Are Fighting Games Improving? EVO 2023 Extensive Discussion with Quash (Guilty Gear XX Player). In today's epic video, Quash and I discuss the past, present, and future of fighting games, leading up to our thoughts on EVO 2023. And for the first time in a long time, I'm actually interested and excited to watch it this year. As of late I have been playing a lot more Tekken and Virtua Fighter, but I'm also interested in a lot of games being played. We go over our thoughts an avalanche of...

Shmups VS Speedrunning, Natural Vs. Fan-Made Meta | Ft. @neoxaquas . Today's topic has been a subject that has fascinated me for a long time, the difference between shmup scoreplay meta and speedrunning time meta. What's interesting is that for a long time, I've heard speedrunners talk about scoreplay in the tone of an outdated style of competitive design. Like if you watch the history of speedrunning video by Karl Jobst, he describes score play as essentially the ooze from which the...

The Crimson Blur, Has Smash Melee Sabotaged Itself?This is a FANTASTIC Conversation, even if you aren't plugged into Melee we discuss a lot of relevant topics about game design and competitive integrity. In today's episode,  @TheCrimsonBlur  and I talk about the current state of Super Smash Bros Melee and have an open conversation about many of my thoughts and critiques of how things are going in competitive Smash right now. I have followed Melee for over a decade now and in this time...

The Tragedy Of Fighting Games. Perhaps a spicy video, but I think it's important to keep it real (sometimes). Today I am talking about one of my favorite video game genres of all time, fighting games. Fighting games are in my top three alongside shmups and beat em' ups. I have been playing fighting games in a competitive and then semi-competitive since around 2010 or so, so I've been around and plugged into the genre for a long time. Today I am discussing what I like to call the tragedy...

GAME CRITIQUE IS DEAD: Why Reviewers SHOULD Be Skilled Players | The Definitive Discussion. Today is a very special video where  @boghogSTG  and I discuss the current (and awful) state of video game reviews and critique. This isn't just a bunch of empty complaining, however (at least I hope so). Instead we discuss the nature of what is good critique, what is the role of the critic vs reviewer, what forces influence critics and reviewers, both conscious and unconscious. We also make our...

JRPG Is NOT Discrimination and Why Genre Terms Matter (NOT POLITICAL). All bad ideas seem to spring from RPGs, am I right ;-) Today I am discussing this viral topic of how Game Journalists are pushing for the genre term "JRPG" to be discontinued and why I think this phenomenon is happening. Additionally, I am making this video because I do think that accurate and objective genre terms are really important for communication, review, discussion, and especially discovery. Genre is how...

The History Of Beat Em' Ups - Part 2 (AVP Invented Character Action). The extensive history of one the greatest video game genres, Beat em' Ups, continues with our expert guest Kriegor! And we tackle the 90's golden era titles! In today's video we talk about the golden era of the genre (in my opinion) and we even see the birth of the mechanics and design that would go on to define "character action" and action rpg games like Dark Souls, Ninja Gaiden, Devil May Cry, Bayonetta, Godhand,...

UNPROFITABLE CONTENT: Why CAVE Doesn't Make Arcade Shoot Em' Ups Anymore :-( Today I am digging into a question that has come up ever since I began playing shoot em' ups (shmups) as to how CAVE went from the "most prolific" shooter developer of all time (according to Guinness World Records) to a studio that hasn't made a new arcade game in the past decade. It's going to be a very long, depressing, and interesting journey and today I am doing my best to sort through all the public...

You are NOT Too OLD to Play Difficult Games! Ever since I have started this channel and have covered difficult arcade genres like Shoot Em' Ups (shmups), Beat Em' Ups, Fighting Games, and Run N' Guns, I often notice in the comments section that many people will say that they can appreciate the difficulty and challenge of these video games, but sadly the are just TOO OLD to be able to keep up with them. Reaction times are often cited in these comments as well. In today's video I wanted...

The History of Beat Em' Ups (Part 1 - The Pre-Final Fight Era  1980-1989). Beat Em' Ups is one of my favorite genres of gaming.  However, the history of this arcade staple isn't really widely known or  discussed. Today I am joined by Kriegor, a man who knows a ton about the  genre's history in detail, and we go through the first era Beat Em Ups,  the Pre-Final Fight Era. We have termed this era "Pre-Final Fight"  becuase, as we discuss at the end of the video, this Capcom classic  CHANGED...

Psikyo Shoot Em' Up Tier List Ranking! Ft. Super Player  @Meriscan  It's  time to discuss which Psikyo Shoot Em' Up (shmup) games are the best  with a ranking! And today I am joined by one of the best Psikyo players  in the western world,  @Meriscan  ! For those not in the know, Psikyo is  one of the most underrated shmup developers and their games are like a  cross between CAVE style bullet hell (danmaku) and Raiden style high  speed bullets of death. The games that we cover are: Sengoku...

What is a Shoot Em' Up? Defining the Genre with Shmup Junkie. This video  has literally been years in the making. As much as we all the love  Shoot Em' Up (shmup, STG) genre, what's embarrassing is that, up to this  point, over all these decades, there has never been a solid criteria or  definition of what a shmup even is. For a genre that is so fundamental  you'd think this would have been established by now, but due to the  nature of online discourse, this question has never been resolved....

