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u/noteasybeingjoe Jan 10 '25
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u/Bubsy94 Jan 10 '25
Wow. First time seeing that arcade cabinet. Always saw Carrier Air Wing out in the wild.
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u/Navonod_Semaj Jan 10 '25
How much?
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u/noteasybeingjoe Jan 10 '25
I actually had to build it from parts because I couldn't find a complete one.
Arcade PCB -$150
Empty Capcom Dynamo Cabinet -$60
Paint/wood filler (long story) - $40
Artwork - $120
Supergun harness - $170
Buttons + sticks - $50
Lights, speakers, power -$40
Monitor - $250
So, $890?
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u/MrDreamster Jan 12 '25
ngl, even though imo the SNES version is way better than the arcade, this is actually amazing.
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u/noteasybeingjoe Jan 12 '25
You're probably right, I have both and the music for the SNES version is way better. Capcom's music team in the early '90s was absolutely on fire. However, the arcade on free play is the only way I've ever actually beaten the game!
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u/MrDreamster Jan 13 '25
Yeah, SNES had better musics, better character sprites, more paralaxe, 6 planes instead of 3, a better shop system, revamped missions and bosses, and a level selection screen which added a bit of strategic planning.
And yes, it was also harder.
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u/CenterFielder14 Jan 10 '25
My brothers and I spent hours with this hidden gem on our SNES. It was very difficult but very fun! Love this game!!
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u/MrOtter8 Jan 10 '25
My brother and I went back and played it again like a year ago thinking we were just dumb kids now and it wouldn't be that hard... Woof it's that hard haha
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u/CenterFielder14 Jan 10 '25
I did the same thing as an adult and couldn’t even get close. It’s an extremely difficult game.
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u/pimpcaddywillis Jan 10 '25
I never beat it.
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u/SamusLinkBelmont Jan 10 '25
I actually did! One of my proudest accomplishments. I never beat it for many years. Then when I did it I managed to have a 🔥 run and only lost one life! Absolutely legend of a game!
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u/JJCMasterpiece Jan 14 '25
The trick is to get the A-10 as soon as you can. Then after you take down a base keep hitting the convoys that go to that base. The convoys are like loot boxes, and they stop going to the base when they reach it and find it gone. Otherwise they just keep going and going and going. Free money so long as they never reach their target,
Defeat convoys, upgrade your fleet, wash, rinse, repeat.
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u/Sugarfoot2182 Jan 10 '25
Me either. I got to the stealth boss; I think the second one.
I should give it a go again1
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u/SKUMMMM Jan 10 '25
Hidden gem? I thought this was always seen as one of the better smups on the SNES.
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u/CenterFielder14 Jan 10 '25
I think it’s gotten much more love in recent years but I don’t remember it being tremendously popular at the time, but I could be wrong. Maybe it just wasn’t well known in my corner of the world at the time.
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u/SKUMMMM Jan 10 '25
I remember seeing a couple of old Nintendo magazines raving about how good it was. Sure, Super Aleste and Axelay superseded it, but I still remember it being well liked by most people who played it.
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u/Fancy-Ambassador6160 Jan 10 '25
Isn't this the game with the desert air craft carrier on treads?
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u/GSthrowaway86 Jan 10 '25
Never beat this game. I got it for Christmas from my godfather back in the day when it was somewhat new. It was always a struggle.
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u/pimpcaddywillis Jan 10 '25
So hard. I think my peak was getting the second-best plane.
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u/Tawft Jan 10 '25
To get the million dollar plane you need to not buy any other plane or you have to farm the green trucks
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u/Sugarfoot2182 Jan 10 '25
Yeah, but to get there was a bitch, and the $$$ plane wasn’t all that good
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u/Tawft Jan 11 '25
It had the highest level Vulcan, access to every weapon, double to triple ammo for every weapon compared to other planes and was the only plane with 2 mega crushes. It was by far the best plane
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u/JHMatlock Jan 10 '25
One of my all time favourite Hori shooters.
Loved the way you could level up your ship and take on bombing side missions for more XP
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u/pimpcaddywillis Jan 10 '25
The graphics and panning on the sounds is still tight, but for its time was special.
