History of COMPILE Shooters! Think you know their history? Think again! Interviews. Insights. Influence. Discover something new about the most incredible #Shmup developer of the time. And where they are today! Compile is Legion! And we are not worthy . ✅ Subscribe To My Channel ➡️ Support me on PATREON www.patreon.com/shmupjunkieslushfund #SHMUPSARESHOOTERS CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Compile Rocks! 01:32 - It's about Speed 03:44 - Guns, lots of guns 05:32 - Masters of the Shooterverse 09:29 - Music to Shmup by 11:14 - Humble Beginnings 12:01 - Enter the ZANAC 13:18 - ALESTE Begins, Sega and the MSX 17:14 - Rude Breaker NEC PC98 19:08 - Power Strikes Back, the Sega love continues 20:17 - MUSHA, nuf' said 22:47 - Revenge of the NES, Gun Nac and Guardian Legend 24:30 - Blazing Spriggans, Obey PC Engine 26:51 - Super Again, Super Aleste on Super Nintendo 29:22 - Gaming the Gear (GG Aleste Series and GG Aleste 3) 30:28 - Robo Arigato, Aleste Roboto (Sega CD Robo Aleste) 32:35 - The Late Years (Spriggan Mark 2 and Sylphia PC Engine) 35:06 - The RISE of RAIZING 37:35 - Final Swan Song (Zanac X Zanac and Neo) 38:43 - Shmup Masters for Hire 40:03 - COMPILE Today! Check out this awesome gameplay from the video by some of my Shmup homies! Rude Breaker Gameplay courtesy of ShmupsBR ruclips.net/video/v_fkRFMoBfY/видео.html Sorcerer Striker and Kingdom Grand Prix Gameplay by Chinopolis ruclips.net/video/L3VF7g_7ZuI/видео.html ruclips.net/video/O1WqjYT2JCs/видео.html Follow me on Instagram: instagram.com/turbothunde... Follow me on Facebook: facebook.com/shmupjunkie Follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/shmupjunkie
ok, maybe i was wrong about the pc-fx game i thought Chōshin Heiki Zeroigar was done by them did you check out Gulkave for the SG-1000 and MSX? the rare horizontal stg by compile
The amount of content here is impressive. I can't believe there's a nearly hour long video about Compile shooters. Kid me would have loved watching this on TV. Adult me too (lol)
I personally can't believe that a good video for such a legendary developer didn't exist, given how prolific they were. And since I love their work anyway, I took it upon myself to make something that their fans could be proud of. And it's the best performing video I've made yet, so clearly there was a hunger and demand for something like this. It was a lot of work but absolutely worth it.
I didn’t grow up playing shooters but I have come to love them in recent years. It blows me away how it appears you could talk about these games for days and have no choice but to put together a cliffs notes version for us who can’t even begin to describe these games. Thanks for all the work!
I try to condense my days of rambling into something entertaining for 30min or so 😅. But yeah I can ramble about them for days. Likely could’ve made a video this long talking about just one of these games in detail. But I’m really just spreading the love for exactly the reason you said. Some grew up with them and enjoy the nostalgia of a video like this. While others are getting an inside look on an era they didn’t experience or weren’t as interested in that the time. And I have many more I’d love to make I hope I can keep it up for a long while.
Thanks I really appreciate the positive feedback. I certainly did work my butt off on it and am glad it's being well received so far. So I am now a Shmuptuber? 😂 That's actually a cool name for a channel, ShmupTube. Why didn't I think of that when I was starting out lol. That's actually a good comparison, as Compile was all about console games until they formed Raizing, and I am mostly about console Shmups. Where someone like Mark is much more the Raizing/Cave of Shmuptube with an arcade, skill based focus. That's gonna have to be in a podcast one day 😅
Compile style is one of my favourites, their games aren't ultra hard like others and the pacing is always fast and fun. Some people criticize the length and samey power ups system in all their games but I think they just wanted to make games familiar to all players, and instead on trying to learn new mechanics, if you already played any of their games you are ready to go. Also a bigger game feels more worth the money, at least that's what's probably they thought. Compile was as important for the shmup genre as Toaplan. One for the Arcades and the other for home systems. Hope the new games get enough attention and that way M2 could bring more new entries, maybe even sequels of old Compile classics.
You made a good point about their games being more accessible and not ultra hard right away and I totally agree there. A lot of people remember their games well as they made them feel like a hero while playing. And they always had a solid hard more for anyone that wanted even more challenge. It was interesting to read that Sega were the ones pushing them to make the games harder early on. I am doing my best to help bring attention to the new releases so we do in fact get more sequels in the future. A true 16bit mega drive sequel would be pretty out of this world.
I agree with you here. I'm new to to the stg genre and am not very good but compile games are a really good way to practice because I can play games with similar power up systems and learn the ins and outs of those and I'm becoming a much better player because of it. The main ones I've played through have been blazing lazers/gunhed, super star soldier, final star soldier, and now working through soldier blade. Weird how compile never makes the best shooters of all time lists
@@ungabungus01 A lot of their work wasn’t credited at the time or for hire. So they didn’t get the big name recognition. But they certainly deserved it as far as console games go. How are you enjoying the Soldier games? They always had the ingredients I wanted most in a shooter.
@@ShmupJunkie they've been great. I find through them it is a bit hard to balance punishing the player for getting hit vs overall game difficulty. Blazing lazers and super star soldier are alike in that if you lose your power ups late into the game it is extremely hard to get momentum going again, but final soldier is rather easy compared to those others.
It was in an interview I read the name wasn't an accident. They specifically used the English word for Compiling code. Long as they keep compiling I will keep buying! 😂
@@ShmupJunkie Love Compile. I just wish I recognised their greatness at a younger age. Back then, if it wasn't a game by Nintendo, Sega, Capcom, Konami or a few Amiga developers like Factor 5, Bitmap Brothers, Sensible Software, I didn't really pay attention to them. Of course I saw great games by developers not developed by the above, but their names didn't stick with me as the developers of that great game I once played. I missed out on a lot because of that. You were shaped by Compile. Moulded by them. I didn't play MUSHA until I was already a man!
@@ShmupJunkie I was playing Radrigy Nao when watching this. I love the mechanics and art but the music just makes me crave those old synthmetal tracks.
@@gpturismo Milestone and their games is one thing I wanted to also include in the video as exCompile but it was getting too long. So I saved it for another time. Those were some fun games too even if not as crazy successful as Raizing
Just want to say that your content as of late is really something! You and The Electric Underground are my go to SHMUP channels without shadow of a doubt!
Thanks man, I appreciate that. I try. Mark is awesome, he is honestly one of the only YT channels I make time to watch with my limited amount. He deserves the support. I just started making these several months ago so I am stoked to even be mentioned in the same context as his stuff.
@@ShmupJunkie buddy you deserve it! Your channel has also come around at the perfect time for me as over the last 4-5 months i've got into a real SHMUP kick after a decade and a half of single player, story driven action adventure titles. And with the exception of the Yakuza series, i'm totally fatigued! SHMUPS and 3d arcade racers (daytona, sega rally, ridge racer etc) are my go to genres right now. I totally suck at the shmups i play at the moment except axelay, but having a blast all the same!
@@whatamalike you’re loving them is all that matters. I know many people see shmups as skill based and getting the 1cc etc. And I get it, it’s a staple of the arcade days. But I’m perfectly happy just playing and enjoying them whether I can finish them perfect or not. I just enjoy them too.
Thanks! This was the first real "history" video I did besides the more general Amazing Shmups of the 80s and 90s video. And everyone enjoyed it so much I had to make more. Plus I'm a big Compile fan so I had to.
This is a great over view and history of all of Compiles shooters. It sucks that people don't give them the recognition they deserve, even though I am a giant Puyo Puyo fan and will say that it is their best series of games imo
Puyo just isn't my type of game so I'd be the wrong person to comment on them at all, so I kept it brief here. But given their popularity I certainly wouldn't argue that point at all.
Hey thanks! I am definitely trying my best and enjoying it along the way. I just keep coming up with content that I would enjoy or want to watch myself and the rest kind of takes care of itself.
I can imagine you at school whenever an essay was set, you finding a way to include shoot em ups in it! Your passion for the genre is infectious mate. You are forever educating me with every video!
I actually still have an old book report I did with tons of photos and material pages on video games, around 6th-7th grade I think. I gotta take a pic o of that cover one day and post it in a story, it's still cool. And you know it's got Turbo there on the front lol.
I recently played Gulkave. You know these guys are good when they can make a fast, smooth, still-fun-today shooter with many different stages and catchy music.... for the frigging SG-1000! It was their first horizontal shooter, BTW.
You know it. They started on SG1000 I think. If they can push the hardware on that system they can do it on anything. Not a single game they made, best or mediocre, that didn't take advantage of the hardware properly and efficiently.
@@ShmupJunkie For sure. I'm currently trying to play all Compile shmups in chronological order, starting with the 8-bit entries. Had a lot of fun with Zanac on the NES and then Aleste on both SMS and MSX2+. The MSX2 version of Aleste is basically the same as the SMS one, but with anime stills intro and outro, slightly better FM sound and even more slowdown. The game is very technically impressive for an 1987 MSX2 game. At that time, most other devs couldn't get the system to scroll the screen smoothly (if at all) or put more than two colors on a sprite (see: the sad Rastan port). So matching an SMS game in technical aspects was no small feat. However, I'm now playing Aleste 2 and what they did with that game is simply mind-blowing. It's hard to believe that it's running on the same hardware, kind of like going from Thunder Force 2 to 4. In fact, it could pass for a 16-bit game, with only the lack of any parallax effects, small sprites (which are still very large for the hardware) and flicker to give it away as an 8-bit experience. Great FM music/sound that's like a good early Mega Drive game, excellent color and background detail, large animated bosses, perfectly smooth scrolling and much less slowdown than the first game! In fact, the relative lack of slowdown was really kicking my ass at first, because just like the first game, this one throws a ton of crap at you right away. That trademark Compile sense of speed, great feeling of blowing tons of crap up, excellent design creativity and awesome soundtrack to it all, are all there! I am really glad that I finally had a chance to play the direct prequel for my favorite Super Famicom shmup (Super Aleste) and that it's exceeding my expectations. As far as I know, the only other technically amazing "can pass for 16-bit" shmup on the system is Konami's Space Manbow, as they were another dev house who had a perfect handle on this "interesting" piece of hardware, making it do things that it was never designed to.
We got one already! It’s called “Nier Automata” on PS4! Lol, it’s got a lot of similarities. But yeah, we need a true guardian legend sequel. Guardian legend is my second favorite nes game, only after legend of Zelda.
@@Korgoth9 thanks. I’m not super familiar with a lot of GBA games so I totally could have missed it and more. I’ll look up a video of it. I see Snesdrunk has a short review of it.
Agreed, The Guardian Legend is one of my favorite games of all time. Such a great hybrid, combining puzzle solving, exploration and character upgrade with a shmup in a completely seamless way, this type of genre fusion has SO much potential!
As a kid, I've loved to play Star Force and Star Soldier, then I've discovered Zanac with all the weapons, secret power-ups, varying stages, bosses and dynamic action. To this day I remember the first time I've made it to the final boss, having just a few lives left but still managed to beat it. Totally hardcore for an 11 year old kid. That game, along with Gradius series, defined my love for shmups. I was really excited when years later I've found out that Compile made more games following Zanac's style.
Me too! I love when new people find me and the RUclips algorithm does it’s job. I hope you enjoy what I have here. If you liked this video, I did another nostalgia vid not long ago titled Amazing Shmups of the 80s and 90s that’s a great trip.
Estou produzindo um Shmup para steam, conheci o canal e nem sei dizer o quanto está sendo didática a experiência dos seus vídeos. Espero em breve finalizar meu trabalho com as referências e aprendizagem que você está proporcionando, parabéns pelo seu trabalho.
Not to forget that the Aleste Collection is also on PS4. I play GG Aleste 3 everyday since release and it's a staggeringly good shooter which is up there with any of the modern shooter releases. Titles like Sorcer Striker and Battle Garegga are available on PS4 too and well worth picking up. Hopefully Sorcer Striker and Dangun Feveron will get a physical release which they deserve. A great video showcasing Compile. These deep dives into shooter history are superb and hopefully you can carry on with these as I know they take a lot of time and effort to put together.
