Explore every episode of the podcast Electric Underground Podcast

Are Fighting Games Improving? EVO 2023 Extensive Discussion with Quash (Guilty Gear XX Player). In today's epic video, Quash and I discuss the past, present, and future of fighting games, leading up to our thoughts on EVO 2023. And for the first time in a long time, I'm actually interested and excited to watch it this year. As of late I have been playing a lot more Tekken and Virtua Fighter, but I'm also interested in a lot of games being played. We go over our thoughts an avalanche of topics, such as: The decline and future of 3D fighting games, Sales vs Tournament entries, Steam Charts vs Tournament entries, the homogenization of game mechanics, the importance of netcode for upcoming pro players, sluggish UI Design, the issues with online Matchmaking, the function of rank modes and why they need fixed, Differences in perception in JP and NA scenes, is the EVO gladiator format still the best, or should they start to look more into leagues? The Final Year of Tekken 7, should Marvel happen every year, the sleeping giant that is the Street Fighter IP, the uncertain fate of Project L, the importance of graphical presentation, my love and concern for Virtua Fighter and Dead or Alive, and so much more. The games and tournaments we discussed are: Street Fighter 6 - 7k entrants Guilty Gear -Strive- 2.4k entrants Mortal Kombat 11: Ultimate - 449 entrants Tekken 7 - 1.5k entrants The King of Fighters XV - 666 entrants Melty Blood: Type Lumina - 554 entrants Dragon Ball FighterZ - 838 entrants Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 - 1.3k entrants

Shmups VS Speedrunning, Natural Vs. Fan-Made Meta | Ft. @neoxaquas . Today's topic has been a subject that has fascinated me for a long time, the difference between shmup scoreplay meta and speedrunning time meta. What's interesting is that for a long time, I've heard speedrunners talk about scoreplay in the tone of an outdated style of competitive design. Like if you watch the history of speedrunning video by Karl Jobst, he describes score play as essentially the ooze from which the glory of speedrunning was born. This makes some sense if you only look at speedrunning from their community perspective. However, over the years I have become more skeptical of community / fan made meta (see my discussion of the subject with the Crimson Blur about Melee) and in today's video I am joined by Aquas who is the perfect guest on the topic as he has world records in both speedrunning and shmup score play (a rare accomplishment!). We cover a variety of fun topics, including his world record progression in Pink Sweets, and the heart of the conversation for me is what are the strengths and weaknesses of fan-made meta, like speedrunning, and what are the strengths and weaknesses of natural built in meta like scoreplay. In the end, I find that I greatly prefer the natural meta of scoreplay (and fighting game tournament play) because it is less arbitrary and prone to manipulation from fellow players and outside forces (besides the developer). However, this doesn't mean that I don't think speedrunning in itself isn't a cool idea, and I even offer what I think is the best solution for the issue in the form of what M2 Shottriggers have been doing with their shmup ports. Imagine if Nintendo actually put some care into their wave of ports and re-releases, and included speedrunning modes and leader boards in their ports. Also I love that Aquas brought up how heavily nostalgia plays into a speedrun game's popularity, because there are tons of speedruns that I think could be fascinating (Dead to Rights Super Cop), but sadly the non-nostalgic games tend to be extremely under-explored. That being said, there are also issues that can rise up from relying solely on the natural meta of a game, like Battle Garegga and its infinite milk, so again I think this is where having robust ports with patches really smooths out a lot of issues, other wise competitive score play is going to rely very heavily on replay analysis and community leader boards and we've seen enough "I GOT A CHEATED RUN PAST THE MODS!" vids for a lifetime.

Psikyo Shoot Em' Up Tier List Ranking! Ft. Super Player  @Meriscan  It's  time to discuss which Psikyo Shoot Em' Up (shmup) games are the best  with a ranking! And today I am joined by one of the best Psikyo players  in the western world,  @Meriscan  ! For those not in the know, Psikyo is  one of the most underrated shmup developers and their games are like a  cross between CAVE style bullet hell (danmaku) and Raiden style high  speed bullets of death. The games that we cover are: Sengoku Ace,  Gunbird, Strikers 1945, Sengoku Blade(Tengai), Strikers 1945 II, Zero  Gunner, Gunbird 2, Space Bomber, Strikers 1945 III (1999), Strikers 1945  Plus, Cannon Spike(Gunspike), Dragon Blaze, and Zero Gunner 2! A lot of  these games are available on Steam, PS4, PS5, Xbox, and Nintendo  Switch. Though I would highly advise staying away from the Nintendo  Switch Collections, Bravo and Alpha, as they are both very laggy and  bad.  Be sure to sub to  @Meriscan  's channel! https://www.youtube.com/@Meriscan

What is a Shoot Em' Up? Defining the Genre with Shmup Junkie. This video  has literally been years in the making. As much as we all the love  Shoot Em' Up (shmup, STG) genre, what's embarrassing is that, up to this  point, over all these decades, there has never been a solid criteria or  definition of what a shmup even is. For a genre that is so fundamental  you'd think this would have been established by now, but due to the  nature of online discourse, this question has never been resolved. Over  the years, I have worked on what I think are the 3 criteria of what I  believe consitute a shmup, and in today's video I explain these criteria  and run them by fellow youtuber, Shmup Junkie, to hear his reaction and  thoughts. We not only talk about shmups, but also related genres like  run n' gun, rail shooter, gallery shooter, first person shooter (fps),  third person shooter, single screen games, metal slug, contra,  platformers, twin stick shooters, Star Fox, Doom, and many more! I think  we have a fantastic discussion and I do think this is one of the most  important episode of The Electric Underground :-) I am now going to list  off some algorthym tags: Nintendo Switch, Steam, Bullet Hell, PS4. PS5,  Xbox, PC, Indie, Hidden Gem, Sega, CAVE, Touhou, Battle Garegga,  Longplay, 1cc, Podcast.

