I have played this game with a:
- Mouse
- Trackball mouse
- Drawing tablet
Each time, it was a spiritual experience. It just fucking works. On an unrelated note Yasushi Suzuki is the GOAT for this art man god damn.
Half a star docked off for no nightmare sequence in Long Island, easily the most realistic part of the previous entry. I'd say, "what were they thinking?" but to be quite honest nobody knows what the hell's even going on in both of these games anyway, and that makes it all the more better. If Nintendo greenlights a sequel I'll probably die.
- Mouse
- Trackball mouse
- Drawing tablet
Each time, it was a spiritual experience. It just fucking works. On an unrelated note Yasushi Suzuki is the GOAT for this art man god damn.
Half a star docked off for no nightmare sequence in Long Island, easily the most realistic part of the previous entry. I'd say, "what were they thinking?" but to be quite honest nobody knows what the hell's even going on in both of these games anyway, and that makes it all the more better. If Nintendo greenlights a sequel I'll probably die.
S&P:SS is a rock solid rail shooter, albeit a much more crowd-pleasing affair than its predecessor, which was akin to an iron-deficient recollection of End of Evangelion as reflected through the lens of a fever dream. Star Successor takes a more generalised approach to the rail shooter formula, with fewer gimmicky segments and an easily digestible rosary of stages that begin & end in the ways you could predict. Being the sole game Yasushi Suzuki has expressly worked on as Art Director, their calibre of style and pageantry in Star Successor is absolutely off the hook - I doubt I’m being controversial in my assessment of their skill as an artist being some of the most refined aesthetic sensibilities to have blessed the medium yet. The level of planning here for boss variety is particularly impressive, I’m convinced the bones are here for a knockout boss rush title. Huge fan of the guy that turns into dolphins that bounce beachballs and jump through hoops which all become dangerous projectiles. As a whole, I’m fairly convinced that this game is more smartly designed overall than its predecessor, as the consistency with which it dolls out mindful bullet patterns that compound effortlessly on the mental stack, and contextualisations for the multi-layered hazards are nothing short of impressive.
Where things turn sour for me is in the dodgy hitboxes and how drawn-out the stages feel, as the excursions buckle under their padding and turn into fairly languid drifts across locales and enemy swarms. Nothing lasts as long as I’d feel they should, and I repeatedly find myself sighing with fatigue when another mob corridor is punctuated with another miniboss as opposed to a more meaningful perspective or narrative shift. Credit where it’s due, it’s ultimately a good thing that Treasure took a very different approach for this sequel, one that effectively showcases the ways their aesthetic and design tenets matured in the span of a decade. My preference for the original is just a consequence of it winning me over in the battle of appeals - in the personal and artistic fulfillment I gain from “imperfect” games that scan as confused little miracles. Star Successor is solid, but far too articulately concocted to give me any real sense of impact - feeling more like a product, and therefore more prone to being scrutinised over the mechanical minutia. Ultimately a miss for me, but a stunning little simulacrum of a game I still find otherworldly.
Where things turn sour for me is in the dodgy hitboxes and how drawn-out the stages feel, as the excursions buckle under their padding and turn into fairly languid drifts across locales and enemy swarms. Nothing lasts as long as I’d feel they should, and I repeatedly find myself sighing with fatigue when another mob corridor is punctuated with another miniboss as opposed to a more meaningful perspective or narrative shift. Credit where it’s due, it’s ultimately a good thing that Treasure took a very different approach for this sequel, one that effectively showcases the ways their aesthetic and design tenets matured in the span of a decade. My preference for the original is just a consequence of it winning me over in the battle of appeals - in the personal and artistic fulfillment I gain from “imperfect” games that scan as confused little miracles. Star Successor is solid, but far too articulately concocted to give me any real sense of impact - feeling more like a product, and therefore more prone to being scrutinised over the mechanical minutia. Ultimately a miss for me, but a stunning little simulacrum of a game I still find otherworldly.
Kino Part 2
best on rail shooter/shootem up game. filled with super fun from start to finish
An excellent 3D rail shooter/shmup. Genre-defying in gameplay, with a plot of pure anime sci-fi nonsense. Without reading elsewhere, the central conflict would be incomprehensible. But who needs plot when there's so many creative encounters and bosses, so much level variety, and a solid difficulty curve? I have a few criticisms involving some of the controls and the initial opacity of some bosses. They're all comprehensible after a few attempts, though. This one lives up to its reputation.