I often forget to mention the PS4! I don't know what it is as I own one too and play it a lot, I just don't have too many Shmups for it. But I do Ketsui Deathtiny as well as some of the other PS4 exclusives. I am going to download Sorcerer Striker for it this week as that's a great game I can't play any other way except for on my PC Emulated right now. I admit this video took a lot out of me because of how time consuming, but I can't help myself I really enjoy making them. And I will slowly make more.,.. only with some breaks in between!
MUSHA was what got me into shmups, over a decade ago. Wii Virtual Console was great. I always hold any shmup to the quality of MUSHA. I'm very excited to see what M2 and Compile do going forward.
It would be awesome to see them make another original game like they did recently with GG3 only using some more powerful hardware like the Mega Drive. That’ll be killer.
If they have the rights it would be very cool. Maybe an option for the MSX collection, since it was a disc system game just like Aleste Gaiden. We can hope as the music was excellent.
@@rockkiall PC98 emulation is really weird in Android. Retroarch's Project Neko II Kai doesn't support Save States while I like to play games in sessions and not in one go. There was another emulator which had Save States but very weird on-screen controls
MUSHA is just amazing, just everything together, the graphics, the music and overall atmosphere just makes it such an enjoyable experiance. I really hope M2 do a proper Megadrive sequel like they have recently done with the Aleste Game Gear game. Imagine a Megadrive follow up to MUSHA on a 24 meg cart.
I think many of us would drop our pants to see a 16bit Mega Drive Musha sequel made by Nakashima and M2. It couldn't be anything but amazing. I have a feeling we may get one someday when they are ready. I think they are working up to it and know it's not easy to do that game justice.
I absolutely love Mahou Daisakusen, such a fantastic game. The game oozes charm with its art style, music and the gameplay. Thank you for providing us with such a fantastic tribute to a legendary developer!
Any time man, and yes I love the design and art syle in SS as well. Raizing will get their whole own video someday, but I couldn't not give them a proper bit of tribute here. Those first games especially were like a continuation of the Compile tradition.
You are truly a historian for 80s/90s games, thank you for compiling the info, im doing pixel art and the 80s/90s are truly what inspired me for my work, thank you
Compiling the info, I see what you did there haha. I'm glad you enjoyed it, this was the first history video I'd ever done and it was the most popular of all my vids at the time. So it started me on the path of making more as they're definitely fun to do. Just really big projects.
Awesome work man! As a Compile fan since my early childhood, this is the kind of stuff I want on RUclips every time I load the app. That's why I pay the Internet bill! Kudos! Count on me if you need my help again!
I can't thank you enough already for the help you provided, and sorry for the late response. The comments have been overwhelming but I appreciate them all. It was your recommendation and help that got me finished. Even if I went a bit overboard with the effects toward the end using Resolve. 😂
No wonder playing Compile games after being stressed out by Battle Garegga felt like, uh, home. Many design stuff like destructible bullets and big ships are several of Compile staples. For both aspiring shmup developers and acute shmup junkies, checking out Compile shooters is a must.
The bullet cancelling was one thing I wanted to talk about a little and just couldn't fit it in with the delays, but it was in the plans. Them being primarily a home console developer mad it easier to create games anyone can play and enjoy instead of eating quarters like the arcade. Garegga is technically a partial Compile game too, but it's also arcade and Yagawa right. I am sure it was his influence that made it so much more brutal. And they were already going that direction with Batrider.
@@ShmupJunkie lol. Speaking of Compile’s influence within Garegga, you don’t see often shmups that give you lots of extends easily and doesn’t have checkpoints. One of Compile staples is very generous extends and it’s normal to gain around 6 extends per run just by scoring alone in Battle Garegga. This is where Yagawa’s brutality comes in: Rank System. Without rank system, Battle Garegga’s extends would make the game too humane and arcade operators don’t like that. The Premium mode is the prime example of that. Yeah, I think you get around 6 extends in GGA3 too in a single run. Meanwhile GGA1 would give a dozen.
You have the best Shump channel Period. all The other channels do not give any info regarding platforms available or anything.Basically You are the only channel I follow
Dude! This is professional grade video. This is incredible. The editing and writing ...Magnificent!! Wow!! The script in incredible too. This is fantastic man. Incredible.
Ha I really appreciate that feedback. I know it's come a long way from the early days, but I also still so much room for imprvement. But I keep learning new editing tricks, and changing little things I thought could have been better, so I think it will continue to improve. But the most important thing to me is that people are enjoying them as much as I do making them despite all the work. It's certainly keeping me busy during lockdown.
@@ShmupJunkie I know this was a lot of work to put this video together. I think this is your best video, yet. More of these developer History videos would be awesome!
Excellent job on this video Junkie. Someone had to illustrate the masses on the influence of the original Compile crew over the genre across more than 30 years already, and that someone had to be you. There's still more to talk about when looking at Milestone and RS34 and a couple of others (perhaps for a part 2 someday :D), Compile's OG crew is simply too influential in a genre that was born with the medium. Great vid, worth the wait and the hard work you have poured into it. This is my favorite type of content to discuss and bring forward. GGs Junkie!
Thanks my friend and if this video inspires you to keep working on your favorite devs that only you can do justice, then it will have been worth it for that alone. Milestone and other split offs was one of the aspects I wanted to get into, but I feared it would cross the hour mark and become too much. So yeah, perhaps for the next series. I'm also not as familiar with them vs Raizing, even if I did play Radirgy and some others a bit, I need much more time to explore those games before I could really talk about them. So I focused on what I knew and appreciated most. I think the Toaplan/Raizing connection and games in general deserve their own video, so that's definitely on the table.
Fantastic video !! Compile is also my favorite shmup developer and I am extremely happy that they are working on a new game. I also cannot wait for the msx collection, as I have never had access to these games. M2 is doing fantastic work here ! Thanks for the video !
I got to play the MSX games for the first time ever on my Mister last week for the video. You will definitely enjoy getting to play Aleste 2 when that happens, which does seem to be in the plans. MSX was not a popular platform outside of certain countries, including the US. So I hope they can manage to make another new game to sweeten the pot. But Aleste 2 will be great to see.
@@ShmupJunkie "bad English" from a variety of countries has taught me so much more about English and its expressive possibilities than just about any academic institution ever could!
Aleste aka Power Strike on the Sega Master System was my introduction to shmups, and served to train me well as a child. My best friend and I would take turns and see how far we could get. The game would slow down with all of the sprites on screen, serving as a matrix-like time buffer so we could dodge the barrage of enemy bullets. God I love this game so much, and am eternally grateful for your masterful coverage of Compile!
That's a good comparison, playing the original is very Matrix like in how you have to dodge once the screen gets crowded. I don't usually like slowdown in my shmups but something about it on the original seems to flow well. Playing it with no slowdown on the M2 collection is simply brutal.
I'll always owe compile for making me a shooter junkie. I dismissed the genre for decades after some frustrating early experiences (especially with Gradius as a kid) and only came around after my first playthrough of The Guardian Legend in 2017. Since then, I've been addicted and have cleared dozens of great shooters, including Gradius. I still maintain that Compile's stuff in general is the single best gateway to classic shooters for newcomers. They hit a sweet spot after Zanac and the first couple Aleste titles where the default difficulty in most games is perfect for not scaring off the inexperienced, which really allows the speed and exciting power-up systems time to sink their hooks in. I can certainly appreciate Toaplan and Irem shooters now, for example, but they tended to make no effort at all to ease you in like that.
You hit the nail on the head with many Compile games being great entry points for players. Their earlier games like you mentioned were still pretty tough. Not a lot of people could get very far. And it turned out to be because Sega was pushing them to make the games harder. The later games like Blazing Lazers and Super Aleste eased you in and were pretty playable for most until at least after the first 2-3 stages. They knew they were making console games and did not want to approach it like arcade games meant to eat quarters. You had paid for the game already, full price, so the goal was fun, not to eat money. I can relate RType in the arcade kicked my ass. I never got past stage 4 until it finally came out on the Turbografx where I could play it to my heart's content and learn it. I love them now too but agree they were brutal.
I just discovered this channel and it has become one of my favorites on youtube. This is a great video on the history of Compile and their awesome games. Thank you.
Awesome and thanks! Always love when new people find me and want to see more of what I’ve been doing. I’m going to make more of these historical videos over time as people really seem to love them.
Maaaaaaan, your channel has seriously helped me out with my favorite Videogame genre. Thank you very much Shmup Junkie for your phenomenally funtaztic heArtwork for Shmups & Bullet Heavens 🕹🖼🎼SHMUPZ🔊📼🎮
Thanks! I’m very glad to hear you’re enjoying it so much. My top goal is helping make the genre more popular again and getting people excited to play these games along with all the great new ones coming out. Hope you enjoy my other vids too 👌
Every time I watch your videos I get a sense of nostalgia along with hope for a better future for STG's. Another banger keep up the great work bro! Can't wait for that Aleste Branch to come out.
We have to enjoy the great resurgence of STGs right now in the present as nothing last forever. And it's not likely something anyone could have predicted. I doubt it's every going mainstream again which is for the best given the dodgy track record of larger studios anyway. The indie devs are doing a great job innovating. Though I admit it's exciting to some the bigger devs like Konami putting money back into the genre again too. It's definitely a good time to be a fan.
Amazing video! I agree that Compile are probably number one when it comes to shooters. But this video had some games I'd never previously heard of, so I'll be looking out for those! And if the MSX Aleste Collection becomes reality, I'll definitely be getting it.
According to the early notes we saw in the current collection interview, they definitely have an MSX collection in the works. So it very well could be a reality. I am most curious about whether they will try to make an all new game again to go along with it.
These guys and Technosoft are my top 2 I think. Then Raizing, Taito or Toaplan perhaps. Part of that is avoiding annoying things like making it near impossible to recover after death later on, scarce checkpoints, and a lack of manual speed adjustment and weapon inventory. Everything else is just generally well designed as well, with a lot weapons as you said, and the games tend to look and sound great to top it off. Nice vid!
I think since Compile was console/home focused vs arcade, that definitely helped make their games more foregiving and accessible. They didn't need to design them to eat quarters and be incredibly difficult. I love me some Tatsujin but clearly that game is brutally hard compared to anything Compile made. If you love Tehcnosoft too you'll be happy to know I have something brewing for them as well.
Creative talent isn't rewarded enough. And I m as creative as a rock. This video did the incredible talent of Compile justice. What a treat your work is. Thank you.
That's awesome man, very kind of you to say. I really love Compile so I wanted to do right by them. And hope someday some of them may see the video and be stoked something like that exists. That would make my day.
Thanks that's kind feedback to get. It's really hard to keep trying to top what I did before, but I am enjoying trying to do it. As long as it's a subject you enjoy the rest takes care of itself.
@@merlijn2000 That sounds vaguely familiar but I don’t think I’ve ever seen gameplay or what they were. Shoot em ups also? The name sure sounds like it.
Bro, this is absolutely FANTASTIC! Thank you so, so much for making this! I absolutely adore Compile. I didn't grow up playing shmups and have only been into them for the last 7 years or so. I have to say, Compile games to me are the perfect blend of fun and difficulty. I can approach them without an overabundant amount of routing, but still need to occasionally practice the more difficult parts. So far I've 1cc'd MUSHA, Super Aleste, and GG Aleste. Perfect blend of challenge and fun. Compile absolutely deserves more recognition. And they freaking made Puyo Puyo! Best puzzle game since Tetris. Absolute legends.
You made a great point right there, is that Compile games are fun and not just for veterans. They are console games by design and made to be more accessible than arcade shooters of that time. I think that's why many of us have a fondness for them as well. I was able to pick up many of them and enjoy them as a kid. And they always made a really good "hard" setting for those that wanted the extra challenge. Super Aleste is a great example, the hard mode in that game is HARD! But it's perfect for anyone who has mastered the game and wants the next level of challenge. I really enjoyed making the video and I will do more of them no doubt.
Grazie! Sono molto contento che ti sia piaciuto e benvenuto. Spero che tu possa goderti i miei altri video perché so che non sono sottotitolati. Un giorno mi piacerebbe.
