K Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 There seem to be quite a few of these retro platform/shooters knocking around at the moment, and none of them seem to have the exposure they deserve - I love this sort of thing, and I only ever seem to hear about them in passing on here. If you make a pixel art roguelike or something that riffs on Dark Souls, it feels like you're all over the games media, but stuff like this, Valfaris, Blazing Chrome, Butcher, etc, don't seem to get enough love. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soulstar Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 Yeah definitely, while I do enjoy the modern combinations of old skool and new ideas like that, there’s a place for well made authentic looking arcade action. I wanna see a Sunset Riders sequel in this style. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuackQuack Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 How tough is this? My hands are slowly becoming stupid and I’ve found these kind of games on the NES/SNES Switch emulator to be more frustrating than fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 42 minutes ago, Lovelyman said: Valfaris is the best shooty platformer on Switch, followed by this. I really didn't like Valfaris. It felt unpolished and controlled a bit dodgily for my taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 54 minutes ago, geldra said: (can’t say I think it’s better than Blazing Chrome though. Probs just my preference.) I think as a spiritual successor to the Contra series, Blazing Chrome is almost perfect. As an original title, Huntdown does its own thing exceptionally well, so I would regard it higher just for that. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 5 minutes ago, QuackQuack said: How tough is this? My hands are slowly becoming stupid and I’ve found these kind of games on the NES/SNES Switch emulator to be more frustrating than fun. The three starting difficulty levels give you a pretty even spread of choices for your skill level and preference. I'm usually shit at these kinds of games, played on the middle normal difficulty, and found it quite tricky at certain points, especially learning the patterns of certain bosses, but it was a decent challenge. All three characters also have slightly different starting guns and specials - I liked the cyborg direct linear travel knives best for my playstyle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt0 Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 6 minutes ago, QuackQuack said: How tough is this? My hands are slowly becoming stupid and I’ve found these kind of games on the NES/SNES Switch emulator to be more frustrating than fun. Reasonably tough, I found some of the bosses tricky first time through, especially the final one. You have 5 hit points on normal mode and the checkpoint spacing is reasonably generous. There's an easy mode too. There are sections that demand you concentrate, but there's nothing too punishing in terms of platforming or dexterity and the encounter design always gives you lots of options in terms of flanking, playing cautiously, using cover, etc. And you can play the levels in any order you want if you get stuck on one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 Yeah the way each encounter is laid out sometimes has a little of the Hotline Miami style about it in terms of how you tackle the situations. Oh and all the guns are so satisfying to use - the way it lets you keep them if you start a boss fight with a good one is also a nice touch, as it gives you something to try and take through from a previous checkpoint. The high calibre thud-thud-thud gun (whatever you call it) is I think my favourite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geldra Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 11 minutes ago, Benny said: I think as a spiritual successor to the Contra series, Blazing Chrome is almost perfect. As an original title, Huntdown does its own thing exceptionally well, so I would regard it higher just for that. Yeah, fair play. I agree then, based on that criteria. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuackQuack Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 6 minutes ago, matt0 said: Reasonably tough, I found some of the bosses tricky first time through, especially the final one. You have 5 hit points on normal mode and the checkpoint spacing is reasonably generous. There's an easy mode too. There are sections that demand you concentrate, but there's nothing too punishing in terms of platforming or dexterity and the encounter design always gives you lots of options in terms of flanking, playing cautiously, using cover, etc. And you can play the levels in any order you want if you get stuck on one. Sold! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 The gang character design is like something straight out of The Warriors. Basically it knows exactly what it's trying to be and delights in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 Very important tip: you can dash slide with R1. I didn't even realise you could do that until the last level as I don't think it shows you you can. It's perfect for lock to cover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 Another top tip: crank up the audio as loud as you can bear. The music on the second level in particular is just brilliant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gizmo1990 Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 I'm patiently waiting for a physical Switch version of this to drop. They keep teasing it but still nothing.