Going from the original to this is a significant leap ahead, a swansong that pays its tribute to the miles and miles of experience, refined to such a degree that you can really feel it to an almost clinical level. In a sense this already fails at matching up to what it's paying respect to years in the past, as its edge is mostly sanded, the unique artistry of the single stream of consciousness replaced by a more general structure. Things rise, things fall, go to one climactic finish that blissfully spreads its message of a loving companionship versus the mechanical ends of humanity.
But yeah I love that more. An easy victim to the usual, the violent swells, the compounding final boss rush, the absolute insanity of an XBLA-vibe masterwork. What I felt with the original was that it lacked "impact", and even though it's on the more appreciation-over-time end, I kind of kicked its ass. It was too easy for me on Normal and I didn't spend a credit. The almost-but-not-quite formless nature of most of its music enshrouding its levels left me feeling very miffed and unflinching towards things on an initial level. For whatever inexplicable reason, though it's significantly less of an innate strength in tone versus the OG's harsh and heavy beat vibetown, I could really feel the energy through each mission in Star Successor. But it's definitely possible that it's more many things coming together in ways that definitely appeal to me way more. Treasure is simply encapsulating the most awesome parts and aesthetical sensibilities of the generation they're in.
Of course, the biggest demonstration Star Successor has on offer is how it has simply mastered layered action in its gameplay. There's actually such cool shit to how bullet patterns and enemies come together onto your mental stack, testing significantly more within its frame of movement than ever before. If nothing else, Star Successor is quite literally the best mechanical rail shooter, and it's lovingly difficult!!! Despite the intense "who the fuck would want to 1cc this" length, each mission is a perfectly paced piece with some of the best positional boss battles to rival most action games! While not the exact back-to-back variety you'll see on the N64 the whole of Star Successor also doesn't feel like it quite ever does the same thing twice, although there's some overlap. I was so expressively losing myself in the final stage too. Real piercing the heavens stuff. Good shit.
I apologize though, you'll have to forgive me for comparing the two so strictly. Star Successor is not Trying to be the original again, and while there's merit to meshing the two together to see their more apparent differences and how much the developers have grown, it's still a battle of appeals. People should be playing both of these because as a sequence they're reflective on the absolute best of us and how that culture of the best of us moves over time. The most poignant note is that we'll be making 100 different versions on the same determination of our spiral united power, yet still result in beautiful wholly unique stars that inspire the way forward.
But yeah I love that more. An easy victim to the usual, the violent swells, the compounding final boss rush, the absolute insanity of an XBLA-vibe masterwork. What I felt with the original was that it lacked "impact", and even though it's on the more appreciation-over-time end, I kind of kicked its ass. It was too easy for me on Normal and I didn't spend a credit. The almost-but-not-quite formless nature of most of its music enshrouding its levels left me feeling very miffed and unflinching towards things on an initial level. For whatever inexplicable reason, though it's significantly less of an innate strength in tone versus the OG's harsh and heavy beat vibetown, I could really feel the energy through each mission in Star Successor. But it's definitely possible that it's more many things coming together in ways that definitely appeal to me way more. Treasure is simply encapsulating the most awesome parts and aesthetical sensibilities of the generation they're in.
Of course, the biggest demonstration Star Successor has on offer is how it has simply mastered layered action in its gameplay. There's actually such cool shit to how bullet patterns and enemies come together onto your mental stack, testing significantly more within its frame of movement than ever before. If nothing else, Star Successor is quite literally the best mechanical rail shooter, and it's lovingly difficult!!! Despite the intense "who the fuck would want to 1cc this" length, each mission is a perfectly paced piece with some of the best positional boss battles to rival most action games! While not the exact back-to-back variety you'll see on the N64 the whole of Star Successor also doesn't feel like it quite ever does the same thing twice, although there's some overlap. I was so expressively losing myself in the final stage too. Real piercing the heavens stuff. Good shit.
