SuperViperT302

Idk who's gonna read this (much less care about it), but in case anybody's wondering whether or not I'll be incorporating Rhythm Heaven Groove games into my custom remixes once that becomes possible, the answer is: no, at least not for a while. I don't own a Switch or Switch 2 (nor do I have plans for obtaining one anytime soon), so I won't be able to play Groove myself (I also don't have a way to do HD capture using my current setup, but that's a separate issue), and ideally I'd like to have experience with Groove's minigames before incorporating them into custom remixes (something that has come back to bite me with Fever, Tengoku, and Megamix before). Additionally, it has been confirmed that the Bobby Build of Heaven Studio will not be including Groove minigames.

I am curious to see how Groove turns out, and perhaps sometime in the future I'll get the chance to play it for myself. For now, though, that's the way things are gonna be for me.

1 month ago | [YT] | 4

SuperViperT302

So, I was going to record all my Perfect Campaigns for Rhythm Heaven Megamix (actually Rhythm Paradise Megamix, but details, details), but on second thought, I think it would make much more sense to record the games from the Museum instead, and do the Perfect Campaigns offline (perhaps when I figure out a better recording setup, since I'm sure as hell not gonna invest in a 3DS capture card anytime soon). I'm not sure when I'll get around to doing all that (I'm also not sure if I'm gonna upload everything individually or try to make it one big video this time, uploading things from my phone is a pain in the ass), but I would like to get to it eventually.

4 months ago | [YT] | 2

SuperViperT302

I have a bunch of custom remixes for Pac 'n Roll (Remix) in store. I don't plan on releasing them quite yet, but when I do, should I release them individually or publish them all in one video?

5 months ago | [YT] | 1

SuperViperT302

I just recorded a run of Pac-Man Arrangement Plus, but after uploading it, I realized it had audio desync issues (it's not super bad and most people probably won't care, but it's bad enough for me to consider it a problem). Since I'm happy with the score I got and really don't feel like trying to do another run, I think I'm just gonna fix it in post (it probably still won't be perfect) and reupload it.

Judging from that, and the extra annoyance that is needing to have an entire secondary program for capturing game footage, I think I'm gonna ditch Amarec recording going forward. Either I'll have to find another solution to the video stuttering problem, or I'll just have to deal with it. (And yes, I know I've said in the past that I'm not concerned about top tier quality, but the stuttering issue just annoys me greatly).

7 months ago | [YT] | 5

SuperViperT302

If nobody else beats me to it, I do plan on doing a Rhythm Heaven custom remix to the WOTFI 2025 song (I was gonna do it in Heaven Studio but I think I'll stick to RHRE3 for it instead); right now I'm just waiting for a clean upload of the song without all the sound effects at the start (if one already exists, please let me know).

8 months ago | [YT] | 4

SuperViperT302

The days of black-and-white PSP videos are officially behind us :)

Expect several new videos showing stuff from the PSP, including brand-new longplays for the PSP Namco Museums and their Arrangement titles!

8 months ago | [YT] | 6

SuperViperT302

(Does anybody even care whether or not I make these posts?)

The results of the poll I posted a couple of weeks ago show that most of my viewerbase (if I can even call it that, not that having an active viewerbase has ever mattered to me, though I do appreciate anybody who bothers watching my stuff) most enjoys my Gradius content. Since I've uploaded most of my Gradius Origins replays and even have a Salamander III clear under my belt at this point, I'm sure many of you are wondering if I'm going to be showing for a clear in the AM Show version of Gradius III.

Well, unfortunately, the answer to that for now is no. (If you haven't seen anything of the AM Show version of Gradius III yet and don't want to be spoiled, you might not want to read further.)

The main reason is, quite simply, the crystal stage. As of writing this, the best known strategy for getting through that stage on the AM Show version is to not shoot any of the destructible cubes or cannons as you go through the main portion of the stage. This will cause a larger buildup of cubes and cannons, and by the time the Cube Rush segment begins, there will be just enough additional sprites on screen that, with full power and autofire (and with either the Ripple or Twin Lasers), you can generate lag during the cube rush to make dodging the cubes just a bit more manageable (note that the wall-building strategy from the final builds doesn't work on the AM Show version, both because there are more cubes that rush you from behind, and you aren't able to fight the boss afterwards).

I've spent a bit of time messing around with this strategy, and so far I just haven't been able to nail it down. Getting through the crystal maze itself basically requires having the perfect route through it memorized (far more memorization than anything else the franchise has to offer), not to mention how easy it is to accidentally crash into a wall at some point (you basically have to have at least 4 Speed-Ups to outmaneuver the cubes). As of now, I haven't been able to get through it without using the Rewind feature at least a couple of times. Of course, it's much easier if I just blast my way through it, but that just makes the cube rush even harder to get through. Not that it really matters though; regardless of what you do, the cube rush is one giant RNG check right at the end of the run, and while I have seen a recovery pulled off in that stage (I can't seem to find the video for it, though), I'm pretty sure that's far beyond my capabilities at the moment.

One might wonder why I don't just grind for it until everything happens to line up and I get the miracle run. The thing is, I'm not really the "grind-y" type when it comes to these games. I rarely ever put in more than one good attempt in any given "session" of attempting a clear, simply because I lack the patience for such a thing. For me, ideally getting these runs is a one-and-done deal (which might explain why I generally have less consistency in higher loops than I do with just clearing loop 1). Gradius III AM Show version would likely require a truly dedicated grind, featuring who-knows-how-many chokes to the crystal stage, whether it be through my fault or the fault of RNG. Then you have to consider that it takes at least a half hour to even get to that point in the game, and setting aside any failed attempts prior to that stage, the game up until that point is mostly a giant slog that's super tedious and annoying to go through. I just don't have that level of patience for it right now, especially when I have other goals I could be chasing after instead (mostly in speedrunning). So, I'm sorry if anybody is disappointed about this, but you most likely won't be seeing a Gradius III AM Show clear from me anytime soon. (And I mean it this time.)

