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#1
Off-Topic / Re: New from Studio Saizensen
Last post by KawaseFan - July 24, 2023, 12:57:16 PMSorry for the late reply.
Yeah, the less-than-ideal translation quality is annoying - especially since I don't remember Umihara BaZooKa and Cotton Rock 'n' Roll having any similar issues - and it did at some points make it hard for me to follow what was happening in the story.
Other than that, I thought the game was good - admittedly not of a genre that I normally play, so I might not be the best person to judge its quality - but I certainly don't regret getting it. Three different weapon sets can be equipped on your ship and switched during battle, meaning you could have sets that are tailored towards attacking other ships, subs, or aerial enemies, or take a more balanced or defensive approach, and I definitely enjoyed having that flexibility. Money is pretty easy to come by (provided you keep up with the side quests) so you won't have too many issues upgrading your ship - some might consider the easy money a negative, but I'd much prefer that to having to grind cat surveys for more money, which would've gotten boring pretty quickly.
I (playing the PS4 version) did have performance issues at some points. There weren't too many, though, and they mostly happened later in the game, there were a couple of boss battles that had a fair bit going on. And speaking of boss battles, the final boss seemed much harder than the rest of the game (which was otherwise not super easy, but also not particularly hard), and I'm pretty sure I didn't defeat it how I was supposed to - but I got it done, so, whatever.
Yeah, the less-than-ideal translation quality is annoying - especially since I don't remember Umihara BaZooKa and Cotton Rock 'n' Roll having any similar issues - and it did at some points make it hard for me to follow what was happening in the story.
Other than that, I thought the game was good - admittedly not of a genre that I normally play, so I might not be the best person to judge its quality - but I certainly don't regret getting it. Three different weapon sets can be equipped on your ship and switched during battle, meaning you could have sets that are tailored towards attacking other ships, subs, or aerial enemies, or take a more balanced or defensive approach, and I definitely enjoyed having that flexibility. Money is pretty easy to come by (provided you keep up with the side quests) so you won't have too many issues upgrading your ship - some might consider the easy money a negative, but I'd much prefer that to having to grind cat surveys for more money, which would've gotten boring pretty quickly.
I (playing the PS4 version) did have performance issues at some points. There weren't too many, though, and they mostly happened later in the game, there were a couple of boss battles that had a fair bit going on. And speaking of boss battles, the final boss seemed much harder than the rest of the game (which was otherwise not super easy, but also not particularly hard), and I'm pretty sure I didn't defeat it how I was supposed to - but I got it done, so, whatever.
#2
Off-Topic / Re: New from Studio Saizensen
Last post by Alc - June 03, 2023, 12:16:54 PMLooks like they're using machine translation again, to cut costs. This bothers me quite a bit; I could forgive it once, but I don't really feel like repeatedly funding a company that evidently gives so few fucks about foreigner enjoyment of their games. I'm pretty confident that Japanese players would be fuming if a Western dev just shat out a machine translation for Japanese players, so I don't know why they think it's ok in reverse.
Translation aside, how is Buccanyar as a game, anyway?
Translation aside, how is Buccanyar as a game, anyway?
#3
Off-Topic / Re: New from Studio Saizensen
Last post by KawaseFan - May 08, 2023, 06:15:11 AMBeen chipping away at Buccanyar over the past couple of weeks - I wouldn't say the English translation is Myastere level of bad on average, but it's certainly had its moments...
#4
Umihara Kawase / Re: High Score Runs
Last post by Princess Rescuer - January 07, 2023, 01:10:04 AMA couple new discoveries that help out a bit. First is in Field 37- the first Field other than 57 that it's worth going back and forth collecting fish in. This takes me back. Instead of the top part of the level, collect fish on the green floor next to the rising platforms. The spawn rate is the same and the area is smaller.
Another is Field 41. You may have to sacrifice a couple thousand points for this, but it's worth it, as this strategy will ensure you will finish runs more consistently. Get to the end of the Field, stand next to the door, and catch the respawning fish that way. Return to the door after catching fish to ensure they don't spawn in the spike pits.
