LilithSlave teaches you about the one true religion: Touhou

[Evilpigeon]

-It has a simple shoot/dodge gameplay style (with the occasional shield/freeze/powerup etc gimmick) that a lot of sidescrolling shooters from a decade and older employed. It's stagnant.

All genres have their own rules and tendencies.

How are scrolling shooters any more limited or the same than first person shooters?

How much can you do with a side scrolling shooter? Genuine question - I don't know, it's not really my sort of genre.

On the otherhand, FPS is an extremely varied genre, going from CoD, Half life through Stalker, Portal through stuff like Arma 2.

Below are examples of the variety you can find within fps games, some of the examples are fairly obscure but just because something isn't often used to its full potential doesn't mean that that potential doesn't exist.

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB3qLkz1SyE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vw1yAeBcxg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0SfBzfiSa0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlZhDOqlPTc&feature=player_embedded

 

[cryogeist]

I think i'll stick to Ikaruga.

 

[LilithSlave]

I think i'll stick to Ikaruga.

Well that's a good game, too.

Hey, at least you're into scrolling shooters. That's more than I have in common with most folks around here apparently.

I don't just like Touhou. I like scrolling shooters in general. Though I do certainly like Touhou. As well as what it has done for the genre.

 

[The Lunatic]

A lot of people are aware of Touhou, I never liked the characters, something about 5 year olds in dresses puts me off.

 

[Kahunaburger]

It does interest me, in light of all the "I'm sick of brown scripted modern shooters!" threads, how the mere existence of a colorful, challenging game with non-male protagonists and a focus on gameplay over story generates industrial levels of buttmad.

 

[Quicksilver_Phoenix]

It's very disappointing to see the quality of responses users of this site have posted. If you've nothing nice to say please, don't bother.

O.T: Great introduction. You've explained it well for anyone who was curious and even taught me a few things I didn't know.

 

[VanQ]

Snip.

I come here for the news and only occasionally stop by the forums to post, personally. I still think the Escapist provides the best games coverage on the net.

Christ on a bread bin you guys are delicate little snowflakes aren't you? "Waah you insulted us all!" "Waah stop talking about things I don't like" "Waah stop saying bad things about what I do like" "You're a troll!" "No you're a troll!" yadda yadda etc. I've seen less tears at a first time anal convention.

I've finally cracked the code, the Escapist forums (cause sweeping statements are kewl) is /v/ with a thesaurus and some kind of complex about "objectively" proving things wrong.

Great Scott! You're right! But seriously, even /v/ manages to provide grammatically correct posts and less meme spouting.

And Lilith, if you like Touhou, check out /jp/. Those guys love them some Touhou. /a/ occasionally has a nice discussion about the lore too.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

There's nothing to be berated about Touhou's all female cast. It certainly isn't any worse than Team Fortress 2's all male cast.

We'll see about that.
Or at least Valve will.
Oh, who am I kidding, those buggers will never tell us the secrets of the Pyro...

I also noticed how everyone ganged up on Lilith. Well, yeah, her topics sometimes piss me off as well, but Christ people. If she was Daystar people would be all over it. (Nothing against Daystar, I love that evil genius dummy

Except I wouldn't write a thread that pisses people off :3

 

[IamLEAM1983]

It's been said before, but Touhou isn't almost completely female in its casting because women aren't sufficiently put in positions of power, folks... Nope, the truth is not quite as rosy as this would suggest.

The fact is, the general otaku population is male, and young males tend to like video games with easily objectionable characters. Why do you think there's so much Rule 38 of these characters around, or so many memes? I'm really sorry to say this, but the Touhou fandom is much less about girls going "GIRL POWER! FUCK YEAH!" and a lot more about desperate single dudes spanking a taint while looking at various takes on lolicon. Not to mention that if you're honestly and seriously seeing female empowerment in these character designs - I can't help you.

