostalgia makes something we loved as young uns even better than the reality. It seems our brains like to remember the good and glorify it, while forgetting the bad. And to that I say, ignorance is bliss! 😂 Without glossing over the reality of things, it's honestly great to remember things fondly that way and allows us (or at least me) to experience those memories with rose colored glasses. And like you said, decades from now, when I am in my 60s, those in their 40s will be reminiscing about the good 'ol days of their gen, and later still, when youtube is long gone, we will be remembering the glory days of youtube lol. It's already just changed so much from it's early days when it was so anything goes and people were just having fun. I try to bring that back a bit with the silly skits and not taking every single video too seriously, just doing what is fun. What I really need them to do is bring back the original Nestle Drumsticks properly. All those crappy king cone knock offs aren't the same and I can never find the real thing when I'm craving them. The good stuff, plain and simple vanilla without all the fudge filled centers and plastic-like flavor of the swirl top. How did I start talking about drumsticks? 😂 Damn I want one so bad now...

[@Spinozin]

@@ShmupJunkie The Internet today is like a limp dick. The law slowly caught up. The early days, anything goes. Now every single site you visit there is an "accept cookies' prompt. Advertisers everywhere. KZbinrs everywhere. Apps apps apps. The world controlled by a few memes and headlines. Forget that bollocks and let's reminisce about the good stuff and set our own agenda. Which is why I like your videos so much. Never tried those drumsticks. They look alright. I swear McDonald's milkshakes tasted better in the 80's. I wonder if there's an ice cream level in a shoot em up ? Hmmmm I'm joyously watching your library of videos. So far they are all titled "most brutal..". How about most fun? Unless for you, the more brutal the more fun? Like a sadist. Or masochist. I get them confused. How about a flying dominatrix shooter? She shoots out dildos and has a special whip bomb. And when you press down A it's auto fire. Cos I'm old and my hands are fucked :)

[@abholcombe93]

Shmup Junkie, you’re one of the BEST shooter enthusiasts that I’ve ever seen! And that Zak Vortex track took me back to the 80’s. We need a Ray’s Arcade Chronology review from you soon! Rayforce and Raystorm are my favorite Shooters ever.

[@ShmupJunkie]

I’m working on a pretty similar style video right now actually. Including some new Zak Vortex music as well haha. I love his work.

[@bobbus_74]

This video made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. What a great time for gaming the eighties and early nineties were.

[@ShmupJunkie]

I'm glad you enjoyed it and a nice break and reward for a job more than well done in the caravan this week. Truly exceptional my friend. Can't say how happy I was to see you kick so much ass.

[@bobbus_74]

@@ShmupJunkie I really enjoyed the caravan tournament, even more this time around. I must also say, since you started these videos I've been really impressed by the content. I knew you'd make a good stab at it but they are better than I thought they would be. Well done mate. 👌

[@ouchiewowow]

VR-Type, it writes itself. Maybe after Final 2 comes out :)

[@ShmupJunkie]

I am hoping Final 2 turns out better than part 1, as I found it a bit slow and not too interesting. I'm all about VRType though I love that name. 😀

[@strzxgvnuvwvfld3597]

Great video! I can appreciate there must've been lots of writing/editing work here. I often think how the genre wasn't niche at all when I was a kid. I remember crowding around arcade games like Salamander, Image Fight, R-Type II and even not-so-good games like Carrier Air Wing! (hey, you could shoot through a building! :) ). One of my most nostalgic arcade memories was the first time I saw Gradius II (or Vulcan Venture as they called it in Europe). I had no idea the game existed (pre-internet!), then one day I came across it in an arcade. I recognised the ship...and the multiples...and the laser....and if there was any doubt this was the latest in the series, the profound title sequence certainly confirmed it! We'd all been impressed by the flames in stage 3 of Salamander, so those suns creeping into view for the first time with huge dragons coming out of them was fantastic. They have the game at my local retro arcade and it still makes me smile to this day.

[@ShmupJunkie]

That's so awesome you have a real Gradius 2 cab local you can still play. I never see stuff like that around anymore here. The retro arcades are either way old school like Atari days, or lots of beat em ups and fighting games. All cool but I rarely get to see a good shooter cabinet anymore. Not a Gradius for sure. Man I remember carrier airwing it was the like a sequel to Area 88 right. Too bad we never really saw that one ported anywhere.

[@zchen358]

This man needs more clicks and upvotes on his videos. STGs forever.

[@ShmupJunkie]

This is still my favorite video I think I made so far. It feels universal that anyone can watch and I will again myself over the years. I’d like to keep making more like this and the compile history I just did. And they are doing well so no complaints here 😁

[@dryker7085]

This is the greatest!! Why has it taken so long for me to find this channel?? I feel like my love of shooters arrived and disappeared with my TG16 as a grade school graduation gift.

[@ShmupJunkie]

I’m glad you found me at least. And this video is still one of my favorites. Not as technically polished as it was my first ever in this style as I was learning editing. But I love how the opening few minutes came out and I still love watching it too. We both grew up with a TG16 so I’ll bet we share quite a few of those early game memories. Blazing was a real staple for me.

[@SouthernMenace]

Oh yeah, this is right up my alley. I was forged in seedy arcades, and I've learned to love shmups in them. Nice script and editing!

[@ShmupJunkie]

I am trying to think back to the seediest arcades I've been to and I keep coming up with Vegas 😅 Not the fancy affairs they became now. Back when the Flamingo and the older hotels were a thing. Playing Legendary Wings and Gladiator in the corners and it still smelled like smoke wafting in from the casino. Not my favorite type of seedy lol. I still miss it just the same though.

[@SouthernMenace]

@@ShmupJunkie I was born and raised in Brazil, and during the 80s and 90s arcades were a huge part of the gaming culture over there. We wouldn't get most console releases (only Master System and Mega Drive via a local company that had licensed them), and game hardware was extremely expensive and out of the reach for most kids. So, arcades were the best thing, since we'd get bootleg PCBs smuggled through Paraguay at reasonable prices, which were put into generic plywood cabinets and sent across the country. Needless to say, arcades frequently were a den of small-time criminals and had other issues as well. So you had to be very aware at all times, and the PVP took place both in games and across the street, if you defeated people in the local gang =)

[@mazonemayu]

Your best vid so far mate, the first few minutes almost made me cry with nostalgia...