After diving into shmups in the past year, I'm so happy to have found your channel! I've quickly found Compile to be top tier stuff, and can't wait to collect more games from their catalogue of amazing shooters. Recently beat Super Aleste, which was an awesome experience. Currently working on Gun Nac.
Compile was awesome, they were a bit different than most as they only made console games versus many others that were porting from arcade games. Their games were often more beginner friendly and a big reason they got many into the genre including me. Gun Nac is one of the coolest shooters on the NES, period. I always enjoyed that game and it plays like the older Aleste and Zanac games only improved. I'm glad you found me and hope you enjoy some of the other similar videos I've done.
Damn that algorithm! 🤣. Well I’m glad you found me now. I only have several months of content behind me I started mid last year, so shouldn’t take too long to catch up haha.
Excellent video. Thank you very much. We only needed to talk about the Blaster Burn series, for Compile's digital magazine "Disk Station" (MSX) and also about Randar, Compile's mascot.
I was trying to squeeze in everything I can, but I know still missed some things. Compile did so much it is hard to get everything. There are many Disc Station games and series I have not played yet either I would like to, like the original Guardic game as well.
As a kid I loved many of these games, and many years later while looking things up on wikipedia, I found out that all of them were made by the same developer. It both blew my mind and made a lot of sense at the same time, and I've been a fan of Compile ever since. However I didn't know that a lot of their staff went on to make their own company, or about recent games in Aleste series. Thanks for this in depth video. I'll definitely check these games out.
It’s awesome that I could at least shed some new light on the company and throw out some new info about where they ended up. The early Raizing games especially like the Mahou Daisakusen series and Soukyugurentai are in a similar spirit to their older stuff. Before Yagawa came in with stuff like Battle Garegga and Batrider. But if you haven’t yet, definitely check out the new GG Aleste 3 game from last year. If you didn’t know, you’d guess it was made during that era with enhanced effects. I had a blast with it.
I didn't grow up playing Compile shooters so there's no real nostalgia for me. I stumbled upon MUSHA and SPACE MEGAFORCE through recommendations and I gotta say they're some of the finest old shooters I've played. Super Aleste's music is top notch. I like my shmups funky n groovy 😆
Hey man I think the tunes in Super Aleste are cool too. So very different from Musha but they fit the pace. Those two are in fact some of the best console shooters around so you’re in good company.
Awesome that you included Rude Breaker and Aleste Gaiden! Some of the Disc Station discs for MSX also have the "Blaster Burn" series and "Randar Burn" where you get to play as Compile's cool mascot, Randar!
It was thanks to a friend of mine on Discord that got me going on Rude Breaker and hooked me up with the emulator. Quite a cool game I'd never played. I was finally able to play Aleste 2 and Gaiden using the Mister in a proper way and really enjoyed it a lot too. Short but well made and fun, I can see myself going back to it again. Reminds me a lot of Undeadline just not nearly as unforgiving. The Disc Station games are something I was not even familiar with until I started all the extra research, so I've got a lot more to explore as I keep finding MSX games to try out on the Mister!
ShmupsBR / Felipe is a great guy and part of the community and been very helpful to me in the short time we have known each other. He deserves more subs and anything I can do to help him out I will. We talked about doing a podcast for his channel at some point, so that may still happen.
@@ShmupJunkie Thank you all for the support! Whatever I do for shmups I do totally out of passion and dedication since I was a kid. You guys have no idea how much this has not made me happy, but is helping me deal with mental health on this crazy times we're dealing. I can only thank you, my audience, and the opportunity to do something good and positive on this dark times we have ahead.
That Blazing Lazers stage 4 track is one of my favorites of the era. Really showed what the turbo could do in the right hands. Also the first shooter I really got into. Made me appreciate the genre.
Those drumbeats on stage 4 are rad, I wish more hucard games used the sound chip in the way blazing did. I used to play the classic stuff back on NES, a good bit of shooters, but despite enjoying them I was mostly into platformers. Blazing is what really opened the door for me too, and I just wanted more and more. It got a lot of us into the genre I think.
@@ShmupJunkie I had the Hang-On/Astro Warrior combo for the SMS. I also had Fantasy Zone. Those games were fun but Blazing Lazers was really an eye-opener. The drums are insane. Another great Hu-Card game with awesome music is Dungeon Explorer. I seriously wish at least one of those was the pack-in. Keith Courage just made so many of my friends laugh at me :(
The Aleste collection wasn't much of a priority for me (physical copies cost more) but you basically talked me into it now. M2 continues to go above and beyond with retro games. Also just a small thing I want to point out, in Spriggan 2 pause during the game and there's an option menu to turn off text and cutscenes. Is Spriggan powered not related? I don't think they were involved right?
Yeah Spriggan Powered is not a Compile game so I didn't mention it. I've actually not played it before either. I remember turning off the text and cut scenes, and I can't recall what it was, maybe I missed something, but there was something that still kept interrupting it. The cut scenes were actually really well done I didn't mind them. Just the actual in game stoppage was so often it started to get tiresome. That new GG3 game is really impressive. Maybe someday they will make a separate release just for it as well.
@@ShmupJunkie Yeah, I only played Mark II once on the PCE mini, I need to play it again and see if I'm remembering that correctly, haven' played powered either, it looks fine but not as good as the real Compile games. I forgot to mention how great of a job you did with the video. You could've just mentioned each game with minimal info and a bit of stock gameplay but you took the time to get into the dev history and it's easy to tell you have experience with all of these games. Your passion for the genre really shows here. I can't say I've ever seen a shooter retrospective besides Cave (edit or IREM), glad someone is doing it and I'm definitely looking forward to whatever shooters you next.
@@JetWolfEX This video was very well received so the mob hath spoken. There will no doubt be more of these. Aside from really enjoying it myself too so thank you.
Only ever played Super Aleste/Space Megaforce (and Musha on an emulator) Fantastic game and still one of my favourites on the SNES. the music and explosion sound effects still stick out
Not only is this one of the best retro-gaming videos on the internet, it fills a major void in that it's the only comprehensive overview of the Arrester series, which is easily the best shoot-'em-up series of all time. Gradius is my favorite horizontal shoot-'em-up series, but it's slightly below Arrester. Konami were masters of the genre, but they never came up with power-ups and frenetic gameplay quite on the level of what Compile did.
Thanks. I’m a huge fan obviously and the void for a great Compile video was real, so if I was going to do something for them it had to be special. I worked my ass off making this but it was more than worth it. It’s blown up and shown how hungry people are for their games and beloved they were. I’m honestly stoked m2 has the rights now to at least some of the Aleste games and the name, and already making new games for the series with the help and input of some old compile staff. That’s pretty exciting!
I am surprised it hasn't been ported yet somewhere, since it already has on so many other consoles and eshops. You can bet M2 will do it sooner or later since they own then property now. And it was on the japanese mega drive mini as well.
@@ShmupJunkie wow didn't know m2 owned it now! I'm happy, it couldn't be in better hands :) Btw I'm loving the video so far! (Couldn't watch in one sitting) Subscribed!
This was my very first history video but still an old favorite. It made me want to keep making more like it and I still have many more waiting I'd like to do.
I dig this grand romp. Compile was not only the upper eschelon in puzzle games thanks to Puyo Puyo, but their shmups were a titanic leap above the stars... I wanna get the Aleste collection and the new game after seeing this. And I hope there's a 2nd collection with MUSHA, Super Aleste, Dennin Aleste, the Guardic games, the MSX games and maybe having GunHed, Gun Nac, Zanac (NES, FDS, Special Famicom and the MSX2 remake) and the Spriggans as unlocks.
I will be honest I never really played Puyo Puyo I was never big on puzzle type games and Tetris, but I know it of course it was huge. M2 will definitely release more Aleste collections you can count on it. In fact there was an easter egg in their latest comic that came with the collection that I show and talk about at the end of the video, regarding their MSX games. Now that M2 owns the Aleste IP I have no doubt they will try to take advantage. Especially if they sell well. I can't wait!
@@ShmupJunkie yeah, baby!! And if M2 ever made another new game, they could make a sequel to Gun Nac, Rude Breaker, or maybe bring the lost Spriggan Powered game to life
We are all Shmup Junkies now and my goal is to recruit more and more into the growing army haha. I really liked that image sitting in front of the CRT it’s good memories.
It is not the first time I comment a video made by you. But I have to say thank you again. I love shmups and its history. It isn't a popular hobby so such a dedication is rare. You and your videos are great!
Thank you. I am working hard to make it less rare and help increase the popularity by getting people excited about the games. And I’m very glad you enjoyed it 😊
@@ShmupJunkie I love Blazing Star and MUSHA but never knew who or what Compile was. I guess many people ask you that but what are your favourite shooters? It would be nice to hear yours. My top 10 list consists of Blazing Star, Final Soldier, Soldier Blade, Musha, Zero Wing, Zero Gunner 2, Triggerheart Exelica, Ikaruga, Hyper Duel.
You can tell a lot of extra care went into this video. The content and editing are top notch, excellent work! I always wanted to play Blazing Lazers. Didn’t know it was a Compile game!
I'm glad it was a good watch for you and learned some things at the same time. Blazing Lazers is like THE Compile game for any of us who grew up with a Turbografx, so we have a lot of nostalgia for it. Partly why I feature it more often in videos. You mean Kingdom Grand Prix right? It's a very cool game and it was actually released on the Saturn.
@@ShmupJunkie Yeahhh, I sadly never owned a TurboGrafx growing up. That and a 3DO are on my list to buy in the next year or two, haha. Did Kingdom Grand Prix come to the US or was it Japan-only?
@@RewindArcade Almost nobody owned a turbografx so you’re in good company. Grand Prix was Japan only pretty much like all good Saturn shnups aside from a select few.
Thank you again and for all your support. Aleste can be in our arms and hearts forever. As long as they grace us with making more games I will be there to shill for them and support. Games like GG3 are something we couldn't have dreamed of getting as early as just a couple years ago. If someone told me we'd get another Compile game in 2020 I would have told them they are nuts.
Man I feel like I've been living under a rock after learning all the history of COMPILE, just watching the clips I can totally see the influence on tons of other games I've played. No need to feel bad about pushing this video back a week, with the editing and unending flood of information I wouldn't be surprised if you told me it took months! One small touch I really loved was the overlay for each game, with the title on one side and the system on the other...I might have to borrow that format :)
Thanks man I knew you'd like it. I added a card to your channel too during that Sorcerer Striker/Kingdom Grand Prix section. Did it show up for you when you watched? I can't tell as it won't show me my own cards. And I added a link for them too. I started doing those side names for the game and console a few videos ago and I think people like it. It's empty space on a 4:3 image anyway and when I am showing so many games back and forth people can immediately see which game I am showing or talking about. And it's easy to do they are just images I paste there and flip sideways.
@@Chinopolis Thank you for the footage 👍🏻. Not sure how many people click those things but between that and the text link hopefully you at least get a few out of it.
Blazing Lazers was one of the first games I played as a kid. It really made me fall in love with the turbo and shooters! I would go on to play and love other Compile inspired games like Super Star Soldier! What awesome games!
The Soldier series are likely my favorite shooters on the pc engine, so I owe all my love to Compile for inspiring them with Blazing. The new GG Aleste 3 game by the way was programmed by the same guy who did Super Star Soldier. Another reason that game turned out so well.
So glad you have mentioned Blazing Lazers in such a high regards. Alike you I also became a Shooter fan by playing Blazing Lazers as my first 16-bit era game. The brain stage music track is still one of my all favorite retro game music tracks ever! Absolute masterpiece
Yes, that game is when I knew I would love the genre and hoped for many more great games like it. I used to play them before like Life Force and Gradius, but something about Blazing Lazers was next generation. I agree the stage 4 music is awesome, I love the drums/percussion and so impressive for a hucard.
Wow! Thanks for creating an enjoyable history of Compile. I really hope the Aleste collection comes west and the MSX collection would be really something special too!
I'm pretty excited for the rumored MSX collection they plan to work on next, or so it seems. I will be surprised if they ever released a physical in the US, but I don't see why not at least release it in the eShop. Let's hope they do. At least it's not hard to create a Japan account, it's what I did to get it quickly for download.