Fight N' Rage Developer Interview! The Creation of the Best Modern Beat  Em' Up! I'm very excited for today's guest, Sebagames, the developer of  Fight N' Rage, my favorite Beat Em' Up of all time! In today's episode  we discuss the history of the game, his story and motivation to get such  a massive undertaking completed as a solo developer, and of course the  possibility of a sequel and what the developers thoughts are on his  "creative crisis" in regards to making a follow up. We also discuss  classic arcade based design, such as Fight N' Rage, Alien Versus  Predator, Final Fight verus the modern simon says style design of  Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Shredder's Revenge, River City Girls, Scott  Pilgram, and these types of games. Another aspect of the episode is  talking about how insperational the story of Fight N' Rage can be for  other indie developers, but how often the stories of indie devs are  overlooked in favor of older studios like Square and their tale of  creating Final Fantasy. Fight N' Rage at the time of this recording is  on massive sale and I strongly strongly recommend picking it up on  Steam, Good Old Games, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox and wherever else  the game pops up.

True Last Boss - Amazing or Awful? A Shoot Em' Up (Shmup) Debate. True  Last Boss, the TLB, they are a signature aspect of shoot em' up, shmup,  design. Are they fair? Are they outdated and stealing your money? should  they be mandatory? Should they be optional? What about TLB's appearing  in other genres? Should Super Mario have a true last boss (giga Bowser).  What about secret super bosses in RPGs? Today the crew gets back  together and Aktane, Boghog, and myself debate this idea. It was a  really fun conversation and definitely subscribe to Aktane's channel and  check out Boghog's upcoming shmup, Gunvein! It's going to be great 😃

Are Fighting Games Decaying into Drama, Twitch Highlights, And Hype Reaction Videos? A discussion with  @RedLineFGC  . I have been actively involved with the fighting game scene (attending  locals, watching majors, etc) since 2012 and over the past ten years it  feels like there has definitely been a big shift in tone where the  passion for the games have cooled, despite there being more fighting  games being produced than ever, and the passion for the internet sub  culture, especially drama, has grown. I'm not an arcade purist or  anything like that, but I do think there is a balancing point in terms  of the type of content being made and the tone of the content. I would  argue that since the esports shift, the tone of the content has become  more generic, bland, and more geared towards filler and there also now  exists a thriving subculture of pure drama. Also the rate of turnover  between games has become so fast that it's essentially impossible to  keep up with as a fan, as a player, and as a video maker / youtuber. On  top of this, it is a bit of a shame the so many channels that I have  enjoyed over the years like Avoiding the Puddle and The Main Man SWE are  more on the side of stream highlights than making dedicated videos and  podcasts (especially ATP), but I also do understand why this shift has  occured. This all being said, keep in mind that I am much less invested  in what goes on with fighting games and am perfectly willing to now  retire to playing locals and less popular fighting games online :-) I am  interested to see what happens with Tekken 8, Street Fighter 6, King of  Fighters, Guilty Gear, Dead or Alive, Virtua Fighter, and many other  upcoming fighting games, but I'm not holding my breath for a healthy  shift in quality and engagement around the games. You never know though!  Thanks so much to  @RedLineFGC  for being a guest on the episode and be sure to check out his "Tekken 7  - A Five Year Critique" video and subscribe to his channel! Link to his vid: https://youtu.be/OlcFHI9RYAs  Link to his recommended fighting game channels: Rubbish: https://www.youtube.com/c/HQRubbish Leon Massey: https://www.youtube.com/c/LeonMassey Gekko Squirrel: https://www.youtube.com/c/GekkoSquirrel ProxicOn: https://www.youtube.com/c/Proxic0n TheoryFighter: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheoryFighter

The discussion of how massive and omnipresent the tactic of nostalgia in  today's video games and film is a common topic. Very few would deny how  potent nostalgia is and how companies will not hesitate to use it. In  today's video though, I want to go beyond the usual conversation of the  behavior of the studios and companies (the suppliers) and instead focus  my attention on the consumers of nostalgia. Why is it so compelling to  us? How has it become so pervasive in all of our media? And analyze why I  believe the millenial mind (I am one myself) is espcially supseptible  to the powr of nostalgia and how we can bend ourselves into logic  pretzles to both justify nostalgic pandering and deny it at the same  time. I also go over how I think this addiction to nostalgia has altered  our current artsist practices and why everything these days seems to be  a copy of a copy.