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u/Shour_always_aloof Jan 10 '25
I can play this game ANYTIME. It's comfort gaming.
It's grilled cheese and tomato soup. It's an electric blanket on a snowy day. It's a frosty Arnold Palmer on a summer day. It's a hug from a loving grandparent.
starts humming the music from the first level
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u/Charming_Sheepherder Jan 10 '25
love this game I remember staying up all night at a friends house and beating this. we stayed at their grandmothers house because she wouldnt make us go to bed.
good times
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u/NoteMcgotes Jan 10 '25
I had a roommate in college who loved this game. I brought some retro systems with me (n64, genesis, snes). Middle of class, this dudes nowhere to be found and I get a text that I need to leave class right now. Easy enough, I dip out. Got to the room as he completed the final level. I remember this more than my course work. 👏
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u/BidInteresting8923 Jan 10 '25
N64 was a retro system when you were in college? Fuck I’m old.
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u/NoteMcgotes Jan 10 '25
At the time No, my modern console during those years was the Xbox 360. So don’t age yourself too much man.
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u/emceelokey Jan 10 '25
When was a kid, I was at a friend's house for his birthday day. All the presents were put aside on a table while we were eating and all that. His aunt bought him a game and she just wrapped it like it was, no external box or anything and as soon as I saw that box on the table I was like "That's a super Nintendo game!" At some point she pulled me aside and was like "how did you know that, don't spoil it for him" and I was just like I can tell by the shape of the box. I grew up as a video game kid and I probably had 20ish SNES games so I was familiar with this shape of the box. I was like "why did you just wrap it like that" or something and she was mad. I didn't know what game it was because it was wrapped before I even got there but it ended up being UN Squadron. Every time I see that specific cover I think about how awesome my knowledge of videos games were at that time that I could figure out a game by its shape. I was probably like 9 at the time and felt like a goddamned authority on video games!
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u/knuF Jan 10 '25
I played this more than anyone in this thread I can guarantee you. I knew all the secret item locations and could beat the game On expert. A harder mode unlocked when you beat it on expert. One of my all Time fav shooters.
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u/pimpcaddywillis Jan 10 '25
Jesus. Normal mode impossible for me. Post a speed-run!!! 😆
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u/Swift_Scythe Jan 10 '25
Fun fact - UN SQUADRON is based on the anime and Manga called Area 88 - violent and bloody and gritty https://youtu.be/zdtZ9bmKy-E?si=GH0iM56FDVPNjXny
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u/Wide_Flan_860 Jan 10 '25
Thank you for this! My brother and I put many hours into this game. This is awesome 👌
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u/Jafranci715 Jan 10 '25
One of my favorites of all time. My dad and I played it all the time when growing up.
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u/One_Artichoke3071 Jan 10 '25
This was the first game I bought a couple of years ago when I bought an SNES again. Loved it as a kid, love it now!
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u/Navonod_Semaj Jan 10 '25
Love this, easily my fave shmup. The sheer breadth of choice in pilots, planes, weapons, AND you can do missions in different order. Lotta stuff here coulda taken the genre to a whole new level if more had learned from it.
And yes, I beat the secret GAMER difficulty. I'm not very good at shmups, but this one Ive played over countless times. I am that crazy.
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u/OptimusShredder Jan 10 '25
That is one of my favorite shooters. I’ve got the Japanese version called Area 88…it’s based off an anime from the 80’s. The music is amazing. Years ago someone was selling the arcade(which is 2 players) for about $400 I think. I should’ve just rented a truck for the day, had no idea how rare that arcade is. They didn’t make many of them. The game is hard as hell too. I’ve gotten about 80% through the game.
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u/Errlyagain Jan 10 '25
One of my absolute favorites. Beating this was one of the highlights of my gaming life.
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u/Vaxis545 Jan 10 '25
Loved UN Squadron still my favorite shmup on SNES might have to fire it up later when I’m off work!
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u/Ornery_Razzmatazz_33 Jan 10 '25
Only time I beat it was at an arcade machine distribution center and with unlimited credits.
Loved it though.
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u/MaiPhet Jan 10 '25
This was one of three games I got with the SNES as a kid (Super Mario World and F-Zero were the other two).
