Many genres from the golden age of games have almost died off completely (i.e. Beat 'em ups and Adventure games), but Shoot 'em ups somehow continue to see regular releases on current gen consoles. Even so, the developers of bullet patterns and power-ups do admittedly cater to a small, niche market. Ask anyone who the best extant shmup developer is and you'll get one resounding answer: Cave. Unfortunately, Cave is very Japanese, with its only office located in—surprise, surprise—Japan, and they have historically focused on Japanese gamers.
Thankfully, it's been getting easier and easier to enjoy Cave titles outside of Japan. Gaining access to Cave's offerings, though, isn't very straightforward. You have to contend with everything from iOS downloads to region-free Xbox 360 discs as well as the occasional Xbox Live Arcade and Xbox On Demand download. This guide will help you balance all your options and get a grip on where to start building a U.S.-friendly library of Cave games.
iOS Titles (the bargain approach)
You may have heard the rumors about how the iOS platform is providing independent developers with a very accessible and easy way to bring games to market. Case in point, Cave has quickly become one of the best game developers on the entire platform, thanks to phenomenal ports of their popular shoot 'em ups as well as new original titles. If you want to quickly and affordable delve into Cave's software library, you'll find that the iPhone—or better yet, thanks to its larger screen and iCade potential—the iPad, offers incredible bang for your buck. Games range from $4 to $12, which as you'll realize when we delve into physical disc options later, is a hell of a deal.
Bug Princess
DoDonPachi Resurrection
DoDonPachi Blissful Death
Espgaluda II
Unless you're a hardcore completionist, you probably don't need both versions of DoDonPachi. Also, be careful with Espgaluda II, because there are now four different versions (smartphone, arcade, both packaged together, and a HD version for the iPad 2). To give you a taste of the awesomeness that is Cave vertical shoot 'em ups, here's a trailer for DoDonPachi Blissful Death:
DeathSmiles
Mushihimesama BUG PANIC
DeathSmiles is special because it's a horizontal shoot 'em up, whereas Cave normally takes the vertical approach. However, Mushihimesama BUG PANIC takes an even more interesting direction. Granted, there's still an emphasis on shooting, but here we have a bona fide run 'n gun, as you can see in this trailer:
The Lone U.S. (and PAL) Xbox 360 Release
Amazingly enough, Cave does have one full release in the United States and Europe; thank you Aksys Games and Rising Star Games, respectively. There's both a regular and limited/deluxe edition, which includes a console face plate and soundtrack CD. While there's been hope that a more international approach becomes a new trend, the international release of DeathSmiles remains an anomaly in the Cave library. Though Japan is known as land of the shoot 'em up fans, vgchartz reveals some surprising sales data for DeathSmiles:
Americas
Japan
Europe
Rest of World
100,000
50,000
40,000
10,000
That's right! The Americas represented, buying twice as many copies as Japan and as many as all non-American sales combined. If only this sent a message to publishers about bringing Cave titles to the United States...
Everyone loves instant gratification, and if you're set on immediately playing a Cave game at home on the big screen, then Guwange is obviously the best place to start for a cool 800 Microsoft Points. You should definitely get a taste for Cave's sort of game before shelling out the big bucks for the region-free import discs.
With DeathSmiles II X, Cave has started a new digital experiment, offering an entire original disc worth of a Japanese import in downloadable form. That means you will find some Japanese text in this title (as if you need to read when you play a shoot 'em up!), and that it has not been localized (some would say corrupted) at all from its original form. This new approach does not come cheap. Forget Microsoft points, the Xbox GUI prints it in real money terms: $29.99. It's way more expensive than the typical XBLA download, but when you weigh it against the cost of Japanese physical releases that are region-free, you'll see that 30 bones is a pretty attractive price.
Guwange
DeathSmiles II X
Xbox 360 Region-FreeImports (i.e. Time for another mortgage)
There's something to be said for playing a Cave shmup in HD on your wide-screen TV. While these titles may have only been released in Japan, Cave was kind enough to make them region-free. Not only is that a boon for U.S. gamers, but it means that anyone anywhere in the world with an Xbox 360 can fire up these games. Sounds too good to be true, right? Well, there is one little catch. These games are expensive. Expect to pay at least $50 and as much as $100 for each one. The first two have platinum editions, so those versions might be a little cheaper.
These are four incredible games. Taking the parsimonious approach, you should definitely start with DoDonPachi Resurrection, but after that you're looking at around $50 to $100 per game. So maybe forking out $30 for a digital copy of DeathSmiles II X isn't that bad after all, right? In the meantime, here's a very Japanese trailer for the very Japanese Muchi Muchi Pork & Pink Sweets:
Cave is a special developer. If you're a fan of the shoot 'em up genre, stop reading this and buy one of these games. You don't have to splurge on the region-free ones. Do you own an iPhone or iPad? Do you own an Xbox 360? If the answer to either one of these is "yes" then there are some really affordable digital downloads.
Sure, there are other more hardcore options, like chasing after those region-free Japanese releases, but that's never going to help Cave appreciate that gamers outside of Japan are so interested in their titles. So start with the downloads, making your regional location obvious, and if you can give Aksys Games or Risings Star Games some business as well, that would be fantastic because they are heroes for publishing Cave games outside of Japan and they deserve the support.
