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442,489,850/x6/Level 4-2/Khotaro
On Friday I tried and tried to get into it, but I was just too burned out on this game, so I took a couple of days off and on my second run today finally reached the fourth level. Considering I had no idea what I was doing scoring wise, I managed alright. Once I get some practice time in I'm confident I'll grab the half billion.
The good news: it seems that you get an extend at the 450 million mark! (Heh, which sort of leads me to the bad news...)
The bad news: 540,646,500/x6/Level 4-3/Khotaro
Nice, Kaneda.
All I can say is WOW! Nice one man. I wish I could play and practice but I'm just too burnt at the moment :(
Pa
Since I'm feeling more confident in my game competitive-wise and this thread has been mostly score posts lately, I wanted to discuss strategies.
First of all, after making it to 4-3 and being able to get some practice time in with it, Shikigami is a whole new game to me. Not that it plays differently, but the difficulty jumps up dramatically quick in the fourth level, causing me to rethink my goals. Frankly, once I reach 4-2, I just want to live. Luckily, the later levels are so packed with bullets, you really have no choice but to get x8 multipliers all the time, so scoring is no longer my goal. It's all about survival and with the extends at 300 million intervals, some planning is in order.
On my latest best run I made it to 4-1 with one life lost and quickly hit 450, giving me the second extend and a full 3 slots. However, when I played again later I hit 450 at 3-3 boss and ended up losing a life soon after.
At first I was in this for the score, but now I'm gunning for a clear and that means letting myself score more poorly. This makes the game a lot more manageable and achievable. Now, if I get a crap score on the butterfly in the beginning I won't restart. It isn't worth burning out on the game trying to get a perfect first level run. My current plan (including bomb distribution):
2 bombs at 2-3 boss
2 bombs in 3-1's point grabbing maze
1 bomb at 3-2 boss
1 bomb right before 3-3 boss (only if I have one left)
1 bomb at boss's second attack with the two assistants (only if bombs left in stock)
first death at 3-3 boss
hit 450 in 4-1
second death in 5-1
3 bombs in 5-1
third death in 5-2
3 bombs in 5-2
hit 750 at 5-3
3 bombs in 5-3
fourth death at 5-3
3 bombs in 5-3
Note that I use bombs aggressively in the beginning, and none at all in the 4th level. Basically this is because the 4th level isn't really hard at all. When I reach the 4-1 dragon, I milk him just for a bit then take him out. The 4-2 boss goes down easily as well, not requiring any special tricks. 4-3 is the challenge, but it's patterns are easier to manage when learned than even the score maze in 3-1. 4-3's boss takes experimentation and memorization, particularly his opening sword slashes (simply move to the far left bottom corner, wait for the swing, then head to the right corner). His last set of attacks just before he dies is shitty and will probably kill if you don't have a spare bomb, but I don't think it's that impossible either.
The problems I see hitting are not being able to get the power-ups in level 5 which would resupply bombs and not scoring the 750, as well as the difficulty in controlling where you score big. Having only played level 5 once (on a run using continues), I can safely say it looks impossible. However, I said the same thing about 4-3, and after 15 minutes on it in practice mode I cleared it with no deaths and no bombs used. I'm confident that I'll see 5-1 tomorrow, 5-2 on Wednesday, then 5-3 by Friday. For me, being able to play these levels in practice mode is indespensable. This is how I was able to clear Giga Wing 2 and Mars Matrix; the only 2 arcade shooters I've beaten.
Comments or suggestions on my very Bern-D-esque strategy?
And since I'm here:
562,697,810/x6/Level 4-3/Khotaro
Only thing I'd add is that I'm fairly surprised you're using two bombs at the 2-3 boss, I don't really see where you'd need them. The one thing that used to trip me up is when he fires those huge "sticky" circles (and then starts in with the red pattern of long bullets), but-
Right after coming out of the circling brown bullet pattern (when he's close to the bottom of the screen), get to the upper right (or left if you prefer) of the screen. This way he fires those damn circles up there, leaving you free to dodge the next pattern with ease. If you're already doing that, then again, I'd wonder where you need bombs.
