Shmups Wiki -- The Digital Library of Shooting Games - User contributions [en]

Eschatos

2023-12-01T18:06:10Z

Schwarzgeist: /* Difficulty Modes */

{{Stub}}
[[File:Logo_eschatos.png|300px|center]]
----
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #001fbc
|title = Eschatos
|background = #f8f8f8
|image = Eschatos_capsule.jpg
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Cover Art (Steam / Nintendo Switch / PS4)
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = [[Qute]]
|
|music = Yousuke Yasui
|
|program = M-KAI
|
|art = Hiroshi-iro-enpitu, Kunio Jyoduka
|
|releasedate = 2011

|previousgame = [[Judgement Silversword]]/[[Cardinal Sins]]
|nextgame = [[Ginga Force]]
}}

'''Eschatos''' is a vertical 2.5D shooter developed by Qute. It features 2D control with fully rendered 3D objects and backgrounds which occasionally change perspective. It has several modes and difficulty levels, each mode and difficulty level combination having its own dedicated online leaderboard.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Story ==
The game offers no in-game dialogue or exposition, instead relying on environmental storytelling and small bits of description given in the manual.

In the year 21XX, a mysterious alien force codenamed "Purple Erosion" has taken over the Moon, covering it in a mysterious purple mass and using it as a base from which to invade the Earth. A squadron of fighter pilots controlling advanced aircraft (retroactively called the FV-30MZ Arcam by Qute's next game, ''Ginga Force'') are scrambled to a city where three UFOs are releasing Purple Erosion forces. The player's Arcam blows through the enemy forces and takes on the first of the UFOs, destroying its turret nodes and critically damaging its central core to force it to retreat. From there, the Arcam squadron flies through the skies, away from the city to a grassy ruins, following the enemy forces to a pyramid resembling a Mayan temple, where purple spherical "eggs" were either excavated or planted by Purple Erosion. The enemy forces attempt to secure eight of the eggs, but the player destroys five of them, forcing a transport UFO to take the remaining three and flee to low orbit. The player's ship chases after them using the pyramid as a vertical takeoff ramp, eventually confronting the transport UFO, destroying the eggs it was carrying, and soon after the machine entirely. The squadron then begins to approach the Moon in their mission to reclaim it, with the third of Purple Erosion's UFOs catching up to them and deploying a myriad of strange fighters, from giant spiders to a floating heart to a large battle-craft. After fighting through everything the UFO can throw at them, the UFO confronts the Arcam and is subsequently destroyed. Now having arrived at the invaded Moon, the squadron begins flying through trenches in the moon, destroying more of Purple Erosion's defenders until they come across a pit within the Moon blasting lasers outward, presumably trying to artillery strike Earth cities. The player's Arcam flies into the pit, dodging lasers until they come across a mysterious disc-like life-form and a wall of eggs, the life-form presumably being Purple Erosion's commander, which detaches itself from the wall and engages the Arcam. After a long-fought battle, including a transformation where the life-form turns red and gains a screaming human-like face, it falls into the wall of eggs and self-destructs, causing a chain reaction within the corrupted moon. The player's Arcam escapes the pit just as the purple mass covering the Moon begins to dissolve and explode, and is rejoined by their squadron as they fly back to Earth and twirl in celebration, with a Moon free of Purple Erosion's influence shining behind them.

== Gameplay Overview ==

Eschatos has three modes: Original, Advanced and Time Attack. Additionally, Original and Advanced have four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest. Original and Advanced also have an Endless Mode which, contrary to its name, is a mode consisting of Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest played in that order.

The manual describes Original, Advanced, and Time Attack as follows:

=== Original ===

''The Player will be able to switch between 3 shot types: "Frontal''
''Shot", "Wide Shot", and "Shield." Control your ship and defeat''
''enemies that appear in the area. Different shot types cannot be''
''used at the same time.''

''When you lose all lives, then it is game over. Eliminate all the''
''enemies in the area or stay alive for a certain time to move to''
''the next area.''

''Defeat the final boss to complete a game. Choose the most''
''effective shot type for each situation to eliminate the enemies.''

=== Advanced ===

''ADVANCED mode is based on ORIGINAL, but is more''
''complex with 7 different shot power levels and Bonus''
''Point Items. It's a more challenging mode.''

=== Time Attack ===

''TIME ATTACK mode is based on ORIGINAL mode, except players compete''
''to finish the game in the shortest time. The Player is given a 90 second''
''time limit initially, and keeps extending the time through time bonuses''
''awarded for finishing each area. If time reaches 0, it's game over. When''
''the player loses a life, 5 seconds is deducted as a penalty.''

''The quicker the game is completed, the higher the score on Rankings. If''
''the player does not finish a complete game, players that have survived''
''longer will be listed on the Rankings.''

''Results for TIME ATTACK will not be added to the TOTAL SCORE within''
''the player Report submenu.''

=== Difficulty Modes ===
There are four difficulty levels in ''Eschatos'', as well as an Endless Mode.
* '''Easy:''' Low bullet density and speed.
* '''Medium:''' Average bullet density and speed. More aggressive attack patterns are used by bosses and minibosses.
* '''Hard:''' High bullet density and speed. More aggressive attack patterns are used by bosses and minibosses.
* '''Hardest:''' Outrageous bullet density and speed. Even more aggressive attack patterns are used by bosses and minibosses. This mode must be unlocked for Original and Advanced by achieving specific option levels.
* '''Endless:''' Starts out as an Easy playthrough, but loops back to Stage 1 when the game is cleared and moves up to the next difficulty level.

There does not appear to be a rank system in '''Eschatos'', but the game does employ some randomization for where enemies will spawn.

Time Attack does not have these difficulty levels, and based on bullet density, appears to be based on Normal difficulty.

=== Controls ===
----
* '''Directional pad, Left stick:''' Move ship
* '''START:''' Open pause menu
* '''A:''' Frontal Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''X:''' Wide Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''A + X (Hold):''' Shield
* '''RT:''' Shield
* '''RB:''' Change speed

=== Unlockable Secrets ===
----

==== Option Levels ====

As you play Original or Advanced mode, the total of all scores is added up to determine what is called an Option Level. Your current Option Level corresponds to various new features, some more useful than others, up to the maximum level of 50. The following is a list of every unlock provided by this system:

# (default)
# Continue count is increased to 1
# Wallpaper brightness
# Wallpaper number 4
# Player stock / starting lives unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 2
# Demo sound can be toggled on or off
# Continue count is increased to 3
# Starting lives can be increased to 4
# Stage select unlocks, accessible in the "game settings" menu (only stages 1 and 2 are available initially)
# ''Fragment'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 4
# ''Smoke'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 5
# ''Type C'' ship type (green) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Enemy alt. display'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Original Hardest
# Starting lives can be increased to 5
# Continue count is increased to 5
# Leaderboard replays can now be viewed
# Continue count is increased to 6
# Stage 3 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Spark'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 7
# Advanced Hardest
# Wallpaper number 6
# Starting lives can be increased to 6
# Continue count is increased to 8
# Stage 4 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 9
# Wallpaper number 7
# Starting lives can be increased to 7
# "Special settings" unlocked in the options menu
# ''Collision display'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 8
# Stage 5 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Bullet bloom'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''Type D'' ship type (purple) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 9
# Infinite continues
# Starting lives can be increased to 10
# ''Explosion'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''God mode'' is unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Shadow mapping'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 8
# ''Super shot'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 9
# ''Bloom effect'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper 10
# Starting lives can be increased to 99

=== Ship Types ===
----

There is initially one ship type (color), with three other variants being unlocked through the Option Level mechanic. Type A is red, Type B is blue, Type C is green, and Type D is purple. Each ship type is purely cosmetic in nature.

=== Weapons ===
----

==== Original ====

*'''Frontal Shot''' - Concentrated fire in front of the ship with long range and fire power.

*'''Wide Shot''' - Fan-shaped spread fire. Short range but wide area.

*'''Shield''' - A defensive weapon that appears at the nose of the ship. It cannot block attacks from the side or the rear. The shield can also damage enemies that come in contact with it. The Shield will gradually deplete the Shield Meter while it is deployed. The Shield Meter will decrease faster when it blocks an enemy bullet, when it's switched off, and when changing speed.

When the Shield Meter is almost empty, the shield will turn red. When the Meter is completely empty, the shield will be turned off and cannot be used for a while. The Shield Meter will replenish with time. Shield Meter will replenish with time.

==== Advanced ====

ADVANCED mode uses a power up system for the shots. Collecting each Power Up Item will upgrade the shots by 1 level each. However, each shot power up will make the shield meter smaller. Shot power can be upgraded to a maximum of level 7. Adjust the amount of power according to the need for shields.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, the weapons behave the same as they do in Original Mode.

=== Items ===
----
1UP - After destroying a set number of enemies, a 1UP will drop from an enemy after death. After collecting the 1UP, the kills required for the next 1UP increases. The kill counter and requirement reset after using a continue. In Time Attack mode, 1UPs drop as normal, but extend the timer by 15 seconds.

Blue Flash - Collecting the blue Flash item will destroy all bullets on screen. If playing on Advanced mode, the Flash item also reduces the power level and multiplier by 1.

Yellow Flash - Advanced mode exclusive. Operates similar to the blue Flash, but converts bullets into point items.

Wonder Witch - Hidden collectibles unearthed by shooting various environmental details throughout the game, which reward points when picked up.

Power Up - Advanced mode exclusive. When collected, raises the power level and multiplier by 1.

Bonus Point Item

Time Bonus Item

=== Scoring ===
----

==== Original ====

Scoring is relatively straightforward - each wave of enemies, as well as the bosses have timers that give a bonus once complete. Each wave completely cleared will increase the multiplier to a maximum, with the speed and cap of the multiplier varying depending on difficulty:
* Easy - +1 multiplier every 3 waves, maximum of 5
* Normal - +1 multiplier every 2 waves, maximum of 10
* Hard - +1 multiplier every wave, maximum of 20
* Hardest - +1 multiplier every wave, no maximum

Dying will reduce the multiplier by 1, as will failing to destroy an enemy. Using the Flash item when it appears incurs no penalty.

