Detana!! Twinbee

[soop]

Ho boy, just got this today with Star Parodier and Parodius - I freaking love it.

It's forgiving, though after 2 plays I only got to level 3, but it's so fun And the bell-powerup system is really really good too.

God, I've waited so long to play this game - nearly 20 years - and it's everything I'd hoped it would be.  I think this is gonna be a great GT game too.

[Arkhan Asylum]

TWIN BEE IS FUCKING AWESOME.

[majors]

Parodius  > Star Parodier > Twinbee, but all are great. Twinbee is to damn hard for me. I'll take dragons(Saber/Spirit) if I'm gonna get raped.

[Lilgrafx]

Ohh! I saw this on the eShop for the 3DS the 3D update looks awesome, I think I'll grab it.

[roflmao]

As much as I enjoy playing (and swearing at) shmups, I'm not very good at Detana!! Twinbee.  I've beaten it on Easy mode, but on other difficulty modes, the powerup system is just so frustrating.   Whenever you die the ship becomes so slow and it really hard to get that damn blue (or any other) powerup.  I think Pop'n Twinbee for the Super Famicom is much more forgiving (though I haven't beaten it yet).  Just a couple of days ago I picked up Stinger for the NES and it took me forever to beat the first level.   Can you even power up the ship like in other/later games?  Juggling bells is hard.

[rag-time4]

Personally i cant stand the powerup system. bad enough having a system where you have to avoid powerups... twinbee forces you to shoot them repeatedly as well...

[Digi.k]

I remember this being release a few days after Parodius DA!? and since I played Paro first I was a little dissappointed with twinbee..  sound fx are far too loud and graphics are inconsistent and vary from level to level.  Some levels have fantastic scrolling layers.  Biggest dissappointment was the music although good I felt it could have been better.  voice samples are great tho.

Hopefully you got the great sheet of stickers that came with the original release

[Samurai Ghost]

Yeah, I love this game and own it on multiple systems, but I find the PCE Huey to be my favorite port for some reason.
It can be tough but they can be really generous with the extra lives and once you get powered up you are pretty indestructible; you have to manage to get hit a few times in a row. Awesome game!

[Starfighter]

Personally i cant stand the powerup system. bad enough having a system where you have to avoid powerups... twinbee forces you to shoot them repeatedly as well...

This is exactly why I do not own a single Twinbee-game.

[soop]

Hopefully you got the great sheet of stickers that came with the original release

Yeah, I got lucky!  I'll never use them of course...

Actually I was playing Parodius too yesterday for the first time, and I really like that too.  It's much easier, but again, very fun.  I think the main thing for me is that Twinbee is a 2-player - which makes a difference of course.

[Tatsujin]

Personally i cant stand the powerup system. bad enough having a system where you have to avoid powerups... twinbee forces you to shoot them repeatedly as well...

This is exactly why I do not own a single Twinbee-game.

Get pop'n twinbee, there you have to shoot only once for a full change of the weapon.

[Tatsujin]

Yeah, I love this game and own it on multiple systems, but I find the PCE Huey to be my favorite port for some reason.

Even better than the PS1/SS arcade perfect twin bees? And you even get its even so funny sequel as a freebie.

To be honest, the PCE port was fairly great for its time, but it wasn't any near to the arcade. Parodius Da, Gradius II etc., did a much better job in that department.

[Samurai Ghost]

Yeah, I love this game and own it on multiple systems, but I find the PCE Huey to be my favorite port for some reason.

Even better than the PS1/SS arcade perfect twin bees? And you even get its even so funny sequel as a freebie.

To be honest, the PCE port was fairly great for its time, but it wasn't any near to the arcade. Parodius Da, Gradius II etc., did a much better job in that department.

Yeah, I have the SS version but for some reason I prefer the PCE port. It's not arcade perfect but somehow it works perfectly on the PCE. Plus the SS version doesn't offer a Tate-mode so it's not really arcade perfect...

[Starfighter]

pop'n twinbee

Noted!

[rag-time4]

Personally i cant stand the powerup system. bad enough having a system where you have to avoid powerups... twinbee forces you to shoot them repeatedly as well...

This is exactly why I do not own a single Twinbee-game.

Get pop'n twinbee, there you have to shoot only once for a full change of the weapon.

One shot per change sounds much more reasonable, thanks for teh tip!

[Tatsujin]

Oh sorry guys, I was mistaken. It isn't one shoot per change, but you can shoot the bell several times until it changes from one weapon back to normal and to the next weapon again, unlike in the original, where you hit it just once over and it turns straight back into an ordinary bell again.

Still, it is much more playable and fun giving that way.

[esteban]

I understand the folks who aren't crazy for the power-up system, but since I cut my teeth with STINGER (NES) back in the day, I actually don't mind it.

I still don't think it is a particularly wonderful power-up system, though. But I realized that I had to appreciate it for what it is (the same goes for Capcom's 1942 power-up system).

[Arkhan Asylum]

What the hells wrong with Twinbees power upping?  It's dope as fuck.

[esteban]

What the hells wrong with Twinbees power upping?  It's dope as fuck.

Well, it isn't dope as fuck, for starters.

I think it would be neat if "juggling the bells" were more fun. It usually feels like a bit of a chore that detracts from the main game. A good power-up system is satisfying. Most shooters have lame (too simplistic/straightforward) power-up schemes. I applaud Konami for using a different mechanic, but Twin Bee still needs some tweaking, IMO.

That said, I really do like "juggling bells" .

