DoDonPachi SaiDaiOuJou

For world record scores, please refer to the Hall of Records entry. For replays, please refer to the Video Index. For information about the exA Label arcade release, or the exA Label game mode, please refer to DoDonPachi SaiDaiOuJou exA Label.

DoDonPachi SaiDaiOuJou
DoDonPachi SaiDaiOuJou (怒首領蜂最大往生 "Angry Leader Bee True Death", abbreviated: DDP SDOJ or just SDOJ) is the seventh game developed in the Donpachi series, and the sixth developed by CAVE. This game was intended to be the final arcade game that CAVE would release. Unlike its predecessor DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu, which had a heavy emphasis on bullet canceling using the "Hyper Counter" mechanic, SaiDaiOuJou was designed to be mechanically simpler, with more focus on raw bullet dodging. As the name suggests, SaiDaiOuJou has many mechanical similarities to DoDonPachi DaiOuJou.

SDOJ saw a "Version 1.5" release on the XBOX 360 in order to fix perceived issues with the scoring mechanics in the original game, as well as a brand new Xbox 360 Mode with new mechanics and an increased focus on story and characters. The XBOX 360 port also features an option to disable the infamous GP "overflow" bug in the original game, which allows for extremely large point gain in a short amount of time when triggered.

A second arcade release of the game, DoDonPachi SaiDaiOuJou exA Label, was announced in 2020 for the EXA-Arcadia arcade platform. It was released on November 29th, 2020 after a delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Exa Label includes a port of the original arcade release of SaiDaiOuJou, an updated rework of the Xbox 360 port's Xbox 360 Mode (in the form of X-Arrange), a new Exa Label arrangement featuring gameplay somewhat similar to DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu Black Label, and a mode allowing players to immediately challenge the second true last boss, Inbachi.

A limited-release mobile game based on SaiDaiOuJou, known as DoDonPachi Ichimen-Bancho, was also produced. Originally available for iOS, it has since become unavailable to download. Though reusing many assets and mechanics, it is a dramatically different game.

Screen Elements
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Controls
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Control Explanation
DoDonPachi SaiDaiOuJou uses three buttons and an 8-direction joystick per Player during gameplay. Each Player also has a Start button that is used to begin the game after coin entry or Continue after a Game Over. No differences are known between playing on 1P side and 2P side (other than the HUD position), so a cabinet can be configured on either side when using a 1-Player control panel without affecting gameplay.

Note: If the Player is holding the C button and then presses and holds the A button, the ship will transition from firing Main Shot to Laser (in other words, the Laser input 'overrides' the Full Auto input). The Player can continue to hold C while firing the Laser, and will return to Full Auto fire as soon as the A button is released. This technique works similarly in other Donpachi series games, and is important at all levels of play.

Weapons
- (ED: Add images) Similar to DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu, SaiDaiOuJou does not feature a power-up system. The Player is always at max shot strength, and never needs to collect power-up items. However, their firepower can still be increased using the Hyper system.

Shot
A wide, unfocused rapid fire weapon. For all ship types, the Shot covers more screen area than the Laser, and allows the ship to move at higher speed. The exact spread coverage of the Shot varies based on the Ship and Dress System type selected.

Of the two main weapons, the Shot does less damage per hit, but has better screen coverage. It is useful for macro dodging situations, clearing out groups of zako, dealing damage to targets that are too far to the side to be hit by the Laser, and similar tasks. Bullets fired by the Shot will stop when they contact an enemy; they do not have any sort of 'piercing' capability. In limited situations (such as when dealing with large groups of zako) it can also be useful for point-blanking, but the Laser is generally a superior choice due to the Aura damage. Destroying zako with the Shot is believed to contribute slightly more to the GP Meter than damaging them with Laser.

Hitting enemies with the Shot does not contribute to or maintain value of the GP Meter if the enemy is not destroyed.

The Shot will not uncover Hidden Bees and allow them to be collected, but firing the Shot over a hidden Bee will cause it to flicker and become partially visible, which can be useful when learning Bee locations.

In some situations where dense bullet patterns are on screen (such as during the Stage 3 and 5 mid-boss and boss fights), using Shot can cause additional slowdown compared to the Laser due to the higher number of projectiles.