==== Advanced ====

While Advanced mode uses a multiplier similarly to Original mode, there are some important differences. (dumping all of this here for now, some of it belongs in another section most likely)

* This mode enables the power meter and power-ups. The power meter affects various statistics of the ship's main and wide shots - range, screen coverage, and fire rate - and increases by 1 each time a power-up is collected, up to a maximum power level of 6. The ship starts out weaker than Original mode, but is significantly stronger than Original at maximum power (Original mode locks the player at a power level of 4). Collecting either type of Flash item will reduce the power level by 1, as will taking a hit.
* Multiplier speed and cap are similar to Original mode, but the multiplier is separated into two different types: power-up and enemy multiplier, which increase and decrease by different means. These two multiplier values are additive, so the value shown at the left side of the screen is the sum of the power-up and enemy multipliers.
* Enemy multiplier works identical to Original mode, increasing based on waves completing and decreasing when an enemy escapes.
* Getting hit will reduce the enemy multiplier down to one. This means extra caution should be taken during boss encounters, as a 26x multiplier can go crashing back down to 6x should the player get reckless and take a hit. For this reason, and this is merely opinion, I don't think picking up F-bombs in Advanced mode should be stigmatized. It's obviously preferable to yo-yo between 26x and 25x, if you think you're in danger, instead of taking a hit due to your pride and receiving a 6x multiplier as a reward.
* The power-up multiplier is directly tied to the ship's power level, ranging from 0 to 6. A fully powered ship will always have at least 7x multiplier unless the power level is reduced by taking a hit or collecting a Flash.
* Your shield is weakened to these values with each respective powerup: 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, and finally 30 at maximum power.
* Shielding bullets will create purple gems that act as an offensive barrier around your ship. When the shield is lowered, these purple items are automatically collected and converted into points.
* There is no time bonus in Advanced mode, which means speed killing isn't prioritized. There are two ways you can abuse this: waiting for item carriers to give you powerups/F-bombs at a safer time or waiting for a more lucrative bullet cancel. I've provided a list below for when you might want to stall a bit for bullet cancels.
* Yellow Flashes appear only during the stage, while blue Flashes only appear when the power meter is maxed or during boss encounters. The pods that drop items appear to do so in a pattern: the first two drop power-ups/blue Flashes, and every third will drop a gold Flash.
* Wonder witches cancel bullets into purple gems, just like yellow F-bombs - however they do NOT power you down like yellow F-bombs. Good luck finding any decent opportunities to cancel with witches, though.

==== Time Attack ====

Time Attack mode operates similarly to Original mode, but on a time limit. There is no score or multiplier, only the total time used for the game session. There are infinite lives, but dying removes five seconds from the clock. Time is added when completing an area or collecting a 1UP. The clock pauses in-between waves, mainly when the camera is maneuvering to another angle or the wave is just entering the screen. There are no continues for this mode - if time runs out, a game over is triggered. After defeating the final boss, the time left on the clock is subtracted from the current playthrough time to establish a final time.

== Strategy ==
<div style='text-align: center;'>
''See [[(Template Page)/Strategy]] for '''stage maps''', '''enemy and boss descriptions''', '''walkthroughs''', and '''advanced play strategies'''.''
</div>
----

This section details some particular strategic information about the game and its gameplay, such as hidden 1UPs and some basic scoring tricks. For anything particularly deep or highly complex, you can probably leave it in the Strategy page.

''(Currently evaluating whether or not this specific section should even include information outside of the separated Strategy pages. Worth thinking about as a community.)''

== Version Differences ==
* The version for the Nintendo Switch eliminates the loading pauses that occur between stages. The Switch version also comes with ''Judgement Silversword'' and ''Cardinal Sins'', the predecessors to ''Eschatos'', as bonus games that can be played.

== Trivia ==

* While the sparks when grinding bullets look like they indicate a bullet-grinding mechanic, it is just there for visual flair.

== Gallery ==

=== Official Digital Game Manual ===

''[[Eschatos]]'' Game Manual made by [[Qute]] Corporation in digital format, bundled with the purchase of the game vía Steam (PC), Nintendo eShop or PSN.

Contains a brief explanation of the Controls and the Game System.

<gallery>
Eschatos manual 1.png|Manual cover art
Eschatos manual 2.png|Controls
Eschatos manual 3.png|Game System Explanation - Original Mode
Eschatos_manual_EN_4.png|Game System Explanation - ADVANCED Mode
Eschatos manual 5.png|Game System Explanation - Time Attack Mode
Eschatos manual 6.png|Credits Section
</gallery>

== Other ==

We have support for wikitables, giving us the potential to add lots of cool info in a small box on the page somewhere, but we are not using them at the moment. I'm just leaving this here so we can have it handy in case we decide to actually use them. Feel free to not use this section.

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"
|-
! [[(Template Page)]]
|-
| put your stuff here
|}

== References & Contributors ==
<small>
<references />
* [https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/ ESCHATOS Steam page]
<small>

* This template page was assembled by [[User:CHA-STG|CHA-STG]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]].

* Information about the Option Level unlocks provided by Emuser: https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=69338</small>

[[Category:Vertical_orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]

Eschatos

2023-12-01T18:04:51Z

Schwarzgeist: /* Gameplay Overview */

{{Stub}}
[[File:Logo_eschatos.png|300px|center]]
----
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #001fbc
|title = Eschatos
|background = #f8f8f8
|image = Eschatos_capsule.jpg
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Cover Art (Steam / Nintendo Switch / PS4)
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = [[Qute]]
|
|music = Yousuke Yasui
|
|program = M-KAI
|
|art = Hiroshi-iro-enpitu, Kunio Jyoduka
|
|releasedate = 2011

|previousgame = [[Judgement Silversword]]/[[Cardinal Sins]]
|nextgame = [[Ginga Force]]
}}

'''Eschatos''' is a vertical 2.5D shooter developed by Qute. It features 2D control with fully rendered 3D objects and backgrounds which occasionally change perspective. It has several modes and difficulty levels, each mode and difficulty level combination having its own dedicated online leaderboard.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Story ==
The game offers no in-game dialogue or exposition, instead relying on environmental storytelling and small bits of description given in the manual.

In the year 21XX, a mysterious alien force codenamed "Purple Erosion" has taken over the Moon, covering it in a mysterious purple mass and using it as a base from which to invade the Earth. A squadron of fighter pilots controlling advanced aircraft (retroactively called the FV-30MZ Arcam by Qute's next game, ''Ginga Force'') are scrambled to a city where three UFOs are releasing Purple Erosion forces. The player's Arcam blows through the enemy forces and takes on the first of the UFOs, destroying its turret nodes and critically damaging its central core to force it to retreat. From there, the Arcam squadron flies through the skies, away from the city to a grassy ruins, following the enemy forces to a pyramid resembling a Mayan temple, where purple spherical "eggs" were either excavated or planted by Purple Erosion. The enemy forces attempt to secure eight of the eggs, but the player destroys five of them, forcing a transport UFO to take the remaining three and flee to low orbit. The player's ship chases after them using the pyramid as a vertical takeoff ramp, eventually confronting the transport UFO, destroying the eggs it was carrying, and soon after the machine entirely. The squadron then begins to approach the Moon in their mission to reclaim it, with the third of Purple Erosion's UFOs catching up to them and deploying a myriad of strange fighters, from giant spiders to a floating heart to a large battle-craft. After fighting through everything the UFO can throw at them, the UFO confronts the Arcam and is subsequently destroyed. Now having arrived at the invaded Moon, the squadron begins flying through trenches in the moon, destroying more of Purple Erosion's defenders until they come across a pit within the Moon blasting lasers outward, presumably trying to artillery strike Earth cities. The player's Arcam flies into the pit, dodging lasers until they come across a mysterious disc-like life-form and a wall of eggs, the life-form presumably being Purple Erosion's commander, which detaches itself from the wall and engages the Arcam. After a long-fought battle, including a transformation where the life-form turns red and gains a screaming human-like face, it falls into the wall of eggs and self-destructs, causing a chain reaction within the corrupted moon. The player's Arcam escapes the pit just as the purple mass covering the Moon begins to dissolve and explode, and is rejoined by their squadron as they fly back to Earth and twirl in celebration, with a Moon free of Purple Erosion's influence shining behind them.

== Gameplay Overview ==

Eschatos has three modes: Original, Advanced and Time Attack. Additionally, Original and Advanced have four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest. Original and Advanced also have an Endless Mode which, contrary to its name, is a mode consisting of Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest played in that order.

The manual describes Original, Advanced, and Time Attack as follows:

=== Original ===

''The Player will be able to switch between 3 shot types: "Frontal''
''Shot", "Wide Shot", and "Shield." Control your ship and defeat''
''enemies that appear in the area. Different shot types cannot be''
''used at the same time.''

''When you lose all lives, then it is game over. Eliminate all the''
''enemies in the area or stay alive for a certain time to move to''
''the next area.''

''Defeat the final boss to complete a game. Choose the most''
''effective shot type for each situation to eliminate the enemies.''

=== Advanced ===

''ADVANCED mode is based on ORIGINAL, but is more''
''complex with 7 different shot power levels and Bonus''
''Point Items. It's a more challenging mode.''

=== Time Attack ===

''TIME ATTACK mode is based on ORIGINAL mode, except players compete''
''to finish the game in the shortest time. The Player is given a 90 second''
''time limit initially, and keeps extending the time through time bonuses''
''awarded for finishing each area. If time reaches 0, it's game over. When''
''the player loses a life, 5 seconds is deducted as a penalty.''

''The quicker the game is completed, the higher the score on Rankings. If''
''the player does not finish a complete game, players that have survived''
''longer will be listed on the Rankings.''

''Results for TIME ATTACK will not be added to the TOTAL SCORE within''
''the player Report submenu.''