[@ShmupJunkie]

Mission accomplished 😀 I did the same first few times while working on it, so it was all up there to see. I hope to go back to it again in the future too and still enjoy it.

[@matthewwachter9070]

Just discovered your channel and have watched about a dozen videos in the last 2 days. This is the best one yet. Well done!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Wow! Thanks that’s awesome to hear. I’m glad you found me and enjoyed them that much. This is honestly my favorite I really love how it came out too. This and the recent Compile history video I made are the two most popular ones. So I’ll definitely be making more like it.

[@matthewwachter9070]

@@ShmupJunkie I love documentary style videos and will be watching the Compile one next. I hope you continue this format and focus on other legendary developers (maybe a Saturn focused video or hidden gems).

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@matthewwachter9070 ooh you’ll enjoy that one too. You can bet I’ll be doing many more highlights of great devs like this. I enjoy them and apparently they do really well. I’ve got plans for quite a few more.

[@julianobitsgen]

Greetings from Brazil. Your videos are awesome, man. BTW, regarding the "shmups are shooters" polemic, I'd like to add a little interesting foot note: in my native language, portuguese, we use a specific term to refer to this genre, called "navinha"(which could be translated as "tiny spaceship"). This term has been used since the 80s and I personally think it's quite interesting, specially if we consider how tiny the player's ship can be when compared to the bosses or how crowded the screen can become sometimes in those games.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Hey! I like that bit of history I always love knowing the different ways we all called these games. I have a friend on IG that calls himself jogosdenavinhashmups. Now I better understand what it means. 😀 Last year I learned the Spanish name for these games also, matamarcianos for killing martians.

[@startoys2113]

Love the channel man, especially all the PC Engine love ! Thank you for some of the best Shmup videos on KZbin!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Awesome I’m glad and thanks. Though I try to spread the wealth there will never be a shortage of pc engine love here 😁

[@light535]

This video is a precious love letter to the genre. You seriously deserve more subs. Amazing as always.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you, definitely what I was going for. And hope something that can be rewatched in the future by many more.

[@DodonEnthusiasticArt]

I'm with you bro, you can bet! Great video, you hit me with a smart bomb of nostalgia man, still have shivers. I'm proud of my Switch shooters library, and ready to support the genre in any ways! #SHMUPSARESHOOTERS !

[@ShmupJunkie]

A smart bomb of nostalgia I like that. 😀 thanks bro I am very glad you enjoyed it. The best thing we can do is support the new indie developed games that are worth playing so we continue to get more.

[@LordShmup]

Because they look amazing and feel satisfying! Looking forward to this one my shmup friend!

[@ShmupJunkie]

And because they give you that rush of adrenaline that few other genres can do the same way. 🤘 Hope you do enjoy I had a lot of fun making it.

[@LordShmup]

@@ShmupJunkie loved it, great video :) I loved hearing about the transition from shooter to shmup, the rise of fighting games, and talk of boosting our community. Your editing is amazing.

[@prehistogeek7090]

Beautiful my friend! 👏 A perfect video, full of emotion and memories. I got chills watching her. In short: Thank you! 😊

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you my friend. I honestly did too in some parts while working on it. That's how I know I am on the right track. I wanted to make some all of us who grew up at the time can watch it many times and remember some of the great times. And also make it general and friendly that us older folks can watch with kids and siblings to show them what the time was all about.

[@crunchsixfoe]

IMO Shmups have an even higher barrier for entry than fighting games (which are notoriously difficult for getting new people into the scene). I believe there needs to be a better entry and resource for new shmup players to reach higher levels of play. I've been playing for 20 years and only really had the resources to take my game to the next level once they started gaining some popularity on youtube in the past 5 years. The shmups forums are esoteric and not helpful at all.

[@ShmupJunkie]

I also think in those older days, with them being arcade games, people didn’t pick them up and expect to play well. Arcade games kicked your ass and ate quarters so it was kind of a given. Most of us got our butts kicked on home console too but just kept playing because it was fun. But I agree shmups not only need WAY better training modes and tiers, but there also needs to be more variety. Not all shmups need to be brutal. Not all fighting games are brutal. Just like not all third person open world games are brutal. Just the Dark Souls types. But there are many others like Witcher, horizon, GTA, etc. Shmups need to have more for everyone in my mind. Expand the genre. I think I said this in another comment too. Right now every shmup is the genre equivalent of Sekiro. And it goes up from there. Only we can play that. It’s ok to make shmups that are casual and appeal to other types of players. We like brutal games but most do not. They don’t want to be high level players they just want a fun experience worth their money. Over time some may grow to enjoy harder shmups but they need an entry point that can just be fun to play. I’d like to see that at least.

[@reagandow850]

@@ShmupJunkie - kids today are afraid to be challenged...let’s call a spade a spade. Teachers and parents don’t push them. The whole “Everyone gets a trophy” system has destroyed the kids and turned them into a bunch of layabouts. Obviously not all of them Of course but we didn’t have “easy” options back then. We got our asses handed to us again and again. I have to challenge myself every day or I feel useless. It gives me a sense of purpose that I’m afraid some people just don’t have weather it’s with video games, their jobs, or school.

[@32LY]

Love the video man 🙃🤩🤩🤩 Now you must do a video like this one with the shumps of the retrofuture like zero ranger, devil engine, rival megagun, astebreed, graze counter....... there are many

[@ShmupJunkie]

Oh yes, slowly but surely I am. Working on SuperXYX for my next Indie game hopefully and going from there. One at a time. I'm unfortunately behind on many of the newer games so I need time to play and catch up. I wouldn't make a video on something I can't say something unique about. But I do think that's a great idea. Not a nostalgia video, but more of the shmups of the present and future. All the great games out now people are missing out on and need to be played... especially supporting the devs that make them.

[@AlchemistTongueDrums]

That intro was so heartfelt. Great channel. Subscribed.