In the meantime, there are players who have dedicated themselves enough to obtain a clear of the AM Show version, so if you want to check them out, I'll provide links to them here. Huge shoutouts to these players for enduring what I simply don't feel like going through at the moment:

‪@skalt711‬ : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MI9mf...
‪@JaimersSTG‬ : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6M7o...
(there is one other video I remember seeing that was actually a 2-ALL, but I can't seem to find it)

This isn't to say I'll never go for it ever, I just don't want to put myself through such an ordeal for the time being. Perhaps later, after I've met some of my other goals in gaming.

Anyway, that's all. Just wanted to put this out there for the few people that care.

10 months ago | [YT] | 1

SuperViperT302

I'm not really the kind to focus on uploading specific content to here rather than just uploading whatever I want, but since I have a decent amount of subscribers on here I am curious: what videos of mine do you most enjoy seeing?

This poll will have no effect on what I prioritize going forward, like I said I'm asking purely out of morbid curiosity. Super interested to see what you guys say!

10 months ago | [YT] | 5

SuperViperT302

So, I'm sure you all are wondering what my thoughts on Gradius Origins are. I don't plan on making some kind of dedicated video to it, but I will summarize my initial impressions here:
- Game emulation is overall fine, aside from some questionable audio emulation in Salamander and Life Force, and even in those two gamee, it's not nearly bad enough to hinder the experience for me (it's definitely an improvement compared to Salamander Portable, though that doesn't say a whole lot).
- I really appreciate M2's choice to provide settings for patching out bugs in the older titles (particularly Gradius III), like they did with Namco Museum DS back in 2007. It gives casuals the option to play with refined settings for a more polished experience, while still allowing purists (like me) to play the completely unpatched versions of these games. (And they were pretty damn thorough about this one.)
- While my PC doesn't really like running Steam games to begin with (especially if a window like OBS is running), the games play very well on PC. There's almost zero input delay and I've had no issues with using my keyboard for them.
- Obviously I like the ability to choose different versions of each game (even though Arcade Archives kinda beat them to the punch there), and I'm especially impressed with the inclusion of the US prototype version of Nemesis and the AM Show version of Gradius III. I may upload a video showcasing Gradius III AM Show at some point, but considering that it's even harder than the final build, it'll likely have to be in Invincible Mode.
- Speaking of which, the inclusion of the Easy, Invincible, and Training modes was another genius move on M2's part. Not only is it helpful for beginners who have less experience with these games, giving them a chance to enjoy playing them without getting overly frustrated, it's also good for veteran players to practice and fine-tune their skills, and I think we'll definitely see that pay off significantly in the future.
- The "gadgets" and subtitles are in a similar vein. I don't really like playing with those kinds of on-screen visuals (the subtitles are distracting and the gadgets give extra information you wouldn't have on other platforms, which kinda feels like cheating), but M2 gives you the option to turn all of those off as well, so again, I'm perfectly fine with their inclusion for players who prefer playing with them on.
- The achievement system is cool, but kinda pointless at the same time. I won't go too deep into these here, but there isn't a whole lot of reward for grinding for these achievements besides bragging rights, and while some of them are quite clever, there are a few that were annoying (such as the one in Gradius II that requires getting all your Options taken by an Option Hunter). Having to do dedicated playthroughs just for certain achievements (mainly the one for not defeating Zelos Force in Salamander/Life Force) was a bit tedious. I don't think it was a bad inclusion, I just wish there was a bit more payoff for them.
- The supplemental materials are a bit mixed, but overall I'm satisfied with them. The Guide to Gradius isn't all that exciting IMO, the Visual Gallery is neat but kinda lackluster at the samd time, and I'm very impressed with the Audio Gallery. Not only do you get the entire games' soundtracks (including unused songs, but there's also bonus songs like the CD versions of Salamander 2's unused songs, special MIDI arrangements, and even the bonus tracks from Gradius Arcade Soundtrack, Salamander Arcade Soundtrack, and the Gradius III album, which I was pleasantly surprised to see. And being able to have those tracks playing in the background on the main menu? Yet another brilliant move.
- Online leaderboards and replays that save automatically are also sick. Not much else I feel I need to say about that.
- I won't go too deep into my thoughts on Salamander III quite yet, as I do plan to record a run of that game within the next couple of days. In short, I think it's a good game, but hardly anything about it really stands out to me, and I don't think it carries the collection on its own.

All in all, I'm very happy with Gradius Origins, and would highly recommend it to anyone with any level of interest in Gradius, Konami, or shmups in general. I don't think it'll be my preferred method of playing most games (aside from maybe III), but I certainly enjoy it greatly. Gradius has been a huge part of my life since before my teenage years, and to see the franchise revived in a manner such as this is so wonderful. Here's to hoping we can get a follow-up collection with some of the console titles in the near future!

Anyways, that's my two cents. Long live Gradius!

11 months ago | [YT] | 7

SuperViperT302

STREAMING GRADIUS ORIGINS DAY 1 HERE

www.twitch.tv/supervipert302

11 months ago | [YT] | 2