Gradius Series Ranking and Tier List! Shoot Em' Up Discussion with  @KyoKusagani ! There is no Shoot Em' Up (shmup) series more classic and influential than the Gradius series. Konami, in years prior, were a legendary studio and absolutely pushed the genre of shoot em' ups forward in many meaningful ways. Today, I am joined by @KyoKusagani to rank and discuss the Gradius series, as well as related spin off games like Salamander and Parodious. We will go through Gradius 1, Gradius 2, Gradius 3, Salamander/Life Force, Gradius 5, Gradius Gaiden, Gradius 5, Gradius Rebirth, and a few more :-) So you could also consider this video a review of Gradius collection as well! We discuss PCB's, level design, balance, checkpoints, boss fighter, music (ost), graphics, stage design, glitches, and history. These ports appear on tons of consoles like NES, SNES, PS1, PC-98, MSX, PS2, PSP, Wii, and probably a lot more! Fingers crossed for a really solid collection on Switch, PS5/PS5 and Xbox in the future! Be sure to subscribe to Kyo's channel:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcou...And for insane Gradius Gameplay, check out G3Fleako and Refkey: https://www.twitch.tv/g3fleako

Elden Ring Debate! Is Elden Ring A Masterpiece or Overrated Spam Fest? (Review, Discussion). Today I am joined by talented Shoot Em' Up Dev Boghog (Mechanical Star Astra + Gunvien) and charismatic Shmup commentator, Aktane, to discuss the open-world phenomenon that is taking over the gaming world, Elden Ring, to debate it's merits and try and work through the hype and unrelenting critical praise to decide if Elden Ring lives up to its reputation or if it is flawed and overrated. Topics we cover are the open world design, the level design, the combat, the boss fights, the visuals, the graphics and music, the critical reception, the difficulty, it's placement in the Dark Souls series, how the game relates to other action RPG, the sales, Castlevania, Joseph Anderson "Shattered Masterpiece,"  input buffer, pc performance,  and so much more! If you are looking for a really passionate and fun discussion about the game you can't go wrong!  BogHog Twitter: https://twitter.com/boghogoooHis Brilliant Bullet Hell Dev Guide: https://t.co/rr6D69O9RJAktane Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/AKTANEARCADEAktane Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/aktane

Bootlegs, Dictators, & Shoot Em' Ups! Gaming in Brazil | Podcast with ShmupsBR. Today on the Electric Underground Podcast/Videocast I speak with @ShmupsBR about his experience playing retro games in Brazil growing up and all the wild stories about playing bootlegs and getting around the rules of a military dictatorship (hardcore!). We discuss a ton of topics in this episode including his top 5 favorite shmups, the modding scene in south america, clone consoles, arcade bootlegs, fights in the arcade, Nintendo, Sega, Master system, NES, NEOGEO, SNES, N64, PS2, import taxes, the ups and downs of youtubing, and so much more! Sub to ShmupsBR! https://www.youtube.com/c/ShmupsBR

Are Shoot Em' Ups Worth Full Price? What Makes Video Games Valuable? Videocast Discussion w/ Aktane! With massively popular games coming out right now like Elden Ring (and other Dark Souls like games) the question of how much a video game is worth, especially for older genres like Shoot Em' Ups or other arcade games, is coming up more and more. In a mainstream audience's eyes, its hard to deny that a genre like shmup is often considered less valuable then a massive sprawling RPG like Elden Ring of Final Fantasy 7 Remake. So today, among many other topics, Aktane and I discuss what type of content could be added to modern shmup releases to increase their value and what is particularly appealing to newer players!

The Crimson Blur, Has Smash Melee Sabotaged Itself?This is a FANTASTIC Conversation, even if you aren't plugged into Melee we discuss a lot of relevant topics about game design and competitive integrity. In today's episode,  @TheCrimsonBlur  and I talk about the current state of Super Smash Bros Melee and have an open conversation about many of my thoughts and critiques of how things are going in competitive Smash right now. I have followed Melee for over a decade now and in this time I think the scene has become increasingly insular and unable to see some of its decisions and ideas from an outside perspective, so I think if you are a fan of Melee or not this conversation is going to be a breath of fresh air outside the usual talking points that you hear repeated on Twitter and on streams over and over. We cover a lot of subjects, but some of the main topics are: Who is Melee's REAL father? As I feel Sakurai is heavily over-creddited for the creation of what we love about Smash 64 and Melee. The nature of Melee as being a community made meta, rather than a natural meta, and how this leads to a lot of more radical decisions when it comes to rule sets (even going so far as to modify the game itself). I talk about the current culture of smash, that obsesses over the e-celeb aspects of its players and personalities, but largely ignores the actual tournament organizers and people who support the scene's infrastructure. Of course we touch on the Nintendo vs Melee community controversy and I share my thoughts on how the community should study Nintendo's motivations more, rather than always relying on social media and fan backlash to protect itself (which I do not believe will work forever). We talk about the recent ruleset changes to ban wobbling and add edge grab limits, and how I feel that these rule changes are reactionary and targeted, rather than being a fair case of assessing outliers in a ruleset. Then there is the sanctioned cheating that is occurring in the ruleset in terms of allowing macros and input processing in the Smash Box as well as the Goomwave. I explain my philosophy behind genuine hardware mods (physical mods) vs cheating mods (introduction of electronics and input processing) and remind the world that Blur, many years ago, predicted these issues but was ignored. Follow Blur at: https://twitter.com/OXY_Crimson Awesome thumbnail by  @boghogSTG 

Schildmaid MX Developers Interview! New Indie Shmup Podcast! Today on  the podcast (videocast) I sit down with the developers of the new indie  shmup Schildmaid MX! In this episode we talk about the history of the  game, the journey of the indie game makers, discuss the process of  releasing an indie shoot em' up in the year 2022, the infamous barrel  roll, releasing on itch.io, developing with Unity, publishing on  Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox, Steam, and even more in depth topics too.  Going over my review, we also share our thoughts on gameplay mechanics  like aspect ratio, bullet canceling, rank, and scoring! 