[@ShmupJunkie]

This is still my favorite video I ever made and likely may remain so for some time. It’s kind of universal and even someone who isn’t into the genre can appreciate and get the feel for the era. And a way to introduce those younger not familiar with that era. I’m really glad you enjoyed it.

[@LinieEber]

We need more Versus Shmup like TSS, PoFV, RM etc This market is very undersaturated with them

[@ShmupJunkie]

I wonder why they never took off as a good sub genre. The games that were made were all pretty darn good. I remember star control on the genesis had a little pvp mode on the side. Not even the main game. And damn it was fun I used to play against friends all the time. It was like asteroids only with a dozen unique ships and playing versus. And it’s not even a shmup. I’d love to see a much more nuanced and modern version of that kind of game with online play. We had a blast with it. I was all about the yeehat terminator.

[@midiriots3909]

What an amazing episode!!!! Thank you!!! And btw....I AM WITH YOU!!!! HELL YEAH!!!

[@ShmupJunkie]

I know you are dude 🤘 and I knew you would enjoy it. Motivation and perspective for your own great work in progress.

[@midiriots3909]

@@ShmupJunkie Thank you!!!

[@JoshuaJaeger]

I still say "shooter" when referencing old school shmups style games! Just like I NEVER say JRPG when I'm talking about games like Dragon Warrior or Secret of Mana! They are SHOOTERS and RPGS! lol

[@ShmupJunkie]

I’m not sure where jrpg came from in the first place either. They aren’t THAT different from any other rpg to need distinction. I never thought about it but don’t think I used that term either. I’m not sure I ever used metroidvania either haha

[@bl85gamer]

Such an amazing video. And let me just say F*CK whoever is leaving a thumbs down on your videos. The love and time you put on these is amazing dude. Thank you for making me love the genre again and creating this new love I have for the PCE and the Turbo. Glad to have met you on IG and keep it up man. It has been a pleasure 👏 👏 👏

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you dude. You're one of the coolest people and friends that I've met so far on this journey and it's these little things that have made it worth it. Is there already a thumbs down? lmao. I am sure one of the few trolls I annoyed with one of my lag posts most likely that is subscribed just so they can do it for every video 😂 I am stoked you and so many others are enjoying them, the rest don't matter.

[@bl85gamer]

@@ShmupJunkie yeah it definitely does not matter but just annoys me 😅 Can't wait to meet you at some point and enjoy some shooters or what not man 😍 Thank you so much for all you do and specially for that Turbo 😭🙏🏼

[@Punk93Metal]

I have a BIG soft spot for shoot em ups so this channel is a delight. Keep it up!

[@mscottjohnson3424]

The first shooter I ever played was Legendary Wings on my grandmother's NES. As a kid, I only ever got to the first boss, or Devil, before I died. But that level one music defines the NES's sound for me. As an adult, I played the original Arcade version on MAME, and it just looks and sounds wrong to me. Give me the old NES version, please.

[@ShmupJunkie]

I was just complaining about the arcade legendary wings in my Capcom stadium video. I prefer the nes port myself and it’s quite underrated far as nes games go. Personally just think it’s a better game overall too.

[@mscottjohnson3424]

@@ShmupJunkie Having played many more since, I can see why it gets overlooked. Limited enemy variety, the same bosses over and over, it's clearly made to fit on a small cart. The mix of vertical and horizontal is cool, and the levels are pretty for 8-bit, but there is better in the NES. It's 80% nostalgia for me. Not a bad game, though.

[@creeperkinght1144]

Wowowow! This is amazing! Man these games are truly pieces of art, ultimate masterpieces, and I wasn't even born in during the Golden Era.

[@ShinuRealArts]

Thanks a ton for mentioning Wings Of Bluestar again!!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Of course, can't talk about current indie games and not mention it.

[@philmason9653]

I think shmups have a number of things going for them in the current era. 1) A generation growing up on emulators with access to everything have an easier time encountering them. 2) A generation growing up on mobile gaming, which favours simpler design concepts with streamlined inputs and shorter play sessions. A great many of the most popular mobile games are just Atari 2600 or 8-bit era concepts with a fresh coat of paint. 3) The growth of the indie scene as a genuine and meaningful market segment has helped a lot, as the structure of these games makes them conducive to that scene. 4) The retro-gaming boom has put a spotlight on them, as shmups are invariably very prominent among the most obscenely expensive - and thereby coveted - games. The twitch nature of them has allowed them to age well. 5) Online leaderboards are relatively simple to incorporate, making score relevant in a way it couldn't be in the era where shmups fell off. 6) These games are tailor-made for the adderall generation, especially for anyone looking for something other than an FPS/3PS. 7) The Switch. Nintendo have spent two decades conspicuously nurturing nostalgia for their 8 & 16-bit glory days. At the same time, with less horsepower & fewer 3rd party AAA releases taking up oxygen the Switch makes a natural home for indies. Nintendo are very aware of this and give them a decent amount of promotion. Of course, indie developers being who they are (ie., people who typically share the same purist approach to mechanics Nintendo does and often have a worshipful appreciation of the classics from their glory days), are quite often very happy with the notion of seeing their work on a Nintendo platform. At the same time, the Switch's sheer dominance in Japan has made it the natural home for small-time Japanese games looking for the widest audience. And of course, the portable nature of the console favours the same elements mobile gaming does. It's for all these reasons the Switch has very clearly been the single biggest driver of the genre's renaissance. It's been a perfect storm of convergent elements. I don't know how far this momentum will go, but Crimson Clover feels like an arrival moment to me. That's a game with sufficient spectacle to wow anyone who sees it, whether they're into the genre or not, and has the design quality to back it up. But the thing the genre HAS to do is make itself understood. That's been the single biggest reason for it remaining in the shadows. Nobody looking at these games from the outside understands the difference between them. Nobody understands that they're meant to be a battle against yourself, mastered by throwing yourself at them for dozens or even hundreds of hours like a Dark Souls game until you're pulling off things that looked impossible. They just think they're for people born with crazy reflexes or a weird penchant for repetition. Esoteric scoring systems implemented with zero explanation don't help anybody either; in fact I'd argue they're a turnoff which leaves a game appearing inaccessible, or its most meaningful mechanics not understood or even known about (playing Ikaruga purely for survival is like playing Street Fighter without learning combos or special moves). And the genre needs a little more in the way of story elements and meaningful personalities around a game to ground it in some sort of relatable identity. This is exactly why Touhou is a gateway to the genre for so many people. This doesn't mean clogging a game up with cinemas that'll just get repetitive (looking at you, Raiden V), but it does mean offering up identifiable, relatable or attractive/interesting characters rather than just a random assemblage of rectangles on a fuselage and calling it an avatar.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Some really awesome points there and ones I agree with, especially in the end with your mention of focus on scoring and mechanics. Every great game has to have a "hook." Something that draws anyone to try it out... not just experts or people who know what it is. And scoring, as fun as it is for veterans of the games, is not a hook for most players. They simply don't care. They play for the fun of it, as do I. As in your Ikaruga example, it has a phenomenal hook with it's polarity system. It's why you play the game and why it's so well regarded. Of course it's critical to scoring, but that's beside the point. It's how you approach and learn the game, regardless of your ultimate score. It makes it fun and unique. All good platformers had hooks. Something that made their gameplay unique aside from the aesthetics and music. Or sometimes the gameplay is just so good, like Crimson Clover, where it's played for the sheer fun of it, and the spectacle is part of it. But I am with you 100% on that. For shmups to keep growing and especially to bring in a new audience, they have to be understood and have a unique aspect aside from simply dodging bullets. And they absolutely need to be more accessible. Dark Souls style games are know as the "hardcore" of 3rd person open world games, but it's just a niche within a broader genre. Shmups are pretty much ONLY hardcore, the end. It's as if there was no Ghosts of Tsushima, or Witcher, or Horizon, or GTA, only Dark Souls games that were hard as hell. And that was all there was. And it would be a niche with nothing more. There will always be a place for hardcore shmups, but they need to be more than that. They used to be more than that, which is a big part of my video, and they need to be again for wider acceptance. Crimson Clover goes a long way to making it more accessible to all, but it also LOOKS so damn hard to anyone watching. When in fact Novice mode is very playable. Like you said, the stigma of what shmups are is already set for those not into that type of game. Very hard to change. That's why I'm always looking for a new paradigm or approach to come along that has the DNA of a shmup, but doesn't necessarily look or come off like one. I don't know what that looks like yet, but I am open to it.