I apologize though, you'll have to forgive me for comparing the two so strictly. Star Successor is not Trying to be the original again, and while there's merit to meshing the two together to see their more apparent differences and how much the developers have grown, it's still a battle of appeals. People should be playing both of these because as a sequence they're reflective on the absolute best of us and how that culture of the best of us moves over time. The most poignant note is that we'll be making 100 different versions on the same determination of our spiral united power, yet still result in beautiful wholly unique stars that inspire the way forward.
reminds me of being younger and going to arcade chains and gravitating towards like random Japanese cabinets. Distinctively remember beating one of the house of the dead games with my cousin, took us like 2 hours and we just kept feeding the machine but eventually we beat it. Also a huge fan of panic park and magical truck adventure and the dumb Star Wars one. Wish Nintendo put out more of these weird on rail shooters, think this and uprising are really special, this one feels more strictly like a port of an old arcade game than uprising which felt like it was made to take advantage of the 3ds. Both of these games I don’t love nearly as much as I could because they lack proper like vibration in the controllers which I think is really important for shooters especially ones with as much clutter going on as these two, oftentimes was hard for me to tell if I was actually making contact with the enemies. Idk maybe I’ll actually play a star fox one day, I just have always thought people have acted really annoying about that series. The wii nunchuck and wiimote still feel just as cheap as I remember them always feeling, just very breakable and plastic-y but that setup does work very well for a game like this, giving you pretty precise aim. It’s very ugly like the models look scary but I think the level design is kind of unmatched, the swampy forest level is a real standout, had a lot of fun with that one and this entire game. Breezed through it in like three nights, doing a level or two after coming home from work. Love it and the fact that the cursor is a lizard made me smile
At the heart of Sin & Punishment is an undying dedication to emergence. Over time, the game demands more control over the player’s movement and the ability to aim properly has to adapt in response. It throws enemies, levels, bosses, and plenty of balls of energy at the player that take well advantage of this design. Everything falls into place, culminating to produce an experience like no other.
Naturally, Star Successor is an experience like one other, and it isn't nearly as emergent. But it feels deliberate, acknowledging that an attempt to recreate that beautiful curve of d-pad/joystick action would miss the novelty of it, given most people playing would’ve long since experienced the N64 game. Not to say this sequel brings nothing new to the table, far from it in every fashion. The player is now granted full control over movement in the Y axis, seemingly the next logical step after the point of control the original left off on. Star Successor lets far more loose creatively, coming off as a collection of insane, tightly designed levels, being less concerned with how it’s experienced as a whole. An increase in difficulty was clearly intended though, which is where this iteration’s closer focus on bullet hell comes in. This factor is not a main appeal, which is obvious given how much of it can be dodged through. Like any game with interesting gameplay, it pushes a lot of different scenarios gone about in ways unique from each other. This was present in the original through what I mentioned previously, but the scenarios feel much grander and bolder in the successor, independent of controls. It’s shown best through the bosses, one fight’ll be unhooking train carts across three lanes to impact the tailing enemy, another’ll be shooting at two platforms to move them upward while keeping them balanced to lead the boss into lava. Though that’s a small sample, it should clue you in on the range of crazed situations the game sets up.
To be a sequel is to be compared to what preceded, and Star Successor does its best to iterate on the formula left behind while ironing out some nuisances (timer) of the first game. To be a sequel is also to contrast itself from what preceded, and Star Successor succeeds in this regard as well, offering up plenty more newness mechanically, aesthetically, and in the content itself that makes it quite distinct from the original. Playable on its own, but it’s only enhanced by being aware of what came before. A gem of a successor. A true star of a sequel.
Naturally, Star Successor is an experience like one other, and it isn't nearly as emergent. But it feels deliberate, acknowledging that an attempt to recreate that beautiful curve of d-pad/joystick action would miss the novelty of it, given most people playing would’ve long since experienced the N64 game. Not to say this sequel brings nothing new to the table, far from it in every fashion. The player is now granted full control over movement in the Y axis, seemingly the next logical step after the point of control the original left off on. Star Successor lets far more loose creatively, coming off as a collection of insane, tightly designed levels, being less concerned with how it’s experienced as a whole. An increase in difficulty was clearly intended though, which is where this iteration’s closer focus on bullet hell comes in. This factor is not a main appeal, which is obvious given how much of it can be dodged through. Like any game with interesting gameplay, it pushes a lot of different scenarios gone about in ways unique from each other. This was present in the original through what I mentioned previously, but the scenarios feel much grander and bolder in the successor, independent of controls. It’s shown best through the bosses, one fight’ll be unhooking train carts across three lanes to impact the tailing enemy, another’ll be shooting at two platforms to move them upward while keeping them balanced to lead the boss into lava. Though that’s a small sample, it should clue you in on the range of crazed situations the game sets up.