You can buy the game on Itch.io (which I think pairs very well with  playnite): https://hitp-studio.itch.io/schildmaid-mx 

Background music and game ost by Ed Tremblay of Bullet Heaven: https://mudprintsmusic.bandcamp.com/album/schildmaid-mx-original-soundtrack

FRESH PERSPECTIVE! Shoot Em' Up Discussion With A New Player, RJB! In  today's episode of the Electric Underground Videocast I discuss the  genre with a new a player, RJB, to get a fresh perspective on shmups and  to hear his feedback on what ideas and elements of the genre are  currently connecting with new players. I really enjoyed the discussion a  lot and learned quiet a bit about what elements of the genre we can  market research and work towards finding wider appeal. It definitely  sounds like the Nintendo Switch, Crimzon Clover World Explosion, CAVE,  bullet hell, the PS4, and multiplayer shmups are routes worth exploring  in the future. We also talk about game journalism, arcade sticks,  controllers, shoot em' up reviews, game length, roguelikes, audience  expectation, and the different Magic the Gathering player types and how  they would apply to shmups. RJB also did seem to really connect with my  idea of bringing Guilty Gear style graphics to bullet hell (come on  Platinum, that's what the people want).

Shoot Em' Up Youtubers Unite! An Honest Discussion of the Ups and Downs  of Shmups On Youtube. In today's episode of the show (with video!), I am  joined by Shmup Junkie and Ed Tremblay of Studio Mudprints to catch up  on how they have been doing and to talk about our experiences with  making content around the best but extremely niche video game genre,  shoot em' ups (shmups). Topics of today's show include our thoughts on  mini consoles like the PC Engine mini, the ethics of being a fair  reviewer without selling out, the difficulty of getting an initial  audience, the catch 22 of not doing the same style of content too much,  but being punished when trying something new. We also cover our personal  highlight and lowlights and some really cool upcoming projects! 

Subscribe to Shmup Junkie: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCb6Y45xtdYojo2-x9LHI8mQ 

Subscribe to Bullet Heaven: https://www.youtube.com/c/StudioMudprints 

Music From Ed's Shieldmaiden MX Ultra Arrange: https://mudprintsmusic.bandcamp.com/album/schildmaid-mx-ultra-arrange

Ketsui World Record Interview with Moglar5K, Featuring Jaimers! Earlier this year a speedrunning content creator, fireb0rn, made a video about Moglar5k being a speedrunning child prodigy and changing how Hollow Knight's speedrun is played. After Hollow Knight and speedrunning, Moglar5k then proceeded deep into the arcade genre of shoot em' ups (shump) and after years of practice, innovation, and grinding, broke the World Record for one of the best and most challenging shmups ever made, Ketsui. Moglar5k is one of the most talented gamer I have ever seen and one of the very few non-Japanese players to hold a world record in a CAVE game, especially a game like Ketsui which has an insane scoring history that has been pushed by the greatest players of all time. In today's interview, Jaimers (another very accomplished shmup player), Moglar, and myself discuss Ketsui as a scoring game and go over Moglar's amazing rise from fresh new face a few years ago, to one of the greatest shmups players active right now.  Also, if you want more history on Moglar's journey, there is another episode of the podcast from a few years ago where he, Kiwi, and myself talk about talent in the genre:

Dodonpachi SaiDaiOuJou World Record Interview! Questions For a CAVE Superplayer! In today's video I speak with Kayar, a world record holder for Dodonpachi SDOJ! In the interview we talk about his recent superplay and his history as a player. Like his first 1cc, his beginnnings as a touhou

Shmups On A Speedrunning Podcast! Mark Joins the FrameSavers to Discuss the Dodonpachi Score Glitch! Back from the vaccuum of the internet, I am happy to present an episode of my favorite speedrunning podcast, The Frame Savers, where I am a guest and try my best to introduce the infamous Dodonpachi Score Glitch and the competative shmup score scene to a speedrunning audience. This episode was recorded about two years ago, but was not online that long as the host podcast, The Frame Savers, got cancelled shortly after the episode aired. Rather then letting the ep fall into the void of the web, however, I have been given permission to re-upload and present it to my audience :-) I've also done a bit of remastering on the audio side of things. ENJOY!

Part 2! Electric Underground Podcast: Inside Japanese Arcades with TwilightEX. In this episode of the podcast TwilightEX and I discuss the Japanese arcade scene and I try to learn more about what the social environment in Japan is like.

Surprise!! As a new perk for my Patrons I have decided that I will release the audio for new Electric Underground Podcast Episodes early, since there is usually a delay between when I finish the audio and have the video ready to upload :-) This video will premier at the end of shmup kumite as a surprise, so keep it on the down low ha ;-)

Cheers!