[@XHEADTOWALLX]

Excellent work. This is fastly becoming my favorite subscription.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you appreciate that. I keep trying to make small improvements every week and bring something new. And it's all the great feedback that keeps me going.

[@Sr.D]

Horizontals of that era are my favourites, Super Hydorah by Locomalito it's a great homage to those games

[@ShmupJunkie]

I have to say I preferred many horizontal shooters as well during that time. It was mainly a small handful of amazing vertical games that kept me from calling it completely, mainly the Compile games and later Soldier games on PC Engine. But if I started naming all my favorites, I may have more on the horizontal overall as well.

[@Sr.D]

@@ShmupJunkie verticals shooters were great too, better than the bullet hell trend imho, but that's a different theme 😅

[@Axel_Kei]

Oh just noticed, gratulations on the clean 2k subs!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks! And a killer 2K subs it is too.

[@Chinopolis]

You really outdid yourself on this one, between this and the hour of pure goodness last week you're putting everyone else to shame! Keep fighting the good fight!!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks man, and thanks for being a part of the omega blast week too. You really made some huge jumps and I was proud to see it. It brought out the best in everyone who put the time in. As long as there is a fight to be had, I'll keep fighting it.

[@majk023]

Project sylpheed is the epiphany of space shooters in my opinion.

[@bill5974]

Excellent vid. As a forty-something every bit of this vid resonated immense nostalgia for me. My fav shooter ever? Gradius V, closely followed by the Original R-type. Looking forward to a new R-type release in a few weeks...

[@ShmupJunkie]

I’m looking forward to featuring GV when I do a PS2 video sometime soon. I just released a history of RType video last week so if you’re a fan it’s likely the first one you found haha. The original RType is very special to me too even if I’m more of a Gradius guy overall in terms of gameplay. It’s just a special game.

[@bill5974]

@@ShmupJunkie your R-type video was indeed the first vid of yours that I watched, and earned an instant sub. Keep up the good work. ps: just bought Natsuki on steam on your recommendwtion...

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@bill5974 Hope you enjoy it man. It’s got a nice progression. If you’re good enough to play GV then normal difficulty is likely a good place to start. The game picks up for me at stage 4 and onward where the levels get creative. Will be curious to see what you think once you put some time into it.

[@bill5974]

@@ShmupJunkie married with kids but I work away from home so hopefully will get a chance to try it sooner rather than later ;-)

[@rynex3156]

Loved this video, and am loving your channel! I'm a retro collector...and while I always enjoyed shooters, I did not give the genre enough focus when I was that age. I have been making up for that now. This video got me stoked to play more shooters. Think I'll go pop Gaiares in the ole Genesis right now! :-) Keep up the good work!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Gaiares is awesome. Actually it’s number one! ☝️ 😆 I did a video on it and twin cobra a while back called Top 5 hardest shmups on the mega drive part two. It got people hyped to go play it. Really glad you’re enjoying the vids and it’s gotten you back into playing them more. Pretty much the main reason I started making these. It’s gotten me into playing them even more myself too.

[@rynex3156]

@@ShmupJunkie It is really hard, but that's a large part of the appeal of space shooters IMO. I've gotten far in it, but have not finished it yet...still working on it! My favourite thing about Gaiares is the love that clearly went into creating it. This becomes apparent even after just watching the opening cinematic 😊. Thanks again for your wonderful work on this channel, and for replying! I have subbed, and am looking forward to your future content. Cheers! 🍻

[@IamMarkSmith]

“Going to the arcade was like going to the movies.” Truth and proverb man. I’ve gone to church to hear the minister preach about shooters with no idea what I was going t experience 😂🤣😭👏🏾.