Welcome! There is a ton of this kind of content I’ve made the last several months and hope you enjoy it. If you haven’t seen it yet, my nostalgia video called Amazing Shmups of the 80s and 90s is pretty short and one of my all time favorites. I’d love to hear what you thought of it.
ZANAC was so fast. It was the fastest game I played back then. Years later I grabbed MUSHA which grabs you from the title screen and never lets you go. Amazing game!
So after getting into shooters a few months ago, I can already tell I like Compike games the most so far. I enjoy all the different weapons and also the difficulty always seems to be right in the perfect place. You can tell some passion went into these games, and the people that made them loved shooters themselves.
@@ShmupJunkie The UK box art show me that the main character is a female like Samus I was stud to see that and no one really talking about it even back then.
Awesome review dude! I have to agree Compile changed the game with every release they put out. The visuals, the music, the challenge, it was all Analog/Digital Drugs!
They got us addicted to that shooter crackpipe nice and early! And we've been Junkies ever since. Their goal was to make fun console games versus arcade quarter munchers and they did it well.
Awesome episode. Compile was a great company. Five years after the original company ceased operations, we ended up getting a successor company, Compile Heart. I might have to check out the Aleste collection soon. I'm not sure if Spriggan Powered on Super NES/SFC was a Compile title, but the developer was KID. As far as the Crush series, Devil Crash MD (Genesis) was ported by Technosoft. There was Jaki Crush on SFC as well.
Unfortunately Compile heart is a very different company without any focus on shmups. Luckily M2 has picked up the slack and even bringing in old Compile talent which is awesome to see. The new GG Aleste 3 is shmup of the year in both my, and now Mark_MSX opinion from Electric Underground, so you will not be disappointed in that new game. It's exceptional. Which you already know what I think if you saw my review of it. Powered was not by Compile at all no, just shared the license. And yeah, Technosoft did an excellent job porting and publishing the mega drive version. I don't know if they only published, or also ported, but I do know Compile made the original game. I have heard great things about the new Demon's Tilt btw which is a modern homage to the game and can even play extra tall in vertical mode. Pretty neat.
Meerrry Shmupmas! Thank you and I don't take that appreciation for granted. I keep making them because so many are enjoying them. I just try to do what is exciting me that particular week and do a good job with it.
An absolutely essential history lesson. Thank you so much for making this! I've been preaching at the church of Naxat Crush Pinball for years, but I had no idea that Compile was involved in their development. It looks like they did the SFC entry Jaki Crush too. Amazing.
Thanks! I've been wanting to make this for a while, as there just wasn't anything good on YT like it I could find. They needed to be done justice. They did Alien, Devils, and I am not sure about Jaki but if their name is on the box, at the least they ported it. The soundtracks to them have always been so good. I just grabbed a Vinyl with Alien and Devils that came out recently.
Thanks! And thank you for the congrats. Not enough good info is out there about Compile, so I hope it opens up a lot of eyes that may not have known much about them. I learned a few things myself last week doing all the research.
I have my fingers crossed Branch comes out as good as the GG Aleste 3 did. The more modern Raizing style gameplay, or so it looks, will make a lot of Garegga players happy I think. Excited to see what comes of it.
My brother bought me Zanac for NES in a used bin at Kmart back in the early 90s. He thought it was Life Force based on the cartridge art. Turns out it was way better, maybe my fav shmup of all time, so fast and so pure. Loved watching this history, now I have a whole catalog of other games to try out when the mood strikes me! We’re all lucky to have people like you putting together this amazing content to stumble on in a RUclips hole.
I’m glad you did stumble onto my channel and this hole. It’s been a blast sharing my love for these classics over the last couple years since I started. I’m a big fan of life force as well on nes for pure nostalgia along with Zanac and a small handful of others. If you loved Zanac please try Gun Nac, it’s an amped up evolution of the gameplay and one of my nes favorites too.
I'm loving my MiSTer and trying out a lot of great MSX games on it, including many I missed from Compile at the time. I will always love the NES Zanac as that was my personal first, and it plays so nice and fast. But it was great trying out the originals on MSX as well and seeing where it all started.
I am really new to this genre and I would like to learn more about the history. In this regard, the video was excellent! Great job, also the tunes of Compile shooters are ridiculously good, such bangers! MUSHA main theme is just bonkers.
I'm glad you enjoyed it and it was useful for you too. Compile knew how to squeeze the performance out of a console and I've ye to play one of their games without some cool tunes. Musha is definitely exceptional there. There's a cool article/interview on the sound design for Musha on shmuplations.com
Yep. Compile is my number 1 favorite developer of shooters. They changed the game in a major way. Also, people may not know that it was COMPILE who taught shooter fans how to ignore the fast scrolling backgrounds and focus on sprites entirely.
Awesome video dude. I got my copy of the aleste collection a few weeks ago now and gotta say I thought I'd be playing power strike 2 a lot more but I just can't stop playing aleste.
I’m kind of the same. Not everyone likes the original power strike it’s not as diverse or graphically impressive, but there is something about that nonstop assault of bullets that gets me into a zone that I enjoy. I like it a lot too. Don’t miss the new GG3 game either it’s really something else.
You did an amazing job on this. That there is a Guardian Legend - Blazing Lazers - Alien Crush connection is messing with my mind, man. I gotta sit down...
I love making them! Not too many yet, just this one, RType history, and the PC Engine two parter. I did do one of the developer QUTE too which is good, even though they only have a handful of games they're exceptional. More on the way though.
so im basically going to play every compile game i own the next few days! def gonna buy the m2 collection with my stimulus lol. thanks for an exciting and fun exhaustive retrospective
That M2 collection is nice you'll without a doubt enjoy the new GG3. And hopefully there is plenty of stimulus left over to buy Ramen lol. I never thought I would be playing anything but old Compile games for the rest of my life and that we would get new games from them. 🤘
Shmup Junkie I’ve been doing Gun Nac and Super Aleste the last couple days. I forgot how tough they get at spots. Level 8 of Gun Nac is kicking my ass! Yes, this week I will definitely be purchasing the aleste collection, and then with the rest of my stimulus I think I’m going to get a new 4 track and/or maybe an old guitar amp I’ve had my eye on. Retail therapy really does work lol
Oh yeah, I had to. It's literally the best Shmup on the master system aside from the RType port depending on your preference. Both made by Compile anyway hahaha
As someone who doesn't pay attention to dev logos popping up before the title screen... I'm shocked to hear how many of my favorite shooters are by this one group. Nice vid~
And since they aren’t a household name like the big boys it was great to put them all together in this one video. Compile was a pretty special dev. This was the first history video I ever made. And I enjoyed it so much I kept making more.
@@colinthies3178 Yeah it was my first attempt. Technosoft was much newer and one of my favs. My other ones were for RType history, the developer Qute, a two part PC Engine history, and I’m currently working on a Toaplan documentary. I feel like these kinds of videos will be useful many years from now for others to enjoy and discover.
Dude, you are a top lad. Thrive on the vids, thrive on the love for adrenalin-fueled games, and mint how you top it all odd with 80's movie references.
I'm a big sap for all the old 80s/90s nostalgia so I can't help it with all the old refs haha. Glad you are digging it. I was just watching the one I made the other night called Amazing Shoot em ups of the 80s and 90s. Talk about a hit of nostalgia, the opening few minutes was like a piledriver 😂
@@ShmupJunkie Thing that gets me is how well a lot of these games hold up. I'm just replaying all my Megadrive, SNES & MAME games (around 1500 or so) and the SHMUPS are definitely a highlight of the era, on the Megadrive especially. There's a few good more modern ones like Nex Machina, but that era seemed to nail the game designs the best for me. Even the less respected ones such as Arrow Flash are a great time. I've never played Blazing Lasers though, so will have to give that a go.
Thank you so much. I worked hard on it and I'm glad the results are obvious. Only problem is I keep making it harder and harder for myself to top it lol.
Grazie! Sono molto contento che ti sia piaciuto e benvenuto. Spero che tu possa goderti i miei altri video perché so che non sono sottotitolati. Un giorno mi piacerebbe.
![History of the Amazing PC ENGINE! [Book I]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/PFlMZiCZwVc/mqdefault.jpg)
History of COMPILE Shooters!
Think you know their history? Think again!
Interviews. Insights. Influence.
Discover something new about the most incredible
#Shmup developer of the time. And where they are today!
Compile is Legion! And we are not worthy
.
✅ Subscribe To My Channel ➡️
Support me on PATREON
www.patreon.com/shmupjunkieslushfund
#SHMUPSARESHOOTERS
CHAPTERS:
00:00 - Compile Rocks!
01:32 - It's about Speed
03:44 - Guns, lots of guns
05:32 - Masters of the Shooterverse
09:29 - Music to Shmup by
11:14 - Humble Beginnings
12:01 - Enter the ZANAC
13:18 - ALESTE Begins, Sega and the MSX
17:14 - Rude Breaker NEC PC98
19:08 - Power Strikes Back, the Sega love continues
20:17 - MUSHA, nuf' said
22:47 - Revenge of the NES, Gun Nac and Guardian Legend
24:30 - Blazing Spriggans, Obey PC Engine
26:51 - Super Again, Super Aleste on Super Nintendo
29:22 - Gaming the Gear (GG Aleste Series and GG Aleste 3)
30:28 - Robo Arigato, Aleste Roboto (Sega CD Robo Aleste)
32:35 - The Late Years (Spriggan Mark 2 and Sylphia PC Engine)
35:06 - The RISE of RAIZING
37:35 - Final Swan Song (Zanac X Zanac and Neo)
38:43 - Shmup Masters for Hire
40:03 - COMPILE Today!
Check out this awesome gameplay from the video by some of my Shmup homies!
Rude Breaker Gameplay courtesy of ShmupsBR
ruclips.net/video/v_fkRFMoBfY/видео.html
Sorcerer Striker and Kingdom Grand Prix Gameplay by Chinopolis
ruclips.net/video/L3VF7g_7ZuI/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/O1WqjYT2JCs/видео.html
Follow me on Instagram: instagram.com/turbothunde...
Follow me on Facebook: facebook.com/shmupjunkie
Follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/shmupjunkie
Those bastards are so COLORFUL and FAST!! Ah...!
BTW, what was the animes at 4:23 and 4:29?^^
@@oldfan4049 Yes it was a mix of the old Gunbuster series along with a much newer series called Darling in the Franxx, for the reaction shots 😅
ok, maybe i was wrong about the pc-fx game
i thought Chōshin Heiki Zeroigar was done by them
did you check out Gulkave for the SG-1000 and MSX? the rare horizontal stg by compile
@@ShmupJunkie thanx)
Puyo Puyo is now their most popular franchise.
The amount of content here is impressive. I can't believe there's a nearly hour long video about Compile shooters. Kid me would have loved watching this on TV. Adult me too (lol)
I personally can't believe that a good video for such a legendary developer didn't exist, given how prolific they were. And since I love their work anyway, I took it upon myself to make something that their fans could be proud of. And it's the best performing video I've made yet, so clearly there was a hunger and demand for something like this. It was a lot of work but absolutely worth it.
I cut my teeth on Blazing Lasers. That was the whole reason I got a TG16 in.....90? 91? Loved the mini pc engine! Good stuff!
Nice to see you here kenny, love your videos
yooooo Kenny Lauderdale didn't expect you here!
I didn’t grow up playing shooters but I have come to love them in recent years. It blows me away how it appears you could talk about these games for days and have no choice but to put together a cliffs notes version for us who can’t even begin to describe these games. Thanks for all the work!
I try to condense my days of rambling into something entertaining for 30min or so 😅. But yeah I can ramble about them for days. Likely could’ve made a video this long talking about just one of these games in detail. But I’m really just spreading the love for exactly the reason you said. Some grew up with them and enjoy the nostalgia of a video like this. While others are getting an inside look on an era they didn’t experience or weren’t as interested in that the time. And I have many more I’d love to make I hope I can keep it up for a long while.
Man, you have outdone yourself with this documentary. One might say you're the Compile of shmups RUclipsrs :D Great stuff, I'll rewatch twice.