Blue Revolver Developer Interview! (Part 2) The Struggle of Indie "Steam  Has All the Leverage." In part 2 of this interview Danbo, the developer  of Blue Revolver, discusses the perils of indie game publishing and how  many aspects of steam, especially deep sales culture, punish indie  developers and how much stronger of an alternative Itch.io is for shmup and other smaller indie genres. We also discuss shmup game  design and Danbo's future plans for development!  Buy Blue Revolver on  itch (more money goes to dev): https://stellarcircle.itch.io/blue-revolver Gameplay Footage from Kiwi's Channel (Subscribe) https://youtu.be/nzoAMxYL5YI  Patreon https://www.patreon.com/electricunderground (Bi-Weekly Patreon Exclusive Podcast for $2) Website: http://electricunderground.io/ Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/the_electric_underground STG Revision 2020 Discord: https://discord.gg/snRueeH  00:00 Steam DONT Know Shmups Like I DO! 04:51 Shmups are a Lifestyle  Genre 10:50 Mainstream Games Are Boring 16:51 Steam's Massive 30% Cut  23:13 Steam Deep Sales Culture is FFffffffffffff 36:50 It s not the Size  of the Jiggabyte, It s How You Use It. 43:04 Is Console Porting Worth  It? 50:02 I Miss Rail Shooters 53:19 Speed Question Round! What s The  New Hotness?! 01:01:45 Virtical Vs Horizontal Shmupping

The secret ending of Shmup Slam 3 was an interview with Danbo, the  developer of one of my favorite shmups, Blue Revolver! In Part 1 of this  interview, we talk about his history with the genre, his inspiration  for game design, and how he seeks polished fundamental design, over  novel gimmicks.  Buy Blue Revolver on Itch.io (more money goes to dev): https://stellarcircle.itch.io/blue-revolverBuy Blue Revolver on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/439490/BLUE_REVOLVER/Buy Double Action OST: https://bluerevolver.bandcamp.com/album/blue-revolver-double-action-original-soundtrack Patreon https://www.patreon.com/electricunderground(Bi-Weekly Patreon Exclusive Podcast for $2) Website: http://electricunderground.io/Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/the_electric_undergroundSTG Revision 2020 Discord: https://discord.gg/snRueeH 00:00 Every Great Game Needs a Little Jank 3:26 Goldenbat Flamethrower  Fix 6:15 A Boy's Got to GAME! 9:33 Roguelike's need better pacing 11:30  Blue Revolver's Beginnings 14:14 Indie Games Milk Themselves 19:26 Indie  Success is a Black Box 24:28 Refinement GREATER THAN Gimmicks 26:22  Avoiding the Euroshmup 30:27 Why Shmups are the BEST GENRE 32:26 Shmups  are the Last Bastion of Score Play 37:42 Mark gets the High Score ... in  Typing Class? 41:41 Muchi Muchi Pork! 44:46 Danbo Agrees with Mark  about Imperishable Night :-D 47:17 The GREAT HITBOX REVELATION! 51:44  Are 120 FPS Shmups the Future? 56:34 CRT Talk ... To Be Continued in  PART 2!

The Tragedy Of Fighting Games. Perhaps a spicy video, but I think it's important to keep it real (sometimes). Today I am talking about one of my favorite video game genres of all time, fighting games. Fighting games are in my top three alongside shmups and beat em' ups. I have been playing fighting games in a competitive and then semi-competitive since around 2010 or so, so I've been around and plugged into the genre for a long time. Today I am discussing what I like to call the tragedy of fighting games, in that no matter how good a fighting game is, no matter how much the player base loves that individual game, all fighting games are doomed to an early appointment with the grim reaper. Even games that have longstanding player bases like Super Smash Bros Melee and Street Fighter 3, Third Strike (or even Street Fighter 2, Super Turbo) cannot continue onward into future generations and be played in a full competitive manner. What I mean is that just being able to match make in a game every now and then is not good enough. In reality most fighting games are only intensely explored and played during a five year window or so, and then that game is put aside for the next iteration of the series. What I find tragic about this though, in the literal sense of the word, is that this fate is inescapable from what I have observed. No matter what approach a developer or fan base take, the end of the game being played at full capacity seems fated. I go into specific detail of why this is in the video. So this video is not meant to be a critique or warning against the genre, but rather a somber celebration of what makes the genre so special and also, ultimately, tragic. I thought it would be fun to discuss this video in light of the upcoming releases of Tekken 8 and Street Fighter 6. At this point I am fully planning on playing Tekken 8 unless it is some kind of abomination, and my interest in the Street Fighter franchise as it is currently being made is gone. But I think I will review and discuss both games here on the channel as I think that will be interesting, as fighting game reviews from impartial experienced players are rather rare. I also am really into Guilty Gear XX Accent Core right now as well as DOA, so I plan on doing some vids about those games in the future as well Thumbnail made by me this time! Though  @boghogSTG  still helped with advice on how to touch it up.

Strategic Shmup Marketing and Community Building with UBO (Podcast Part  2). In this 2nd half of the Electric Underground Podcast, UBO and I  discuss his further efforts to support the shmup community on Steam,  Reddit, Twitter, and Twitch.  Check out UBO's Twitter: https://twitter.com/STGshmups https://twitter.com/ShmupDeals STG Shmup Reddit: https://new.reddit.com/r/STGshmups/ STG Shmup Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/directory/game/STG%20Shmups/ STG Shmup Steam Curator Group! https://steamcommunity.com/groups/STGshmups https://store.steampowered.com/curator/39015759-STG-Shmups/