To be a sequel is to be compared to what preceded, and Star Successor does its best to iterate on the formula left behind while ironing out some nuisances (timer) of the first game. To be a sequel is also to contrast itself from what preceded, and Star Successor succeeds in this regard as well, offering up plenty more newness mechanically, aesthetically, and in the content itself that makes it quite distinct from the original. Playable on its own, but it’s only enhanced by being aware of what came before. A gem of a successor. A true star of a sequel.
Wow this game. I think it's the best rail shooter ever made. Stylistically it's absolutely mental. The art direction is excellent, the OST is full of high octane, pumping electronic soundscapes and most importantly the gameplay is so damn fun. I think there's another best that this game achieved and that's in regards to the use of the Wiimote. It harkens back to the feel of playing a shooter in 90's arcades. In true Treasure form, this game is bloody hard as it's really a rail/bullet hell shooter. As you weave manically through the different levels, explosive patterns are thrown at you everywhere which take savant like vision to interpret and avoid. Then there's the monstrous bosses who materialise several times per area and sometimes take many attempts to thwart but when you finally beat them it's a souls like euphoria. I'm currently on the last boss and taking a breather as I've had at least 30 attempts at this post apocalyptic, behemoth of a thing. I think everybody who considers themselves a game aficionado should play this as I think it's one of the most underrated games ever made. Play it!
An excellent sequel to Sin and Punishment that improves on the core mechanics of the original by expanding the levels and adding more variety to the mix. It definitely shows that Treasure released Ikaruga between the two games, Star Successor doesn't mess around with the difficulty. Boss fights in particular are a highlight of the game; they're very tough but just as exhilarating and fun, it feels truly rewarding once you overcome them. The Wii Remote worked well with the game, clearing projectile barrages and aiming charge shots at enemies felt precise and responsive.
The story I was not as keen on, the first game felt more focused in a way and even a little emotional by the end, but with this type of the game it is secondary to me. What's more important is that the hefty eight-stage campaign takes the player to interesting locations and keeps the gameplay varied throughout. The levels are not as vibrant and colourful as something from e.g. Child of Eden but they are fun and big in scope. Music was nice but often drowned out by the on-screen action.
All in all I really enjoyed my time with this, a tremendous rail shooter that I'm sure would be even better with another player. Not many games like this one out there - especially these days.
The story I was not as keen on, the first game felt more focused in a way and even a little emotional by the end, but with this type of the game it is secondary to me. What's more important is that the hefty eight-stage campaign takes the player to interesting locations and keeps the gameplay varied throughout. The levels are not as vibrant and colourful as something from e.g. Child of Eden but they are fun and big in scope. Music was nice but often drowned out by the on-screen action.
All in all I really enjoyed my time with this, a tremendous rail shooter that I'm sure would be even better with another player. Not many games like this one out there - especially these days.
We as a society collectively failed Treasure by not buying this game when it came out. People were constantly clamoring for games on the Wii that catered to the "hardcore" or "serious" gamer. Here it was. Ultimately I guess people were looking more for games like Mario, Zelda and Metroid, the kind of games that the Switch would have at launch that would make it huge, and I can't fault them for that. But it still stings that Treasure gave us one last masterpiece and it was all but ignored. They may never make another game again, and we are all the poorer for it.
Very much an underrated gem. One of Nintendo’s best games out there
Probably cool if you like rail shooters, but the closest thing to a rail shooter I have ever enjoyed involves pocket sized monsters, so this game probably just wasn't for me.