Thanks I really appreciate the positive feedback. I certainly did work my butt off on it and am glad it's being well received so far. So I am now a Shmuptuber? 😂 That's actually a cool name for a channel, ShmupTube. Why didn't I think of that when I was starting out lol. That's actually a good comparison, as Compile was all about console games until they formed Raizing, and I am mostly about console Shmups. Where someone like Mark is much more the Raizing/Cave of Shmuptube with an arcade, skill based focus. That's gonna have to be in a podcast one day 😅
Compile style is one of my favourites, their games aren't ultra hard like others and the pacing is always fast and fun. Some people criticize the length and samey power ups system in all their games but I think they just wanted to make games familiar to all players, and instead on trying to learn new mechanics, if you already played any of their games you are ready to go. Also a bigger game feels more worth the money, at least that's what's probably they thought. Compile was as important for the shmup genre as Toaplan. One for the Arcades and the other for home systems. Hope the new games get enough attention and that way M2 could bring more new entries, maybe even sequels of old Compile classics.
You made a good point about their games being more accessible and not ultra hard right away and I totally agree there. A lot of people remember their games well as they made them feel like a hero while playing. And they always had a solid hard more for anyone that wanted even more challenge. It was interesting to read that Sega were the ones pushing them to make the games harder early on. I am doing my best to help bring attention to the new releases so we do in fact get more sequels in the future. A true 16bit mega drive sequel would be pretty out of this world.
I agree with you here. I'm new to to the stg genre and am not very good but compile games are a really good way to practice because I can play games with similar power up systems and learn the ins and outs of those and I'm becoming a much better player because of it. The main ones I've played through have been blazing lazers/gunhed, super star soldier, final star soldier, and now working through soldier blade. Weird how compile never makes the best shooters of all time lists
@@ungabungus01 A lot of their work wasn’t credited at the time or for hire. So they didn’t get the big name recognition. But they certainly deserved it as far as console games go. How are you enjoying the Soldier games? They always had the ingredients I wanted most in a shooter.
@@ShmupJunkie they've been great. I find through them it is a bit hard to balance punishing the player for getting hit vs overall game difficulty. Blazing lazers and super star soldier are alike in that if you lose your power ups late into the game it is extremely hard to get momentum going again, but final soldier is rather easy compared to those others.
Clicked 'like' before I even started watching.
EDIT: Compile's president was gangsta, going off on Konami and Irem like that.
Then your journey to the dark side is complete! 😂
Dude! I thought the madness from Zanac was simply RNG! Who knew it was a RANK system way back in 1985? Shmup Junkie knew! I love your videos, my dude!
Ah, this is quite a collection of games you've managed to... ...COMPILE.
It was in an interview I read the name wasn't an accident. They specifically used the English word for Compiling code. Long as they keep compiling I will keep buying! 😂
@@ShmupJunkie Love Compile. I just wish I recognised their greatness at a younger age. Back then, if it wasn't a game by Nintendo, Sega, Capcom, Konami or a few Amiga developers like Factor 5, Bitmap Brothers, Sensible Software, I didn't really pay attention to them. Of course I saw great games by developers not developed by the above, but their names didn't stick with me as the developers of that great game I once played.
I missed out on a lot because of that. You were shaped by Compile. Moulded by them. I didn't play MUSHA until I was already a man!
When MUSHA's opening music came on I got goosebumps.
That's how Blazing Lazers is for me. Hits you right in the feels every time. 😬
@@ShmupJunkie I was playing Radrigy Nao when watching this. I love the mechanics and art but the music just makes me crave those old synthmetal tracks.
that intro is one of my best memories of early genesis gaming
@@gpturismo Milestone and their games is one thing I wanted to also include in the video as exCompile but it was getting too long. So I saved it for another time. Those were some fun games too even if not as crazy successful as Raizing
Musha ALESTE!
Just want to say that your content as of late is really something! You and The Electric Underground are my go to SHMUP channels without shadow of a doubt!
Thanks man, I appreciate that. I try. Mark is awesome, he is honestly one of the only YT channels I make time to watch with my limited amount. He deserves the support. I just started making these several months ago so I am stoked to even be mentioned in the same context as his stuff.
@@ShmupJunkie buddy you deserve it! Your channel has also come around at the perfect time for me as over the last 4-5 months i've got into a real SHMUP kick after a decade and a half of single player, story driven action adventure titles. And with the exception of the Yakuza series, i'm totally fatigued! SHMUPS and 3d arcade racers (daytona, sega rally, ridge racer etc) are my go to genres right now. I totally suck at the shmups i play at the moment except axelay, but having a blast all the same!
@@whatamalike you’re loving them is all that matters. I know many people see shmups as skill based and getting the 1cc etc. And I get it, it’s a staple of the arcade days. But I’m perfectly happy just playing and enjoying them whether I can finish them perfect or not. I just enjoy them too.
@@ShmupJunkie the very aesthetic and intricate design that goes into them is mind-blowing.
Another astonishing documentary. We are very blessed to have you Sir!
Thanks! This was the first real "history" video I did besides the more general Amazing Shmups of the 80s and 90s video. And everyone enjoyed it so much I had to make more. Plus I'm a big Compile fan so I had to.
This is a great over view and history of all of Compiles shooters. It sucks that people don't give them the recognition they deserve, even though I am a giant Puyo Puyo fan and will say that it is their best series of games imo
Puyo just isn't my type of game so I'd be the wrong person to comment on them at all, so I kept it brief here. But given their popularity I certainly wouldn't argue that point at all.
Your channel is now my favourite
on youtube, I've been into shmups for decades and the content you 've been putting out is knocking it out the park.
Hey thanks! I am definitely trying my best and enjoying it along the way. I just keep coming up with content that I would enjoy or want to watch myself and the rest kind of takes care of itself.
I can imagine you at school whenever an essay was set, you finding a way to include shoot em ups in it! Your passion for the genre is infectious mate. You are forever educating me with every video!
I actually still have an old book report I did with tons of photos and material pages on video games, around 6th-7th grade I think. I gotta take a pic o of that cover one day and post it in a story, it's still cool. And you know it's got Turbo there on the front lol.
@@ShmupJunkie haha, I knew it!
@@ShmupJunkie That book report sounds awesome.
I recently played Gulkave. You know these guys are good when they can make a fast, smooth, still-fun-today shooter with many different stages and catchy music.... for the frigging SG-1000! It was their first horizontal shooter, BTW.
You know it. They started on SG1000 I think. If they can push the hardware on that system they can do it on anything. Not a single game they made, best or mediocre, that didn't take advantage of the hardware properly and efficiently.
@@ShmupJunkie For sure. I'm currently trying to play all Compile shmups in chronological order, starting with the 8-bit entries. Had a lot of fun with Zanac on the NES and then Aleste on both SMS and MSX2+. The MSX2 version of Aleste is basically the same as the SMS one, but with anime stills intro and outro, slightly better FM sound and even more slowdown. The game is very technically impressive for an 1987 MSX2 game. At that time, most other devs couldn't get the system to scroll the screen smoothly (if at all) or put more than two colors on a sprite (see: the sad Rastan port). So matching an SMS game in technical aspects was no small feat. However, I'm now playing Aleste 2 and what they did with that game is simply mind-blowing. It's hard to believe that it's running on the same hardware, kind of like going from Thunder Force 2 to 4. In fact, it could pass for a 16-bit game, with only the lack of any parallax effects, small sprites (which are still very large for the hardware) and flicker to give it away as an 8-bit experience. Great FM music/sound that's like a good early Mega Drive game, excellent color and background detail, large animated bosses, perfectly smooth scrolling and much less slowdown than the first game! In fact, the relative lack of slowdown was really kicking my ass at first, because just like the first game, this one throws a ton of crap at you right away. That trademark Compile sense of speed, great feeling of blowing tons of crap up, excellent design creativity and awesome soundtrack to it all, are all there! I am really glad that I finally had a chance to play the direct prequel for my favorite Super Famicom shmup (Super Aleste) and that it's exceeding my expectations. As far as I know, the only other technically amazing "can pass for 16-bit" shmup on the system is Konami's Space Manbow, as they were another dev house who had a perfect handle on this "interesting" piece of hardware, making it do things that it was never designed to.
Great vid, I'm still hoping for a Guardian Legend sequel.
We got one already! It’s called “Nier Automata” on PS4! Lol, it’s got a lot of similarities. But yeah, we need a true guardian legend sequel. Guardian legend is my second favorite nes game, only after legend of Zelda.
Yeah I am not holding my breath on a "true sequel" but I do wonder who owns the right to it. It's not an Aleste IP so I am not sure.
There's a similar game for the GBA called Sigma Star Saga by WayForward worth checking out.
@@Korgoth9 thanks. I’m not super familiar with a lot of GBA games so I totally could have missed it and more. I’ll look up a video of it. I see Snesdrunk has a short review of it.
Agreed, The Guardian Legend is one of my favorite games of all time.
Such a great hybrid, combining puzzle solving, exploration and character upgrade with a shmup in a completely seamless way, this type of genre fusion has SO much potential!
As a kid, I've loved to play Star Force and Star Soldier, then I've discovered Zanac with all the weapons, secret power-ups, varying stages, bosses and dynamic action. To this day I remember the first time I've made it to the final boss, having just a few lives left but still managed to beat it. Totally hardcore for an 11 year old kid. That game, along with Gradius series, defined my love for shmups. I was really excited when years later I've found out that Compile made more games following Zanac's style.
Man I'm so glad RUclips recommended me your channel!!! TOP TIER CONTENT!!!
Me too! I love when new people find me and the RUclips algorithm does it’s job. I hope you enjoy what I have here. If you liked this video, I did another nostalgia vid not long ago titled Amazing Shmups of the 80s and 90s that’s a great trip.
@@ShmupJunkie I will check that one out, greetings from Puerto Rico!!!
EDDIE! Now I can play with gladness.
Estou produzindo um Shmup para steam, conheci o canal e nem sei dizer o quanto está sendo didática a experiência dos seus vídeos. Espero em breve finalizar meu trabalho com as referências e aprendizagem que você está proporcionando, parabéns pelo seu trabalho.
Boa sorte
@@akiradkcn obrigado
Not to forget that the Aleste Collection is also on PS4. I play GG Aleste 3 everyday since release and it's a staggeringly good shooter which is up there with any of the modern shooter releases. Titles like Sorcer Striker and Battle Garegga are available on PS4 too and well worth picking up. Hopefully Sorcer Striker and Dangun Feveron will get a physical release which they deserve. A great video showcasing Compile. These deep dives into shooter history are superb and hopefully you can carry on with these as I know they take a lot of time and effort to put together.
I often forget to mention the PS4! I don't know what it is as I own one too and play it a lot, I just don't have too many Shmups for it. But I do Ketsui Deathtiny as well as some of the other PS4 exclusives. I am going to download Sorcerer Striker for it this week as that's a great game I can't play any other way except for on my PC Emulated right now. I admit this video took a lot out of me because of how time consuming, but I can't help myself I really enjoy making them. And I will slowly make more.,.. only with some breaks in between!
MUSHA was what got me into shmups, over a decade ago. Wii Virtual Console was great. I always hold any shmup to the quality of MUSHA. I'm very excited to see what M2 and Compile do going forward.
It would be awesome to see them make another original game like they did recently with GG3 only using some more powerful hardware like the Mega Drive. That’ll be killer.
Rude Breaker totally looks like a proto- Raizing game. Hope this makes it to an M2 collection at some point in the future
there is a way to emulate it. But it is hard to set up. But well worth it.
@@rockkiall ruclips.net/video/aOD_bGNtuFY/видео.html
If they have the rights it would be very cool. Maybe an option for the MSX collection, since it was a disc system game just like Aleste Gaiden. We can hope as the music was excellent.
@@rockkiall PC98 emulation is really weird in Android. Retroarch's Project Neko II Kai doesn't support Save States while I like to play games in sessions and not in one go. There was another emulator which had Save States but very weird on-screen controls
MUSHA is just amazing, just everything together, the graphics, the music and overall atmosphere just makes it such an enjoyable experiance. I really hope M2 do a proper Megadrive sequel like they have recently done with the Aleste Game Gear game. Imagine a Megadrive follow up to MUSHA on a 24 meg cart.