New TAS strategy: on 17, stand next to the spikes while facing right. Shoot down-left to catch fish from the left while shooting right when fish spawn on the platform slightly above. Use the R button to look to the right so you can see the egg-shooting ones more easily. Could be a real run strat, but it's too risky.
TAS route is 17, 37, 38, 41, 46, and 48. Regular route is 14, 17, 37, 41, 46, and 48.
Another is Field 41. You may have to sacrifice a couple thousand points for this, but it's worth it, as this strategy will ensure you will finish runs more consistently. Get to the end of the Field, stand next to the door, and catch the respawning fish that way. Return to the door after catching fish to ensure they don't spawn in the spike pits.
New TAS strategy: on 17, stand next to the spikes while facing right. Shoot down-left to catch fish from the left while shooting right when fish spawn on the platform slightly above. Use the R button to look to the right so you can see the egg-shooting ones more easily. Could be a real run strat, but it's too risky.
TAS route is 17, 37, 38, 41, 46, and 48. Regular route is 14, 17, 37, 41, 46, and 48.
#5
General Umihara Kawase Discussion / Steam Streaming video of Sakai...
Last post by Alc - January 02, 2023, 11:57:22 PMThis was for a time attack tournament.
Youtube's autotranslate is so close now that I can almost sit down and watch something like this, but it's still not quite there. Anyway, a video worth preserving I thought.
(I may have uploaded it here before, I found it in my YT channel apparently unseen - apologies if it's a repost.)
#6
Umihara Kawase Shun / Shun done blindfold by waai wi...
Last post by Alc - January 02, 2023, 11:13:13 PMThis was at a Japanese speedrunning event. Pretty cool to see! Much kudos and respect to all the Japanese players, they solidly support these games even after all this time. They are an inspiration.
See it here:
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1690512775
Twitch have a nasty habit of ditching VODs ASAP, so I've ripped a copy and it'll be available on my YT channel by the time you read this:
See it here:
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1690512775
Twitch have a nasty habit of ditching VODs ASAP, so I've ripped a copy and it'll be available on my YT channel by the time you read this:
#7
Umihara Kawase / PS4/PS5 port pls
Last post by Princess Rescuer - November 12, 2022, 12:02:10 AMI just got a PS5 and I've been enjoying arcade ports on it. I would like it if the same thing happened for the Umihara Kawase trilogy. Just port the Vita version (with the stage select and turning music off) for the PS4/PS5 similar to an Arcade Archives. Same brightness, same screen settings, same everything. There is a current-gen port of the game on Switch, but that's not good enough. It's a port of the Super Famicom version, not the Vita version. It also allows you to rewind and savestate, making WRs illegitimate unless recorded. A current PlayStation port of the Vita version would be effortless. And possibly Xbox also?
#8
Off-Topic / Re: New from Studio Saizensen
Last post by Alc - October 14, 2022, 01:59:01 AMCool, thanks for taking the time to post this. I ought to subscribe to them on Twitter or something, I never seem to hear of their stuff outside of this forum.
I have to say that nothing here strikes me as a change of pace - it seems like the same MO as the last few games; namely, top-notch 2D art, but with 3D art that seems like programmer art, like prototype placeholders. Which would be fine, except the games themselves are almost entirely spent in 3D!
Also, it looks better in motion (in that Twitter vid) than it does in the still images they've provided... why the hell would you put out screenshots showing the worst moments of your game? It's really baffling.
Anyway, I'll buy both of them, when they let me.
I have to say that nothing here strikes me as a change of pace - it seems like the same MO as the last few games; namely, top-notch 2D art, but with 3D art that seems like programmer art, like prototype placeholders. Which would be fine, except the games themselves are almost entirely spent in 3D!
Also, it looks better in motion (in that Twitter vid) than it does in the still images they've provided... why the hell would you put out screenshots showing the worst moments of your game? It's really baffling.
Anyway, I'll buy both of them, when they let me.
