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2D Scrolling Space Shooter vs Grid Based Space Shooter

Started by November 26, 2014 04:39 PM
1 comment, last by Orymus3 10 years, 1 month ago

What are your thoughts on these 2 variations of space shooters? I want to create a 2D Space Shooter and keep thinking to myself Grid Based is the way to go, because it's generally more complex and you can do a lot more with it (atleast that's how I see it).

So think Geometry Wars for a grid based shooter, and Ikaruga. Both are fantastic games, so yes I do like scrolling space shooters (!) it's just that it seems so hard to make them complex and interesting compared to a grid based shooter.

I want to get your opinions on what you prefer, why, etc.

Personally, as a player I find it more fun to actually move about and rotate 360 degrees which is a very rare feature for top-bottom / side scrolling shooters as you're usually limited to just one direction, because giving the player the ability to rotate in that kind of shooter would be pointless.
It just seems like scrolling shooters are a much simpler and casual form of space shooter, but I honestly want to be persuaded that it can really be done incredibly well.

There's Zero Gunner for the Dreamcast:

It's a scrolling shooter, but you can rotate 360 degrees and also move closer to the ground I think.

The good thing about being able to rotate the player in any direction is that you can do the scrolling also in any direction. The bad thing is that it doesn't make a lot of sense that while you're controlling a helicopter you're forced to move with the screen, it doesn't feel natural.

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I'm not sure I understand what you refer to as grid-based and side-scrolling space shooters.

Could you provide a few extra examples?

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