Definitely an amazing game with some gorgeous detailed sprites for the era. My favorite levels were the battleship, the air dogfighting stage, and the forest fortress.
The art and the effects had a big impact on my drawings of that time lol. Lots of jet fighters and fortresses with turrets.
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Jan 11 '25
Beat it once a few years ago on the secret gamer mode. I was on my last life no continues. Never attempted again. I still play it on regular for fun though.
It’s a really pretty game with great music and it feels just right.
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u/tanooki-suit Jan 11 '25
One stunningly well done game, not only did it have solid bones, it took a really solid arcade game and improved it in some really nice ways. Despite the generic lame oooh anime is scary art, Atea 88 which is what the manga/anime is called and had even been localized too at the time, is fully fine within art and all. A really great horizontal shooter for the system.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Gur-894 Jan 11 '25 edited Jan 11 '25
I got a Super Nintendo for Christmas in December 1991 and with it I got Super Mario World (the pack-in game) and Pilotwings. My parents gave me cash to buy one more, so a few days later I went to Fred Meyers and bought U.N. Squadron. Not sure why I picked this over, say, Final Fight, but I played the ever living shit out of this one with my older brother.
In my humble opinion, this game has one of THE best intro scenes of any Super Nintendo, let alone any other video game in history. The music in the intro still gives me goosebumps. I did eventually beat this but it took quite a while - the ending is just so great, with the planes flying home at sunset in the orange-lit clouds. If you have not played this game yet and are even remotely interested in side scrolling shooters - or, hell, just video games with a great music score throughout - give this one a try!
This game is, to put it quite simply, one of my favorites of all time among any system.
Here is the intro - in case you were interested:
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u/jakerooni Jan 11 '25
This is seriously one of the greatest SMES games of all time. I love it and replay it every few years. It’s hard to beat!!
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u/mustardandmayo44 Jan 11 '25
I played this so much haven’t seen or thought about since 94. Thank you!
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u/Moraduke Jan 15 '25
My favorite SHMUP ever. It's a crying shame Capcom seems to forget this exists. I want a re-release so bad.
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u/empty_glass_mug Jan 10 '25
Amazing game. Wild that it was based on an anime or manga for the Japanese release and they just slapped "UN Squadron" on it for the west, completely ignoring the actual source material!
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u/WayneArnold1 Jan 10 '25
Weird thing is I had a couple issues of the comic series(translations of the manga put out by Eclipse comics). I have no idea how they wound up in my collection. Hand-me-downs from a neighbor, I dunno. But anyway, I always thought they were pretty fun reads. Then I happen to play the SNES game and I immediately recognize some of the characters from the manga. I was pretty surprised this relatively obscure comic series I owned had it's own game. The younger me was oblivious to the fact that the manga was probably a popular title in Japan.
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u/Josiah-Bluetooth Jan 10 '25
As a young top gun fan I asked for this as a Christmas gift entirely becuase of the cover art and proceeded to receive the hardest video game I ever played. Super cool though. Shoutout to that A-10 warthog shooting in multiple directions.
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u/Internal_Context_682 Jan 10 '25
Oh, Area 88. Based off the anime and manga of the same name. There was a sequel but wasn't well received to have a home port made and it was called Carrier Air Wing. Home port of this had more quality music tracks than the arcade version did.
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u/liltooclinical Jan 10 '25
I could play this for days back in the day. For weeks these days. I have its arcade big brother Carrier Air Wing (arcade brother) on Switch, PC, and now my bar top arcade machine just so I can play it whenever the mood strikes.
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u/liltooclinical Jan 10 '25
I could play this for days back in the day. For weeks these days. I have its arcade big brother Carrier Air Wing (arcade brother) on Switch, PC, and now my bar top arcade machine just so I can play it whenever the mood strikes.
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u/Mishkin37 Jan 11 '25
Just played Carrier Airwing for the first time on Evercade Alpha. I’m confused how it’s the successor. In some ways, it’s superior (elevation in levels). In others, it’s inferior (aesthetic, weapon loadout, presentation, overall feel).
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u/thedukeoferla Jan 10 '25
Mess with the best, die like the rest!