[@ShmupJunkie]

😂 I have to admit when I was forced as a kid to go to synagogue as a kid I was like homer simpson listening to the football game... only I was dreaming of ninja gaiden and life force. Luckily I didn't yell WOOHOO at the top of my lungs during the sermon, but I likely spaced out for the majority. I was hyper sitting still in a space was not for me. Unless it was the movies something about that was always enthralling and why I got into the AV business in my later 20s.

[@IamMarkSmith]

@@ShmupJunkie are you still in A/V? I actually work for an A/V company as well as DJ among the many things I do.

[@jkemp6791]

And with a single video, you have just become my go-to KZbin voice on shooters. Shmup collection video next??? *hint hint*

[@ShmupJunkie]

haha, I was trying to avoid doing just a look at my games type of video, there are enough of those around. I like people to see them, but something feels odd about just doing a video talking about them and flaunting games. I know a lot of others do so it's just my hang up, as I do it all the time on my IG account in photos. So I try to showcase them as I talk about them in bits and make it more about the game vs look at my stuff. I did show my entire PC Engine shooter collection in this one though, with the three way split screen in one part near the beginning. 😉

[@jkemp6791]

@@ShmupJunkie - Yeah, I saw that part and it was AWESOME. I get you don’t want to flaunt what you have, but I’m a collector and love to see what others have. I also turn it into a “what games have I missed” list to collect for the future. But of course, you do what you want to: no pressure. Your channel shows your passion for shooters and that’s good enough for me!

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@jkemp6791 Are you on Instagram at all? It’s a great place for collectors to meet as well and I’ve learned about a lot of games there I’d never heard of before. It’s not necessarily to become some big account many just share as they please and just follow others who’s collection they like seeing. I met a lot of cool people there.

[@kujo1978lol]

"And me peeing myself" I lost it 😂😭

[@ShmupJunkie]

lol I can't remember if that was impromptu or not. Sometimes it's not in the script I'll just blurt it out while reading, and if it turns out funny I keep it.

[@gaucho420]

Excellent video! I'm glad someone else remembers them as shooters! I'm always having to explain myself that they are always shooters to me. The others are FPS in my opinion.

[@ShmupJunkie]

You are not alone my friend. It’s the whole reason I championed that tag #shmupsareshooters so the history is not forgotten. I’ve never called FPS games shooters either but the world left us behind 😅

[@jasonangeles3765]

Bravo!! Early 90's shooters were also my fondest memories as a young teen, going from the TurboGrafx-16 to the SNES to the Duo, my fondest memories of intense gaming and greatest sense of accomplishment came from beating games like Blazing Lazers, Super Star Soldier, Soldier Blade, Air Zonk, UN Squadron, Gate of Thunder and Lords of Thunder.. these games and this genre to me, had the most memorable action, graphics and music and when done great, nothing could beat the feeling! Thanks for making this video!!

[@ShmupJunkie]

You're welcome and glad you enjoyed it. I felt the same there weren't other genres that gave me that sense of adrenaline and barely making it through alive with sweaty palms. And they always showcased cool graphics but especially great music. You played and beat all the killer ones you mentioned, so you know how awesome the music was. I wanted to make an homage to what it was like and the feeling of playing them back then. And I'm definitely happy with how it came out given I'm an amateur just trying to make a cool video.

[@Janne_d_Arc]

Unfortunately, there are not so many games of this genre nowadays but I still love them, especially Irem games like R-Type or Dragon Breed. ♥

[@ShmupJunkie]

Irem is legend. Maybe one day another great developer will come around that focuses on the genre. But not unless there is a bigger market of players to buy them.

[@Plastikboy1000]

hey Janne .. good news: just read R-Type Final 2 is coming next year .....✌️

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@Plastikboy1000 yes I’m looking forward to it also 👌. Hoping it will be good. I’ll definitely support the developer by picking it up when it’s out.

[@Plastikboy1000]

@@ShmupJunkie hell yes! i'm confident my friend .. Kazuma Kujo is in as director and he says: after R-Type final he thought there's nothing more he could put into the genre but now he knows better .....✌️

[@Janne_d_Arc]

@@ShmupJunkie Irem is a great company that deserves to be better known since they have made very good games of different genres. After my beloved Alpha Denshi/ADK, Irem is one of my favorite not-so-well-known/almost-forgotten companies of the 80s and 90s along with others like Technos, Data East or Hudson Soft. ♥

[@opts9]

Thanks for the video! I'm glad to hear you mention Ninja Gaiden! As a huge shoot 'em up fan I find the fast paced and technical gameplay of Ninja Gaiden to be very appealing and satisfying.

[@ShmupJunkie]

It’s my favorite game and series of all time so I definitely agree. It has a flow and rhythm that’s only achieved with mastery that few games have achieved since. I did a ninja Gaiden video actually long ago, before my channel was even official. An homage to the original. My editing skills were not in the same league back then but it’s a really funny and wonderful video you may enjoy. If you go back to my very first work you’ll find it there.

[@opts9]

​@@ShmupJunkie Ninja Gaiden really is in a league of it's own. I can't think of another game, let alone ninja game that combines it's elements so perfectly. It could well be in my top 1 games also! - I actually watched your Ninja Gaiden video the other day. And I agree it is a really funny and wonderful video, and I did indeed enjoy it! Your editing has certainly improved since then, but your entertaining voiceover paired with some nice game footage to look at is all you need really. Keep it up and I'll keep watching!

[@PeakedInterest]

Superb showcase of editing skill here. As a fellow youtuber I see the invisible work that goes into a video like this. Keep it up, I'm sure you'll get an audience soon enough

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you that means a lot. I am always trying to improve skills here and there and make the videos more immersive and personal. So I'm glad it's noticeable up on screen and doesn't come across as overdone or cheesy. I am no pro, but will keep slowly improving the little things. You're right it really is a massive amount of work.