HOLY SHIT THIS GAMES AWESOME
The explosive action and crushing difficulty are all here, brought to you by the folks at Treasure, and it’s some of the best pure shooter gameplay I’ve played yet, having so much spectacle and visual diversity! The gameplay can be punishing, but this game pushes you to master it and get past any obstacle in your path. So please buy this game! You will not regret it!
The explosive action and crushing difficulty are all here, brought to you by the folks at Treasure, and it’s some of the best pure shooter gameplay I’ve played yet, having so much spectacle and visual diversity! The gameplay can be punishing, but this game pushes you to master it and get past any obstacle in your path. So please buy this game! You will not regret it!
this game owns in so many ways but possibly the best thing about it is the baby being one of the most frustrating bosses I’ve faced in gaming
Es de las mejoras mierdas que he jugado, pero lamentablemente empecé en difícil como el imbécil que soy y mi tolerancia llegó hasta el jefe final después de ver la pantalla de Game Over por milésima vez durante todo mi playthrough, y tuve que bajarle la dificultad a normal
De todas maneras es kino aunque en difícil den ganas de aplastarse las bolas. Y que además sirva de advertencia a cualquiera que quiera dárselas de mamón como yo y quiera jugar en difícil por primera vez
De todas maneras es kino aunque en difícil den ganas de aplastarse las bolas. Y que además sirva de advertencia a cualquiera que quiera dárselas de mamón como yo y quiera jugar en difícil por primera vez
Possibly the best on rial shooter on any console. Shame that they stopped the series with this one. Good music, grpahcis and controls work better than you think. One of the best on wii
Así que aquí peakearon los jueguitos
I bought a Wii for this game, and now I think it's worth it!
Control is basically the same as the first game, but now you can fly and charge-shot, which adds more variety to the combat.
The level design and the Boss battle is fucking amazing. Imagine a rail-shooter version of the God Hand. You need to learn Bosses' patterns, dodge every attack, and counter the enemy at the right time with your blade.
The music is also better than the N64 one, so epic.
Control is basically the same as the first game, but now you can fly and charge-shot, which adds more variety to the combat.
The level design and the Boss battle is fucking amazing. Imagine a rail-shooter version of the God Hand. You need to learn Bosses' patterns, dodge every attack, and counter the enemy at the right time with your blade.
The music is also better than the N64 one, so epic.
it seems inconsequential to me now but hitting #3 (iirc!) in the leaderboards for level 3 on easy in europe was a crowning achievement for teenage me. i remember LEHULK being at the top of every leaderboard and i often still wonder how LEHULK is doing, whoever that is
I have sinned and I need punishment
dont ask me what the hell is happening just shoot your gun and dodge like your life depends on it
Said “wow” out loud multiple times in the first few minutes and basically never stopped saying it. Takes so much good stuff from Space Harrier, Panzer Dragoon, et al and polishes it in a way this genre rarely is.
Sakurai make Sin & Punishment characters playable in Smash you fucking hack.
If the original Sin & Punishment is Evangelion, then this is Gurren Lagann: sort of a similar thing, but in a more fan-appeasing/pleasing form; a little louder, brasher and self-aware, a little less thoughtful, meaningful and aware of its surroundings - though still leaps and bounds ahead of its contemporaries.
The price paid for this bigger/badder/better package is a bunch of time spent flailing the dodge button to try and get through ambiguous hitboxes of pure particle that obscure your entire view. At times it feels like you’re the victim of a practical joke by Treasure, playing a part in a parody of their shmup excess and the “faster, more intense” aesthetic choices that ruled anime of this era. The decision to give the player unlimited continues and generous moments of invincibility feels like an outright admission that a lot of this is pure bullshit, but it’s hard to feel bad about slotting in another quarter from your boundless pocket when you’re going up against a pod of cybernetic dolphins who’ve decided they’re sick of jumping through hoops and bouncing balls on their noses. While there’s a few too many bosses here who exist to pad this to a longer length than the original, there are still some really memorable baddies and associated cutscenes - big fan of the one where Isa just starts idly blasting a baddie during his big “rule the world” speech.