=== Difficulty Modes ===
There are four difficulty levels in ''Eschatos'', as well as an Endless Mode.
* '''Easy:''' Low bullet density and speed.
* '''Medium:''' Average bullet density and speed. More aggressive attack patterns are used by bosses and minibosses.
* '''Hard:''' High bullet density and speed. More aggressive attack patterns are used by bosses and minibosses.
* '''Hardest:''' Outrageous bullet density and speed. Even more aggressive attack patterns are used by bosses and minibosses.
* '''Endless:''' Starts out as an Easy playthrough, but loops back to Stage 1 when the game is cleared and moves up to the next difficulty level.

There does not appear to be a rank system in '''Eschatos'', but the game does employ some randomization for where enemies will spawn.

Time Attack does not have these difficulty levels, and based on bullet density, appears to be based on Normal difficulty.

=== Controls ===
----
* '''Directional pad, Left stick:''' Move ship
* '''START:''' Open pause menu
* '''A:''' Frontal Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''X:''' Wide Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''A + X (Hold):''' Shield
* '''RT:''' Shield
* '''RB:''' Change speed

=== Unlockable Secrets ===
----

==== Option Levels ====

As you play Original or Advanced mode, the total of all scores is added up to determine what is called an Option Level. Your current Option Level corresponds to various new features, some more useful than others, up to the maximum level of 50. The following is a list of every unlock provided by this system:

# (default)
# Continue count is increased to 1
# Wallpaper brightness
# Wallpaper number 4
# Player stock / starting lives unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 2
# Demo sound can be toggled on or off
# Continue count is increased to 3
# Starting lives can be increased to 4
# Stage select unlocks, accessible in the "game settings" menu (only stages 1 and 2 are available initially)
# ''Fragment'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 4
# ''Smoke'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 5
# ''Type C'' ship type (green) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Enemy alt. display'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Original Hardest
# Starting lives can be increased to 5
# Continue count is increased to 5
# Leaderboard replays can now be viewed
# Continue count is increased to 6
# Stage 3 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Spark'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 7
# Advanced Hardest
# Wallpaper number 6
# Starting lives can be increased to 6
# Continue count is increased to 8
# Stage 4 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 9
# Wallpaper number 7
# Starting lives can be increased to 7
# "Special settings" unlocked in the options menu
# ''Collision display'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 8
# Stage 5 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Bullet bloom'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''Type D'' ship type (purple) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 9
# Infinite continues
# Starting lives can be increased to 10
# ''Explosion'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''God mode'' is unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Shadow mapping'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 8
# ''Super shot'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 9
# ''Bloom effect'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper 10
# Starting lives can be increased to 99

=== Ship Types ===
----

There is initially one ship type (color), with three other variants being unlocked through the Option Level mechanic. Type A is red, Type B is blue, Type C is green, and Type D is purple. Each ship type is purely cosmetic in nature.

=== Weapons ===
----

==== Original ====

*'''Frontal Shot''' - Concentrated fire in front of the ship with long range and fire power.

*'''Wide Shot''' - Fan-shaped spread fire. Short range but wide area.

*'''Shield''' - A defensive weapon that appears at the nose of the ship. It cannot block attacks from the side or the rear. The shield can also damage enemies that come in contact with it. The Shield will gradually deplete the Shield Meter while it is deployed. The Shield Meter will decrease faster when it blocks an enemy bullet, when it's switched off, and when changing speed.

When the Shield Meter is almost empty, the shield will turn red. When the Meter is completely empty, the shield will be turned off and cannot be used for a while. The Shield Meter will replenish with time. Shield Meter will replenish with time.

==== Advanced ====

ADVANCED mode uses a power up system for the shots. Collecting each Power Up Item will upgrade the shots by 1 level each. However, each shot power up will make the shield meter smaller. Shot power can be upgraded to a maximum of level 7. Adjust the amount of power according to the need for shields.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, the weapons behave the same as they do in Original Mode.

=== Items ===
----
1UP - After destroying a set number of enemies, a 1UP will drop from an enemy after death. After collecting the 1UP, the kills required for the next 1UP increases. The kill counter and requirement reset after using a continue. In Time Attack mode, 1UPs drop as normal, but extend the timer by 15 seconds.

Blue Flash - Collecting the blue Flash item will destroy all bullets on screen. If playing on Advanced mode, the Flash item also reduces the power level and multiplier by 1.

Yellow Flash - Advanced mode exclusive. Operates similar to the blue Flash, but converts bullets into point items.

Wonder Witch - Hidden collectibles unearthed by shooting various environmental details throughout the game, which reward points when picked up.

Power Up - Advanced mode exclusive. When collected, raises the power level and multiplier by 1.

Bonus Point Item

Time Bonus Item

=== Scoring ===
----

==== Original ====

Scoring is relatively straightforward - each wave of enemies, as well as the bosses have timers that give a bonus once complete. Each wave completely cleared will increase the multiplier to a maximum, with the speed and cap of the multiplier varying depending on difficulty:
* Easy - +1 multiplier every 3 waves, maximum of 5
* Normal - +1 multiplier every 2 waves, maximum of 10
* Hard - +1 multiplier every wave, maximum of 20
* Hardest - +1 multiplier every wave, no maximum

Dying will reduce the multiplier by 1, as will failing to destroy an enemy. Using the Flash item when it appears incurs no penalty.

==== Advanced ====

While Advanced mode uses a multiplier similarly to Original mode, there are some important differences. (dumping all of this here for now, some of it belongs in another section most likely)

* This mode enables the power meter and power-ups. The power meter affects various statistics of the ship's main and wide shots - range, screen coverage, and fire rate - and increases by 1 each time a power-up is collected, up to a maximum power level of 6. The ship starts out weaker than Original mode, but is significantly stronger than Original at maximum power (Original mode locks the player at a power level of 4). Collecting either type of Flash item will reduce the power level by 1, as will taking a hit.
* Multiplier speed and cap are similar to Original mode, but the multiplier is separated into two different types: power-up and enemy multiplier, which increase and decrease by different means. These two multiplier values are additive, so the value shown at the left side of the screen is the sum of the power-up and enemy multipliers.
* Enemy multiplier works identical to Original mode, increasing based on waves completing and decreasing when an enemy escapes.
* Getting hit will reduce the enemy multiplier down to one. This means extra caution should be taken during boss encounters, as a 26x multiplier can go crashing back down to 6x should the player get reckless and take a hit. For this reason, and this is merely opinion, I don't think picking up F-bombs in Advanced mode should be stigmatized. It's obviously preferable to yo-yo between 26x and 25x, if you think you're in danger, instead of taking a hit due to your pride and receiving a 6x multiplier as a reward.
* The power-up multiplier is directly tied to the ship's power level, ranging from 0 to 6. A fully powered ship will always have at least 7x multiplier unless the power level is reduced by taking a hit or collecting a Flash.
* Your shield is weakened to these values with each respective powerup: 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, and finally 30 at maximum power.
* Shielding bullets will create purple gems that act as an offensive barrier around your ship. When the shield is lowered, these purple items are automatically collected and converted into points.
* There is no time bonus in Advanced mode, which means speed killing isn't prioritized. There are two ways you can abuse this: waiting for item carriers to give you powerups/F-bombs at a safer time or waiting for a more lucrative bullet cancel. I've provided a list below for when you might want to stall a bit for bullet cancels.
* Yellow Flashes appear only during the stage, while blue Flashes only appear when the power meter is maxed or during boss encounters. The pods that drop items appear to do so in a pattern: the first two drop power-ups/blue Flashes, and every third will drop a gold Flash.
* Wonder witches cancel bullets into purple gems, just like yellow F-bombs - however they do NOT power you down like yellow F-bombs. Good luck finding any decent opportunities to cancel with witches, though.

==== Time Attack ====

Time Attack mode operates similarly to Original mode, but on a time limit. There is no score or multiplier, only the total time used for the game session. There are infinite lives, but dying removes five seconds from the clock. Time is added when completing an area or collecting a 1UP. The clock pauses in-between waves, mainly when the camera is maneuvering to another angle or the wave is just entering the screen. There are no continues for this mode - if time runs out, a game over is triggered. After defeating the final boss, the time left on the clock is subtracted from the current playthrough time to establish a final time.

== Strategy ==
<div style='text-align: center;'>
''See [[(Template Page)/Strategy]] for '''stage maps''', '''enemy and boss descriptions''', '''walkthroughs''', and '''advanced play strategies'''.''
</div>
----

This section details some particular strategic information about the game and its gameplay, such as hidden 1UPs and some basic scoring tricks. For anything particularly deep or highly complex, you can probably leave it in the Strategy page.

''(Currently evaluating whether or not this specific section should even include information outside of the separated Strategy pages. Worth thinking about as a community.)''

== Version Differences ==
* The version for the Nintendo Switch eliminates the loading pauses that occur between stages. The Switch version also comes with ''Judgement Silversword'' and ''Cardinal Sins'', the predecessors to ''Eschatos'', as bonus games that can be played.

== Trivia ==

* While the sparks when grinding bullets look like they indicate a bullet-grinding mechanic, it is just there for visual flair.

== Gallery ==

=== Official Digital Game Manual ===

''[[Eschatos]]'' Game Manual made by [[Qute]] Corporation in digital format, bundled with the purchase of the game vía Steam (PC), Nintendo eShop or PSN.

Contains a brief explanation of the Controls and the Game System.

<gallery>
Eschatos manual 1.png|Manual cover art
Eschatos manual 2.png|Controls
Eschatos manual 3.png|Game System Explanation - Original Mode
Eschatos_manual_EN_4.png|Game System Explanation - ADVANCED Mode
Eschatos manual 5.png|Game System Explanation - Time Attack Mode
Eschatos manual 6.png|Credits Section
</gallery>

== Other ==

We have support for wikitables, giving us the potential to add lots of cool info in a small box on the page somewhere, but we are not using them at the moment. I'm just leaving this here so we can have it handy in case we decide to actually use them. Feel free to not use this section.

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"
|-
! [[(Template Page)]]
|-
| put your stuff here
|}

== References & Contributors ==
<small>
<references />
* [https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/ ESCHATOS Steam page]
<small>

* This template page was assembled by [[User:CHA-STG|CHA-STG]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]].