[@ChaossX77]

I'm still working my way through your videos and bro, this was another banger! It was like my entire childhood condensed into 20 minutes. You have a way with nostalgia man. So many parts of the video gave me chills and got me more pumped about shooters than ever. Your love for them is infectious and I now get the shirt you wear in some of videos too. Also the part about you peeing yourself was freaking hilarious! 😂 I almost feel bad commenting on all your videos like I'm spamming you or something. Just stating my appreciation though. Lol

[@ShmupJunkie]

Never feel bad for commenting, it only helps the videos and engagement and I appreciate it. This was one of my favorites to this day and the very first video where I tried to start improving my editing and production value in them. It was this one that got me thinking of making history videos like I started doing afterward, more than just typical game review stuff that was more meaningful in the long term. This is one of those I'd love to remaster someday and update with what I've learned since, but it'll always be an old favorite. As even my very first videos you can tell I was having a really good time with them.

[@ChaossX77]

@@ShmupJunkie Yeah you can definitely tell you're having fun which makes it more fun to watch. And yeah you have a knack for these types of videos, hope you continue to keep making them. And good point about the engagement thing. I've been on a shmup junkies marathon and still am so hopefully it's helpong a bit. You deserve way more subs and I'll keep singing your praises to everyone as well.

[@Chaosfoxx]

my goshh! this video makes me wanna go in a time machine and just warp back in the 80s 😟

[@ShmupJunkie]

It's how I feel pretty often too and it was that intro music that originally gave me the vision of what I wanted to do with the video. Very bitter sweet but worth the trip.

[@crystalmadison8449]

I am with you

[@ShmupJunkie]

Shooters have been having quite a nice comeback the last years. We're doing something right!

[@yoman8027]

Fun fact: the term used back then in Spain for 2D shooters was "matamarcianos" which literally translates as "martian slayer".

[@ShmupJunkie]

I became familiar with that term a few years ago via some Brazilian friends of mine and still love using it now yeah. I kept seeing them refer to the games that way and was wondering what martians had to do with it haha. But it's such a cool term, better than shmups.

[@yoman8027]

@@ShmupJunkie It came from the original Space Invaders. Back then the average English level of a Spanish was... extremely poor, even null. For most of them, reading the English titles was hard and impossible, that's why most classic arcades received affectionate nicknames. For example, PacMan was called "come-cocos" which means "coconut eater" or "boogiemen eater" (since he eats ghosts and small dots that look like coconut bites). Space Invaders was called "Marcianitos": "Little Martians".

[@DjDizzy216]

Thumbs up! Nothing like someone watching you play shooter and them thinking you have some innate talent. When the fact is, you're an average player but they haven't seen the hundreds of deaths you've accumulated to learn how to play it.

[@ShmupJunkie]

I think that mentality of practice is much more common in Japan as well, where most great players are seen that way due to the amount of time they put into it. They believe innate talent is just a small piece of the puzzle and they are right. Western culture is more about showing off so it's just an overall attitude difference. If more people approached them as something that anyone can master with practice it would be less intimidating I think.

[@clayschultz4074]

Because of this found the game I've been looking for more than 2 years now! 😅 Couldn't be more happier, thank you!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Which game!?

[@clayschultz4074]

@@ShmupJunkie gun nac. I played this 20+ years ago. In my grade school years. HAHA. So obsessed with it before. Remember skipping my meals, snacks and ride back home from school so I can pay at the computer shop

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@clayschultz4074 GunNac is great, I really liked that game too. Compile did little wrong back then.

[@NickEnlowe]

Great video!! Nice that Wings of Bluestar got featured. The dev put some real passion behind it.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Absolutely I wasn’t going to miss a chance especially since I have good footage of my own from when I did a review for it. I really enjoyed the game.

[@hogcia66]

Love your channel. Keep up the good work 👍👏

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks! I will definitely do my best. And this vid is still my personal fav I've made, or up there. I wanted to make something universal anyone can watch whether they are into the genre or not.

[@jasonwells1719]

You have perfectly described why I have 40 years worth of memorabilia displayed. From my atari 2600 to the current gen... Thanks for this.

[@bartek.szuster]

Good background synthwave music, nostalgic and interesting commentary = you bought me. Great content here!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks it's great to hear you enjoyed it. FYI that synth wave music is by a friend of mine Zak Vortex who has a channel here on YT. Lots of similar work including a really nice new Weird Science themed release. He is new and I feel going to be popular one day. I love his work.

[@kbxthegamemaster06]

That was beautiful. 😢👏👏👏👏

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you 😁 I really tried that's for sure.

[@justinlfcrule]

The first time I came across the term SHMUP was in the Zzap 64 issue 3 (I think) review of Dropzone, and because I have dyslexia I read it as SHUMP and for years thought SHUMP was short for shoot em up

[@MrSez1979]

This video elicited sentimental chills down this retro gamers spine... I love how you broke down pop culture of those two eras... And even included wrestling clips... Utterly masterful video! Wow

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks! It's honestly still my favorite video I've done as it's universal and feels like something anyone can watch, whether they are into shmups or not. And something maybe parents can use to show their kids what the games were about back then along with that time. I'd like to be able to make something like this again someday, so glad you enjoyed it too.

[@stevenadams3206]

New subscriber here. What a fantastic video, full of memories and nostalgia with great music also. Brilliant.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you so much. I love when someone new finds the channel and likes the content. A lot of my stuff is all about nostalgia, so if you eventually get to checking out any of my older vids, you may find quite a bit to enjoy. I've only been at it for a few months, so there are only so many. Glad to have you here.

[@JuanSinMiedo441]

what a beautiful homage!

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you. I loved how the intro to this one came out. I made this one way back but still enjoy watching it sometimes too.

[@MikeC-ps1tc]

Amazing video! I just know I need to retire soon so I can play these games and give them the time they deserve!!!

[@ShmupJunkie]

With the size our backlog has become it’ll take retirement just to ever catch up 😂. For every one I catch up on two more pop up. That’s gotta be a good sign right?

[@alexandrebonatto6438]

Thanks for making this AMAZING video!!!

[@ShmupJunkie]

You're welcome! Still one of my old favorites too.

[@mitchtaylor177]

LOVE this video. I am also a kid who grew up on those consoles and those games. I like seeing all the games I KNEW about but couldn't get because hey as kids we don't have the cash! Yes I love retrowave, Yes I love these old games, Yes I still have my long hair and shred on a Kramer and YES it is awesome to see someone bring such heartfelt love to a time we all remember and will NEVER give up! Keep on being you my friend and don't ever change because shooters are simply FUN games no matter the decade. Plus one game I don't recognize is the fairy wing thing at 19:49? Also please keep us fed on Switch shooters because playing them on the go is a must! :) Have a most excellent day!

