About Cave shooters, maybe this is a sign that GoG *is* reevaluating its policies after all the controversy over Mushihimesama's rejection--since it's from the same creators as Raiden III and IV, it was likely considered a "safer" bet to test, once again, how "niche" the genre really is.

Personally I'll buy this one ASAP, be it an actual change in policy or merely an one-off bone to the fans--questionable marketing aside this looks really good, and the fact it seems designed for widescreens is just icing on the delicious, SHMUP-y cake.

Wishlisted. I hope we also get Xenon 2 at some point.

Oh yeah! :D

Seriously, why hasn't GOG partnered with Deep Shadows yet? [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_Point:_Road_to_Hell]Boiling Point[/url], [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Gold:_War_in_Paradise]White Gold[/url], and [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precursors_(video_game)]Precursors[/url] should be on GOG.

Many of the screenshots and clips I've seen of White Gold (Xenus 2) look fantastic - something about the style, colors, etc just really works for me.

The same reason why we don't see Ridge Racer 5, 6 or 7 on the PC.
The same reason why there's no Ninja Gaiden Black Sigma Zeta Jones Beta or whatever on the PC.
The same reason why El Shaddai (the x360/ps3 game) didn't get the recognition it deserves and...

I mean, the universe is conspiring against me, ol' pal. Sorry if I triggered ya ;(

Jokes aside, I really wish to see some of these lovely Ukrainian games here soon; they're absolutely up to the task and I can definitely say that both Xenus II and Precursors (runner up might be Parkan II) are some of mine favorite unknown fps games ever ;)

Although this is really not my thing, it's nice to see more niche games coming to GOG.

But, I have to ask, what the heck is a "SHMUP's SHMUP"? I know the (annoying) figure of speech as in "an artist's artist" or "a DJ's DJ" for someone who is more respected within their field than in the general public. But what's that supposed to mean when it's not applied to a person? Is this a shoot'em-up game that other shoot'em-up games enjoy playing? Are there any shoot'em-up games out there that have an AI so sophisticated that it would be able to play other games on it's own? 8O

=)

Agreed.

Add these:
http://www.degicagames.com/products/shmup

And add Deathsmiles, DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu, Ikaruga and Radiant Silvergun.

That would be awesome. GoG should own the Shmup market.

Radiant Silvergun isn't even ported on PC... yet... *crosses fingers*

https://www.gog.com/forum/general/good_news_price_updates/post1665

25 Dollars is quite expensive for this kind of game, if you put it in relation to the prices of "Raiden III", "Raiden IV" or "Crimzon Clover". NSFW images/content aside... :(

Now the only question is whether it comes before or after CRAWL.

Diablo VIII is going to get here before Crawl. :P

Isn't the release date for the 12th? CRAWL is being released in 2999 isn't it? :p

One other thing I am wondering, regarding the scoring:

When going for a high score:
1. Is it best to avoid using bombs, or can you improve your score by using a bomb at the right time?
2. Is it best to avoid dying entirely, or can an intentional death at the right time help you get a high score (for example, by giving you more bombs to use)?

Depends on the SHMUP and I haven't played this one yet, but in most modern SHMUPs you can only improve your score by using a bomb to avoid what would've otherwise been certain death... or a complete miss, perhaps (ie, the act of letting an enemy dissapear at the bottom of the screen), though usually the bomb still screws up your future score-making potential. So, killing with your regular weapon is always preferable, specially if you use just the right amount of bullets needed to kill 'em instead of, y'know, holding it down the entire level.

In older games it was different since they often gave large bonuses for killing entire groups, thereby penalizing misses far more harshly (like, killing 9 out of 10 enemies: 900 points; killing 10 out of 10: 5000 points and a powerup), though since they also gave loads of points for unused bombs at the end of the level, it was still kind of a losing proposition unless you really needed that powerup.

But do take this with a grain of salt, as I haven't played a SHMUP for score in almost a decade, and many others now give points in the order of millions per enemy, making it far more difficult to tell at a glance without reading the (oft japanese) manual.