REVIVING SHMUPS! Marketing Arcade Culture into the 21st Century with  UBO. In today's episode of the Electric Underground Podcast, we talk  about the financial history of the genre and discuss new ideas for  marketing shmups to the current gaming audience  Check out UBO's  Twitter: https://twitter.com/STGshmups https://twitter.com/ShmupDealsSTG Shmup Reddit: https://new.reddit.com/r/STGshmups/STG Shmup Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/directory/game/STG%20Shmups/STG Shmup Steam Curator Group! https://steamcommunity.com/groups/STGshmups https://store.steampowered.com/curator/39015759-STG-Shmups/

A RARE OCCURRENCE of the internet, two people with different viewpoints on input lag have a respectful discussion around the issue. In this episode, we talk about if and when input lag matters. I also share my thoughts on the Nintendo Life reviews I did and my personal standards for input lag. Hopefully, this episode will put the controversy to bed, or at least make it take a nap for a bit ha. Shout outs to Shmup Junkie for being on the episode, he was a great guest!
Check out his channel!
www.youtube.com/c/ShmupJunkie/videos

Patreon
www.patreon.com/electricunderground
Website:
electricunderground.io/
Twitch:
www.twitch.tv/the_electric_underground
STG Revision 2020 Discord:
discord.gg/snRueeH
Also, if you enjoyed this video I now have a weekly exclusive Patreon podcast called 7th Day Electric for $2 :-)

August 1st is now officially Shmup Day! Today the Shmup Wiki, Hall of Records, Shmup Leaderboard, and Calice Cup are all announced! In this episode, I talk with Plasmo (Shmup Historian) and Queen Charlene (Creator of Shmup Wiki) about these new projects, their potential to grow the genre, and what the future holds for the genre!

Check out the Shmups Wiki:

shmups.wiki/library/Main_Page

Hall of Records:

shmups.wiki/library/STG_Hall_of_Records

Shmup Open Leaderboard:

electricunderground.io/shmup-leaderb…d-philosophy/

Calice Cup:

calice.snowcrash.fun/tournaments/

Also, if you enjoyed this podcast I now have a weekly exclusive Patreon podcast called 7th Day Electric :-)

Patreon

www.patreon.com/electricunderground

Website:

electricunderground.io/

Twitch:

www.twitch.tv/the_electric_underground

STG Revision 2020 Discord:

discord.gg/snRueeH

In this episode, Pearl and I discuss the submission practices and requirements of the now controversial scorekeeping entity, Twin Galaxies. Pearl has submitted runs to the website before and I discuss with him my concerns about why I have trouble seeing Twin Galaxies as a future home for shmup and arcade game scorekeeping.
All gameplay is from Pearl's channel (check it out and sub):
www.youtube.com/channel/UCabY4rE2DL9UKthjSx0STsw
and definitely check out his awesome mystery run at Shmup Slam 2:
youtu.be/40xRX1IGUlI

www.patreon.com/electricunderground
Twitter:
twitter.com/Mark_MSX_
Website:
electricunderground.io/
Twitch:
www.twitch.tv/the_electric_underground
STG Revision 2020 Discord:
discord.gg/snRueeH

This episode was streamed live and in it I celebrate two years of the  podcast and talk about the history of my content, as well as the future.  I had fun ha :-)
www.patreon.com/electricunderground
Website:
electricunderground.io/
Twitch:
www.twitch.tv/the_electric_underground
STG Revision 2020 Discord:
discord.gg/snRueeH

SUPPORT GUS And SHMUPS AND TUNE IN FOR HIS RUN JANUARY 8th: Here is the stream schedule (it will auto adjust for your timezone):
gamesdonequick.com/schedule

Part 2 of my interview with Gus.
In this second part, we talk about the different versions of Futari, Gus at Stunfest, and the opportunity for the genre to gain more exposure after Gus's demo at AGDQ.

Gus Stream: www.twitch.tv/gusyphus2

Track 1 from Kof 2003
Track 2 from Robotech
Track 3 from Kof 2003
Track 4 is a remix of Shaun's theme from 3rd strike.

At AGDQ 2020, Gus, the Futari Master, will be repping the shmup scene with a demonstration of Mushihimesama Futari Ultra Mode 1.01! In Part 1 of this ep I talk with him about his history with Shmups and Futari. In the upcoming Part 2, we'll talk all about his upcoming AGDQ run as well as his previous demonstrations at Stunfest earlier in the year.

You can watch Gus Stream and practice Futari here:
www.twitch.tv/gusyphus2

All music in the ep is from the Futari Arrange soundtrack you can find on khinsider.

In this second part of the episode, we talk about the  topic of Japanese world record verification and the future of world  records and score keeping. We also talk some trash on Twin Galaxies  (which is always fun). We talk about our issues with TG's ignoring of  Japanese world records, being generally shady, and their current silly  record submission practices (which Pearl had a delightful experience  with).

Tracks:
1 = OC Remix, Temple of Life, from Life Force
2= Shrine of Farewell from Hellsinker (Mario Paint Remix)
3= Ojamajo DoReMi (Mario Paint Remix)
4=Fly me to the Moon (from Eva)

A really fun episode with fellow Shmup Slam Co-Host, KZ the Kusoplayer.   In this episode we talk about the struggles of being midtier players  and  the scene's tendency to only pay attention to top tier level play.  We  also talk about the grind, getting into scoring versus survival  only,  and other attitudes we've run up against.
I'm super proud of how this episode turned out, so please check it out.

