SOTM December 2015: HELLFIRE (PCB/MD/PCE CD)

[wyo]

Platform: Arcade/Mega Drive/PCE CD-ROM/Emulation

Rules: Easy difficulty, default lives, 1 credit, no cheats, autofire is OK (state if used or not). Please post your score with a pic if possible, stage reached, and platform. Feel free to post tips and tactics. Good luck!

Genesis Score Board
1. wyo - 1,232,780 - Stage 5 - MD - No auto
2. Beelzebub - 1,153,470 - stage 4 - no auto
3. Kidpanda - 1,033,340 - Stage 4 - MD - No auto
4. ebinsugewa - 915,580 - Stage 3 - Genesis - Auto

PCE Score Board
1. Kidpanda - 527,100 - Stage ?? - PCE - Auto for sure

Arcade/MAME Score Board
1. pipes - 275,800 - Stage 3 - Arcade - No Autofire
2. CORN - 115650 - Stage 2 - MAME (no autofire)

 

[wyo]

wyo - 758,350 - Stage 4 - MD

Not a bad opening run after a long day and two glasses of wine

 

[pipes]

One thing to note that is a rather major difference between the MD/Genesis version and the Arcade/PCE versions. There is an actual Hellfire weapon/shot in the MD/Genesis version. I remember this from playing it on my Genesis way back when so when I finally got the pcb I went crazy trying to figure out why there was no Hellfire shot. I didn't realize it was exclusive to the Genesis. Not sure the reasoning behind that. It makes a pretty significant difference in gameplay though as it helps you get out of precarious situations in a big hurry.

 

[wyo]

One thing to note that is a rather major difference between the MD/Genesis version and the Arcade/PCE versions. There is an actual Hellfire weapon/shot in the MD/Genesis version. I remember this from playing it on my Genesis way back when so when I finally got the pcb I went crazy trying to figure out why there was no Hellfire shot. I didn't realize it was exclusive to the Genesis. Not sure the reasoning behind that. It makes a pretty significant difference in gameplay though as it helps you get out of precarious situations in a big hurry.

Yes and no. It fires forward so there's no protection from other directions. What you can do however, is save them up to blast the shit out of troublesome bosses. Also, the number of them you've amassed remains the same if you die. So definitely a tactical advantage if used wisely but not enough to break the game.

 

[pipes]

So definitely a tactical advantage if used wisely but not enough to break the game.

It certainly doesn't break the game. I was a bit dissapointed that it's not in the arcade version to be honest. I spent a shit load of time playing it on the Genesis and even with this extra weapon I was not able to 1cc the game. I remember just getting thrashed nearing the end of the last level every time when I was at the peak of my skill level. It's just plain hard as nails regardless.

 

[cornerstone]

I've never reached the third level, but Hellfire is definitely one of my favorites. I'm in on this month.

CORN - 98000 - Stage 2 - MAME (no autofire)

Slowly getting better. Got greedy at the boss. Just posting this up in case I don't get time to play more.

 

[Kid Panda]

Kidpanda - 527,100 - Stage ?? - PCE - Auto for sure

 

[wyo]

Tried again tonight but sucked ass. More booze needed. Or maybe it'd be easier with a stick vs the Genny 6-button pad.

 

[pipes]

I'm going to put a couple of runs in tonight.....hopefully get to stage 3. That's the goal right now anyways.

 

[wyo]

I'm going to put a couple of runs in tonight.....hopefully get to stage 3. That's the goal right now anyways.

Cool man, let us know how it goes Small improvement for me tonight. Still stuck on level 4 though.

wyo - 866,470 - Stage 4 - Genesis - No auto

 

[pipes]

pipes - 160,400 - Stage 2 - Arcade - No Autofire

 

[pipes]

pipes - 275,800 - Stage 3 - Arcade - No Autofire

 

[ebinsugewa]

ebinsugewa - 620,530 - Stage 3 - Genesis - Auto

gonna have to practice this boss a bit

 

[wyo]

Updated scores. Currently stuck on Stage 4 boss, but I have a plan Stage 4 music rocks hard, BTW.

 

[ebinsugewa]

ebinsugewa - 915580 - Stage 3 - Genesis - Auto

Good run fucked by the boss again.

