Taito & M2 Bringing Shmup Collection 'Ray'z Arcade Chronology' To Switch

Sold on M2 and it sounds like their ShotTriggers division might be working on this, based on A) it's a shmup and B) no word on western release yet. Assuming the price will be reasonable, it's an easy purchase.

New remasters? That's cool. As for now, I continue to sit back and hope that we'll eventually get a DoDonPachi collection, hopefully including the weird alt label versions. Please, M2? I'd be so happy with that.

YES!!! Some of my favorite shmups ever!!! Seeing RayStorm convinced a friend to get into videogames as a hobby; those were amazing visuals back in the day and the gameplay still holds up.

On a semi-related note, I'd love to see someone pick up the rights to bring GameArts titles like Silpheed, Silpheed: The Lost Planet, and of course the LUNAR games to Switch. So many incredible old school shooters still out there even now (and more than a few iconic RPGs and SRPGs).

This is a mighty fine compilation of shmups. Erm, I'm a bit fuzzy but didn't Taito announce the Saturn game earlier (with a couple of other titles?)

@Kilroy @GrailUK Taito did bring the Layer Section & Galactic Attack combo to the Western eShop, so there's hope on that front. And yes, they are also localizing some other ports as well. Ours lag behind the Japanese releases by a few months, but as long as they do come here, I'd be happy.

Ray Crisis is so bad, but the other two games are fantastic. If I still had a switch, I'd probably buy them!

NINJA APPROVED

Wait, didn’t I just pay $30 or whatever for Rayforce? 😂

@AtlanteanMan I think some of these games unfortunately are really unlikely. I believe the Western localizations were owned by Working Designs, which no longer exists. I bet to re-release these titles someone would have to commission a brand new localization. People loved WD's work, so they might not even be the games people remember if it happened.

I would love Lunar to be on something more recent than PSX and Saturn.

RayForce? Isn't that the same game as the Saturn port being sold now (Layer Section/Galactic Attack).

@AtlanteanMan I don't think it was Taito but City Connection (basically the company that owns the Jaleco IP).
I've guessed because they made the Saturn emulator to port the Cotton games (and that Jaleco shooter that wants to be a vertical shmup Parodius) and certainly wanted to get some more mileage out of their development.

Super fun, but M2 hasn’t been bringing their conversions outside Japan eShop..

@jrt87 So.... I finally got a Flip Grip recently but have nothing to play with it. I was playing on getting Layer Storm / Galactic Attack, but should I just wait for this instead???

Fantastic to see Raystom HD finally get re released. I still play it on my 360.

One word... yessss!

Yeah, I'm all over this when it comes out.

From what I’ve heard these are excellent shooters, and M2’s whole raison d’être is making arcade-superior home ports.

I’ll get my first taste of a Rayforce game when my Egret II Mini finally delivers, and I imagine it will be hard to resist this collection.

@GrailUK Yes, since it's a Taito property, we should expect ININ / Strictly Limited to distribute this physically in the west.

@kurtasbestos If you're looking for a TATE SHMUP to play with your Flip Grip, I highly recommend Eschatos. There's plenty more I can recommend too.

Yes! M2 kills it with their ports.

@jrt87 Thanks for the advice. I absolutely loved Galactic Attack a million years ago and still own the Saturn version, but it's surprisingly hard to play on the train and I don't think my TV-hogging 4-year-old is quite ready for it (though it blows my mind how good he is at some of the games I've introduced him to). I think I might just hold out for the collection because I always wanted to play the sequels. Unless there's a really good sale before then.

@OorWullie Eschatos is definitely on my wishlist. As is Ikaruga, a game I've already played to death on other systems a million years ago, but am super excited to play again in TATE mode. My backlog isn't really recommending that I give in to temptation and buy a million SHMUPS to play in TATE mode, so I need to be selective. That guy is such a jerk sometimes. He's probably saved me a lot of money, though. So, uh... why do we not have Radiant Silvergun on Switch yet???

Yes!!! Day one for sure!! 😁

Oh snap! Day one!