[@secretysecret1551]

Man your video reminds me of how much I miss the Japanese touch of old games. Modern japanese games are so formulaic

[@ShmupJunkie]

Big studio games in general I totally feel you on that. If anything a lot of the innovation is coming from great Indie developers. Back then they experimented with so many things. Now the budgets are so high it has to be played safe. The big studios just need to give great talents a budget, kind of like Netflix does, and let them go at it. They can keep some of the profit. There are so many great ideas on the indie side and they simply need more help and access to tools and budget to do some amazing work.

[@tenforward715]

Dude, in England, we've been calling them shoot 'em ups since 1986. I believe the term originated from one of the U.K. video game publications.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Yeah shooters and shoot em ups has been interchangeable here in the US as well, including in magazines. I not once heard the term shmup written or said anywhere until much, much later when I was older. Mostly on the internet. It's our new term now, but when I talk about the old games like these it just doesn't sound right, it's habit and nostalgia for me. You bring up a good point though, all this nomenclature talk is so language specific. In Spanish it's martian killing haha, and I've been learning many other terms from various friends that they used in their native country for them.

[@amerigocosta7452]

@@ShmupJunkie Shmup was used occasionally by the ancient Commodore 64 UK magazine Zzap!64, eventho shoot'em up was more prevalent. Not well known in North America but very influential in the early days in Europe (especially for the youthful tone), Zzap!64 liked to invent all sorts of slangs and proto-memes. I'm not sure it is directly connected with the rise of the term shmup online in the early 2000s, but maybe it is. After all, a bunch of shmups fans are European and old enough to remember reading good old Zzap!

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@amerigocosta7452 I had one person mention a while back that shmup came from some UK mags and you just cleared up exactly where. That’s awesome obscure info that I may not have found anywhere else. You’re right we’ll never know if that’s where it got pulled from but now we have a scapegoat! Haha. Now I’m curious what other weird slang they used for various gaming terms. Did anyone ever scan and archive that old magazine online?

[@amerigocosta7452]

@@ShmupJunkie Zzap! is very well documented online, both the English and Italian editions are scanned and archived for posterity. For the english version take a look at the Def Guide To Zzap!64 website . Earliest mentions of the term shmup are in the 3rd UK issue from 1985 (on the website select Scan version and then the fifth page, but also page 19 where it's used along with shoot-em-up) . They also used to call those euro-platformers with adventure elements ..aardvark (weird way to say arcade adventure I guess?). They had a Darth Vader lookalike character called the Score Lord you could send your own high scores to, but he was mostly concerned with berating and threatening readers and humanity in general :D Reviews were made by more than one writer and every journalist had a comic book like portait to convey if they thought the game was great, average or bad. So the reviews felt more like debates. They even completely made up a writer (Paul Sumner) to use in case there wasn't enough points of view (or controversy I shall say!). They interacted a lot with readers via mail (and the peculiar but also made up Lloyd Mangram, who received reader's letters from as far as Australia and New Zealand). The Italian edition was epic in this regard, it was Internet before Internet with trolls, flames and everything. Zzap! was a magazine like no other.

[@tubbiele2]

@@ShmupJunkie "In Spanish it's martian killing " yea in Catalan too :D The first time I read the term Shmups was in the Shmups site that IIRC was made by a British person

[@linket]

Thank you for a most excellent video! It brought a tear or two to my eyes. It's 22 minutes of my childhood condensed. Like the other commenter says, what a beautiful love letter to our favourite genre. ❤️

[@ShmupJunkie]

You're very welcome and I am glad you enjoyed it so much. It's a good feeling when a video does exactly what you intended that it does. It makes you feel like an amateur film maker 😁

[@ChineseNinjaWarrior]

I need every game that appears in the video in the description of your videos.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Fell free! Anyone want to put together a list I’ll add it to the description 🤣. I’ve started doing that more lately but not had time to go back for the older videos to do the same.

[@frankszulakiewicz5826]

I never use the word shmup, it will always be shooter for me. I experienced all these games and the console wars, it was a wondrous time to live as a kid. Thank you for sharing good memories.

[@dogbadger]

Whislt on your side of the Atlantic game consoles were the game platform of choice in the 80s- early 90s, in Europe most were playing on early home computers Asides from the usual arcade conversions - which came with mixed results - there were many decent orgional Shoot em ups on the 8 and 16 bit computer systems - Delta, Sanxion and the amazing Uridium on the C64; Light force, x-out, Zynaps and Cybernoid on the ZX Spectrum; Xenon 1+2 on the Amiga/ST, and Team 17's amazing Project X on Amiga. They are far less seizure inducing than their Japanese console based counterparts, but nevertheless solid titles worth looking up if you've never heard of them.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Without a doubt, many of these games were ones I only saw in magazines and ogled from afar. Especially Amiga and the beautiful graphics. We didn't get to have them in the US, or they were very rare. It's only now with the Mister that I am using cores to discover some of these great games on MSX, Amiga, C64, Sharp and others. We did have computer games but they were very different and not at all console like. I imagine how different it was in Europe, although I imagine you had your share of arcades.

[@leandronc]

Great vid! But I think you missed the main reason for the dimishing popularity of shmups in the late 90s: with home consoles getting farther and farther from the arcade experience, people started prefering longer games for home consoles. The PS1 and PS2 eras valued game length A LOT. Which is why it was prime time for RPGs, and longer, more cinematic games like Zelda, Metal Gear Solid, survival horrors. Shmups are shorter games by nature.

[@HarriHaffi]

I don’t know… I think the popularity of multiple may have something to do with it… Shmups do often have 2 player co-op, but is it well executed? And how is it to complete with 4 player goldeneye on the n64?