GAME CRITIQUE IS DEAD: Why Reviewers SHOULD Be Skilled Players | The Definitive Discussion. Today is a very special video where  @boghogSTG  and I discuss the current (and awful) state of video game reviews and critique. This isn't just a bunch of empty complaining, however (at least I hope so). Instead we discuss the nature of what is good critique, what is the role of the critic vs reviewer, what forces influence critics and reviewers, both conscious and unconscious. We also make our strongest case for why video game reviewers SHOULD be skilled players, why this is an important value a critic should strive for, and how being a skilled player not only improves reviews, but also is an important asset for game developers as well. We also get into the topic of access journalism that we see IGN and the major game publishers engaging in (such as IGN infamously "forgetting" to review Cyber Punk 2077) and how the video game review space has more in common with the Yakuza than it does open artistic discourse. Sphere Hunter may be invited to Capcom events, but she's not at the IGN level of access to be allowed to review the game before the release date. Imagine all the NDA's that level of access would involve. Talking about IGN, eurogamer, Polygon, Kotaku, and Gamespot is one thing, but we also get into what is the role of the youtuber in this equation and how even if the youtuber is not directly being contacted by game publishers, he is still being indirectly shaped by the marketing of AAA games and their vocal fan bases. As a result, we see a cyclical trend of hype marketing around releases like Resident Evil 4 Remake, The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild (and soon to be Tears of the Kingdom), and Bayonetta 3, where all the reviews are going to fall in line with the marketing. And if you are more critical of these games during their release window, prepare to be hit by the hype train, which is not going to be a fun experience. As a result, I think we've seen a shift in the youtubing meta away from the over the top reviews that we saw in the Angry Video Game Nerd era of gaming youtube. Instead, we are now in the fluf**** era, where youtubers take games that are already hyped and highly anticipated, and then just dial the hype levels up even higher (as we see on Maxamillion Dood's channel). So now all average games are *amazing* and all good games are modern masterpieces.

Today the podcast is graced by Frenetic, a co-founder of  STG Weekly, contributing member of the overall scene, shmup evangelist,  and awesome host of many shmup-meetups over the years.

We talk  about the start of STG Weekly, his history with the genre, the Cali  arcade scene, as well as some ideas for hustling shmups to a wider  audience. We also discuss my idea for a shmup meetup for next year:  Shmup Invasion 2020.

[Part II]
This week two up-and-coming shmup players,  Kiwi and Moglar5k, join me to dig into the great Shakespearean question:  "How do I get good at shmups?"

Kiwi Youtube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCbmYIZGgr1ugjcA4WUYqkOQ

Moglar5k Youtube:
www.youtube.com/channel/UCxGk4EHg09dlIp1QlQjS_GQ

Today l get the chance to talk with the omega-level  homie, Plasmo, about Stunfest 2019! This year was killer as always and  we go over everything (at least that I could think of).

Featured  players this year were Maribel (playing lunatic Touhou Ten Desires),  Kiwi (playing parallel Blue Revolver), and Gus (playing 1.5 and 1.01  Futari Ultra). All the runs are highly recommended viewings.

Links:
Original Stunfest Stream (you can view the Twitch highlights):
www.twitch.tv/os_yom/videos

||Maribel||
Survival Run: youtu.be/eaJI0YaEULo
Scoring Run: youtu.be/G37qKzNUMCA
Youtube: www.youtube.com/c/MaribelHearn
Twitch: twitch.tv/maribel_hearn

||Kiwi||
1st Run with Danbo the developer on mic: youtu.be/nzoAMxYL5YI
2nd Run with Jaimers and Plasmo on mic: youtu.be/uPQvza8WRwk
Youtube: www.youtube.com/user/Igiveyouablock
Twitch: twitch.tv/kiwi33

||Gus||
Version 1.5 Run: youtu.be/zh_-gzkI3l4
Version 1.01 Run: youtu.be/qfrEFfJbLAw
Twitch: www.twitch.tv/gusyphus2/
Youtube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCbHo2qLSia_ZLHHOr_RMxWQ

SMC Article about 1.01 and 1.5 version differences:
electricunderground.io/guest-article…ences-by-smc/

Solo Mode. Title pretty much says it all.

Link to GGPO Panel Vid:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9JTIn1SVQ4

A crazy huge episode. 

Topics Covered:

-EUP Discord Closed

-Greatest Shmups of All Time List

-Why community matters with guests Dingo and Shoryusatsu

Much  love for all the members of my discord, the whole thing was so much  fun! Also, my infinite apologies to Dingo and Shoryusatsu for their  episode getting caught in development hell.

It started as a joke on my discord, but the idea was too funny to resist :-)

Jaimers dropping some serious bars here.

Also, both Jaimers and I are FANS of touhou games, the title is just a play on words.

It's the shmup release I have been waiting all year for!  It's finally here! Ketsui DeathTiny! In this episode I get the  opportunity to talk with Iconoclast, an accomplished shmup player who  has been absolutely destroying DeathTiny, among other achievements I  don't want to spoil, about the new release and titular arrange mode.

I've  had a great time playing this game and talking about it, and I know you  are all in for an enjoyable listen :-D Yes, it's a pain importing the  game or downloading off the Japanese PSN, but it is definitely worth the  effort for any shmup fan.

Huge thanks to Iconoclast for coming on the episode!

On today's episode, I get the opportunity to interview  Adam Ferrando, the developer of Demon's Tilt, a pinball game with  serious shmup elements. I have had a great time talking to Adam about  his journey as an indie developer, the in-depth mechanics of Demon's  Tilt, as well trying out the beta. I strongly encourage my fellow shmup  players to check the game out when it releases!