 

[wyo]

ebinsugewa - 915580 - Stage 3 - Genesis - Auto

Good run fucked by the boss again.

Nice score though! My guess is you made it said boss without dying Stage 3 boss is tough to clear unless fully powered up (creates helpful slowdown) or you have lots of bombs. The thing that gets me on this game is when the bosses scroll up and down their bullet trajectory changes with it.

 

[pipes]

Just curious.. . is the default difficulty on the Genesis really 'easy'?

There is 4 difficulty settings on the pcb (A, B, C & D) with A being easy. Default is set to B which is probably equivalent to 'normal'. It doesn't matter since there's separate tables anyways but it just seems impossible to reach the scores you Gene/MD guys are getting. The 'easy' difficulty must yield more points for enemies and 'B' items which in turn gets you extends quicker also.

It might be better to say 'easy' setting rather than default in this case just to have a better comparison between the different versions.

I don't care either way but just throwing that out there.

 

[wyo]

Just curious.. . is the default difficulty on the Genesis really 'easy'?

There is 4 difficulty settings on the pcb (A, B, C & D) with A being easy. Default is set to B which is probably equivalent to 'normal'. It doesn't matter since there's separate tables anyways but it just seems impossible to reach the scores you Gene/MD guys are getting. The 'easy' difficulty must yield more points for enemies and 'B' items which in turn gets you extends quicker also.

It might be better to say 'easy' setting rather than default in this case just to have a better comparison between the different versions.

I don't care either way but just throwing that out there.

There are only 2 difficulty levels on the Genesis version: Easy and Hard. Fair point though, I'll change it to Easy for all versions.

Of course, "Easy" isn't actually all that easy...

What is the maximum "B" bonus in the arcade version?

 

[pipes]

Haha, yes the term easy does not apply to this game under any circumstance.

 

[pipes]

What is the maximum "B" bonus in the arcade version?

On the default 'B' difficulty it's 2000. There is no buildup to that though..... they're always worth 2000. Not sure if that changes with the difficulty.

I just YouTube'd the PCE and Gene/MD versions and the PCE's gameplay is much more faithful to the arcade version. There's so many extra's added to the Gene/MD version that makes it very unique. I completely forgot about the shields and that little helper you pick up. Add in the Hellfire shot on top of that too. The PCE and arcade both value the 'B' item at 2000 points whereas the Gene/MD has a buildup that maxes out to 10000. Once you hit that you're racking up the points.

Honestly, I prefer the Genesis version overall. I like all the additions to the game. The music is f-ing awesome there as well. I feel like buying a Genesis right now.

 

[wyo]

On the default 'B' difficulty it's 2000. There is no buildup to that though..... they're always worth 2000. Not sure if that changes with the difficulty.

I just YouTube'd the PCE and Gene/MD versions and the PCE's gameplay is much more faithful to the arcade version. There's so many extra's added to the Gene/MD version that makes it very unique. I completely forgot about the shields and that little helper you pick up. Add in the Hellfire shot on top of that too. The PCE and arcade both value the 'B' item at 2000 points whereas the Gene/MD has a buildup that maxes out to 10000. Once you hit that you're racking up the points.

Honestly, I prefer the Genesis version overall. I like all the additions to the game. The music is f-ing awesome there as well. I feel like buying a Genesis right now.

Dooo eeet! Get a model 1 unless you want slow-mo sound

And yeah, the bonuses are the key to a good score. Keep collecting 'em and don't die or they reset to 20,40,80,160,320,640,1280,2560 then back to 10000.

 

[Kid Panda]

The Genny/MD version certainly got an overhaul, even the weapon drop ship looks tons better. Like Pipes said, PCE and Arcade are closest in pacing and scoring for sure. Genny/MD better than the arcade? Say it isn't so!

 

[Kid Panda]

Kidpanda - 1,033,340 - Stage 4 - MD - NOAF

 

[pipes]

Genny/MD better than the arcade? Say it isn't so!

I speak the truth.

Nice run KP!

Time to see what arcade easy looks like

 

[wyo]

Shiiiit, I need to up my game!

Nice scores guys!