[@ZakVortex]

Amazing video. I enjoyed every second of this. I grew up in a small U.K. seaside town and we used to go to the arcades every weekend and even after school when Double Dragon was released. Subscribed

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks a ton for letting me use your great track for parts of the video it felt perfect. It was actually just listening to it that gave me the thought of the video itself. I wasn’t sure what my next one would be and the song answered the question. The images of what I could do to the music and intro just came together. So thank you this video was inspired by your music. Man did DD kick my ass back then. I couldn’t get anywhere without a mountain of quarters. It wasn’t until part 2 on the NES where I got the hang of it.

[@jcchaconjr]

The thought of a VR shmup would indeed be bold, but I'd be hesitant to say that it would be a smash. The only reason I bring it up is because when PlayStation VR dropped, I got a chance to try BattleZone at a Best Buy during the PSVR tour. It start out simple enough, and it's freaking cool to be inside a futuristic rendition of the classic BattleZone tank... but then when aerial enemies start dropping and you have to be mindful of other tanks, and drop ships from above, and missiles from those dropships - It just becomes complete overload... And a shmup kind of has the same challenge. How do you set up levels, enemies, and more importantly, the "patterns" (thinking bullet hell), without totally overwhelming the player? What I would love to see is more of the renaissance that started last year - I hope that the Aleste Collection leads to Collection II! I can already envision MUSHA, Robo Aleste, and Super Aleste, along with a NEW Aleste series game, much like what they Aleste GG 3. That would be awesome. A revival of the 6 Thunder Force games would also be awesome - especially since I read that Sega purchased all of the rights to the series not long ago. And c'mon Cave/Degica - the rest of the original Xbox360 Cave Collection is DYING to be ported to other platforms! Anyway, despite the "negative" tone to start this comment, I loved the video, and the bold vision. I don't have every great shooter, but of the ones I do, you can be sure my kids will get a taste of them. I just hope they take to it as well as they take to Sonic and Mario, lol.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Nothing negative taken man and I appreciate the thoughtful commentary. I share your view that a shmup in VR could be difficult, and it may not even be a shmup at all at that point, but something new. One cool aspect of VR that people forget is that first person isn't the only immersive way to play them. Cockpit view is super cool but more of a flight sim than anything. As an example, I remember playing some VR iterations of RTS games, where you have a kind of "god" view of managing your forces, much more immersive than on a regular screen. It opens up a different way to experience the same kind of game. So it hasn't been done yet, but maybe something along those lines in a shmup, where you can have a bullet hell type game, but maybe there will be a completely different and immersive perspective to see the action, and be able to manage your ship in 3D space a whole new way from an external perspective. VR is still so niche it was more a wild fantasy on my part, but it's going to get there someday. I've really enjoyed my room scale Vive setup and the ability to play via hand motions instead of a typical controller, and interact with things in a different way. So there may be a lot of cool new ideas once it's mainstream enough for more creative developers to jump on board. In the new Aleste collection, there is some interview info that hints at the next Aleste release being MSX related. They will have to do the 16bit games sooner or later they'd be crazy not to, but I suspect the MSX may come first. Which is even more niche than the collection they just released, although in terms of importance I understand. There are many ways to play Musha, Robo and Super among others, but not Aleste 2, Gaiden, and who knows what else they include. At this point they've earned my trust so I am always excited for their next choice. Even if it means I get to read another 50 comments saying why is there no musha lol. They have to give the people what they want sooner or later.

[@tubbiele2]

@@ShmupJunkie what about Terminal Velocity? It was a good game, kinda frantic, but for me it's not the same

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@tubbiele2 oh man I remember it well playing on my computer as a kid. It was cool but felt more like a flying FPS game than a shmup.

[@tubbiele2]

@@ShmupJunkie in my case I think the difference is that that game was not graceful. It was frantic, it was solid but it was not graceful as many of our fave shooters are.

[@DavidGarcia-qf7gc]

I began with galaga, galaxian and phoenix (yes, I'm that old). One shoot em up I love is a love letter to the Gradius series called "Super Hydorah" made by one person called Locomalito.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Funny enough I'm pretty crappy and Galaga and the older games, something about only having a 2D plane to avoid bullets makes it more difficult. Definitely not getting any high scores in them haha. I've heard about Super Hydorah before but I haven't been able to try it yet. Is it on Steam or was it only released for some older consoles?

[@DavidGarcia-qf7gc]

@@ShmupJunkie Steam and consoles

[@paule4566]

You have created a well-written love letter to the 80's and the golden age of the arcade. Your production values are also top notch.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thanks I appreciate that. Though I've made some good ones since, this may be my favorite so far just for nostalgic reasons and how it's watchable by most anyone and some of us with our kids. I wanted to make something introductory anyone can watch but those of us who grew up would get the extra kick from.

[@unlimitedretrogaming]

Wow!! Just as expected, this is an amazing video full of history and nostalgia!! You had me time traveling and remembering so many good times as a child and young teenager. I know that every era has its own special place in life but what we’ve lived and experienced in the 80’s and early 90’s can hardly be matched. I share with you the feeling and mission to keep history alive and to revive these amazing games!! I want my kids to know why is it that we play, collect and cherish games from back in the day. Congrats man, loved it and am going to watch it again this afternoon. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 PS: I have sent your link to friends that are not from the gaming community but I am sure they are going to be very glad to see this video.

[@ShmupJunkie]

Thank you my friend. And I do hope it's something your kids will also enjoy and see a glimpse into those days. It's like an alien world to a young generation. I made this specifically to share with anyone and a video that not only shoot em up veterans can enjoy. Providing this kind of experience for people is the reason I keep making these videos. It's a reward unto itself and also something I can watch again and enjoy as well.

[@unlimitedretrogaming]

Yes, it’s like another world but my kids and wife are quite used to seeing my gaming side so I already told them that we are going to watch an special video this afternoon, one that comprises my childhood and passion 👍🏻👍🏻

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@unlimitedretrogaming how old are the kids? It will be fun to know how they felt about it later after you guys watched it.

[@unlimitedretrogaming]

@@ShmupJunkie it’s quite a zoo here 😂 they really enjoyed the video, had to explain/translate it at some points but they were so awed that we are playing Gunbird on the Switch right now. 👍🏻👌🏻

[@ShmupJunkie]

@@unlimitedretrogaming Success!!! 😂