Renzatic on 5/7/2011 at 19:27
Quote Posted by Koki
I was happy to hear about a western shmup but Jamestown is just... ugh. Hurrr hurrr Mars colonialism that's so random xD And the music is just bad. And isn't it basically Espgaluda ripoff anyway?
Yeah. And you could say it's basically a Raiden ripoff as well. About like every other overhead shoot-em-up bullet hell style game that's ever been made.
(
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKt2Gmf33OI) And I disagree about the music being "just bad".
Jason Moyer on 5/7/2011 at 19:33
Jamestown is the only good shmup on Steam, so what are you gonna do.
Briareos H on 5/7/2011 at 19:54
Jason, I'm sending you a PM with the gift activation URL. The video is not really what I was expecting, but what that guy did was impressive.
Re. Jamestown, I'd argue that random mars colonialism is the best thing about the game but what do I know.
Jason Moyer on 5/7/2011 at 20:17
I think the setting is fantastic, but even without that it's one of the best shmups I've played in years. Certainly, gameplay wise, it's the only good one on steam. Pretty much everything else that comes close is an arena shooter.
Edit: Even if you hate Will Ferrell, you might find this entertaining: (
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwmlZ-wxjzI)
If not, then how about a classic? (
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSSGiA4f5cs)
Al_B on 5/7/2011 at 23:13
I've (according to steam) spent around six hours played through the first three worlds of SpaceChem which is probably a "reasonable time" to give some thoughts on it.
Sulphur guessed that I'd like the game as it was a puzzle / programming style game which shows he's pretty perceptive. My wife also saw me starting the play the game and despaired "I remember almost having a husband when you got hooked on the last game like that". She was referring to (
http://www.pleasingfungus.com/#!/Manufactoria) Manufactoria which shows she's also quite perceptive as there are quite a few parallels with SpaceChem.
I had heard a little about the game and watched a "let's play" style introduction before a while ago but wasn't sure how it would work in practice. It starts with a few basic mechanics - picking up symbols / molecules from one area of the game board and dropping them elsewhere but soon adds more complicated rules such as breaking them up or combining them. The game area starts as a single grid but later levels require linking several grids together and it keeps adding new game modes as things progress.
As with Manufactoria the pleasure is finding a solution that satisfies the level's goals while satisfying its constraints. In Manufactoria this tended to be the available space. For SpaceChem this isn't as much of an issue - instead the limited locations where you can split and join elements plays a much bigger role.
It's not without disadvantages. If you get stuck on (or fed up with) a puzzle then there doesn't appear to be a way to skip it and come back to it later - I could see this putting some people off. The story also appears to be almost entirely superfluous to the game apart from introducing one or two levels. Not exactly a huge issue, however.
The game includes a scoreboard to allow you to compare your general results with other players and more detailed statistics for steam friends. As with Manufactoria it's entertaining to find a solution that is more efficient either in terms of symbol count or time taken than others who are playing.
Summary: Good choice, Sulphur - well done and thanks.
Sulphur on 6/7/2011 at 21:23
Glad to hear you're enjoying the game, Al! Don't cause your wife too much despair, though. :D
henke: ;)