Unlike the other ships, Type-A Shot or Expert variants do extremely good damage with the Shot, and in some specific situations (such as against midbosses or the Stage 3 boss) it seems to actually do more damage than the Laser - though more testing is required to validate this claim with certainty.

Laser
A narrow, focused Laser. For all ship types, the Laser covers less screen area than the Shot, and reduces the movement speed of the ship while in use. The exact width of the Laser and impact on movement speed varies based on the Ship and Dress System type selected.

Of the two main weapons, the Laser deals higher damage per hit, but has worse screen coverage. While firing the Laser, the Player's movement speed is temporarily reduced; this can be extremely useful to allow greater precision while dodging. The Laser has a limited ability to 'pierce' through weaker enemies; against zako, the Laser will not be 'pushed back' by contacting their hitboxes. However, against larger and more durable targets, the Laser will be 'pushed back' by the enemy hitbox until it has been destroyed. The Laser is the preferred weapon when point-blanking in most situations due to the extra damage that can be obtained using the Aura.

Dealing damage to large enemies with the Laser prevents the GP Meter from fully depleting, meaning that the Laser is extremely useful in many situations for maintaining the Chain combo when fighting larger enemies, mid-bosses, and bosses. Unlike in previous DonPachi series games, the Laser can actually cause the GP Meter to rise slightly, instead of just preventing it from depleting. Because of this quirk, continuously starting and stopping the Laser (by tapping the A button just long enough for it to emerge and contact then enemy, then releasing the button) while at point-blank range over a large enemy can sustain the chain indefinitely (this technique is very similar to 'feathering' with rapid single taps of Shot to reduce damage, and is sometimes referred to by the same name).

The Laser must be used to uncover Hidden Bees, but only the tip of the laser will actually uncover the Bee. This means that the Player must 'restart' the Laser (by switching from Shot to Laser, pausing continuous Laser fire, or activating a Hyper) or develop a route such that the Laser is 'pushed back' and then re-extends over the Bee's location. When firing the Laser continuously over a Bee that is currently hidden, the Laser will not cause the Bee to flicker or become partially visible. In other words, the Shot can be used to find Bees, but the Laser must be used to collect them.

When using the Laser, all Star Items will be "vacuumed" towards the Player and automatically collected.

Laser Hit Calculation
While held in contact with a target, the Laser will continuously add HITs to the current chain over time. This works on a periodic system; every few frames, a HIT bonus will be applied. The specific frequency and strength of these bonuses is dependent on the Hyper level, as shown in the table below:

Aura
While firing the Laser, a small range around the Player ship will start dealing damage. This effect is visualized by particle effects that wrap around the sides of the Player's ship. The purpose of this Aura is to prevent the Player from being killed by collision damage against small enemies while using the Laser, but it can be utilized as an offensive tool.

Damage from the Aura contact and the Laser beam itself is additive. Therefore, to maximize damage, point-blanking an enemy with Laser such that the enemy is also inside the Aura radius is a very powerful technique.

There are slight additional particle effects used around the Player Ship when the Aura is contacting an enemy, but unlike in DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu this effect is very difficult to see.

Hyper
(ED: Work in progress. More to come)

Like its predecessors DoDonPachi DaiFukkatsu and DoDonPachi DaiOuJou, DoDOnPachi SaiDaiOuJou features a Hyper system that increases the Player's firepower and expands on the chain combo system. SaiDaiOuJou's Hyper system is mechanically similar to that in DaiOuJou; it does not allow Players to shoot down incoming bullets, and has multiple power levels, with increasing effects as the level increases. However, unlike in DaiOuJou, Hypers in SaiDaiOuJou are not collectible items, and are instead instantly awarded to the Player when the Hyper Meter is filled. SaiDaiOuJou features up to 10 Hyper levels, denoted in game as "Lv. 1" to "Lv. MAX". The current level of the Player's stored Hyper is indicated in the corner of the HUD, and also indicated with a number that trails behind the Player ship.