My opinion is law.

[soop]

The juggling is great, because it's that whole greed thing.  I died several times, not because I was in any danger, but because I was finally going to get that bell I'd been juggling for some time.

Brilliant IMO.

[Samurai Ghost]

Yeah I personally like it. It adds a bit of challenge to what is normally a given in a shooter. I mean, why would enemies drop things that help you kill them anyway? At least you have to work for it a bit in Twin Bee. And sometimes you have to decide if you are going to wait for that power up, kill enemies, or just dodge everything. Adds quite a bit of strategy, and the power up system wasn't in place the Twin Bee series would just be another random cute-em up series instead of the great games they are, in my opinion.

[esteban]

Yeah I personally like it. It adds a bit of challenge to what is normally a given in a shooter. I mean, why would enemies drop things that help you kill them anyway? At least you have to work for it a bit in Twin Bee. And sometimes you have to decide if you are going to wait for that power up, kill enemies, or just dodge everything. Adds quite a bit of strategy, and the power up system wasn't in place the Twin Bee series would just be another random cute-em up series instead of the great games they are, in my opinion.

True, Twin Bee would be pretty generic (mechanics-wise) without the power-up system.

[Arkhan Asylum]

The power up system is fun.

It's like playing two games at once, and I think that is where people get confused.

[esteban]

The power up system is fun.

It's like playing two games at once, and I think that is where people get confused.

I would like to tweak the weapon system in the Twin Bee games...pressing SELECT would allow you to "save" bells that you *just* barely miss catching/shooting. It's lame, I suppose, but I like to collect all the bells and I get really anal.

Of course, there should be a penalty for using SELECT...like it would prevent bonus points or something. Also, I would love a counter that kept track of the bells collected. I know, I have problems. 


You see, in Gradius/Salamander games, I collect every single possible power-up and always wished there was a counter for folks who achieved "100%".

[Arkhan Asylum]

having a button to catch them would defeat the purpose.  lol

[Samurai Ghost]

Yeah, not being able to collect everything every time makes it really satisfying when you DO nail it. Plus it makes each play through a lot different. One bone I have to pick with some shooters is that the same power ups are always in the same place. So if you memorize the game you can predict when a certain weapon will come, making the game a lot more boring/predictable with a lot of play-throughs. Games with a random element can make each play through a lot more exciting as you get or do not get the power ups you need.

[esteban]

having a button to catch them would defeat the purpose.  lol

No, not a button to catch them! A button that would bounce them up (from the off the bottom of the screen) to give a second chance to catch them.

When I play, I keep tons of bells in the air, but I can only collect a bell when it is a power-up. It's like an additional challenge I have imposed on myself. Well, needless to say, it gets pretty crazy at certain points (I'm actually concentrating more on the bells than the enemies).

Anyway, I do this sort of thing in a lot of games. I don't keep *one* weapon, I *must* collect every power-up, even if switching weapons prevents me from efficiently powering-up (like Raiden or Cybercore--you really should stick with one type of gun (and missile, in Raiden) and level-up...switching has "transaction costs" that prevent you from leveling up). I know, I have problems.

You see, some games (I believe) actually encourage you to switch weapons constantly (Monster Lair!). I love switching weapons in Monster Lair every second. I do this even for bosses (sometimes I get unlucky, I'll admit, and the boss is much tougher to beat as a result).

Anyway, now you know how I approach the Twin Bee series. Like I said, it all started with STINGER .

[Samurai Ghost]

Well it just goes to show that the power up system in Twin Bee allows for a lot of variety in gameplay. I tend to focus on getting speed and options first, catching other power ups as I can. I do a lot of juggling though!

[Starfighter]

I think of it as hassle. I want to focus on what I enjoy most in a shoot 'em up - bullet dodging. I mostly avoid shoot 'em ups with lethal walls as well. (I tend to stick to Caves games, as you might understand from this. )

[esteban]

I just realized that this thread (discussing the virtues/shortcomings of the power-up system in Twin Bee) has made me better appreciate the goddamn Twin Bee series!

Not that I have completely changed my opinion, of course.

[Lilgrafx]

I got the 3D classic: Twin Bee, it's a port of the Famicon version and it's really fun. The 3D looks cool and I love the power-up system, how does anyone not like the bells? Juggling like 5 bells at once is sweet.

[Samurai Ghost]

I just realized that this thread (discussing the virtues/shortcomings of the power-up system in Twin Bee) has made me better appreciate the goddamn Twin Bee series!

Not that I have completely changed my opinion, of course.

That's what we're here for, bro.

Seriously though, Twin Bee stood out because it was a series of games in a massive flood of vertical shooters that tried something a little different and succeeded. True, it's not to everyone's taste, but it's tries a few different things which has earned it a place in the shoot-em-up hall of fame due to a fact that the differences are not just superficial but related to the core of the game itself.

[esteban]

I just realized that this thread (discussing the virtues/shortcomings of the power-up system in Twin Bee) has made me better appreciate the goddamn Twin Bee series!

Not that I have completely changed my opinion, of course.

That's what we're here for, bro.

Seriously though, Twin Bee stood out because it was a series of games in a massive flood of vertical shooters that tried something a little different and succeeded. True, it's not to everyone's taste, but it's tries a few different things which has earned it a place in the shoot-em-up hall of fame due to a fact that the differences are not just superficial but related to the core of the game itself.

Word up.

I still wish their was a counter for "bells collected/total bells" and "power-up bells collected/total bells" because that's what I compulsively do (I have problems).