Of course, I could say the exact same thing to anyone who'd actually laud Bayonetta for its portrayal of the fairer sex... On one hand you have superpowered and childishly innocent little girls who have fights that would make a Dragon Ball Z episode look tame in comparison, and on the other you've got a sexed-up pseudo-witch who wears nothing but her own hair and one of Jeanine Melnitz' leftover pairs of glasses. Objectification all over.

As for the players - and I do know some Danmaku players - they tend not to give a shit about Gensokyo, at least not up here in Canada. Most of the guys I know who have tried Cave shooters or actual Touhou titles are simply interested in the Bullet Hell type of gameplay. Tell them there's an actual plot and a cast, and they just shrug that right off.

Personally, however, I'd seriously recommend Treasure's Ikaruga as a more accessible and slightly less objectionable take on the formula. You get the exact same gameplay, without anything resembling Magical Girls or stories concerning mystical miko priestesses stuck in a made-up chunk of Japan.

Honestly, if you're looking for a game with a strong and relatable female character, I'd look no further than Benoit Sokal's Syberia series. Kate Walker's a lot more positive and realistic as a role model than anything ZUN could ever crap out. Or, failing that, April Ryan from The Longest Journey or Dreamfall.

 

[Lord Mountbatten Reborn]

I have heard there are metric tons of porn regarding it (looking at the images above...creepy)

And that's the only keyword I've ever heard of it being related to.

 

[Hazy992]

There's nothing to be berated about Touhou's all female cast. It certainly isn't any worse than Team Fortress 2's all male cast.

We'll see about that.
Or at least Valve will.
Oh, who am I kidding, those buggers will never tell us the secrets of the Pyro...

I also noticed how everyone ganged up on Lilith. Well, yeah, her topics sometimes piss me off as well, but Christ people. If she was Daystar people would be all over it. (Nothing against Daystar, I love that evil genius dummy

If Daystar consistently made threads and comments that annoy and insult people, I don't think he'd be liked quite as much as he is.

 

[Aerosteam]

I fail to see any sort of importance of this thread. What's the point of introducing Touhou to people if it already has millions playing it?

 

[LilithSlave]

Of course, I could say the exact same thing to anyone who'd actually laud Bayonetta for its portrayal of the fairer sex... On one hand you have superpowered and childishly innocent little girls who have fights that would make a Dragon Ball Z episode look tame in comparison, and on the other you've got a sexed-up pseudo-witch who wears nothing but her own hair and one of Jeanine Melnitz' leftover pairs of glasses. Objectification all over.

The Touhou and Bayonetta comparison is nothing alike.

The fans may sexualize the characters in fanart and the like. I play Otome games and read enough Yaoi to give your grandpa a seizure, I'm well aware of how demographics and fanservice often work.

Touhou games do not sexualize the characters, though.

Bayonetta does. Furthermore, in general, Bayonetta is portrayed sexuality first. Touhou does not. And yeah, they pretty much look like lolis. I don't know what you're talking about with the innocence thing, though.

And Lilith, if you like Touhou, check out /jp/.

Oh, I've... definitely been there. They... they have their own problems. I like Pooshlmer better. I wish they moved quicker. Pooshlmer is nicer, but not quite as successful as /jp/.

Doujinstyle wasn't too bad, back when they actually cared about Doujin games. I don't know if they're different now, they seem to have reset their forum for some reason.

Thanks for the recommendation, though. That's awesome of you.

 

[Gigano]

...how did this all turn into a never ending stream of whine on all sides?

An indie bullet hell game concerning Japanese mythology as reinterpreted little anime girl style isn't really supposed to be known to the general worldwide gaming community. It's niche appeal stuff for gamers who like extreme challenge and/or Japanese digital subculture, and consequently will only be known to and appreciated by those. Can't fault people for not having heard of it.

And how could the Escapist community be conceived as disparaging towards anime? The site has a bunch of officially sanctioned anime reviews, an almost 800 strong user group on anime, and a fairly consistent stream of user reviews on various anime and more or less obscure Japanese games (...including a Touhou game [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.254339-Cogs-Game-Reviews-Touhou-Hisoutensoku]): It's hardly a pariah subject.

 

[Beryl77]

Tried it but it's just not my cup of tea.