The Player builds Hyper levels by filling a horizontal meter in the top corner of the HUD; each time the bar is filled completely, the available Hyper level is incremented by one. The following actions contribute to Hyper Meter buildup:
 * Chaining
 * Point-blanking enemies with Laser
 * Maintaining Laser contact on large enemies, midbosses, and bosses
 * Lasering during boss fights seems to build Hyper at a faster rate, though more research is necessary to confirm this behavior
 * Collecting Stars when not in an active Hyper
 * Collecting Hidden Bees with a high HIT count

Once the Player has at least one Hyper Level stored, the Hyper system can be activated using the B button. When activated, the Hyper System has the following effects at different power levels:

¹ Damage multiplier numbers are best used as a general guideline. These numbers are only approximately valid for Laser damage; Shot is much more complicated to calculate, since it has per-character variation and behaves differently at different ranges. Numbers listed are relative to non-Hyper damage. A Lv. 1 Hyper Laser hit will deal 1.1x as much damage as a non-Hyper Laser hit, where a Lv.6 Hyper Laser hit will deal 2x as much as a non-Hyper Laser hit, etc.

Characters / Ships / Styles
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Hitbox
The ship's hitbox is 6x6 when using shot or laser, 4x4 on expert. It shrinks to 4x4 in shot/laser and 2x2 on expert when moving horizontally; the shrunk hitbox is centered on the ship when moving right, but is shifted to the right when moving left due to a bug.

Items
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Stars (Score Items)
Similar to other games in the Donpachi series, SaiDaiOuJou features collectible star items (officially just called "スコアアイテム" - lit. "score item" ) that are generated from enemy kills and bullet cancels. All Stars on screen can be "vacuumed" and collected automatically by the Player when using the Laser; if you want to avoid collecting Stars automatically, you must use Shot.

There are four ways to generate Stars:
 * Destroying enemies or destructible scenery objects1
 * Destroying an object which causes a bullet cancel (such as the turret buildings in Stage 3)
 * Most Boss and Mid-Boss phases will cause a bullet cancel when destroyed
 * In this case, canceled bullets are converted into Large Stars if the Player is in an active Hyper, and Small Stars if not
 * Activating a Hyper, which cancels all bullets on screen and converts them into Stars
 * In this case, canceled bullets are converted into Large Stars if the Hyper used is level 6 or higher, or Small Stars if not
 * Filling a Hyper meter while currently in an active Hyper, which cancels all bullets on screen and converts them into Stars

When collected, Stars will always contribute a point bonus to the Player's score (and a corresponding contribution to the Get Point value). The Star will also provide a HIT bonus to the current Chain; if the Player is using a high-level Hyper, the HIT bonus is higher. If the Player is not in an active Hyper, the Star will also provide a bonus to the Hyper Meter. Collecting many Stars at once can build Hyper levels extremely quickly if the Player is not currently in Hyper mode. This, coupled with the ability of Hypers to generate many Large Stars at once during a bullet cancel, is the key to the "Hyper Recharge" technique.

The table below explains the properties of Stars in more detail:

1 Note that not all destructible elements that might be considered "enemies" will drop stars; for example, the small "drones" deployed by the Stage 4 Boss will not drop Stars when destroyed.

Bonus Stars


The number of Large Stars dropped by some larger enemies can vary depending on the current status of the GP Meter. At the very top of the GP Meter, there is a small horizontal bar; the bar will be lit gold when the Meter is filled all the way. While the golden bar is lit, enemies will drop additional Large Stars (or, in some cases, will drop only Large instead of Small stars). This means that players are rewarded for chaining routes which kill larger enemies after many small enemies (and thus, with a full GP Meter), instead of holding laser on large enemies (which will likely not fill the Meter). Large Stars contribute significantly more Hyper and point value than small stars, so this can be an important optimization.

Rank
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Scoring
- ''For world record scores, please refer to the Hall of Records entry. Note that Japanese World Record authorities, such as JHA and Arcadia, only track runs that reach or defeat one of the True Last Bosses (Hibachi or Inbachi). Even if a run that does not reach a TLB scores higher, it is not considered valid for scoring purposes.''

True Last Bosses
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Similar to previous games in the Donpachi series, SaiDaiOuJou features secret end-game boss fights that can be triggered by meeting certain conditions.