The problem I'm having is scoring well from levels 2-2 through 3-3. I don't really have too much trouble making it to 4-1 on a life, but I'm still between 350 and 400 million. For 2-2 and 3 I'm having trouble finding where to do my milking. On 3-1 I can get about 30 million on a good run, obviously low. On 3-2 the boss is easy, but I'm not getting any points. Ditto on 3-3, although the boss is harder.
edit: You are playing the standard arcade mode and not evo, right Kaneda?
Yea, I'm on arcade.
Nice tip on 2-3's boss, I'll have to try that later. I bomb during his first attack with the red needles. The problem I have with it has more to do with Kohtaro's speed. He's either too slow for it while using his spirit helper or he's too fast.
Also, I've been using the regular shot more on bosses since it does better damage and gets more points. However, you still need to know when to use your secondary attack to be sure to leech points when destroying any section of a boss.
Hey:
Since most of us are playing different characters, strategy talk seems pointless as Shikgami is an entirely new game with each character. However, for the real men out there who use Kim, here are some notes on the more challenging bosses/levels:
2-3 Japanese army boss:
I call this opponent Mishima, a joke that only fans of Japanese literature will get. Mishima's initial pattern of red shots are easily buzzed, but attacking with the blades seems impossible here. Once he's finished with this, Mishima drops to mid-screen to use a swirling fireball attack. I stay in front of him with blades out(stick down) and buzz the fireballs continually, doing major damage. So much damage, in fact, that 9 out of 10 times he will completely forget about using the "sticky circles" and pulls back to the top of the screen, bringing out helpers. I then use the "helicopter blade" attack (360 on the stick) to x8 his buddies, then focus one blade on him until I get the x8 and he is defeated.
3-1 high-speed maze:
Right before you face the starfish, you speed up and have to navigate a maze of the big tops. Use the shot to punch through the spaces guarded by weak enemies, then move to the left. This sequence takes nerves of steel: tap the shot and move carefully to get through, then after you kill the last two weak enemies, a wall of them appears. You have maybe half a second to do this, but bust out your blades and cut a swath through them with the helicopter attack. x8 galore.
3-2 dragon boss:
Like with Mishima, you can attack heavily with the blades to cancel difficult patterns here. Knowing what part of the dragon to buzz is crucial: he has a base where his tail comes from with white spikes coming out. The spikes are harmless and cannot be buzzed, but the dark base sure can be. First move in with blades extended (stick up) so that you have two blades cutting into him. Stay on him with this attack until the purple circles come down. If you can steer clear of them then great, but if not back off slightly and shoot while buzzing them. Continually cut him until his first sheet of armor explodes, completely negating his nasty pink shot attack. Next up is the stream of purple shots. This is easy to buzz at the bottom of the screen, do so while shooting. If you kept cutting into him prior to this, you should break his second sheet of armor with the buzz shot in this pattern. Finally, the dragon sends out parallel streams of pink shots. Buzz these with the shot for the x8 and the win.
3-3 boss, Hiroshi:
Anyone who can reveal how to beat Hiroshi without using a bomb will be my new hero. I typically use three against him, and if he doesn't screw me with the purple circles initially, I can drop him without being killed and a x8 finisher. I'll withhold my "strategy" until it becomes bombless.
4-1 dragon boss:
I haven't totally mastered this guy yet, but at one point he pulls a tight circle around you. Keep the blades out here to break much of him for significant multipliers.
I haven't played in almost a week (which explains why Kaneda is 1st), but this thread has once again inspired me to try and jump back into it this evening. Your "scoring poorly" strategy will have to be abandoned soon enough, Kaneda. :sneak: :sneak: :sneak:
-Technosphile
Yours too, Des Moines.
619,035,140/x6/Level 4-3/Khotaro
cigsthecat - 456,049,020 - Stage 4-1 - Hyuga - x6
Look out Kaneda, I'm only about 170 million behind you. ;)