I think many of us would drop our pants to see a 16bit Mega Drive Musha sequel made by Nakashima and M2. It couldn't be anything but amazing. I have a feeling we may get one someday when they are ready. I think they are working up to it and know it's not easy to do that game justice.
It was included on the Mega drive mini only in japan IIRC, so there's hope it can still be ported or remastered.
I absolutely love Mahou Daisakusen, such a fantastic game. The game oozes charm with its art style, music and the gameplay. Thank you for providing us with such a fantastic tribute to a legendary developer!
Any time man, and yes I love the design and art syle in SS as well. Raizing will get their whole own video someday, but I couldn't not give them a proper bit of tribute here. Those first games especially were like a continuation of the Compile tradition.
For me, that game represents the high point of the golden age of shooters, what a beautiful game. It sure reminds me of Musha.
You are truly a historian for 80s/90s games, thank you for compiling the info, im doing pixel art and the 80s/90s are truly what inspired me for my work, thank you
Compiling the info, I see what you did there haha. I'm glad you enjoyed it, this was the first history video I'd ever done and it was the most popular of all my vids at the time. So it started me on the path of making more as they're definitely fun to do. Just really big projects.
Awesome work man! As a Compile fan since my early childhood, this is the kind of stuff I want on RUclips every time I load the app. That's why I pay the Internet bill! Kudos! Count on me if you need my help again!
I can't thank you enough already for the help you provided, and sorry for the late response. The comments have been overwhelming but I appreciate them all. It was your recommendation and help that got me finished. Even if I went a bit overboard with the effects toward the end using Resolve. 😂
MUSHA was legendary on the Genesis/Mega Drive. The intro, music, firepower and fast game play always made my palms sweat! Thanks for this video!
You’re welcome. It’ll always be one of those games I can replay for nostalgia alone until I’m old and grey. Or older and grayer than I already am 😄
No wonder playing Compile games after being stressed out by Battle Garegga felt like, uh, home. Many design stuff like destructible bullets and big ships are several of Compile staples.
For both aspiring shmup developers and acute shmup junkies, checking out Compile shooters is a must.
The bullet cancelling was one thing I wanted to talk about a little and just couldn't fit it in with the delays, but it was in the plans. Them being primarily a home console developer mad it easier to create games anyone can play and enjoy instead of eating quarters like the arcade. Garegga is technically a partial Compile game too, but it's also arcade and Yagawa right. I am sure it was his influence that made it so much more brutal. And they were already going that direction with Batrider.
@@ShmupJunkie lol. Speaking of Compile’s influence within Garegga, you don’t see often shmups that give you lots of extends easily and doesn’t have checkpoints. One of Compile staples is very generous extends and it’s normal to gain around 6 extends per run just by scoring alone in Battle Garegga. This is where Yagawa’s brutality comes in: Rank System. Without rank system, Battle Garegga’s extends would make the game too humane and arcade operators don’t like that. The Premium mode is the prime example of that.
Yeah, I think you get around 6 extends in GGA3 too in a single run. Meanwhile GGA1 would give a dozen.
You have the best Shump channel Period. all The other channels do not give any info regarding platforms available or anything.Basically You are the only channel I follow
Dude! This is professional grade video. This is incredible. The editing and writing ...Magnificent!! Wow!! The script in incredible too. This is fantastic man. Incredible.
Ha I really appreciate that feedback. I know it's come a long way from the early days, but I also still so much room for imprvement. But I keep learning new editing tricks, and changing little things I thought could have been better, so I think it will continue to improve. But the most important thing to me is that people are enjoying them as much as I do making them despite all the work. It's certainly keeping me busy during lockdown.
I consider myself knowledgeable on this topic and these games, but I learned a LOT watching this.
I learned a few things myself researching and looking through interviews. Certainly never heard of Rude Breaker until just last week.
i didn't know rude breaker was compile, explains a lot about why i like the soundtrack rip so much
@@ShmupJunkie I know this was a lot of work to put this video together. I think this is your best video, yet. More of these developer History videos would be awesome!
Excellent job on this video Junkie. Someone had to illustrate the masses on the influence of the original Compile crew over the genre across more than 30 years already, and that someone had to be you. There's still more to talk about when looking at Milestone and RS34 and a couple of others (perhaps for a part 2 someday :D), Compile's OG crew is simply too influential in a genre that was born with the medium. Great vid, worth the wait and the hard work you have poured into it. This is my favorite type of content to discuss and bring forward. GGs Junkie!
Thanks my friend and if this video inspires you to keep working on your favorite devs that only you can do justice, then it will have been worth it for that alone. Milestone and other split offs was one of the aspects I wanted to get into, but I feared it would cross the hour mark and become too much. So yeah, perhaps for the next series. I'm also not as familiar with them vs Raizing, even if I did play Radirgy and some others a bit, I need much more time to explore those games before I could really talk about them. So I focused on what I knew and appreciated most. I think the Toaplan/Raizing connection and games in general deserve their own video, so that's definitely on the table.
Fantastic video !! Compile is also my favorite shmup developer and I am extremely happy that they are working on a new game. I also cannot wait for the msx collection, as I have never had access to these games. M2 is doing fantastic work here ! Thanks for the video !
I got to play the MSX games for the first time ever on my Mister last week for the video. You will definitely enjoy getting to play Aleste 2 when that happens, which does seem to be in the plans. MSX was not a popular platform outside of certain countries, including the US. So I hope they can manage to make another new game to sweeten the pot. But Aleste 2 will be great to see.
Rude Breaker is such a killer name for a shmup.
Right! Sometimes the language barrier produces names a native speaker would just never come up with.
@@ShmupJunkie "bad English" from a variety of countries has taught me so much more about English and its expressive possibilities than just about any academic institution ever could!
Aleste aka Power Strike on the Sega Master System was my introduction to shmups, and served to train me well as a child. My best friend and I would take turns and see how far we could get. The game would slow down with all of the sprites on screen, serving as a matrix-like time buffer so we could dodge the barrage of enemy bullets. God I love this game so much, and am eternally grateful for your masterful coverage of Compile!
That's a good comparison, playing the original is very Matrix like in how you have to dodge once the screen gets crowded. I don't usually like slowdown in my shmups but something about it on the original seems to flow well. Playing it with no slowdown on the M2 collection is simply brutal.
the key is to use i-frames from pickups to fly through stuff
I'll always owe compile for making me a shooter junkie. I dismissed the genre for decades after some frustrating early experiences (especially with Gradius as a kid) and only came around after my first playthrough of The Guardian Legend in 2017. Since then, I've been addicted and have cleared dozens of great shooters, including Gradius.
I still maintain that Compile's stuff in general is the single best gateway to classic shooters for newcomers. They hit a sweet spot after Zanac and the first couple Aleste titles where the default difficulty in most games is perfect for not scaring off the inexperienced, which really allows the speed and exciting power-up systems time to sink their hooks in. I can certainly appreciate Toaplan and Irem shooters now, for example, but they tended to make no effort at all to ease you in like that.
You hit the nail on the head with many Compile games being great entry points for players. Their earlier games like you mentioned were still pretty tough. Not a lot of people could get very far. And it turned out to be because Sega was pushing them to make the games harder. The later games like Blazing Lazers and Super Aleste eased you in and were pretty playable for most until at least after the first 2-3 stages. They knew they were making console games and did not want to approach it like arcade games meant to eat quarters. You had paid for the game already, full price, so the goal was fun, not to eat money. I can relate RType in the arcade kicked my ass. I never got past stage 4 until it finally came out on the Turbografx where I could play it to my heart's content and learn it. I love them now too but agree they were brutal.
I just discovered this channel and it has become one of my favorites on youtube. This is a great video on the history of Compile and their awesome games. Thank you.
Awesome and thanks! Always love when new people find me and want to see more of what I’ve been doing. I’m going to make more of these historical videos over time as people really seem to love them.
Maaaaaaan, your channel has seriously helped me out with my favorite Videogame genre. Thank you very much Shmup Junkie for your phenomenally funtaztic heArtwork for Shmups & Bullet Heavens
🕹🖼🎼SHMUPZ🔊📼🎮
Thanks! I’m very glad to hear you’re enjoying it so much. My top goal is helping make the genre more popular again and getting people excited to play these games along with all the great new ones coming out. Hope you enjoy my other vids too 👌
Every time I watch your videos I get a sense of nostalgia along with hope for a better future for STG's. Another banger keep up the great work bro! Can't wait for that Aleste Branch to come out.
We have to enjoy the great resurgence of STGs right now in the present as nothing last forever. And it's not likely something anyone could have predicted. I doubt it's every going mainstream again which is for the best given the dodgy track record of larger studios anyway. The indie devs are doing a great job innovating. Though I admit it's exciting to some the bigger devs like Konami putting money back into the genre again too. It's definitely a good time to be a fan.
Amazing video! I agree that Compile are probably number one when it comes to shooters. But this video had some games I'd never previously heard of, so I'll be looking out for those! And if the MSX Aleste Collection becomes reality, I'll definitely be getting it.
According to the early notes we saw in the current collection interview, they definitely have an MSX collection in the works. So it very well could be a reality. I am most curious about whether they will try to make an all new game again to go along with it.
Thank you SO much for making an excellent video on one of the world's best SHMUP developers!!!
You’re welcome. This was the first history video I ever made!
These guys and Technosoft are my top 2 I think. Then Raizing, Taito or Toaplan perhaps. Part of that is avoiding annoying things like making it near impossible to recover after death later on, scarce checkpoints, and a lack of manual speed adjustment and weapon inventory. Everything else is just generally well designed as well, with a lot weapons as you said, and the games tend to look and sound great to top it off. Nice vid!
I think since Compile was console/home focused vs arcade, that definitely helped make their games more foregiving and accessible. They didn't need to design them to eat quarters and be incredibly difficult. I love me some Tatsujin but clearly that game is brutally hard compared to anything Compile made. If you love Tehcnosoft too you'll be happy to know I have something brewing for them as well.
@@ShmupJunkie Good point, and looking forward to that.
Creative talent isn't rewarded enough. And I m as creative as a rock.
This video did the incredible talent of Compile justice. What a treat your work is. Thank you.
That's awesome man, very kind of you to say. I really love Compile so I wanted to do right by them. And hope someday some of them may see the video and be stoked something like that exists. That would make my day.
Wow, you've really done it this time, divine stuff, best on RUclips!! 👏
Thanks that's kind feedback to get. It's really hard to keep trying to top what I did before, but I am enjoying trying to do it. As long as it's a subject you enjoy the rest takes care of itself.
@@ShmupJunkie did you know they made a game called Blaster Burn? It consists of multiple volumes on these MSX discstations.
@@merlijn2000 That sounds vaguely familiar but I don’t think I’ve ever seen gameplay or what they were. Shoot em ups also? The name sure sounds like it.
Bro, this is absolutely FANTASTIC! Thank you so, so much for making this! I absolutely adore Compile. I didn't grow up playing shmups and have only been into them for the last 7 years or so. I have to say, Compile games to me are the perfect blend of fun and difficulty. I can approach them without an overabundant amount of routing, but still need to occasionally practice the more difficult parts. So far I've 1cc'd MUSHA, Super Aleste, and GG Aleste. Perfect blend of challenge and fun. Compile absolutely deserves more recognition. And they freaking made Puyo Puyo! Best puzzle game since Tetris. Absolute legends.
You made a great point right there, is that Compile games are fun and not just for veterans. They are console games by design and made to be more accessible than arcade shooters of that time. I think that's why many of us have a fondness for them as well. I was able to pick up many of them and enjoy them as a kid. And they always made a really good "hard" setting for those that wanted the extra challenge. Super Aleste is a great example, the hard mode in that game is HARD! But it's perfect for anyone who has mastered the game and wants the next level of challenge. I really enjoyed making the video and I will do more of them no doubt.
Bellissima retrospettiva! Iscritto! Bravo bravo bravo!
Grazie! Sono molto contento che ti sia piaciuto e benvenuto. Spero che tu possa goderti i miei altri video perché so che non sono sottotitolati. Un giorno mi piacerebbe.