* Information about the Option Level unlocks provided by Emuser: https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=69338</small>

[[Category:Vertical_orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]

Eschatos

2023-12-01T17:52:30Z

Schwarzgeist: /* Version Differences */

{{Stub}}
[[File:Logo_eschatos.png|300px|center]]
----
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #001fbc
|title = Eschatos
|background = #f8f8f8
|image = Eschatos_capsule.jpg
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Cover Art (Steam / Nintendo Switch / PS4)
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = [[Qute]]
|
|music = Yousuke Yasui
|
|program = M-KAI
|
|art = Hiroshi-iro-enpitu, Kunio Jyoduka
|
|releasedate = 2011

|previousgame = [[Judgement Silversword]]/[[Cardinal Sins]]
|nextgame = [[Ginga Force]]
}}

'''Eschatos''' is a vertical 2.5D shooter developed by Qute. It features 2D control with fully rendered 3D objects and backgrounds which occasionally change perspective. It has several modes and difficulty levels, each mode and difficulty level combination having its own dedicated online leaderboard.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Story ==
The game offers no in-game dialogue or exposition, instead relying on environmental storytelling and small bits of description given in the manual.

In the year 21XX, a mysterious alien force codenamed "Purple Erosion" has taken over the Moon, covering it in a mysterious purple mass and using it as a base from which to invade the Earth. A squadron of fighter pilots controlling advanced aircraft (retroactively called the FV-30MZ Arcam by Qute's next game, ''Ginga Force'') are scrambled to a city where three UFOs are releasing Purple Erosion forces. The player's Arcam blows through the enemy forces and takes on the first of the UFOs, destroying its turret nodes and critically damaging its central core to force it to retreat. From there, the Arcam squadron flies through the skies, away from the city to a grassy ruins, following the enemy forces to a pyramid resembling a Mayan temple, where purple spherical "eggs" were either excavated or planted by Purple Erosion. The enemy forces attempt to secure eight of the eggs, but the player destroys five of them, forcing a transport UFO to take the remaining three and flee to low orbit. The player's ship chases after them using the pyramid as a vertical takeoff ramp, eventually confronting the transport UFO, destroying the eggs it was carrying, and soon after the machine entirely. The squadron then begins to approach the Moon in their mission to reclaim it, with the third of Purple Erosion's UFOs catching up to them and deploying a myriad of strange fighters, from giant spiders to a floating heart to a large battle-craft. After fighting through everything the UFO can throw at them, the UFO confronts the Arcam and is subsequently destroyed. Now having arrived at the invaded Moon, the squadron begins flying through trenches in the moon, destroying more of Purple Erosion's defenders until they come across a pit within the Moon blasting lasers outward, presumably trying to artillery strike Earth cities. The player's Arcam flies into the pit, dodging lasers until they come across a mysterious disc-like life-form and a wall of eggs, the life-form presumably being Purple Erosion's commander, which detaches itself from the wall and engages the Arcam. After a long-fought battle, including a transformation where the life-form turns red and gains a screaming human-like face, it falls into the wall of eggs and self-destructs, causing a chain reaction within the corrupted moon. The player's Arcam escapes the pit just as the purple mass covering the Moon begins to dissolve and explode, and is rejoined by their squadron as they fly back to Earth and twirl in celebration, with a Moon free of Purple Erosion's influence shining behind them.

== Gameplay Overview ==

Eschatos has three modes: Original, Advanced and Time Attack. Additionally, Original and Advanced have four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest. Original and Advanced also have an Endless Mode which, contrary to its name, is a mode consisting of Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest played in that order.

The manual describes Original, Advanced, and Time Attack as follows:

=== Original ===

''The Player will be able to switch between 3 shot types: "Frontal''
''Shot", "Wide Shot", and "Shield." Control your ship and defeat''
''enemies that appear in the area. Different shot types cannot be''
''used at the same time.''

''When you lose all lives, then it is game over. Eliminate all the''
''enemies in the area or stay alive for a certain time to move to''
''the next area.''

''Defeat the final boss to complete a game. Choose the most''
''effective shot type for each situation to eliminate the enemies.''

=== Advanced ===

''ADVANCED mode is based on ORIGINAL, but is more''
''complex with 7 different shot power levels and Bonus''
''Point Items. It's a more challenging mode.''

=== Time Attack ===

''TIME ATTACK mode is based on ORIGINAL mode, except players compete''
''to finish the game in the shortest time. The Player is given a 90 second''
''time limit initially, and keeps extending the time through time bonuses''
''awarded for finishing each area. If time reaches 0, it's game over. When''
''the player loses a life, 5 seconds is deducted as a penalty.''

''The quicker the game is completed, the higher the score on Rankings. If''
''the player does not finish a complete game, players that have survived''
''longer will be listed on the Rankings.''

''Results for TIME ATTACK will not be added to the TOTAL SCORE within''
''the player Report submenu.''

=== Controls ===
----
* '''Directional pad, Left stick:''' Move ship
* '''START:''' Open pause menu
* '''A:''' Frontal Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''X:''' Wide Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''A + X (Hold):''' Shield
* '''RT:''' Shield
* '''RB:''' Change speed

=== Unlockable Secrets ===
----

==== Option Levels ====

As you play Original or Advanced mode, the total of all scores is added up to determine what is called an Option Level. Your current Option Level corresponds to various new features, some more useful than others, up to the maximum level of 50. The following is a list of every unlock provided by this system:

# (default)
# Continue count is increased to 1
# Wallpaper brightness
# Wallpaper number 4
# Player stock / starting lives unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 2
# Demo sound can be toggled on or off
# Continue count is increased to 3
# Starting lives can be increased to 4
# Stage select unlocks, accessible in the "game settings" menu (only stages 1 and 2 are available initially)
# ''Fragment'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 4
# ''Smoke'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 5
# ''Type C'' ship type (green) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Enemy alt. display'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Original Hardest
# Starting lives can be increased to 5
# Continue count is increased to 5
# Leaderboard replays can now be viewed
# Continue count is increased to 6
# Stage 3 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Spark'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 7
# Advanced Hardest
# Wallpaper number 6
# Starting lives can be increased to 6
# Continue count is increased to 8
# Stage 4 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 9
# Wallpaper number 7
# Starting lives can be increased to 7
# "Special settings" unlocked in the options menu
# ''Collision display'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 8
# Stage 5 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Bullet bloom'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''Type D'' ship type (purple) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 9
# Infinite continues
# Starting lives can be increased to 10
# ''Explosion'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''God mode'' is unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Shadow mapping'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 8
# ''Super shot'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 9
# ''Bloom effect'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper 10
# Starting lives can be increased to 99

=== Ship Types ===
----

There is initially one ship type (color), with three other variants being unlocked through the Option Level mechanic. Type A is red, Type B is blue, Type C is green, and Type D is purple. Each ship type is purely cosmetic in nature.

=== Weapons ===
----

==== Original ====

*'''Frontal Shot''' - Concentrated fire in front of the ship with long range and fire power.

*'''Wide Shot''' - Fan-shaped spread fire. Short range but wide area.

*'''Shield''' - A defensive weapon that appears at the nose of the ship. It cannot block attacks from the side or the rear. The shield can also damage enemies that come in contact with it. The Shield will gradually deplete the Shield Meter while it is deployed. The Shield Meter will decrease faster when it blocks an enemy bullet, when it's switched off, and when changing speed.

When the Shield Meter is almost empty, the shield will turn red. When the Meter is completely empty, the shield will be turned off and cannot be used for a while. The Shield Meter will replenish with time. Shield Meter will replenish with time.

==== Advanced ====

ADVANCED mode uses a power up system for the shots. Collecting each Power Up Item will upgrade the shots by 1 level each. However, each shot power up will make the shield meter smaller. Shot power can be upgraded to a maximum of level 7. Adjust the amount of power according to the need for shields.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, the weapons behave the same as they do in Original Mode.

=== Items ===
----
1UP - After destroying a set number of enemies, a 1UP will drop from an enemy after death. After collecting the 1UP, the kills required for the next 1UP increases. The kill counter and requirement reset after using a continue. In Time Attack mode, 1UPs drop as normal, but extend the timer by 15 seconds.

Blue Flash - Collecting the blue Flash item will destroy all bullets on screen. If playing on Advanced mode, the Flash item also reduces the power level and multiplier by 1.

Yellow Flash - Advanced mode exclusive. Operates similar to the blue Flash, but converts bullets into point items.

Wonder Witch - Hidden collectibles unearthed by shooting various environmental details throughout the game, which reward points when picked up.

Power Up - Advanced mode exclusive. When collected, raises the power level and multiplier by 1.

Bonus Point Item

Time Bonus Item

=== Scoring ===
----

==== Original ====

Scoring is relatively straightforward - each wave of enemies, as well as the bosses have timers that give a bonus once complete. Each wave completely cleared will increase the multiplier to a maximum, with the speed and cap of the multiplier varying depending on difficulty:
* Easy - +1 multiplier every 3 waves, maximum of 5
* Normal - +1 multiplier every 2 waves, maximum of 10
* Hard - +1 multiplier every wave, maximum of 20
* Hardest - +1 multiplier every wave, no maximum

Dying will reduce the multiplier by 1, as will failing to destroy an enemy. Using the Flash item when it appears incurs no penalty.