@robr Taito was probably watching and waiting for someone to do just that before announcing this.

@robr you might have, but that port was the sega saturn version, running on city connection’s zebra engine the same one that cotton 2, boomerang and guardian force used

@NinChocolate the taito ones have been brought to the western eshop so far, likely due to a deal between them and strictly limited’s parent company, inin

Seems like we get a new M2 Trigger series once a year. Keep them coming! Hopefully they all get a western release some day?

Hey Taito. Still waiting on a new Bust-A-Move for Switch with online play…

maybe even a FTP Bust-A-Move 99 competitive online concept could work well! It’s tyme!

… Wun can only hope.

Western release is very unlikely, but that’s ok. Amazon Japan ships worldwide. I imported M2’s Aleste collection and it’s fine except for the Japanese menus, though translations are available online.

@KingMike Yes, it's the same game, only this is the arcade version and its two sequels, and I'd much rather put my money on M2's work than the one City Connection just gave us. Not that it's BAD, but because M2 usually has a much higher quality standard.

@Doctor-Moo Wouldn't say that. It's a Taito release, and ININ/Strictly Limited have a great working relationship with them. M2 and Taito collaborated on the Darius collections as well, and they made their way to the West too. I think there's a big chance this will get localized and released over here.

Good shout with the R-Gear code! I would’ve just bought it from Play Asia as usual.

@PessitheMystic Be aware that the game is unfinished, which means this "bonus" only gives you access to the game's first level and nothing more, unfortunately. Would have loved to have M2 finish the game, as they definitely have the chops to do so!

@NicolausCamp aw, cheers for the tip. Never heard of this game at all so it looks like I’ve got some reading to do 👍🏻
Yeah you’d think the way they produced GG Aleste 3 that they would have the means to finish it?

@PessitheMystic yeah. Not only did they make GG Aleste 3 from the ground up, but also other games such as Gradius Rebirth, Aleste Branch and Senjin Aleste among others, so they have the expertise and the know how.

Glad I held off on buying the first one.

@Doctor-Moo

Could you direct me to these menu translations? I’ve been looking for them for all the M2 switch games

@Nermannn https://soswitchedon.wordpress.com/2021/01/21/aleste-collection-translation/

Uh oh... this is live on Amazon.co.jp right now for just one day (if you want the bonus game that sounds like it's not much of a game), and a crazy thought occurs... will it support TATE mode? Because if not I'm not interested because that's kind of the whole reason I want to play this game on my Switch.

@kurtasbestos I can’t find it! Can you share the link? I believe it said Tate would be supported somewhere…. Because I always worry about that too!

Edit: here’s the link:

https://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/aw/d/B0B5RQ3N8W/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_1?smid=AN1VRQENFRJN5&psc=1

Guess it was late to go up… but shipping will be roughly 190 USD! Rather than the usual 20ish dollars from Amazon Japan. Guess I’ll have to wait and see if they get that fixed otherwise I don’t wanna be on the hook for $250 just to get that Raygear code, lol

@Nermannn 190 Kwatloos is... ridiculous. As is 7480 Yenllars. I put money on my Amazon.co.jp account today to buy this thing (because otherwise I have to explain to my wife a huge payment on our joint credit card), but I decided that I don't need to preorder this game. For one, it doesn't come out for nearly a year (seriously???), but also, that price would make it the most expensive non-Xenoblade game I've ever bought for my Switch (oh yeah, also that breathy Zelda game I still haven't played) AND my first-ever non-digital purchase. As enticing as that two-level bonus game is, I think I'll just stick to digital purchases and wait for a sale. I'm only slightly disappointed, but that Amazon-cash can probably be put to better use on other things.

@kurtasbestos yeah I agree that it was not worth the struggle and effort required to get that bonus game. Hopefully they just let you buy it at some point or do a full on M2 remake of the game. Agree that I prefer digital anyways. Switching cartridges is a pain, and I often end up buy digital copies of physical games I already own for the convenience. Also - that is quite pricey even for an M2 collection.