Steam Link:

store.steampowered.com/app/422510/DEMONS_TILT/

Description from Publisher:

Demon’s  Tilt is a new retro-styled video pinball game that mixes video pinball  with shmup (or bullet hell) elements to create something totally new!  Some time ago, Demon’s Tilt creator Adam Ferrando showed an early  prototype of the game to frequent collaborator Ralph Barbagallo. Ralph  liked the demo so much he decided to help ship and publish the game  through his own development and publishing company, FLARB.

Game OST created by ec2151

On today's episode, I am extremely excited to be able to  talk with the Zero Ranger Developers Ebbo and Eebrozgi. After following  this game's development on the forums and then playing the release this  year, I was immediately hooked and eager to get these guys on the  podcast. I truly feel this game is of the highest quality and give it my  sincerest personal recommendation.

In the interview, we cover the  games 10 year development history, it's evolving design and  inspirations, as well as its potential to bring more players into the  shmup community. I am personally a huge fan of this game and am certain  this episode is an awesome listen for shmup fans. Please recommend this  game to all your friends, even the non-shmup players.

Link to game:

store.steampowered.com/app/809020/ZeroRanger/

P.S.  The cover art for this episode is based off art by Baconpal and used  with his permission. Here are links to his Tumbler and Twitter:

baconpal.tumblr.com/

twitter.com/BaconPal

Mr. McCormo is back for part 2 of his interview!

In this follow up we go deep into some pretty technical and possibly  divisive topics. We talk about welcoming new players into the scene,  emulation versus ports, the merits of arcade sticks, digital versus  analog display, the meaning of pixel response time, 240p vs 480i, and  the biology behind how we look at shmups when we play.

McCormo has written an article on the subject of seeing shmups:

dunpachi.com/2018/10/11/

Check out his other articles too :-)

JRPG Is NOT Discrimination and Why Genre Terms Matter (NOT POLITICAL). All bad ideas seem to spring from RPGs, am I right ;-) Today I am discussing this viral topic of how Game Journalists are pushing for the genre term "JRPG" to be discontinued and why I think this phenomenon is happening. Additionally, I am making this video because I do think that accurate and objective genre terms are really important for communication, review, discussion, and especially discovery. Genre is how most players find new games that they like, and that having a natural network of games that share a core design is EXTREMELY important, no matter what my fellow hipster millennials say about living in a post genre world. So I am making this video because I find discussions of genre really interesting and how this trend of making regional based discussion of games some kind of taboo is very short-sighted and ultimately pointless. Also I explain that the term JRPG is not purely a regional description, it is an artistic movement just like German Expressionism. So a developer who is not from Japan can also make a JRPG, and a Japanese developer can make a western role playing game as well, it's about design composition, not nationality. Once again this whole discussion is mostly about giving people who consider themselves industry insiders some kind of artificial authority and credibility without having to discuss games and their actual game play mechanics or design.

On this week's episode I get the opportunity to talk  with an awesome guest, Jay Shy! He is a professional comic book artist  and we sit down and have a discussion about overall shmup visual design,  anime, as well as specific art styles like cyber punk and moe. I also  get to learn more about Jay's experience entering the shmup community  and hear his thoughts on how we can make the scene more welcoming.

Check out Jay Shy's youtube!

www.youtube.com/user/shinmegamitalks/videos

On this week's episode I am joined by long time  listener, first time caller Mr. McCormo. This interview ended up being  split into 2 parts, this is the first of the pair. We discuss the  possibility of shmups fitting into an eSports format, competitiveness in  the shmup scene, and I go on about my idea for revising how we  currently record scores.

Also, a new nest of birds was built over where I record, and they weigh in on the conversation.

If  you want to check out a more detailed explanation on my score keeping  idea and the community's reaction to it, check out this thread: shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=63002

Music:

1st song = Kame house, from Dragonball Wave

2nd song=Spaceflight by Efence

3rd song=Kid Goku, from Dragonball Wave

4th Song= 40's by Axian

5th Song= Snake Way, from Dragonball Wave

On today's episode I am joined by Ser Flash of Studio Mudprints. Ser  Flash is the creator of the famous Bullet Heaven shmup review series on  YouTube. It is the longest running shmup review series on Youtube and is  still going strong. On today's episode, we talk about the history  behind Bullet Heaven, the challenges it has faced, the current state of  shmup reviews, personal highlights, and the future of the channel.

A huge thanks to Ser Flash for being super cool and coming on the podcast!

On today's episode, I am very happy to have the  opportunity to speak with the CEO of EXA Arcadia about the platform, its  hardware, the arcade scene today, and how EXA could revitalize arcades  on a global level. Big thanks to the CEO of EXA to take the time to talk  to me, a host of a humble but passionate podcast. He definitely wins  homie award of the year! After this interview I am more excited than  ever about the potential of EXA and can't wait to get my hands on one.

Also, in deference to my awesome audience, I will provide a list of tracks I used in this episode:

Intro song = Canal Fleet (arranged) from Ketsui

2nd song = Stage 3A (Arranged) from DDP Ressurection

3rd song = Stage 4 (Xbox 360 Arranged) from DOJ Black Label Extra

Final song = Name Entry (Xbox 360 Arranged) from DOJ Black Label Extra