Been playing some shmups as usual and lately I’ve really been rocking the 360 hard with almost all the good’n's for a NA 360: Mushihimesama Futari, Raiden IV and ESP Galuda II.

I’ve capped off somewhat with Futari at the moment.  I’ve moved on from 1.5′s Original mode where I reached 336mil with Palm and have been trying out Black Label’s Original mode.  It’s really fantastic.  It’s such a treat to get to play it and I was ready to throw down $15 for it.  The aesthetic changes are really swanky, the 2nd stage’s icy waters now have a pristine blue hue, stage 3 looks distinctly different, baring a darker forest tune.  Then stage 5 set at dusk, it’s really awesome.  BL Original mode is even more addicting than 1.5, the stakes and scores are higher… it’s faster, bigger and stronger.  The original modes are the most fun I’ve had with any shmup, I have become feverishly greedy for those aura’d gems.  My BL Orig score is at 650mil right now, but I would like to come back to it, and 1.5 to improve yet more.  I hate to say but I do feel sore about not getting a 1.01 DLC card with my copy, reserving it from Play-Asia.  Think I could really appreciate that mode, enjoying Mushi1′s original mode as I did (an Lx3 clear.)

I’ve tried the Arcade mode of ESP Galuda II more than a few times now and it’s pretty fun too.  Still haven’t tried any of the other modes but I think I’ll learn to enjoy them.  Arcade’s tough!  Kind of a slap to the face compared to the original’s difficulty.  Wanna go back and clear Galuda I though at some point, nabbing Galuda 2 has made me appreciate the whole ESP series more overall.  I enjoy the world(s).  My Hi right now is about 54 mil.

Anyhow, NOW I’ve changed my focus to Raiden IV.  Damn tough stuff, but an oddly rewarding game.  Been running the boss-rush gamut a lot and practicing the latter stages a bunch.  I can reach 1-5 in both 360 and Arcade modes so far, but I don’t do many real runs because I know how brutal the game is with memorizing the boss’s patterns and knowing what to expect in the latter stages when things get pretty hairy at times.  Without getting to know the stages and bosses, don’t dare to expect to clear it in a random fluke.  It’s that kind of game and I embrace the difficulty.  Can almost finish the first loop of the boss rush but I’ve got a ways to go yet.  I’ll update a bit about my progress.  I made a little page of notes about what power-ups to change up at certain points of the game.  Tinkering with the idea of switching to Laser for most of one of last space stages… I think it’s the last one.   For the most part the Vulcan takes care of business… toothpaste is shit.

Overall, great stuff all around! The 360′s been getting it’s due time.  It’s nice to be able to post my scores on the leaderboards.  BTW: I have a XBL account now, I’m DJ Aquazition. Add me up!

It’s an honor to be ranked 30th (something) overall in the world for 1.5 Original Mode with Palm! But I will strive to be yet higher!  There are some BL Original scores over a billion (one at almsot 4 billion) and I think it’d be crazy to get even half of that.  Such depth!  Mushi1′s Maniac scoring had a great depth to it, too, as far as scoring huge.

Oh yeah, been playing a bit of the new Lunar remake on the PSP.  It’s enjoyable and nostalgia-tastic so far :D… and I’m done.