As with prior ININ releases, don’t go for the initial, smaller and seemingly cutdown releases, go for the bigger and more complete ones later…granted it takes ages to come out, likely to coincide with the shipments

Is it wrong that I still want the 16:9 aspect ratio??? Why would I want to lose screen space?

I think the ideal for us TV users would be to convert the gameplay to side-scrolling rather than tate style... or at least give us the option, like Ikaruga.

@Liam_Doolan Weren't these available to play at the arcades in the West back in the 90's and early 2000's? I think I remember playing these back in the day? 🤔

@aznable To be fair stretching the screen makes SD retro 2-D games and 16-bit or earlier games look like doodoo, so I understand why they do it, however I do agree that full-screen should at least be an option for those who'd prefer full-screen over unstretched and sharp graphics. 😉

I know I'd prefer full-screen mode if my console weren't hooked to a large 50"+ TV. Before that I had a 32" and before that a 19" widescreen TV so anything less than full-screen on a smaller TV like that was far less than ideal for sure.

@kurtasbestos I am a bit of expert when it comes to the Flip-Grip. (Forced to be since Nintendo doesn't have a category for vertical games.)
Let me highlight some games that are NOT shooters
1. Downwell
2. Pinball FX 3-Williams Collection (22 tables!)
3.Gunbarich (follow this games developer to a trove of vertical shooters)
4. Capcom Arcade Stadium 1--Commando (has a bunch of shooters too)
5. Capcom Arcade Stadium 2-- Gunsmoke, Speed Rumbler, Hissatu Buraiken, Rally 2011, Block Block (also shooters too!)
6. Groove Coaster! (rhythm)
7. Contra Collection--[Arcade ver.] Contra and Super C (Beware: Arcade Archives versions are better [fixes slowdown, retains voice samples] but more expensive)
8. Lost Phone (3 games in series)
9. SkyScrappers (fighting game)
10. SNK Collection--Ikari Warriors, a few other (also shooters included)
11. Namco Museum (Note: other game, PacMan Museum+ DOES NOT have vertical mode)
12. Atari Flashback
13. Taito Milestones
14. SEGA AGES: Gain Ground

Arcade Archives has a crap load of shooters, and a bunch of non-shooters, I'm listing just a few of the non-shooters:
1. Punch Out!
2. Super Punch Out!
3. Donkey Kong
4. Donkey Kong Jr.
5. Donkey Kong 3
6. Pac-Man
7. Super Pac-Man
8. Mat Mania
9. Kiki KaiKai
10. Sasuke vs Commander (seeSNK Collection)
11. Water Ski
12. Burger Time
13. Alpine Ski (see Taito Milestones)
14. Wild Western (see Taito Milestones)
15. Johnny Turbo: Nitro Ball (flips the wrong way, but you can "flip" the FlipGrip)
16. Johnny Turbo: Heavy Barrel (same deal, flips the wrong way)

I will mention just a few offbeat shooters:
1. Switch n Shoot
2. Horizon Shift '81
3. Tube Panic (Arcade Archives)

There other vertical games, puzzle games, that use the touchscreen only:
1. Disney Tsum Tsum
2. Pudding Monsters
3. Sticky Monsters
4. Word Crush Hidden
5. Talking Tom, Candy Run (not sure about this one, but it has vertical elements)

That's about it.

@wuntyme8 Touhou Spell Bubble is a lot like Bust-A-Move. Although it's the complete opposite of F2P. You could go broke trying to get all of the DLC for that game.

@kitestar Do you mean you think they’ll release a better version further down the line? Which previous games are you referring to? (Just trying to decide whether I should preorder.)

@thinkhector Thank you, that is beautiful. If Xenoblade 3 wasn't a digital download for me I'd chuck it in the garbage right now and get started on that list!

P.S. I wouldn't really do that.

@Doctor-Moo previously with turrican and space invaders they released cutdown versions of them initially while they were still printing the physical releases, my copy of invincible collection didn’t come until much, much later after the preorder. but when it did come at least it had everything the website advertised unlike LRG

Cool. Hopefully Elevator Action Returns comes to the west as well. That’s the one I really want.