Why am I able to so easily get into UFO 50 games, whereas I have struggled to get into so many actual arcade-style games in the past?

[benjymlewis]

Okay for example. I genuinely really like Caramel Caramel, which is odd because I have tried to play games like R-type, Gradius, and some other classic shoot-'em-ups, but have not been able to get much enjoyment out of them. Most recently I tried to play Super R-Type via the Nintendo Switch Online SNES app, but I just couldn't get into it. It felt slow and not very interesting. And I didn't enjoy how one slight brush of the stage walls meant having to do the entire level over from the beginning, when I didn't find it especially interesting the first time through. ...And also because you can overload your ship with a dozen different powerups that become visually overwhelming, it's too easy to lose track of where you are and what's going on. I suppose this is just a skill issue, but it didn't exactly entice me into trying to get better at the game.

The only classic shmup I have legitimately enjoyed and beaten multiple times for the sheer joy of it is Sega's Fantasy Zone, which I always attributed to the fact that it doesn't autoscroll and you can move across the level at your own pace. Fantasy Zone entirely avoids the problem of being slow-paced, and I love it for that. It also has delicious cheese strats versus the bosses, with careful and specific use of items such as the 16-ton weight to immediately kill a boss if you know to use it in the right spot. It feels so dynamic and interesting compared to basically every other classic shmup I've tried.

But Caramel Caramel IS an autoscroller, and it's a pretty slow one at that - yet I found it really good despite that? I enjoy the unique photograph system that lets you interact with the stage in a more interesting way than just shooting everything, and the harshness of the checkpointing (or lack thereof) somehow made me MORE determined to learn how to beat it - it didn't put me off entirely like Super R-Type's similar harsh checkpointing did. And I'm kinda just wondering why? What's the difference?
Is it because you can safely touch the walls in Caramel? Is it because I find photographing an interesting enough twist that keeps the game engaging? Or is it simply because the act of trying to cherry a game in UFO 50 Is enough of a motivator in and of itself, to gain more of that sweet UFO 50 meta-completion?

As someone who isn't exactly a shmup aficionado, I wouldn't want to jump to the conclusion that Caramel Caramel is actually just "better" than the majority of the well-renowned classic arcade shmups, because I don't have enough experience to make that kind of judgement. But...as a player, I definitely had a great time with Caramel Caramel, and I have yet to have a great time with any R-Type or Gradius or similar game, despite really trying. Is this just a "me" problem, or is there something else that UFO 50 has done that I'm not noticing?

[Metadragon]

Dunno man. Maybe they more accurately reflect you memory of SHMUPs/whatever.

You should give Arcade Paradise a try. It has many similarly arcadey type games. Though you have to do the story to unlock more machines.

[Fubuki(FH)]

R-Type was on Commodore 64? I remember playing on Amiga 500 with way better graphics and music than SNES! The one on Switch is pretty disappointing.

[Yuga-Suggah]

Originally posted by Fubuki(FH):

R-Type was on Commodore 64? I remember playing on Amiga 500 with way better graphics and music than SNES! The one on Switch is pretty disappointing.

As in the switch port of the SNES or a port of the arcade?
Because an emulated version of a bad port is never better without changes to the code itself.