==== Advanced ====

While Advanced mode uses a multiplier similarly to Original mode, there are some important differences. (dumping all of this here for now, some of it belongs in another section most likely)

* This mode enables the power meter and power-ups. The power meter affects various statistics of the ship's main and wide shots - range, screen coverage, and fire rate - and increases by 1 each time a power-up is collected, up to a maximum power level of 6. The ship starts out weaker than Original mode, but is significantly stronger than Original at maximum power (Original mode locks the player at a power level of 4). Collecting either type of Flash item will reduce the power level by 1, as will taking a hit.
* Multiplier speed and cap are similar to Original mode, but the multiplier is separated into two different types: power-up and enemy multiplier, which increase and decrease by different means. These two multiplier values are additive, so the value shown at the left side of the screen is the sum of the power-up and enemy multipliers.
* Enemy multiplier works identical to Original mode, increasing based on waves completing and decreasing when an enemy escapes.
* Getting hit will reduce the enemy multiplier down to one. This means extra caution should be taken during boss encounters, as a 26x multiplier can go crashing back down to 6x should the player get reckless and take a hit. For this reason, and this is merely opinion, I don't think picking up F-bombs in Advanced mode should be stigmatized. It's obviously preferable to yo-yo between 26x and 25x, if you think you're in danger, instead of taking a hit due to your pride and receiving a 6x multiplier as a reward.
* The power-up multiplier is directly tied to the ship's power level, ranging from 0 to 6. A fully powered ship will always have at least 7x multiplier unless the power level is reduced by taking a hit or collecting a Flash.
* Your shield is weakened to these values with each respective powerup: 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, and finally 30 at maximum power.
* Shielding bullets will create purple gems that act as an offensive barrier around your ship. When the shield is lowered, these purple items are automatically collected and converted into points.
* There is no time bonus in Advanced mode, which means speed killing isn't prioritized. There are two ways you can abuse this: waiting for item carriers to give you powerups/F-bombs at a safer time or waiting for a more lucrative bullet cancel. I've provided a list below for when you might want to stall a bit for bullet cancels.
* Yellow Flashes appear only during the stage, while blue Flashes only appear when the power meter is maxed or during boss encounters. The pods that drop items appear to do so in a pattern: the first two drop power-ups/blue Flashes, and every third will drop a gold Flash.
* Wonder witches cancel bullets into purple gems, just like yellow F-bombs - however they do NOT power you down like yellow F-bombs. Good luck finding any decent opportunities to cancel with witches, though.

==== Time Attack ====

Time Attack mode operates similarly to Original mode, but on a time limit. There is no score or multiplier, only the total time used for the game session. There are infinite lives, but dying removes five seconds from the clock. Time is added when clearing a wave or collecting a 1UP. The clock pauses in-between waves, mainly when the camera is maneuvering to another angle. There are no continues for this mode - if time runs out, a game over is triggered. After defeating the final boss, the time left on the clock is subtracted from the current playthrough time to establish a final time.

== Strategy ==
<div style='text-align: center;'>
''See [[(Template Page)/Strategy]] for '''stage maps''', '''enemy and boss descriptions''', '''walkthroughs''', and '''advanced play strategies'''.''
</div>
----

This section details some particular strategic information about the game and its gameplay, such as hidden 1UPs and some basic scoring tricks. For anything particularly deep or highly complex, you can probably leave it in the Strategy page.

''(Currently evaluating whether or not this specific section should even include information outside of the separated Strategy pages. Worth thinking about as a community.)''

== Version Differences ==
* The version for the Nintendo Switch eliminates the loading pauses that occur between stages. The Switch version also comes with ''Judgement Silversword'' and ''Cardinal Sins'', the predecessors to ''Eschatos'', as bonus games that can be played.

== Trivia ==

* While the sparks when grinding bullets look like they indicate a bullet-grinding mechanic, it is just there for visual flair.

== Gallery ==

=== Official Digital Game Manual ===

''[[Eschatos]]'' Game Manual made by [[Qute]] Corporation in digital format, bundled with the purchase of the game vía Steam (PC), Nintendo eShop or PSN.

Contains a brief explanation of the Controls and the Game System.

<gallery>
Eschatos manual 1.png|Manual cover art
Eschatos manual 2.png|Controls
Eschatos manual 3.png|Game System Explanation - Original Mode
Eschatos_manual_EN_4.png|Game System Explanation - ADVANCED Mode
Eschatos manual 5.png|Game System Explanation - Time Attack Mode
Eschatos manual 6.png|Credits Section
</gallery>

== Other ==

We have support for wikitables, giving us the potential to add lots of cool info in a small box on the page somewhere, but we are not using them at the moment. I'm just leaving this here so we can have it handy in case we decide to actually use them. Feel free to not use this section.

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"
|-
! [[(Template Page)]]
|-
| put your stuff here
|}

== References & Contributors ==
<small>
<references />
* [https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/ ESCHATOS Steam page]
<small>

* This template page was assembled by [[User:CHA-STG|CHA-STG]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]].

* Information about the Option Level unlocks provided by Emuser: https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=69338</small>

[[Category:Vertical_orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]

Eschatos

2023-12-01T17:50:36Z

Schwarzgeist: /* Version Differences */

{{Stub}}
[[File:Logo_eschatos.png|300px|center]]
----
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #001fbc
|title = Eschatos
|background = #f8f8f8
|image = Eschatos_capsule.jpg
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Cover Art (Steam / Nintendo Switch / PS4)
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = [[Qute]]
|
|music = Yousuke Yasui
|
|program = M-KAI
|
|art = Hiroshi-iro-enpitu, Kunio Jyoduka
|
|releasedate = 2011

|previousgame = [[Judgement Silversword]]/[[Cardinal Sins]]
|nextgame = [[Ginga Force]]
}}

'''Eschatos''' is a vertical 2.5D shooter developed by Qute. It features 2D control with fully rendered 3D objects and backgrounds which occasionally change perspective. It has several modes and difficulty levels, each mode and difficulty level combination having its own dedicated online leaderboard.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Story ==
The game offers no in-game dialogue or exposition, instead relying on environmental storytelling and small bits of description given in the manual.

In the year 21XX, a mysterious alien force codenamed "Purple Erosion" has taken over the Moon, covering it in a mysterious purple mass and using it as a base from which to invade the Earth. A squadron of fighter pilots controlling advanced aircraft (retroactively called the FV-30MZ Arcam by Qute's next game, ''Ginga Force'') are scrambled to a city where three UFOs are releasing Purple Erosion forces. The player's Arcam blows through the enemy forces and takes on the first of the UFOs, destroying its turret nodes and critically damaging its central core to force it to retreat. From there, the Arcam squadron flies through the skies, away from the city to a grassy ruins, following the enemy forces to a pyramid resembling a Mayan temple, where purple spherical "eggs" were either excavated or planted by Purple Erosion. The enemy forces attempt to secure eight of the eggs, but the player destroys five of them, forcing a transport UFO to take the remaining three and flee to low orbit. The player's ship chases after them using the pyramid as a vertical takeoff ramp, eventually confronting the transport UFO, destroying the eggs it was carrying, and soon after the machine entirely. The squadron then begins to approach the Moon in their mission to reclaim it, with the third of Purple Erosion's UFOs catching up to them and deploying a myriad of strange fighters, from giant spiders to a floating heart to a large battle-craft. After fighting through everything the UFO can throw at them, the UFO confronts the Arcam and is subsequently destroyed. Now having arrived at the invaded Moon, the squadron begins flying through trenches in the moon, destroying more of Purple Erosion's defenders until they come across a pit within the Moon blasting lasers outward, presumably trying to artillery strike Earth cities. The player's Arcam flies into the pit, dodging lasers until they come across a mysterious disc-like life-form and a wall of eggs, the life-form presumably being Purple Erosion's commander, which detaches itself from the wall and engages the Arcam. After a long-fought battle, including a transformation where the life-form turns red and gains a screaming human-like face, it falls into the wall of eggs and self-destructs, causing a chain reaction within the corrupted moon. The player's Arcam escapes the pit just as the purple mass covering the Moon begins to dissolve and explode, and is rejoined by their squadron as they fly back to Earth and twirl in celebration, with a Moon free of Purple Erosion's influence shining behind them.

== Gameplay Overview ==

Eschatos has three modes: Original, Advanced and Time Attack. Additionally, Original and Advanced have four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest. Original and Advanced also have an Endless Mode which, contrary to its name, is a mode consisting of Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest played in that order.

The manual describes Original, Advanced, and Time Attack as follows:

=== Original ===

''The Player will be able to switch between 3 shot types: "Frontal''
''Shot", "Wide Shot", and "Shield." Control your ship and defeat''
''enemies that appear in the area. Different shot types cannot be''
''used at the same time.''

''When you lose all lives, then it is game over. Eliminate all the''
''enemies in the area or stay alive for a certain time to move to''
''the next area.''

''Defeat the final boss to complete a game. Choose the most''
''effective shot type for each situation to eliminate the enemies.''

=== Advanced ===

''ADVANCED mode is based on ORIGINAL, but is more''
''complex with 7 different shot power levels and Bonus''
''Point Items. It's a more challenging mode.''

=== Time Attack ===

''TIME ATTACK mode is based on ORIGINAL mode, except players compete''
''to finish the game in the shortest time. The Player is given a 90 second''
''time limit initially, and keeps extending the time through time bonuses''
''awarded for finishing each area. If time reaches 0, it's game over. When''
''the player loses a life, 5 seconds is deducted as a penalty.''

''The quicker the game is completed, the higher the score on Rankings. If''
''the player does not finish a complete game, players that have survived''
''longer will be listed on the Rankings.''

''Results for TIME ATTACK will not be added to the TOTAL SCORE within''
''the player Report submenu.''

=== Controls ===
----
* '''Directional pad, Left stick:''' Move ship
* '''START:''' Open pause menu
* '''A:''' Frontal Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''X:''' Wide Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''A + X (Hold):''' Shield
* '''RT:''' Shield
* '''RB:''' Change speed

=== Unlockable Secrets ===
----

==== Option Levels ====

As you play Original or Advanced mode, the total of all scores is added up to determine what is called an Option Level. Your current Option Level corresponds to various new features, some more useful than others, up to the maximum level of 50. The following is a list of every unlock provided by this system:

# (default)
# Continue count is increased to 1
# Wallpaper brightness
# Wallpaper number 4
# Player stock / starting lives unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 2
# Demo sound can be toggled on or off
# Continue count is increased to 3
# Starting lives can be increased to 4
# Stage select unlocks, accessible in the "game settings" menu (only stages 1 and 2 are available initially)
# ''Fragment'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 4
# ''Smoke'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 5
# ''Type C'' ship type (green) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Enemy alt. display'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Original Hardest
# Starting lives can be increased to 5
# Continue count is increased to 5
# Leaderboard replays can now be viewed
# Continue count is increased to 6
# Stage 3 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Spark'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 7
# Advanced Hardest
# Wallpaper number 6
# Starting lives can be increased to 6
# Continue count is increased to 8
# Stage 4 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 9
# Wallpaper number 7
# Starting lives can be increased to 7
# "Special settings" unlocked in the options menu
# ''Collision display'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 8
# Stage 5 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Bullet bloom'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''Type D'' ship type (purple) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 9
# Infinite continues
# Starting lives can be increased to 10
# ''Explosion'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''God mode'' is unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Shadow mapping'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 8
# ''Super shot'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 9
# ''Bloom effect'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper 10
# Starting lives can be increased to 99

=== Ship Types ===
----

There is initially one ship type (color), with three other variants being unlocked through the Option Level mechanic. Type A is red, Type B is blue, Type C is green, and Type D is purple. Each ship type is purely cosmetic in nature.