The unlock conditions are shown in the table below. Miss and Bomb requirements are evaluated when the Player defeats Kouryuu (the Stage 5 Boss). HIT count requirements are evaluated based on the maximum HIT count the Player has reached in the entire credit.

Arcade Version
Multiple interviews have presented SaiDaiOuJou's development as one which encountered unexpected challenges. The arcade version of the game had a longer than usual development cycle at Cave, apparently in response to critical feedback about previous titles (Akai Katana and Deathsmiles II in particular). It is clear that SaiDaiOuJou was viewed internally as very likely to be CAVE's last arcade release. The game was designed as "DaiOuJou for 2012", returning to the more "pure" style of bullet-dodging gameplay when compared to the complexity of DaiFukkatsu.

Tsuneki Ikeda (IKD) is credited as the main game director, and is credited in many aspects of the project from planning to completion. Takashi Ichimura is credited with most of the bosses. Shinobu Yagawa is credited as working on game flow and data management, but there are persistent rumors that he also worked on bosses and other gameplay details. Hiroyuki Kimura is credited as a director and project manager, but also provided support in many other areas of development. He gives a strong impression of some of the challenges faced during the game's development:

Difficulties? There’s too many to list…

But the hardest would definitely be the scheduling and release date. I joined the development in the latter half of the project, and at that time we were still trying find a way to recover from management’s order to halt development. Everyday we’d ask Ikeda and Saito what was up, and day after day they could only give non-committal answers. When finally it was announced we’d resume development, it turned out we didn’t have enough time, and the team members were put upon with ridiculously unreasonable requests…

...

We titled the game “Saidaioujou”, but the crown of Daioujou is a difficult one to live up to. It was hard to add new ideas while also retaining that Daioujou-ness... Under such conditions it’s difficult to make something high-quality. Honestly, I think it’s only because we’re blessed with such a talented team that it came out well.

- Hiroyuki Kimura

Other accounts suggest Kimura was involved in even the earliest stages of the project: While Kimura is listed as the Support Director, he got the product off the ground before it was approved since Cave had already moved away from arcade development. He worked with Cave staff after their normal day tasks to create the arcade version. IKD had very little involvement with the overall development.

Xbox 360 Port
Despite prior announcements that Mushihimesama HD would be CAVE's final port to the Xbox 360, a port of SaiDaiOuJou was released in 2013, about 13 months after the release of the arcade version of the game. This port is commonly attributed to the good relationship at the time between CAVE and Microsoft; in particular, Makoto Asada was friends and drinking buddies with a representative from Microsoft.

The Xbox 360 release was a very high-effort production compared to many of CAVE's other ports, and included additional modes and content designed to broaden the appeal of the game outside of the core fanbase of STG fans (such as an anime intro, fully voiced story mode featuring famous Japanese VAs, and many training, adjustable difficulty, and challenge features intended to help players learn the game).

The day after the Xbox 360 release, CAVE indicated they would be restructuring their development teams and shifting focus away from arcade development towards a more flexible structure. At the time it was not clear exactly what this meant, but in retrospect it seems this was a point where they pivoted towards mobile-focused development.

PCB Revisions
Currently known PCB revisions:

PCB Features
The SaiDaiOuJou PCB supports the following features and test modes, configurable in the Test menu:


 * Input Test - Tests Lever and Button inputs
 * Output Test - Tests coin counter signals
 * Sound Test - Tests sound, including both music and sound effects
 * Color Test - Displays Color bars for CRT monitor calibration
 * Dot Cross Hatch - Displays a grid for CRT monitor calibration
 * System Configuration - Various options to configure system settings:
 * Trial Version - See Trial Version below
 * Coin Mode - Configure how many coins per credit
 * Continue - Enable or disable
 * Demo Sound - Enable or disable
 * Rank Display - Enable or disable
 * Chute Type - Configure how many coin chutes are on the machine
 * Game Configuration - Various options to configure game settings:
 * Difficulty - A scale of 1 to 4, where 1 is easiest and 4 is hardest. Default is
 * Extend Setting - Choose between several options for score extends. Default is
 * Autobomb Default - If enabled, Autobomb will be selected by default at the Ship Select screen. Default is
 * Memory Check - Test the ROM regions to validate game data
 * Back Up Data - Allows for an operator to review or reset the leaderboard data
 * Default - Restores all settings to factory defaults