After diving into shmups in the past year, I'm so happy to have found your channel! I've quickly found Compile to be top tier stuff, and can't wait to collect more games from their catalogue of amazing shooters. Recently beat Super Aleste, which was an awesome experience. Currently working on Gun Nac.
Compile was awesome, they were a bit different than most as they only made console games versus many others that were porting from arcade games. Their games were often more beginner friendly and a big reason they got many into the genre including me. Gun Nac is one of the coolest shooters on the NES, period. I always enjoyed that game and it plays like the older Aleste and Zanac games only improved. I'm glad you found me and hope you enjoy some of the other similar videos I've done.
Can't believe I havent been recommended to your channel earlier
Damn that algorithm! 🤣. Well I’m glad you found me now. I only have several months of content behind me I started mid last year, so shouldn’t take too long to catch up haha.
I just jumped over from the Legacy Of R-TYPE doc. Algae Riddim be danged, I'm staying here.
Excellent video. Thank you very much. We only needed to talk about the Blaster Burn series, for Compile's digital magazine "Disk Station" (MSX) and also about Randar, Compile's mascot.
I was trying to squeeze in everything I can, but I know still missed some things. Compile did so much it is hard to get everything. There are many Disc Station games and series I have not played yet either I would like to, like the original Guardic game as well.
Glad to see Aleste is making a comeback after all these years.
I'm even more excited the ex-Compile staff are working with M2 to make even more! I can't say I ever would have expected that.
@@ShmupJunkie And Aleste Branch looks really great. I get more excited over the game just watching your videos.
As a kid I loved many of these games, and many years later while looking things up on wikipedia, I found out that all of them were made by the same developer. It both blew my mind and made a lot of sense at the same time, and I've been a fan of Compile ever since. However I didn't know that a lot of their staff went on to make their own company, or about recent games in Aleste series. Thanks for this in depth video. I'll definitely check these games out.
It’s awesome that I could at least shed some new light on the company and throw out some new info about where they ended up. The early Raizing games especially like the Mahou Daisakusen series and Soukyugurentai are in a similar spirit to their older stuff. Before Yagawa came in with stuff like Battle Garegga and Batrider. But if you haven’t yet, definitely check out the new GG Aleste 3 game from last year. If you didn’t know, you’d guess it was made during that era with enhanced effects. I had a blast with it.
I didn't grow up playing Compile shooters so there's no real nostalgia for me.
I stumbled upon MUSHA and SPACE MEGAFORCE through recommendations and I gotta say they're some of the finest old shooters I've played.
Super Aleste's music is top notch. I like my shmups funky n groovy 😆
Hey man I think the tunes in Super Aleste are cool too. So very different from Musha but they fit the pace. Those two are in fact some of the best console shooters around so you’re in good company.
Awesome that you included Rude Breaker and Aleste Gaiden! Some of the Disc Station discs for MSX also have the "Blaster Burn" series and "Randar Burn" where you get to play as Compile's cool mascot, Randar!
It was thanks to a friend of mine on Discord that got me going on Rude Breaker and hooked me up with the emulator. Quite a cool game I'd never played. I was finally able to play Aleste 2 and Gaiden using the Mister in a proper way and really enjoyed it a lot too. Short but well made and fun, I can see myself going back to it again. Reminds me a lot of Undeadline just not nearly as unforgiving. The Disc Station games are something I was not even familiar with until I started all the extra research, so I've got a lot more to explore as I keep finding MSX games to try out on the Mister!
Hello friend !!!! What an amazing video on compile !!! Very cool of you to mention ShmupBR which is an excellent channel.Like !!!
ShmupsBR / Felipe is a great guy and part of the community and been very helpful to me in the short time we have known each other. He deserves more subs and anything I can do to help him out I will. We talked about doing a podcast for his channel at some point, so that may still happen.
@@ShmupJunkie Thank you all for the support! Whatever I do for shmups I do totally out of passion and dedication since I was a kid. You guys have no idea how much this has not made me happy, but is helping me deal with mental health on this crazy times we're dealing. I can only thank you, my audience, and the opportunity to do something good and positive on this dark times we have ahead.
@@ShmupJunkie His channel really deserves more subscribers, how cool I am waiting for this podcast.
That Blazing Lazers stage 4 track is one of my favorites of the era. Really showed what the turbo could do in the right hands. Also the first shooter I really got into. Made me appreciate the genre.
Those drumbeats on stage 4 are rad, I wish more hucard games used the sound chip in the way blazing did. I used to play the classic stuff back on NES, a good bit of shooters, but despite enjoying them I was mostly into platformers. Blazing is what really opened the door for me too, and I just wanted more and more. It got a lot of us into the genre I think.
@@ShmupJunkie I had the Hang-On/Astro Warrior combo for the SMS. I also had Fantasy Zone. Those games were fun but Blazing Lazers was really an eye-opener.
The drums are insane. Another great Hu-Card game with awesome music is Dungeon Explorer. I seriously wish at least one of those was the pack-in. Keith Courage just made so many of my friends laugh at me :(
The Aleste collection wasn't much of a priority for me (physical copies cost more) but you basically talked me into it now. M2 continues to go above and beyond with retro games.
Also just a small thing I want to point out, in Spriggan 2 pause during the game and there's an option menu to turn off text and cutscenes.
Is Spriggan powered not related? I don't think they were involved right?
Yeah Spriggan Powered is not a Compile game so I didn't mention it. I've actually not played it before either. I remember turning off the text and cut scenes, and I can't recall what it was, maybe I missed something, but there was something that still kept interrupting it. The cut scenes were actually really well done I didn't mind them. Just the actual in game stoppage was so often it started to get tiresome. That new GG3 game is really impressive. Maybe someday they will make a separate release just for it as well.
@@ShmupJunkie Yeah, I only played Mark II once on the PCE mini, I need to play it again and see if I'm remembering that correctly, haven' played powered either, it looks fine but not as good as the real Compile games.
I forgot to mention how great of a job you did with the video. You could've just mentioned each game with minimal info and a bit of stock gameplay but you took the time to get into the dev history and it's easy to tell you have experience with all of these games. Your passion for the genre really shows here.
I can't say I've ever seen a shooter retrospective besides Cave (edit or IREM), glad someone is doing it and I'm definitely looking forward to whatever shooters you next.
@@JetWolfEX This video was very well received so the mob hath spoken. There will no doubt be more of these. Aside from really enjoying it myself too so thank you.
Only ever played Super Aleste/Space Megaforce (and Musha on an emulator)
Fantastic game and still one of my favourites on the SNES. the music and explosion sound effects still stick out
A lot of those sound effects were used from previous games as well, it sounds a lot like blazing lasers on the turbo.
Awesome...just awesome
thank you, happy with how it turned out and that so many enjoyed it.
Not only is this one of the best retro-gaming videos on the internet, it fills a major void in that it's the only comprehensive overview of the Arrester series, which is easily the best shoot-'em-up series of all time. Gradius is my favorite horizontal shoot-'em-up series, but it's slightly below Arrester. Konami were masters of the genre, but they never came up with power-ups and frenetic gameplay quite on the level of what Compile did.
Thanks. I’m a huge fan obviously and the void for a great Compile video was real, so if I was going to do something for them it had to be special. I worked my ass off making this but it was more than worth it. It’s blown up and shown how hungry people are for their games and beloved they were. I’m honestly stoked m2 has the rights now to at least some of the Aleste games and the name, and already making new games for the series with the help and input of some old compile staff. That’s pretty exciting!
i would do horrible things to get MUSHA on the switch
I am surprised it hasn't been ported yet somewhere, since it already has on so many other consoles and eshops. You can bet M2 will do it sooner or later since they own then property now. And it was on the japanese mega drive mini as well.
@@ShmupJunkie wow didn't know m2 owned it now! I'm happy, it couldn't be in better hands :)
Btw I'm loving the video so far! (Couldn't watch in one sitting) Subscribed!
This video is a worthy tribute to Compile! Incredible work Shmup Junkie!!! Love this channel!
This was my very first history video but still an old favorite. It made me want to keep making more like it and I still have many more waiting I'd like to do.
@@ShmupJunkie Can't wait for the new stuff. Also "All Your Base Are Belong To Toaplan" is going to be amazing!! Congrats on the successful backing.
I dig this grand romp. Compile was not only the upper eschelon in puzzle games thanks to Puyo Puyo, but their shmups were a titanic leap above the stars...
I wanna get the Aleste collection and the new game after seeing this. And I hope there's a 2nd collection with MUSHA, Super Aleste, Dennin Aleste, the Guardic games, the MSX games and maybe having GunHed, Gun Nac, Zanac (NES, FDS, Special Famicom and the MSX2 remake) and the Spriggans as unlocks.
I will be honest I never really played Puyo Puyo I was never big on puzzle type games and Tetris, but I know it of course it was huge. M2 will definitely release more Aleste collections you can count on it. In fact there was an easter egg in their latest comic that came with the collection that I show and talk about at the end of the video, regarding their MSX games. Now that M2 owns the Aleste IP I have no doubt they will try to take advantage. Especially if they sell well. I can't wait!
@@ShmupJunkie yeah, baby!! And if M2 ever made another new game, they could make a sequel to Gun Nac, Rude Breaker, or maybe bring the lost Spriggan Powered game to life
Not the Micronics one, but the unreleased Compile arcade game
I'm a shmup junkie too. Good channel and great episode. 42:53 is really how i look when i play my console game during my younger days.
We are all Shmup Junkies now and my goal is to recruit more and more into the growing army haha. I really liked that image sitting in front of the CRT it’s good memories.
It is not the first time I comment a video made by you. But I have to say thank you again. I love shmups and its history. It isn't a popular hobby so such a dedication is rare. You and your videos are great!
Thank you. I am working hard to make it less rare and help increase the popularity by getting people excited about the games. And I’m very glad you enjoyed it 😊
@@ShmupJunkie I love Blazing Star and MUSHA but never knew who or what Compile was. I guess many people ask you that but what are your favourite shooters? It would be nice to hear yours. My top 10 list consists of Blazing Star, Final Soldier, Soldier Blade, Musha, Zero Wing, Zero Gunner 2, Triggerheart Exelica, Ikaruga, Hyper Duel.
You can tell a lot of extra care went into this video. The content and editing are top notch, excellent work! I always wanted to play Blazing Lazers. Didn’t know it was a Compile game!
Oh yeah, and that “shmup racer” was crazy looking!
I'm glad it was a good watch for you and learned some things at the same time. Blazing Lazers is like THE Compile game for any of us who grew up with a Turbografx, so we have a lot of nostalgia for it. Partly why I feature it more often in videos. You mean Kingdom Grand Prix right? It's a very cool game and it was actually released on the Saturn.
@@ShmupJunkie Yeahhh, I sadly never owned a TurboGrafx growing up. That and a 3DO are on my list to buy in the next year or two, haha. Did Kingdom Grand Prix come to the US or was it Japan-only?
@@RewindArcade Almost nobody owned a turbografx so you’re in good company. Grand Prix was Japan only pretty much like all good Saturn shnups aside from a select few.
What could I say.. this was a stunning and well constructed video with lots of great info to learn! so happy to welcome back Aleste with open arms
Thank you again and for all your support. Aleste can be in our arms and hearts forever. As long as they grace us with making more games I will be there to shill for them and support. Games like GG3 are something we couldn't have dreamed of getting as early as just a couple years ago. If someone told me we'd get another Compile game in 2020 I would have told them they are nuts.
Man I feel like I've been living under a rock after learning all the history of COMPILE, just watching the clips I can totally see the influence on tons of other games I've played. No need to feel bad about pushing this video back a week, with the editing and unending flood of information I wouldn't be surprised if you told me it took months! One small touch I really loved was the overlay for each game, with the title on one side and the system on the other...I might have to borrow that format :)
Thanks man I knew you'd like it. I added a card to your channel too during that Sorcerer Striker/Kingdom Grand Prix section. Did it show up for you when you watched? I can't tell as it won't show me my own cards. And I added a link for them too. I started doing those side names for the game and console a few videos ago and I think people like it. It's empty space on a 4:3 image anyway and when I am showing so many games back and forth people can immediately see which game I am showing or talking about. And it's easy to do they are just images I paste there and flip sideways.
@@ShmupJunkie Yep, saw my channel pop up during those sections, thanks again for the shoutout!