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 You'll probably never want to sell it if that helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZOK Posted February 22, 2021 Share Posted February 22, 2021 Yes this is good. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 24, 2021 Share Posted February 24, 2021 I've completed it a few days ago on normal difficulty, but have already been right back on it just because it's so satisfying to play. When I'm not playing it I'm still thinking about firing it up again for a quick blast. It's just such a carefully crafted experience. I want more games like this. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarlaccfood Posted February 24, 2021 Share Posted February 24, 2021 On 02/08/2020 at 04:13, Doctor Shark said: It reminded me a lot of Judge Dredd on the SNES, which I used to love. Literally why I bought this yesterday (and all the good word on here of course) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talvalin Posted February 24, 2021 Share Posted February 24, 2021 Bought this based on a recommendation in a different thread (SoR4 possibly?) and it's excellent. That said, I kind of abandoned it after banging my head against the first boss of the final area a few times so decided to go and bang my head against Dead Cells instead which isn't working out too well. One thing I had tried was to attempt to clear all three challenges for previous stages (complete stage without dying, kill X enemies, collect all three stashes) and that was helping me to improve my skills, but those ninja sisters were wiping the floor with me regardless. Need to get back into this and finish them off and continue onwards with the game. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 24, 2021 Share Posted February 24, 2021 Like most of the bosses, there is a very specific trick to beating that one... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K Posted February 24, 2021 Share Posted February 24, 2021 As if by some kind of sympathetic magic, both Huntdown and Valfaris are on sale on PSN today. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosegrinder Posted February 24, 2021 Share Posted February 24, 2021 I'm really getting into Valfaris now. I bumped up against it as it requires a certain mindset/rhythm to the combat but I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fry Crayola Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 I picked this up on the strength of recommendation here, and also being a sucker for intricate pixel art. Battering against that was the small matter of me not being very good at run and gun games, usually finding them too difficult for my tastes. This despite making one that, true to form, was too difficult for the majority of people who played it. Except, of course, me. I'm nothing if not a enigma. Anyway, I've played precisely one small level of Huntdown and I'd like to declare that this has been a good decision. It looks great and it plays great. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZOK Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 Is it just me, or do most of the bosses on the first level have West Country accents? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down by Law Posted February 26, 2021 Share Posted February 26, 2021 Got this in the sale at last, put it on for a quick go, had to force myself to stop playing after 2 hours. Great fun, it's like Elevator Action Returns X Hotline Miami. Funny too, even has the classic Seagal Blood Bank 1 liner in it. Mowman is the best. Huge Terminator vibes on the first areas boss music, lots of love went into all the 80s action references. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaveDisco Posted February 27, 2021 Share Posted February 27, 2021 The revitalisation of interest in this has made me return to it. It’s brilliant but I’m so stuck on the shogun boss. Any tips? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 27, 2021 Share Posted February 27, 2021 11 minutes ago, LaveDisco said: The revitalisation of interest in this has made me return to it. It’s brilliant but I’m so stuck on the shogun boss. Any tips? Spoiler The blades part is probably what you're struggling with. It has a very distinct pattern though to learn. It's something like: first is jump jump jump, second instance jump crouch jump etc. Try to keep the sentry gun special from the previous screens, and only fire your gun at him when he's either sword swiping ineffectually or while you're jumping the blades. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 27, 2021 Share Posted February 27, 2021 8 hours ago, Down by Law said: Got this in the sale at last, put it on for a quick go, had to force myself to stop playing after 2 hours. Great fun, it's like Elevator Action Returns X Hotline Miami. Funny too, even has the classic Seagal Blood Bank 1 liner in it. Mowman is the best. Huge Terminator vibes on the first areas boss music, lots of love went into all the 80s action references. I played through as Mowman then picked Anna Conda for Hard mode. I think I prefer her, as she does a great line in maniacal laughter. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shirubagan Posted February 27, 2021 Share Posted February 27, 2021 Bought this earlier, seems fun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benny Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 I'm still playing this as it's just so replayable. I wish I'd played it before the 2020 awards as I would absolutely have put it up there in my picks. It's up there with Streets of Rage 4 for just solid design and polish. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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