=== Weapons ===
----

==== Original ====

*'''Frontal Shot''' - Concentrated fire in front of the ship with long range and fire power.

*'''Wide Shot''' - Fan-shaped spread fire. Short range but wide area.

*'''Shield''' - A defensive weapon that appears at the nose of the ship. It cannot block attacks from the side or the rear. The shield can also damage enemies that come in contact with it. The Shield will gradually deplete the Shield Meter while it is deployed. The Shield Meter will decrease faster when it blocks an enemy bullet, when it's switched off, and when changing speed.

When the Shield Meter is almost empty, the shield will turn red. When the Meter is completely empty, the shield will be turned off and cannot be used for a while. The Shield Meter will replenish with time. Shield Meter will replenish with time.

==== Advanced ====

ADVANCED mode uses a power up system for the shots. Collecting each Power Up Item will upgrade the shots by 1 level each. However, each shot power up will make the shield meter smaller. Shot power can be upgraded to a maximum of level 7. Adjust the amount of power according to the need for shields.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, the weapons behave the same as they do in Original Mode.

=== Items ===
----
1UP - After destroying a set number of enemies, a 1UP will drop from an enemy after death. After collecting the 1UP, the kills required for the next 1UP increases. The kill counter and requirement reset after using a continue. In Time Attack mode, 1UPs drop as normal, but extend the timer by 15 seconds.

Blue Flash - Collecting the blue Flash item will destroy all bullets on screen. If playing on Advanced mode, the Flash item also reduces the power level and multiplier by 1.

Yellow Flash - Advanced mode exclusive. Operates similar to the blue Flash, but converts bullets into point items.

Wonder Witch - Hidden collectibles unearthed by shooting various environmental details throughout the game, which reward points when picked up.

Power Up - Advanced mode exclusive. When collected, raises the power level and multiplier by 1.

Bonus Point Item

Time Bonus Item

=== Scoring ===
----

==== Original ====

Scoring is relatively straightforward - each wave of enemies, as well as the bosses have timers that give a bonus once complete. Each wave completely cleared will increase the multiplier to a maximum, with the speed and cap of the multiplier varying depending on difficulty:
* Easy - +1 multiplier every 3 waves, maximum of 5
* Normal - +1 multiplier every 2 waves, maximum of 10
* Hard - +1 multiplier every wave, maximum of 20
* Hardest - +1 multiplier every wave, no maximum

Dying will reduce the multiplier by 1, as will failing to destroy an enemy. Using the Flash item when it appears incurs no penalty.

==== Advanced ====

While Advanced mode uses a multiplier similarly to Original mode, there are some important differences. (dumping all of this here for now, some of it belongs in another section most likely)

* This mode enables the power meter and power-ups. The power meter affects various statistics of the ship's main and wide shots - range, screen coverage, and fire rate - and increases by 1 each time a power-up is collected, up to a maximum power level of 6. The ship starts out weaker than Original mode, but is significantly stronger than Original at maximum power (Original mode locks the player at a power level of 4). Collecting either type of Flash item will reduce the power level by 1, as will taking a hit.
* Multiplier speed and cap are similar to Original mode, but the multiplier is separated into two different types: power-up and enemy multiplier, which increase and decrease by different means. These two multiplier values are additive, so the value shown at the left side of the screen is the sum of the power-up and enemy multipliers.
* Enemy multiplier works identical to Original mode, increasing based on waves completing and decreasing when an enemy escapes.
* Getting hit will reduce the enemy multiplier down to one. This means extra caution should be taken during boss encounters, as a 26x multiplier can go crashing back down to 6x should the player get reckless and take a hit. For this reason, and this is merely opinion, I don't think picking up F-bombs in Advanced mode should be stigmatized. It's obviously preferable to yo-yo between 26x and 25x, if you think you're in danger, instead of taking a hit due to your pride and receiving a 6x multiplier as a reward.
* The power-up multiplier is directly tied to the ship's power level, ranging from 0 to 6. A fully powered ship will always have at least 7x multiplier unless the power level is reduced by taking a hit or collecting a Flash.
* Your shield is weakened to these values with each respective powerup: 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, and finally 30 at maximum power.
* Shielding bullets will create purple gems that act as an offensive barrier around your ship. When the shield is lowered, these purple items are automatically collected and converted into points.
* There is no time bonus in Advanced mode, which means speed killing isn't prioritized. There are two ways you can abuse this: waiting for item carriers to give you powerups/F-bombs at a safer time or waiting for a more lucrative bullet cancel. I've provided a list below for when you might want to stall a bit for bullet cancels.
* Yellow Flashes appear only during the stage, while blue Flashes only appear when the power meter is maxed or during boss encounters. The pods that drop items appear to do so in a pattern: the first two drop power-ups/blue Flashes, and every third will drop a gold Flash.
* Wonder witches cancel bullets into purple gems, just like yellow F-bombs - however they do NOT power you down like yellow F-bombs. Good luck finding any decent opportunities to cancel with witches, though.

==== Time Attack ====

Time Attack mode operates similarly to Original mode, but on a time limit. There is no score or multiplier, only the total time used for the game session. There are infinite lives, but dying removes five seconds from the clock. Time is added when clearing a wave or collecting a 1UP. The clock pauses in-between waves, mainly when the camera is maneuvering to another angle. There are no continues for this mode - if time runs out, a game over is triggered. After defeating the final boss, the time left on the clock is subtracted from the current playthrough time to establish a final time.

== Strategy ==
<div style='text-align: center;'>
''See [[(Template Page)/Strategy]] for '''stage maps''', '''enemy and boss descriptions''', '''walkthroughs''', and '''advanced play strategies'''.''
</div>
----

This section details some particular strategic information about the game and its gameplay, such as hidden 1UPs and some basic scoring tricks. For anything particularly deep or highly complex, you can probably leave it in the Strategy page.

''(Currently evaluating whether or not this specific section should even include information outside of the separated Strategy pages. Worth thinking about as a community.)''

== Version Differences ==
* The version for the Nintendo Switch eliminates the loading pauses that occur between stages. The Switch version also comes with ''Judgment Silversword'' and ''Cardinal Sins'', the predecessors to ''Eschatos'', as bonus games that can be played.

== Trivia ==

* While the sparks when grinding bullets look like they indicate a bullet-grinding mechanic, it is just there for visual flair.

== Gallery ==

=== Official Digital Game Manual ===

''[[Eschatos]]'' Game Manual made by [[Qute]] Corporation in digital format, bundled with the purchase of the game vía Steam (PC), Nintendo eShop or PSN.

Contains a brief explanation of the Controls and the Game System.

<gallery>
Eschatos manual 1.png|Manual cover art
Eschatos manual 2.png|Controls
Eschatos manual 3.png|Game System Explanation - Original Mode
Eschatos_manual_EN_4.png|Game System Explanation - ADVANCED Mode
Eschatos manual 5.png|Game System Explanation - Time Attack Mode
Eschatos manual 6.png|Credits Section
</gallery>

== Other ==

We have support for wikitables, giving us the potential to add lots of cool info in a small box on the page somewhere, but we are not using them at the moment. I'm just leaving this here so we can have it handy in case we decide to actually use them. Feel free to not use this section.

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"
|-
! [[(Template Page)]]
|-
| put your stuff here
|}

== References & Contributors ==
<small>
<references />
* [https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/ ESCHATOS Steam page]
<small>

* This template page was assembled by [[User:CHA-STG|CHA-STG]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]].

* Information about the Option Level unlocks provided by Emuser: https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=69338</small>

[[Category:Vertical_orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]

Eschatos

2023-12-01T17:50:23Z

Schwarzgeist: /* Version Differences */

{{Stub}}
[[File:Logo_eschatos.png|300px|center]]
----
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #001fbc
|title = Eschatos
|background = #f8f8f8
|image = Eschatos_capsule.jpg
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Cover Art (Steam / Nintendo Switch / PS4)
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = [[Qute]]
|
|music = Yousuke Yasui
|
|program = M-KAI
|
|art = Hiroshi-iro-enpitu, Kunio Jyoduka
|
|releasedate = 2011

|previousgame = [[Judgement Silversword]]/[[Cardinal Sins]]
|nextgame = [[Ginga Force]]
}}

'''Eschatos''' is a vertical 2.5D shooter developed by Qute. It features 2D control with fully rendered 3D objects and backgrounds which occasionally change perspective. It has several modes and difficulty levels, each mode and difficulty level combination having its own dedicated online leaderboard.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Story ==
The game offers no in-game dialogue or exposition, instead relying on environmental storytelling and small bits of description given in the manual.