#9
Umihara Kawase / Re: High Score Runs
Last post by Princess Rescuer - October 12, 2022, 02:13:37 AMIt looks like I finally have a competitor- Emoon! I look forward to seeing someone beat my score finally! He uses a route that ends at Field 37, which is suboptimal. I told him to visit this page.
#10
Off-Topic / New from Studio Saizensen
Last post by CyanideBlizzard - October 11, 2022, 05:43:59 AMI hope you've all been taking great care. There's been a bit of news on the Saizensen front over the past few months, and I wanted to share some of that with you.
MilkChan
An arcade game utilizing the ALL . Net P-ras MULTI system from Sega, MilkChan is a single player platformer that's all about reaching point A to B with a formula that might be a bit familiar to those of us here.
MilkChan hit back in July, and it sounds like there's been several competitions according to the website. There's also no immediate plans for a PC or console release, or any that I could find during my brief search. Though, I'd imagine there's going to be something in the works down the road given Saizensen's history. MilkChan looks really charming, and super fun. Plus, with an emphasis on quickest completion time? It'll be no Umihara Kawase replacement, but certainly should conjure up just as much fun.
and then there's Buccanyar.
Saizensen has really been venturing into experimental territories as a company. With Myastere, a metroidvania styled game, to Buccanyar which is described to be a "naval tower offense game".
Gematsu wrote up a very lengthy piece on it that I won't waste your time recycling, but it certainly appears to be their big release for 2023 (as the game is currently slated for a Spring 2023 release). I've always been mixed on Saizensen's quality with 3D modeling, but Buccanyar seems to be going all in to, hopefully, change that. I don't think Buccanyar is going to wow anyone with its visuals, but it certainly seems to be the most ambitious title they've done to date. Especially considering that the game is touting
and you can entirely see why I say this looks to be the most ambitious project they've worked on.
You can see some video of it in action here.
This kind of stuff is my jam, so I'm hopeful that Buccanyar will be just as much fun as it sounds. It looks to have an arcade-y feel to it, and a bit floaty with how the ships manuever, but it's hard to speak on the quality of the final product. I'm optimistic for good things, and to be better translated than their previous endeavor.
MilkChan
An arcade game utilizing the ALL . Net P-ras MULTI system from Sega, MilkChan is a single player platformer that's all about reaching point A to B with a formula that might be a bit familiar to those of us here.
MilkChan hit back in July, and it sounds like there's been several competitions according to the website. There's also no immediate plans for a PC or console release, or any that I could find during my brief search. Though, I'd imagine there's going to be something in the works down the road given Saizensen's history. MilkChan looks really charming, and super fun. Plus, with an emphasis on quickest completion time? It'll be no Umihara Kawase replacement, but certainly should conjure up just as much fun.
and then there's Buccanyar.
Saizensen has really been venturing into experimental territories as a company. With Myastere, a metroidvania styled game, to Buccanyar which is described to be a "naval tower offense game".
Gematsu wrote up a very lengthy piece on it that I won't waste your time recycling, but it certainly appears to be their big release for 2023 (as the game is currently slated for a Spring 2023 release). I've always been mixed on Saizensen's quality with 3D modeling, but Buccanyar seems to be going all in to, hopefully, change that. I don't think Buccanyar is going to wow anyone with its visuals, but it certainly seems to be the most ambitious title they've done to date. Especially considering that the game is touting
- An exploration adventure and sea battle game set in an oceanic world.
- Three protagonists (heroines) and their crew of evolved cats set out on an adventure aboard their own ships.
- Explore unknown areas of the sea and engage in battle to open new routes while customizing and upgrading your ship.
- Combine a wealth of parts to build a unique ship all your own.
- A mysterious "god," monsters, unique pirates, and more appear in this epic story about the mysteries of the world.
and you can entirely see why I say this looks to be the most ambitious project they've worked on.
You can see some video of it in action here.
This kind of stuff is my jam, so I'm hopeful that Buccanyar will be just as much fun as it sounds. It looks to have an arcade-y feel to it, and a bit floaty with how the ships manuever, but it's hard to speak on the quality of the final product. I'm optimistic for good things, and to be better translated than their previous endeavor.