Trial Version
A unique Trial Version feature was included in SaiDaiOuJou's PCB release. In the PCB test menu, operators could enable a "Free Mode", which would allow players 60 seconds of gameplay for free. Free Mode only allows the Player to select Shot type (Laser and Expert are not available), but they are given unlimited lives for the duration of the trial. At the end of the 60-second period, the Player is brought to a screen where they must insert credit to continue to play, after which the game will function as if it were a normal credit. The 60-second timer begins once the Player gains control of the ship at the start of Stage 1; the Ship Select and intro 'cutscene' do not count as used time. 60 seconds of in-game time is approximately enough time to reach the Stage 1 midboss.

Debug PCB
A user known as -S.L- on the Shmups Forum purchased a copy of SDOJ directly from CAVE, and appears to have accidentally been sent a board with multiple developer features unlocked. It isn't currently known whether these features are unique to this board, or available on other boards as well with the use of some kind of unlock code or other special configuration.

-S.L-'s PCB has demonstrated at least the following features:
 * Invincibility
 * "No bullets mode"
 * Various collision features, including hitbox display
 * Stage select
 * RAM, task, sound, and other system diagnostic tools and debuggers
 * Forcing Hibachi or Inbachi fights
 * A "Hyper Button" (bound to JAMMA button 4, or "D") that instantly gives the Player a stocked Hyper (or, if pressed in conjunction with Start, brings them to Lv. MAX)

Port Differences
The following table summarizes the differences between the different ports of SaiDaiOuJou.

Note: a † symbol indicates that a quality may change based on user settings, while a ‡ indicates that a quality may change based on a patch or software update.

¹ Sound effect layers is here used to describe the number of sounds that can be played at once without interrupting each other. The PCB version notably suffers from sound effects interrupting or overriding each other. ² Slowdown on the Xbox 360 port has been demonstrated to vary depending on screen resolution, with lower resolutions (480i and 480p) behaving more accurately when compared to the original PCB release. The downloadable patch for the game also reportedly tweaked slowdown behavior. In addition, slowdown on the Xbox 360 port is a combination of "simulated" software slowdown and actual slowdown of the Xbox 360 hardware. Because of the presence of hardware slowdown, different Xbox 360 models, or even different units of the same model, may experience slight variation in slowdown characteristics. ³ Input lag on the Xbox 360 port has been demonstrated to vary depending on screen resolution, with lower resolutions (480i and 480p) having less input lag. Additionally, the downloadable patch for the game reduced input lag. However, even under optimal conditions at low resolution, the Xbox 360 port still has approximately 4 frames of lag. ⁴ The exA-Arcadia release is being actively patched; the 1.2.0 patch has adjusted slowdown based on player feedback. ⁵ The exA-Arcadia release is being actively patched; the 1.2.0 patch brings lag down to approximately one frame. Note that observed lag will depend on the JVS IO and other cabinet hardware, as some IO devices introduce additional latency. ⁶ Versions prior to the 1.2.0 patch feature a small visual bug on the Stage 4 boss entrance animation. This bug does not affect gameplay.

Trivia

 * The Player has a crystalline "shield" effect when they are invincible. Similar to other CAVE titles, this invincibility shield actually deals an extremely small amount of damage (or rather - all contact between the Player and an enemy will do damage to the enemy, but since it normally also results in the instant death of the Player, it isn't a viable source of damage unless the Player is invincible). The purpose of this damage field seems to be to destroy zako which try to ram into the Player when the Player dies or is respawning. Experimental testing has demonstrated that this "contact damage" does deal continuous damage to bosses, but is not capable of destroying them. At this time, there is no known practical application for it.

Contributors

 * 1) Page creation and overview CHA-STG
 * 2) Additions, formatting SMayfield
 * 3) Reformatting to meet wiki standard template. Controls, Score Items, Weapons, Development History, Version Differences sections. Softdrink