In the year 21XX, a mysterious alien force codenamed "Purple Erosion" has taken over the Moon, covering it in a mysterious purple mass and using it as a base from which to invade the Earth. A squadron of fighter pilots controlling advanced aircraft (retroactively called the FV-30MZ Arcam by Qute's next game, ''Ginga Force'') are scrambled to a city where three UFOs are releasing Purple Erosion forces. The player's Arcam blows through the enemy forces and takes on the first of the UFOs, destroying its turret nodes and critically damaging its central core to force it to retreat. From there, the Arcam squadron flies through the skies, away from the city to a grassy ruins, following the enemy forces to a pyramid resembling a Mayan temple, where purple spherical "eggs" were either excavated or planted by Purple Erosion. The enemy forces attempt to secure eight of the eggs, but the player destroys five of them, forcing a transport UFO to take the remaining three and flee to low orbit. The player's ship chases after them using the pyramid as a vertical takeoff ramp, eventually confronting the transport UFO, destroying the eggs it was carrying, and soon after the machine entirely. The squadron then begins to approach the Moon in their mission to reclaim it, with the third of Purple Erosion's UFOs catching up to them and deploying a myriad of strange fighters, from giant spiders to a floating heart to a large battle-craft. After fighting through everything the UFO can throw at them, the UFO confronts the Arcam and is subsequently destroyed. Now having arrived at the invaded Moon, the squadron begins flying through trenches in the moon, destroying more of Purple Erosion's defenders until they come across a pit within the Moon blasting lasers outward, presumably trying to artillery strike Earth cities. The player's Arcam flies into the pit, dodging lasers until they come across a mysterious disc-like life-form and a wall of eggs, the life-form presumably being Purple Erosion's commander, which detaches itself from the wall and engages the Arcam. After a long-fought battle, including a transformation where the life-form turns red and gains a screaming human-like face, it falls into the wall of eggs and self-destructs, causing a chain reaction within the corrupted moon. The player's Arcam escapes the pit just as the purple mass covering the Moon begins to dissolve and explode, and is rejoined by their squadron as they fly back to Earth and twirl in celebration, with a Moon free of Purple Erosion's influence shining behind them.

== Gameplay Overview ==

Eschatos has three modes: Original, Advanced and Time Attack. Additionally, Original and Advanced have four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest. Original and Advanced also have an Endless Mode which, contrary to its name, is a mode consisting of Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest played in that order.

The manual describes Original, Advanced, and Time Attack as follows:

=== Original ===

''The Player will be able to switch between 3 shot types: "Frontal''
''Shot", "Wide Shot", and "Shield." Control your ship and defeat''
''enemies that appear in the area. Different shot types cannot be''
''used at the same time.''

''When you lose all lives, then it is game over. Eliminate all the''
''enemies in the area or stay alive for a certain time to move to''
''the next area.''

''Defeat the final boss to complete a game. Choose the most''
''effective shot type for each situation to eliminate the enemies.''

=== Advanced ===

''ADVANCED mode is based on ORIGINAL, but is more''
''complex with 7 different shot power levels and Bonus''
''Point Items. It's a more challenging mode.''

=== Time Attack ===

''TIME ATTACK mode is based on ORIGINAL mode, except players compete''
''to finish the game in the shortest time. The Player is given a 90 second''
''time limit initially, and keeps extending the time through time bonuses''
''awarded for finishing each area. If time reaches 0, it's game over. When''
''the player loses a life, 5 seconds is deducted as a penalty.''

''The quicker the game is completed, the higher the score on Rankings. If''
''the player does not finish a complete game, players that have survived''
''longer will be listed on the Rankings.''

''Results for TIME ATTACK will not be added to the TOTAL SCORE within''
''the player Report submenu.''

=== Controls ===
----
* '''Directional pad, Left stick:''' Move ship
* '''START:''' Open pause menu
* '''A:''' Frontal Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''X:''' Wide Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''A + X (Hold):''' Shield
* '''RT:''' Shield
* '''RB:''' Change speed

=== Unlockable Secrets ===
----

==== Option Levels ====

As you play Original or Advanced mode, the total of all scores is added up to determine what is called an Option Level. Your current Option Level corresponds to various new features, some more useful than others, up to the maximum level of 50. The following is a list of every unlock provided by this system:

# (default)
# Continue count is increased to 1
# Wallpaper brightness
# Wallpaper number 4
# Player stock / starting lives unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 2
# Demo sound can be toggled on or off
# Continue count is increased to 3
# Starting lives can be increased to 4
# Stage select unlocks, accessible in the "game settings" menu (only stages 1 and 2 are available initially)
# ''Fragment'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 4
# ''Smoke'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 5
# ''Type C'' ship type (green) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Enemy alt. display'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Original Hardest
# Starting lives can be increased to 5
# Continue count is increased to 5
# Leaderboard replays can now be viewed
# Continue count is increased to 6
# Stage 3 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Spark'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 7
# Advanced Hardest
# Wallpaper number 6
# Starting lives can be increased to 6
# Continue count is increased to 8
# Stage 4 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 9
# Wallpaper number 7
# Starting lives can be increased to 7
# "Special settings" unlocked in the options menu
# ''Collision display'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 8
# Stage 5 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Bullet bloom'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''Type D'' ship type (purple) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 9
# Infinite continues
# Starting lives can be increased to 10
# ''Explosion'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''God mode'' is unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Shadow mapping'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 8
# ''Super shot'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 9
# ''Bloom effect'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper 10
# Starting lives can be increased to 99

=== Ship Types ===
----

There is initially one ship type (color), with three other variants being unlocked through the Option Level mechanic. Type A is red, Type B is blue, Type C is green, and Type D is purple. Each ship type is purely cosmetic in nature.

=== Weapons ===
----

==== Original ====

*'''Frontal Shot''' - Concentrated fire in front of the ship with long range and fire power.

*'''Wide Shot''' - Fan-shaped spread fire. Short range but wide area.

*'''Shield''' - A defensive weapon that appears at the nose of the ship. It cannot block attacks from the side or the rear. The shield can also damage enemies that come in contact with it. The Shield will gradually deplete the Shield Meter while it is deployed. The Shield Meter will decrease faster when it blocks an enemy bullet, when it's switched off, and when changing speed.

When the Shield Meter is almost empty, the shield will turn red. When the Meter is completely empty, the shield will be turned off and cannot be used for a while. The Shield Meter will replenish with time. Shield Meter will replenish with time.

==== Advanced ====

ADVANCED mode uses a power up system for the shots. Collecting each Power Up Item will upgrade the shots by 1 level each. However, each shot power up will make the shield meter smaller. Shot power can be upgraded to a maximum of level 7. Adjust the amount of power according to the need for shields.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, the weapons behave the same as they do in Original Mode.

=== Items ===
----
1UP - After destroying a set number of enemies, a 1UP will drop from an enemy after death. After collecting the 1UP, the kills required for the next 1UP increases. The kill counter and requirement reset after using a continue. In Time Attack mode, 1UPs drop as normal, but extend the timer by 15 seconds.

Blue Flash - Collecting the blue Flash item will destroy all bullets on screen. If playing on Advanced mode, the Flash item also reduces the power level and multiplier by 1.

Yellow Flash - Advanced mode exclusive. Operates similar to the blue Flash, but converts bullets into point items.

Wonder Witch - Hidden collectibles unearthed by shooting various environmental details throughout the game, which reward points when picked up.

Power Up - Advanced mode exclusive. When collected, raises the power level and multiplier by 1.

Bonus Point Item

Time Bonus Item

=== Scoring ===
----

==== Original ====

Scoring is relatively straightforward - each wave of enemies, as well as the bosses have timers that give a bonus once complete. Each wave completely cleared will increase the multiplier to a maximum, with the speed and cap of the multiplier varying depending on difficulty:
* Easy - +1 multiplier every 3 waves, maximum of 5
* Normal - +1 multiplier every 2 waves, maximum of 10
* Hard - +1 multiplier every wave, maximum of 20
* Hardest - +1 multiplier every wave, no maximum

Dying will reduce the multiplier by 1, as will failing to destroy an enemy. Using the Flash item when it appears incurs no penalty.

==== Advanced ====

While Advanced mode uses a multiplier similarly to Original mode, there are some important differences. (dumping all of this here for now, some of it belongs in another section most likely)

* This mode enables the power meter and power-ups. The power meter affects various statistics of the ship's main and wide shots - range, screen coverage, and fire rate - and increases by 1 each time a power-up is collected, up to a maximum power level of 6. The ship starts out weaker than Original mode, but is significantly stronger than Original at maximum power (Original mode locks the player at a power level of 4). Collecting either type of Flash item will reduce the power level by 1, as will taking a hit.
* Multiplier speed and cap are similar to Original mode, but the multiplier is separated into two different types: power-up and enemy multiplier, which increase and decrease by different means. These two multiplier values are additive, so the value shown at the left side of the screen is the sum of the power-up and enemy multipliers.
* Enemy multiplier works identical to Original mode, increasing based on waves completing and decreasing when an enemy escapes.
* Getting hit will reduce the enemy multiplier down to one. This means extra caution should be taken during boss encounters, as a 26x multiplier can go crashing back down to 6x should the player get reckless and take a hit. For this reason, and this is merely opinion, I don't think picking up F-bombs in Advanced mode should be stigmatized. It's obviously preferable to yo-yo between 26x and 25x, if you think you're in danger, instead of taking a hit due to your pride and receiving a 6x multiplier as a reward.
* The power-up multiplier is directly tied to the ship's power level, ranging from 0 to 6. A fully powered ship will always have at least 7x multiplier unless the power level is reduced by taking a hit or collecting a Flash.
* Your shield is weakened to these values with each respective powerup: 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, and finally 30 at maximum power.
* Shielding bullets will create purple gems that act as an offensive barrier around your ship. When the shield is lowered, these purple items are automatically collected and converted into points.
* There is no time bonus in Advanced mode, which means speed killing isn't prioritized. There are two ways you can abuse this: waiting for item carriers to give you powerups/F-bombs at a safer time or waiting for a more lucrative bullet cancel. I've provided a list below for when you might want to stall a bit for bullet cancels.
* Yellow Flashes appear only during the stage, while blue Flashes only appear when the power meter is maxed or during boss encounters. The pods that drop items appear to do so in a pattern: the first two drop power-ups/blue Flashes, and every third will drop a gold Flash.
* Wonder witches cancel bullets into purple gems, just like yellow F-bombs - however they do NOT power you down like yellow F-bombs. Good luck finding any decent opportunities to cancel with witches, though.

