Sunday, July 22, 2012

Radiant Silvergun - Gamest Vol. 44 VHS + T-3 0001 VHS superplays




Radiant Silvergun is a game that I have played a number of times, but almost like watching it more than playing it. It doesn't hurt that the soundtrack is just amazing - atmospheric, conjuring images of Tron and Blade Runner in equal measure.

The gameplay has been referred to as a puzzle shmup and that's pretty accurate. 6 shot types and three different colored enemies that will chain together for big bonuses if you only kill those of the same color. Your shot types also power up as you use them, so strategy is key to scoring and distance in this classic.

Both of these VHS tapes were recent buys in Japan and both were fairly inexpensive, with the Gamest tape around $40 and the T-3 one at $50. Both have been on my list for a while and showed up at almost the same time. The quality of the VHS tapes is excellent and the runs through the game are amazing as well with the Gamest run including the whole anime intro to the game.


The T-3 superplay is from T3-Wiz and he kills the game (stage 4) with a final score of 26,015,290. The Gamest tape is done by ECM-S.I, who finishes just shy of Wiz with 24,099,790 (also stage 4 route). Both runs are amazing to watch and though Wiz has since eclipsed this score in 2009 with a 27,550,780, which is the current WR.

It's also interesting to note that the Designer of the T-3 package was none other than C. Cat CHAKO, otherwise known as Curious Cat, who has done numerous doujin art books on ESPgaluda and ESPrade.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Awesome post. Can't wait to hear about some more of the VHS tapes you've received! I'd really like to hear more about the bonus content, as well as the paperwork included with these tapes. Are you able to transfer these videos to DVD? I think it would be worth while to do this as a preservation project if you have the time. Do you have most of the tapes listed on the shmups site?

drboom said...

Every tape I get is transfered to DVD and a separate copy is kept on a hard drive. I'm pretty serious about the preservation of this type of content - though I know there aren't many superplay collectors in the Western world.

I definitely don't have all the tapes listed there, really only a fraction, but the stuff I have are some of the best of that list. Especially the DDP Professional series. I have thought about doing a list at some point, so at least those who read the blog would be aware is there is something they have and might want to part with that I dont already have listed. In fact, a lot of the good stuff I have bought has come from people on shmups or friends who bought this stuff at one time or another and like a lot of parts of anyone's collection, sat around waiting to be watched or played again. Luckily, so many in this hobby are good about sharing and selling stuff on, rather than just collecting for the sake of collecting. It makes finding things much easier. It certainly makes it easier to play rarities as well, like RS. :)

Dr.Shmup said...

Hello !

My name is Dr.Shmup.
I have a bunch of official superplay DVD on my blog to downmload. Many stg players all over the world it contributed to make this data base real.

I see that you have a ton of superplay that i haven't.
So, i would like to ask if you could also participate to fill my database with your great superplay and allow players from around the world to have access.

my blog:
http://www.drshmup.com/p/superplay.html

Thank you!
And good game !