Fight N' Rage Developer Interview! The Creation of the Best Modern Beat  Em' Up! I'm very excited for today's guest, Sebagames, the developer of  Fight N' Rage, my favorite Beat Em' Up of all time! In today's episode  we discuss the history of the game, his story and motivation to get such  a massive undertaking completed as a solo developer, and of course the  possibility of a sequel and what the developers thoughts are on his  "creative crisis" in regards to making a follow up. We also...

True Last Boss - Amazing or Awful? A Shoot Em' Up (Shmup) Debate. True  Last Boss, the TLB, they are a signature aspect of shoot em' up, shmup,  design. Are they fair? Are they outdated and stealing your money? should  they be mandatory? Should they be optional? What about TLB's appearing  in other genres? Should Super Mario have a true last boss (giga Bowser).  What about secret super bosses in RPGs? Today the crew gets back  together and Aktane, Boghog, and myself debate this idea. It was a...

Are Fighting Games Decaying into Drama, Twitch Highlights, And Hype Reaction Videos? A discussion with  @RedLineFGC  . I have been actively involved with the fighting game scene (attending  locals, watching majors, etc) since 2012 and over the past ten years it  feels like there has definitely been a big shift in tone where the  passion for the games have cooled, despite there being more fighting  games being produced than ever, and the passion for the internet sub  culture, especially drama,...

The discussion of how massive and omnipresent the tactic of nostalgia in  today's video games and film is a common topic. Very few would deny how  potent nostalgia is and how companies will not hesitate to use it. In  today's video though, I want to go beyond the usual conversation of the  behavior of the studios and companies (the suppliers) and instead focus  my attention on the consumers of nostalgia. Why is it so compelling to  us? How has it become so pervasive in all of our media? And...

Gradius Series Ranking and Tier List! Shoot Em' Up Discussion with  @KyoKusagani ! There is no Shoot Em' Up (shmup) series more classic and influential than the Gradius series. Konami, in years prior, were a legendary studio and absolutely pushed the genre of shoot em' ups forward in many meaningful ways. Today, I am joined by @KyoKusagani to rank and discuss the Gradius series, as well as related spin off games like Salamander and Parodious. We will go through Gradius 1, Gradius 2, Gradius...

Elden Ring Debate! Is Elden Ring A Masterpiece or Overrated Spam Fest? (Review, Discussion). Today I am joined by talented Shoot Em' Up Dev Boghog (Mechanical Star Astra + Gunvien) and charismatic Shmup commentator, Aktane, to discuss the open-world phenomenon that is taking over the gaming world, Elden Ring, to debate it's merits and try and work through the hype and unrelenting critical praise to decide if Elden Ring lives up to its reputation or if it is flawed and overrated. Topics we...

Bootlegs, Dictators, & Shoot Em' Ups! Gaming in Brazil | Podcast with ShmupsBR. Today on the Electric Underground Podcast/Videocast I speak with @ShmupsBR about his experience playing retro games in Brazil growing up and all the wild stories about playing bootlegs and getting around the rules of a military dictatorship (hardcore!). We discuss a ton of topics in this episode including his top 5 favorite shmups, the modding scene in south america, clone consoles, arcade bootlegs, fights in...

Are Shoot Em' Ups Worth Full Price? What Makes Video Games Valuable? Videocast Discussion w/ Aktane! With massively popular games coming out right now like Elden Ring (and other Dark Souls like games) the question of how much a video game is worth, especially for older genres like Shoot Em' Ups or other arcade games, is coming up more and more. In a mainstream audience's eyes, its hard to deny that a genre like shmup is often considered less valuable then a massive sprawling RPG like Elden...

Schildmaid MX Developers Interview! New Indie Shmup Podcast! Today on  the podcast (videocast) I sit down with the developers of the new indie  shmup Schildmaid MX! In this episode we talk about the history of the  game, the journey of the indie game makers, discuss the process of  releasing an indie shoot em' up in the year 2022, the infamous barrel  roll, releasing on itch.io, developing with Unity, publishing on  Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox, Steam, and even more in depth topics too.  Going...

FRESH PERSPECTIVE! Shoot Em' Up Discussion With A New Player, RJB! In  today's episode of the Electric Underground Videocast I discuss the  genre with a new a player, RJB, to get a fresh perspective on shmups and  to hear his feedback on what ideas and elements of the genre are  currently connecting with new players. I really enjoyed the discussion a  lot and learned quiet a bit about what elements of the genre we can  market research and work towards finding wider appeal. It definitely...

Shoot Em' Up Youtubers Unite! An Honest Discussion of the Ups and Downs  of Shmups On Youtube. In today's episode of the show (with video!), I am  joined by Shmup Junkie and Ed Tremblay of Studio Mudprints to catch up  on how they have been doing and to talk about our experiences with  making content around the best but extremely niche video game genre,  shoot em' ups (shmups). Topics of today's show include our thoughts on  mini consoles like the PC Engine mini, the ethics of being a fair...

Ketsui World Record Interview with Moglar5K, Featuring Jaimers! Earlier this year a speedrunning content creator, fireb0rn, made a video about Moglar5k being a speedrunning child prodigy and changing how Hollow Knight's speedrun is played. After Hollow Knight and speedrunning, Moglar5k then proceeded deep into the arcade genre of shoot em' ups (shump) and after years of practice, innovation, and grinding, broke the World Record for one of the best and most challenging shmups ever made,...