@@Chinopolis Thank you for the footage 👍🏻. Not sure how many people click those things but between that and the text link hopefully you at least get a few out of it.
Blazing Lazers was one of the first games I played as a kid. It really made me fall in love with the turbo and shooters! I would go on to play and love other Compile inspired games like Super Star Soldier! What awesome games!
The Soldier series are likely my favorite shooters on the pc engine, so I owe all my love to Compile for inspiring them with Blazing. The new GG Aleste 3 game by the way was programmed by the same guy who did Super Star Soldier. Another reason that game turned out so well.
So glad you have mentioned Blazing Lazers in such a high regards. Alike you I also became a Shooter fan by playing Blazing Lazers as my first 16-bit era game. The brain stage music track is still one of my all favorite retro game music tracks ever! Absolute masterpiece
Yes, that game is when I knew I would love the genre and hoped for many more great games like it. I used to play them before like Life Force and Gradius, but something about Blazing Lazers was next generation. I agree the stage 4 music is awesome, I love the drums/percussion and so impressive for a hucard.
Wow! Thanks for creating an enjoyable history of Compile. I really hope the Aleste collection comes west and the MSX collection would be really something special too!
I'm pretty excited for the rumored MSX collection they plan to work on next, or so it seems. I will be surprised if they ever released a physical in the US, but I don't see why not at least release it in the eShop. Let's hope they do. At least it's not hard to create a Japan account, it's what I did to get it quickly for download.
So happy a new video is out just a few hours after i subscribed! Time to binge :D
Welcome! There is a ton of this kind of content I’ve made the last several months and hope you enjoy it. If you haven’t seen it yet, my nostalgia video called Amazing Shmups of the 80s and 90s is pretty short and one of my all time favorites. I’d love to hear what you thought of it.
@@ShmupJunkieI agree thats amazing and thats where i first subscribed. XD I saw hardest game series first then when i saw that i subbed. :D
Nice video bro! Always nice to wake up and drink some Joe watching a new shooter video!
Sunday morning Shmuptoons 😅
ZANAC was so fast. It was the fastest game I played back then. Years later I grabbed MUSHA which grabs you from the title screen and never lets you go. Amazing game!
Those quotes are genuinely fascinating and amazing and actually insightful.
We can thank Shmuplations mostly for their incredible work. It’s a treasure trove of gaming history. He does indispensable work.
So after getting into shooters a few months ago, I can already tell I like Compike games the most so far. I enjoy all the different weapons and also the difficulty always seems to be right in the perfect place. You can tell some passion went into these games, and the people that made them loved shooters themselves.
I have the Guardian Legend for both NES and Famicom and both CIB and I love this game to this day.
Man I looove that Famicom box art. I only have the NES game so far but have kept my eye open for that beautiful Famicom version.
@@ShmupJunkie The UK box art show me that the main character is a female like Samus I was stud to see that and no one really talking about it even back then.
Awesome review dude! I have to agree Compile changed the game with every release they put out. The visuals, the music, the challenge, it was all Analog/Digital Drugs!
They got us addicted to that shooter crackpipe nice and early! And we've been Junkies ever since. Their goal was to make fun console games versus arcade quarter munchers and they did it well.
Awesome episode. Compile was a great company. Five years after the original company ceased operations, we ended up getting a successor company, Compile Heart. I might have to check out the Aleste collection soon.
I'm not sure if Spriggan Powered on Super NES/SFC was a Compile title, but the developer was KID. As far as the Crush series, Devil Crash MD (Genesis) was ported by Technosoft. There was Jaki Crush on SFC as well.
Unfortunately Compile heart is a very different company without any focus on shmups. Luckily M2 has picked up the slack and even bringing in old Compile talent which is awesome to see. The new GG Aleste 3 is shmup of the year in both my, and now Mark_MSX opinion from Electric Underground, so you will not be disappointed in that new game. It's exceptional. Which you already know what I think if you saw my review of it.
Powered was not by Compile at all no, just shared the license. And yeah, Technosoft did an excellent job porting and publishing the mega drive version. I don't know if they only published, or also ported, but I do know Compile made the original game. I have heard great things about the new Demon's Tilt btw which is a modern homage to the game and can even play extra tall in vertical mode. Pretty neat.
Dude.....AMAZING video. I and many others appreciate the time you put into this, thank you so much for this belated Christmas gift!
Meerrry Shmupmas! Thank you and I don't take that appreciation for granted. I keep making them because so many are enjoying them. I just try to do what is exciting me that particular week and do a good job with it.
An absolutely essential history lesson. Thank you so much for making this!
I've been preaching at the church of Naxat Crush Pinball for years, but I had no idea that Compile was involved in their development. It looks like they did the SFC entry Jaki Crush too. Amazing.
Thanks! I've been wanting to make this for a while, as there just wasn't anything good on YT like it I could find. They needed to be done justice. They did Alien, Devils, and I am not sure about Jaki but if their name is on the box, at the least they ported it. The soundtracks to them have always been so good. I just grabbed a Vinyl with Alien and Devils that came out recently.
Favourite shmup company of all time. TGL, Space Megaforce, Gunac. Didn't realize I missed out on so many games
AMAZING video sir! I learned a bunch of new stuff from this video and agree, compile is one of the greats! Also congrats on 3k subs!
Thanks! And thank you for the congrats. Not enough good info is out there about Compile, so I hope it opens up a lot of eyes that may not have known much about them. I learned a few things myself last week doing all the research.
Great video dude- love this historic videos. Aleste on SMS was a masterpiece, really loved the scenes. Aleste Branch also seems amzing!
I have my fingers crossed Branch comes out as good as the GG Aleste 3 did. The more modern Raizing style gameplay, or so it looks, will make a lot of Garegga players happy I think. Excited to see what comes of it.
@@ShmupJunkie i am one of those (big fun of battle garegga) 😁
My brother bought me Zanac for NES in a used bin at Kmart back in the early 90s. He thought it was Life Force based on the cartridge art. Turns out it was way better, maybe my fav shmup of all time, so fast and so pure. Loved watching this history, now I have a whole catalog of other games to try out when the mood strikes me! We’re all lucky to have people like you putting together this amazing content to stumble on in a RUclips hole.
I’m glad you did stumble onto my channel and this hole. It’s been a blast sharing my love for these classics over the last couple years since I started. I’m a big fan of life force as well on nes for pure nostalgia along with Zanac and a small handful of others. If you loved Zanac please try Gun Nac, it’s an amped up evolution of the gameplay and one of my nes favorites too.
One of the very best video I have seen!!! Kudos for make me remember my good old days playing Aleste series on my MSX 2...
I am just discovering the MSX myself as I never owned one. Finally playing Aleste 2 and Gaiden and more. Some wonderful games on there.
I will always have a soft spot for Zanac EX. What a masterpiece it still is for the MSX 2.
Thanks for a long video chockfull of content.
I'm loving my MiSTer and trying out a lot of great MSX games on it, including many I missed from Compile at the time. I will always love the NES Zanac as that was my personal first, and it plays so nice and fast. But it was great trying out the originals on MSX as well and seeing where it all started.
A fascinating video about Compile, the maker of iconic shmups. 😁
Thank you. This was my first ever history video I made and still one of my favorites. I do love a lot of their games.
Just watched this again - love your enthusiasm as always! Some legendary STGs there. Might stick the PC Engine mini on later... 👍
I am really new to this genre and I would like to learn more about the history. In this regard, the video was excellent! Great job, also the tunes of Compile shooters are ridiculously good, such bangers! MUSHA main theme is just bonkers.
I'm glad you enjoyed it and it was useful for you too. Compile knew how to squeeze the performance out of a console and I've ye to play one of their games without some cool tunes. Musha is definitely exceptional there. There's a cool article/interview on the sound design for Musha on shmuplations.com
Yep. Compile is my number 1 favorite developer of shooters. They changed the game in a major way. Also, people may not know that it was COMPILE who taught shooter fans how to ignore the fast scrolling backgrounds and focus on sprites entirely.
Awesome video dude. I got my copy of the aleste collection a few weeks ago now and gotta say I thought I'd be playing power strike 2 a lot more but I just can't stop playing aleste.
I’m kind of the same. Not everyone likes the original power strike it’s not as diverse or graphically impressive, but there is something about that nonstop assault of bullets that gets me into a zone that I enjoy. I like it a lot too. Don’t miss the new GG3 game either it’s really something else.
You did an amazing job on this. That there is a Guardian Legend - Blazing Lazers - Alien Crush connection is messing with my mind, man. I gotta sit down...
Right? Same company and just endless great games they made. Truly an unsung hero of the development world that deserved a video like this.
I really like these history vids of yours. I'm binge watching them all!
I love making them! Not too many yet, just this one, RType history, and the PC Engine two parter. I did do one of the developer QUTE too which is good, even though they only have a handful of games they're exceptional. More on the way though.
@@ShmupJunkie I look forward to 'em! Cheers!
so im basically going to play every compile game i own the next few days! def gonna buy the m2 collection with my stimulus lol. thanks for an exciting and fun exhaustive retrospective
That M2 collection is nice you'll without a doubt enjoy the new GG3. And hopefully there is plenty of stimulus left over to buy Ramen lol. I never thought I would be playing anything but old Compile games for the rest of my life and that we would get new games from them. 🤘
Shmup Junkie I’ve been doing Gun Nac and Super Aleste the last couple days. I forgot how tough they get at spots. Level 8 of Gun Nac is kicking my ass! Yes, this week I will definitely be purchasing the aleste collection, and then with the rest of my stimulus I think I’m going to get a new 4 track and/or maybe an old guitar amp I’ve had my eye on. Retail therapy really does work lol
I'm glad you talked about Power Strike 2! I still play it on my Master System, an impressive shoot em up
Oh yeah, I had to. It's literally the best Shmup on the master system aside from the RType port depending on your preference. Both made by Compile anyway hahaha
As someone who doesn't pay attention to dev logos popping up before the title screen... I'm shocked to hear how many of my favorite shooters are by this one group.
Nice vid~
And since they aren’t a household name like the big boys it was great to put them all together in this one video. Compile was a pretty special dev. This was the first history video I ever made. And I enjoyed it so much I kept making more.
@@ShmupJunkie Really? It was so thorough I couldn't tell. I just finished your technosoft history video too and these are both great and inspiring.
@@colinthies3178 Yeah it was my first attempt. Technosoft was much newer and one of my favs. My other ones were for RType history, the developer Qute, a two part PC Engine history, and I’m currently working on a Toaplan documentary. I feel like these kinds of videos will be useful many years from now for others to enjoy and discover.
@@ShmupJunkie I'm glad you're able to get all of these great interviews too. It may be too late to get some of those in even 5-10 years time.
this is one the best you tube videos i have ever seen. I really enjoyed it and ive took notes so i can play these games later today:)
Wonderful. I’m really glad it helped you discover new Compile games to try. They were a phenomenal developer.
Dude, you are a top lad. Thrive on the vids, thrive on the love for adrenalin-fueled games, and mint how you top it all odd with 80's movie references.
I'm a big sap for all the old 80s/90s nostalgia so I can't help it with all the old refs haha. Glad you are digging it. I was just watching the one I made the other night called Amazing Shoot em ups of the 80s and 90s. Talk about a hit of nostalgia, the opening few minutes was like a piledriver 😂
@@ShmupJunkie Thing that gets me is how well a lot of these games hold up. I'm just replaying all my Megadrive, SNES & MAME games (around 1500 or so) and the SHMUPS are definitely a highlight of the era, on the Megadrive especially. There's a few good more modern ones like Nex Machina, but that era seemed to nail the game designs the best for me. Even the less respected ones such as Arrow Flash are a great time. I've never played Blazing Lasers though, so will have to give that a go.
Fantastic Video on COMPILE and one of the best gaming history videos I have ever seen.
Thank you so much. I worked hard on it and I'm glad the results are obvious. Only problem is I keep making it harder and harder for myself to top it lol.
Great video and just like you said we gotta support them 👍
Grazie! Sono molto contento che ti sia piaciuto e benvenuto. Spero che tu possa goderti i miei altri video perché so che non sono sottotitolati. Un giorno mi piacerebbe.