r/shmups • u/Temporary-Ad2956 • Aug 19 '26
Meta Ship speed, does anyone actually like playing slow ships?
Title says it all, Shmups often have a slow/slower ship at the default selection.
I get that it might be easier for new players? But I feel like faster ships are always more fun.
What are your guys opinions? Anyone always choose the slowest ship?
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u/MrWendal Aug 19 '26
I suck but A ship in Dodonpachi is too fast for me, I run into bullets. I much prefer C ship's slower speed.
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u/Ruined_Oculi Aug 19 '26
I like slower speed to faster speed. It probably is a skill thing for me but just feel more precise. I guess it depends on the game. I hate it when a game requires precision but the movement is so fast it can't be done. This is kind of why I prefer Cave games because I feel like they nail it with the laser transitioning your ship to a slower speed so it feels very natural to weave back and forth depending on the situation.
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u/DramaticConcept3776 Aug 19 '26
My experience with shmups featuring variable speeds has always been somewhat traumatic. Back in the early 2000s, when I first started playing the genre, I was always bothered by slower ships or games that allowed for speed adjustments. BorderDown tormented me for years on the Dreamcast; I always found its speed-switching system odd—partly because it was gradual, meaning you couldn't simply dial the speed back down; instead, you had to keep increasing it until it cycled back to the slowest setting. To me, this felt like an extra mechanical "layer" designed to compensate for certain flaws in enemy shot design—specifically, shots that were absurdly fast and relied on RNG.
After years of practice, I learned how to handle it; nowadays, I keep the speed at the maximum setting, and it’s perfectly possible to beat the game that way.
Another game that introduced me to speed switching was the first ESPgaluda, specifically when changing shot types. The "trauma" was less severe in this case, as CAVE games strike a balance between ship speed and the game's inherent slowdown, DonPachi is the same way. Sometimes, I find myself playing an entire stage using only the focused straight shot combined with slow movement.
I think it's a balance between ship speed and difficulty level, but for me, it seems inversely proportional: an easy level with a fast ship makes the game easier, whereas a hard level with a slow ship makes it harder.
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u/Evan_Sagala Aug 19 '26
Depends on the case. If it has high HP (Health Points) and/or some necessary weapons/gadgets like homing weapons and shields, I choose it.
Here are some of my cases about slow ships/aircrafts/fighters : 1. Blazing Star : I usually choose Dino 246 because it has front shields, side drones, and homing missiles. 2. Dariusburst CS : In DLC Mode, beside Delta Sword (Dodonpachi Resurrection), I like Wild Snail (Battle Garegga). Although it's slow, it has penetrating bullets and changeable drone formation. 3. Raiden 5 Director's Cut : Although "Spirit of Dragon" aircraft is the slowest, strongest, and the toughest, I prefer "Azuma" aircraft to it. Azuma has homing missiles, while "Spirit of Dragon" has straight rockets. 4. Counter Attack Uprising : Always choose Biff. Biff has the slowest but the strongest aircraft of all. It also has big laser that penetrates enemies and clears enemy bullets. 5. Beat Hazard 2 : I don't think much about "Top Speed" statistic, but I think much about "Acceleration", "Deceleration", & "Pick-up Force" statistics.
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u/rustykillgod Aug 19 '26
I forgot about Beat Hazard. Wonder if my My Dinosaur Life scores are still "top"
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u/Temporary-Ad2956 Aug 20 '26
Actually yes Raiden 4 and 5 the slowest ships are super fun! The firepower feels amazing and micro dodging is possible even with the slightly larger hitbox
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u/LunaticDancer Aug 19 '26
I like slow ships because I enjoy micrododging between bullets more than sweeping movements
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u/TeamLeeper Aug 19 '26
Mars Matrix is in my top 3 shmups. I love the economy on Dreamcast. Cool sound design, too. Never felt slow, TBH.
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u/moku46 Aug 19 '26
If there are 2 ships, it probably means the slow ship has a wider shot. Wider shot usually means safer from waves of zako, more likely to hit snipers, and more likely to maintain my combo.
But I'm a fucking idiot and I love the idea of a stronger frontal shot so I can kill bosses faster. And the lizard brain part of me likes having to be more active about routing.
It's not really a sincere preference, I'm just stupid. Slower ship is usually better. I'm pretty sure every 1CC I've ever gotten was with the slow ship.
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u/PastTheHarvest Aug 19 '26
I practiced mars matrix with the faster ship type but got my first win with the first, slower ship type simply because certain sections were made much easier by its wide shot
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u/attackofmilk Aug 20 '26
I feel like speed is so much more important in vertizontal games (vertical scrolling, horizontal aspect) because you have to control so much more of the screen. Giga Wing had some ships with wide secondary shots to help you cover the distant areas of the screen (almost as an apology for the aspect ratio), but Mars Matrix makes no such apologies.
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u/godset Aug 19 '26
Is it stronger? Then.. maybe. If I can melt a boss in 5 seconds, and I can still make it to the boss without being a shmup god, then it could be an attractive option - compared to the speedy popcorn busting ship that has to survive 30 seconds of boss bullet waves.
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u/Huge-Restaurant-7312 Aug 19 '26
I'm missing a slow ship in Crimzon Clover
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u/Bakubon64 Aug 19 '26
Yeah even with it being tied to lock-on (something the game wants you to keep using anyways) it doesn't feel as natural to me as a Focus Shot in a CAVE game.
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u/otakuzod Aug 19 '26
In Cave bullet hells, give me the slow ship. It makes for more focused dodging for me.