I approached this via the Dolphin emulator with some trepidation, expecting that using my mouse as an emulated Wiimote pointer would kinda suck, but I was pleased to discover that Dolphin’s a much sturdier creature now than when I last tried to do this sort of thing in the early 2010s. Playing through Star Successor with half an Xbox pad in one hand and my mouse in another was super pleasing, and I actually felt like some crazed cyberpunk badass... I can now empathise with those sickos who play PC FPS games using the same setup…
The price paid for this bigger/badder/better package is a bunch of time spent flailing the dodge button to try and get through ambiguous hitboxes of pure particle that obscure your entire view. At times it feels like you’re the victim of a practical joke by Treasure, playing a part in a parody of their shmup excess and the “faster, more intense” aesthetic choices that ruled anime of this era. The decision to give the player unlimited continues and generous moments of invincibility feels like an outright admission that a lot of this is pure bullshit, but it’s hard to feel bad about slotting in another quarter from your boundless pocket when you’re going up against a pod of cybernetic dolphins who’ve decided they’re sick of jumping through hoops and bouncing balls on their noses. While there’s a few too many bosses here who exist to pad this to a longer length than the original, there are still some really memorable baddies and associated cutscenes - big fan of the one where Isa just starts idly blasting a baddie during his big “rule the world” speech.
I approached this via the Dolphin emulator with some trepidation, expecting that using my mouse as an emulated Wiimote pointer would kinda suck, but I was pleased to discover that Dolphin’s a much sturdier creature now than when I last tried to do this sort of thing in the early 2010s. Playing through Star Successor with half an Xbox pad in one hand and my mouse in another was super pleasing, and I actually felt like some crazed cyberpunk badass... I can now empathise with those sickos who play PC FPS games using the same setup…
Nintendo published this game, which they own, and then proceeded to do NOTHING with it after and made sticker star and fire emblem fates instead and if that isn't enough of a reason to nurture a burning hatred for mario idk what is
Within the first hour of the game, a large trench-coat clad man just appears, monologues in front of you as the protagonist, Isa, just starts fucking shooting him until he gets him to shut up. If that doesn't convince you to play it, nothing will.
I think everyone has those games where they look at it, say, "this looks cool but I'll never get around to it" and Sin & Punishment: Star Successor is one of those games. But holy shit am I glad I got the chance to finally give a look, this is maybe the most insane Nintendo game I've ever played. It looks gorgeous, there is shit flying at you at all over, the plot just happens and you just got to roll with it, and its all fucking awesome. It is a crime we all didn't play this game, because the style and insanity this game oozes is to be celebrated. I cannot even begin to describe the utter shock and amazement I had during just about every moment in the game. One of the last things you do in the game is have a fucking handcuffed fist fight with the main villain, its awesome. Sometimes a game just activates every neuron in your body, and that is all you need. Go play it. Now.
I think everyone has those games where they look at it, say, "this looks cool but I'll never get around to it" and Sin & Punishment: Star Successor is one of those games. But holy shit am I glad I got the chance to finally give a look, this is maybe the most insane Nintendo game I've ever played. It looks gorgeous, there is shit flying at you at all over, the plot just happens and you just got to roll with it, and its all fucking awesome. It is a crime we all didn't play this game, because the style and insanity this game oozes is to be celebrated. I cannot even begin to describe the utter shock and amazement I had during just about every moment in the game. One of the last things you do in the game is have a fucking handcuffed fist fight with the main villain, its awesome. Sometimes a game just activates every neuron in your body, and that is all you need. Go play it. Now.
Tiene un aire a recreativa dosmilera que le suma mil de encanto pero ni siquiera es el mejor run-n-gun/hack-n-slashy bullet-hell fusion que he jugado este año. Tocará seguir buscando el juego de Treasure que me entusiasme.
A wildly fun arcade-y experience. Star Successor is a big step up from its predecessor with tons of over-the-top setpieces and boss fights making good use of the updated hardware to better convey the original vision. The gameplay is still very fun and the new challenges let it shine much better than before. The story thankfully still makes very little sense but I quite liked how casual the main duo was and it ended up feeling more natural. It also helps that the game was about 3 times longer than the first, but still a reasonably short length to keep it a solid and condensed experience. My only problem with the game would be that some of the boss fights near the end are too challenging for my baby skills. The jump in difficulty especially for the final boss felt pretty unfair.
probablemente el mejor on-rails shooter de la historia