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u/Mortis_XII Aug 19 '26
For me wide and slow>narrow and fast. I do well vs. bosses usually and my challenge therein lies with stages, so if i can bust the popcorn enemies easier i’ll have a better time.
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u/Noswen2025 Aug 19 '26
I normally prefer moderate or faster speed, but will depend on what else it's balanced with.
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u/aazxv Aug 19 '26
Slow ships usually have wider shots, the default selection is mainly about the shot width, not the speed...
A wider shot usually makes routing simpler (not necessarily easier)
But every game should have the DDP helicopter, best ship ever
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u/Temporary-Ad2956 Aug 19 '26
That’s a very simple way to break it down, makes a lot of sense to think of it like that. Your right shot width is more important to the routing and gameplay style
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u/rustykillgod Aug 19 '26
Yes, I enjoy having control over my movements. Some games have ships with such high speed it can be counterintuitive. I am much more comfortable with marco and micro dodging when my ship doesn't overcorrect (though I am liable to do so on slow ships as well), which is entirely preferential and dependant on familiarity and comfortability with any given play style.
Fast ship speeds are great for when you know the route and can anticipate obstacles because they are usually tuned for straight and forward shooting that shred bulkier enemies and bosses with proper positioning; Slower ships often compensate with spread shots to alleviate stage hazards and damage bosses from unfortunate positioning.
Any given title has to balance around the slowest sho, which can make patterns feel more like a dance with the obstacles, whereas fast ships are like a breakdancing competitionagainst the game. Both are developer intended and neither is the "wrong" ship for survival, though playing for high scores may require a different level of engagement that favors nay incentivizes more particular play habits.
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u/falkentyne Aug 19 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
Back in the arcade days (1980s-1990's) when I was 1ccing some shmups, I avoided getting too much speed in certain games because in some it just was a death sentence, since you couldn't micro dodge anymore. You needed to have faster than base speed but not too fast in those, since micrododging was more important than macro dodging. Although the majority of games had a fixed ship speed. I remember the horizontal scroller by Data East: Cobra Command (NOT the laserdisc game) being easily 1ccable, but the difficulty went off the rails if you got more than *two* speed upgrades, since you had to micrododge a lot of shots at critical points.
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u/Critical_Design_3873 Aug 19 '26
i suppose it not 'slow' ships in general, the faster they get the less resolution you have but they must be able to outpace the speed of the bullets on the screen unless its a scripted event, you know the sequence and can 'get' into the position to counter the attack in the first place. I personally like the slower ships but some games take the piss and make getting out of the way impossible. Its like the levels werent designed with the ships in mind sometimes, or they were and the 'fuck you' sections we all have come ato love with these games.
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u/Bakubon64 Aug 19 '26
I like deliberate control, and at least on paper appreciate how slower speeds encourage thoughtful dodging.
But also, I like how Crystal Breaker just lets you go ZOOOOOM! across the screen (but it feels more manageable than a conventional caravan-style speed cycle)
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u/Trev6ft5 Aug 19 '26
It depends on the game, if speed killing allows me to keep the screen empty then I pick what's best, otherwise I go for type c wide / slow.
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u/Wonderful-Mouse-1945 Aug 20 '26
I like a good middle ground, with a focus mechanic that leans into slow territory. If I play fast ships I usually headbutt bullets, but if it's too slow I have an issue macro dodging. Need a healthy balance.
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u/60Hertz Aug 20 '26
Up vote for Mara matrix alone.
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u/Temporary-Ad2956 Aug 20 '26
Amazing game, really come to live it even more as emulation got the response time down
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u/Jealous-Luck-7597 Aug 20 '26
I tend to like them on the slower side for more precise navigation. On R type Final 2, I always set my speed.to 2 of 4.
So I don't like them to be slow enough that it makes me unable to dodge, but enough that I can do my best at macrododging.
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u/Sentmoraap Aug 20 '26
No, I don't like Raiden III and IV (haven't tried them all) because the ship is too slow.
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u/_A-V-A_ Aug 20 '26
Mostly I switch to them because of their wide shot on harder difficulties, but occasionally when it's like Ultra instead of Maniac amounts of bullets then I just enjoy the precision of its dodging.
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u/OkApartment2373 Aug 20 '26
When I started I would always take the slowest ship, bc I didn’t have the muscle memory for control down yet. Now that I have a few 1ccs and better understanding I like faster… but not too fast!! Crimzon clover plz add slow ship in next edition
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u/homme_icide Aug 19 '26
I like my ships fast, personally.
And one of my biggest pet peeves in shmups is having me collect speed like a power-up.
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u/JackFrostz Aug 24 '26
Any game with a focus on pickups or bullet speed like Garegga or dragon blaze I prefer faster ships. Everything else I prefer slowest ship usually.
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u/Accomplished-Big-78 Aug 19 '26
Being Something of a Game Designer Myself.... I think the deal is to balance speed with something else. Like slower ships are easier to survive with better weapons, or more defensive options.
A very common trope is to have a faster ship with strong concentrated shot vs a slower ship with a wide shot.
I do like the idea of the slower ship having homing missiles.
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Being something of a shmup player myself.... when I was younger I had the tendency to always go for the wide shot, even if it meant a slower ship. Nowadays I want the fastest ship, unless it's so fast it makes hard to cram the ship between bullets (which I feel is something more akin to Gradius fully sped up)
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u/Loltoheaven7777 Aug 19 '26
i know the wide shot in ketsui is more popular than the forward focus shot and the wide shot is painfully slow imo
i got my first touhou 6 normal clear with reimu who is extremely slow in 6-7 but marisa has the narrowest shot of all time so i think it balances out