==== Time Attack ====

Time Attack mode operates similarly to Original mode, but on a time limit. There is no score or multiplier, only the total time used for the game session. There are infinite lives, but dying removes five seconds from the clock. Time is added when clearing a wave or collecting a 1UP. The clock pauses in-between waves, mainly when the camera is maneuvering to another angle. There are no continues for this mode - if time runs out, a game over is triggered. After defeating the final boss, the time left on the clock is subtracted from the current playthrough time to establish a final time.

== Strategy ==
<div style='text-align: center;'>
''See [[(Template Page)/Strategy]] for '''stage maps''', '''enemy and boss descriptions''', '''walkthroughs''', and '''advanced play strategies'''.''
</div>
----

This section details some particular strategic information about the game and its gameplay, such as hidden 1UPs and some basic scoring tricks. For anything particularly deep or highly complex, you can probably leave it in the Strategy page.

''(Currently evaluating whether or not this specific section should even include information outside of the separated Strategy pages. Worth thinking about as a community.)''

== Version Differences ==
* The version for the Nintendo Switch eliminates the loading pauses that occur between stages. The Switch version also comes with ''Judgment Silversword'' and ''Cardinal Sins'', the predecessors to ''Eschatos'', as bonus games that can be played.
----

== Trivia ==

* While the sparks when grinding bullets look like they indicate a bullet-grinding mechanic, it is just there for visual flair.

== Gallery ==

=== Official Digital Game Manual ===

''[[Eschatos]]'' Game Manual made by [[Qute]] Corporation in digital format, bundled with the purchase of the game vía Steam (PC), Nintendo eShop or PSN.

Contains a brief explanation of the Controls and the Game System.

<gallery>
Eschatos manual 1.png|Manual cover art
Eschatos manual 2.png|Controls
Eschatos manual 3.png|Game System Explanation - Original Mode
Eschatos_manual_EN_4.png|Game System Explanation - ADVANCED Mode
Eschatos manual 5.png|Game System Explanation - Time Attack Mode
Eschatos manual 6.png|Credits Section
</gallery>

== Other ==

We have support for wikitables, giving us the potential to add lots of cool info in a small box on the page somewhere, but we are not using them at the moment. I'm just leaving this here so we can have it handy in case we decide to actually use them. Feel free to not use this section.

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"
|-
! [[(Template Page)]]
|-
| put your stuff here
|}

== References & Contributors ==
<small>
<references />
* [https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/ ESCHATOS Steam page]
<small>

* This template page was assembled by [[User:CHA-STG|CHA-STG]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]].

* Information about the Option Level unlocks provided by Emuser: https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=69338</small>

[[Category:Vertical_orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]

Eschatos

2023-12-01T17:47:40Z

Schwarzgeist:

{{Stub}}
[[File:Logo_eschatos.png|300px|center]]
----
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #001fbc
|title = Eschatos
|background = #f8f8f8
|image = Eschatos_capsule.jpg
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Cover Art (Steam / Nintendo Switch / PS4)
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = [[Qute]]
|
|music = Yousuke Yasui
|
|program = M-KAI
|
|art = Hiroshi-iro-enpitu, Kunio Jyoduka
|
|releasedate = 2011

|previousgame = [[Judgement Silversword]]/[[Cardinal Sins]]
|nextgame = [[Ginga Force]]
}}

'''Eschatos''' is a vertical 2.5D shooter developed by Qute. It features 2D control with fully rendered 3D objects and backgrounds which occasionally change perspective. It has several modes and difficulty levels, each mode and difficulty level combination having its own dedicated online leaderboard.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Story ==
The game offers no in-game dialogue or exposition, instead relying on environmental storytelling and small bits of description given in the manual.

In the year 21XX, a mysterious alien force codenamed "Purple Erosion" has taken over the Moon, covering it in a mysterious purple mass and using it as a base from which to invade the Earth. A squadron of fighter pilots controlling advanced aircraft (retroactively called the FV-30MZ Arcam by Qute's next game, ''Ginga Force'') are scrambled to a city where three UFOs are releasing Purple Erosion forces. The player's Arcam blows through the enemy forces and takes on the first of the UFOs, destroying its turret nodes and critically damaging its central core to force it to retreat. From there, the Arcam squadron flies through the skies, away from the city to a grassy ruins, following the enemy forces to a pyramid resembling a Mayan temple, where purple spherical "eggs" were either excavated or planted by Purple Erosion. The enemy forces attempt to secure eight of the eggs, but the player destroys five of them, forcing a transport UFO to take the remaining three and flee to low orbit. The player's ship chases after them using the pyramid as a vertical takeoff ramp, eventually confronting the transport UFO, destroying the eggs it was carrying, and soon after the machine entirely. The squadron then begins to approach the Moon in their mission to reclaim it, with the third of Purple Erosion's UFOs catching up to them and deploying a myriad of strange fighters, from giant spiders to a floating heart to a large battle-craft. After fighting through everything the UFO can throw at them, the UFO confronts the Arcam and is subsequently destroyed. Now having arrived at the invaded Moon, the squadron begins flying through trenches in the moon, destroying more of Purple Erosion's defenders until they come across a pit within the Moon blasting lasers outward, presumably trying to artillery strike Earth cities. The player's Arcam flies into the pit, dodging lasers until they come across a mysterious disc-like life-form and a wall of eggs, the life-form presumably being Purple Erosion's commander, which detaches itself from the wall and engages the Arcam. After a long-fought battle, including a transformation where the life-form turns red and gains a screaming human-like face, it falls into the wall of eggs and self-destructs, causing a chain reaction within the corrupted moon. The player's Arcam escapes the pit just as the purple mass covering the Moon begins to dissolve and explode, and is rejoined by their squadron as they fly back to Earth and twirl in celebration, with a Moon free of Purple Erosion's influence shining behind them.

== Gameplay Overview ==

Eschatos has three modes: Original, Advanced and Time Attack. Additionally, Original and Advanced have four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest. Original and Advanced also have an Endless Mode which, contrary to its name, is a mode consisting of Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest played in that order.

The manual describes Original, Advanced, and Time Attack as follows:

=== Original ===

''The Player will be able to switch between 3 shot types: "Frontal''
''Shot", "Wide Shot", and "Shield." Control your ship and defeat''
''enemies that appear in the area. Different shot types cannot be''
''used at the same time.''

''When you lose all lives, then it is game over. Eliminate all the''
''enemies in the area or stay alive for a certain time to move to''
''the next area.''

''Defeat the final boss to complete a game. Choose the most''
''effective shot type for each situation to eliminate the enemies.''

=== Advanced ===

''ADVANCED mode is based on ORIGINAL, but is more''
''complex with 7 different shot power levels and Bonus''
''Point Items. It's a more challenging mode.''

=== Time Attack ===

''TIME ATTACK mode is based on ORIGINAL mode, except players compete''
''to finish the game in the shortest time. The Player is given a 90 second''
''time limit initially, and keeps extending the time through time bonuses''
''awarded for finishing each area. If time reaches 0, it's game over. When''
''the player loses a life, 5 seconds is deducted as a penalty.''

''The quicker the game is completed, the higher the score on Rankings. If''
''the player does not finish a complete game, players that have survived''
''longer will be listed on the Rankings.''

''Results for TIME ATTACK will not be added to the TOTAL SCORE within''
''the player Report submenu.''

=== Controls ===
----
* '''Directional pad, Left stick:''' Move ship
* '''START:''' Open pause menu
* '''A:''' Frontal Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''X:''' Wide Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''A + X (Hold):''' Shield
* '''RT:''' Shield
* '''RB:''' Change speed

=== Unlockable Secrets ===
----

==== Option Levels ====

As you play Original or Advanced mode, the total of all scores is added up to determine what is called an Option Level. Your current Option Level corresponds to various new features, some more useful than others, up to the maximum level of 50. The following is a list of every unlock provided by this system:

# (default)
# Continue count is increased to 1
# Wallpaper brightness
# Wallpaper number 4
# Player stock / starting lives unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 2
# Demo sound can be toggled on or off
# Continue count is increased to 3
# Starting lives can be increased to 4
# Stage select unlocks, accessible in the "game settings" menu (only stages 1 and 2 are available initially)
# ''Fragment'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 4
# ''Smoke'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 5
# ''Type C'' ship type (green) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Enemy alt. display'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Original Hardest
# Starting lives can be increased to 5
# Continue count is increased to 5
# Leaderboard replays can now be viewed
# Continue count is increased to 6
# Stage 3 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Spark'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 7
# Advanced Hardest
# Wallpaper number 6
# Starting lives can be increased to 6
# Continue count is increased to 8
# Stage 4 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 9
# Wallpaper number 7
# Starting lives can be increased to 7
# "Special settings" unlocked in the options menu
# ''Collision display'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 8
# Stage 5 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Bullet bloom'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''Type D'' ship type (purple) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 9
# Infinite continues
# Starting lives can be increased to 10
# ''Explosion'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''God mode'' is unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Shadow mapping'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 8
# ''Super shot'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 9
# ''Bloom effect'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper 10
# Starting lives can be increased to 99

=== Ship Types ===
----

There is initially one ship type (color), with three other variants being unlocked through the Option Level mechanic. Type A is red, Type B is blue, Type C is green, and Type D is purple. Each ship type is purely cosmetic in nature.

=== Weapons ===
----

==== Original ====

*'''Frontal Shot''' - Concentrated fire in front of the ship with long range and fire power.

*'''Wide Shot''' - Fan-shaped spread fire. Short range but wide area.

*'''Shield''' - A defensive weapon that appears at the nose of the ship. It cannot block attacks from the side or the rear. The shield can also damage enemies that come in contact with it. The Shield will gradually deplete the Shield Meter while it is deployed. The Shield Meter will decrease faster when it blocks an enemy bullet, when it's switched off, and when changing speed.

When the Shield Meter is almost empty, the shield will turn red. When the Meter is completely empty, the shield will be turned off and cannot be used for a while. The Shield Meter will replenish with time. Shield Meter will replenish with time.

==== Advanced ====

ADVANCED mode uses a power up system for the shots. Collecting each Power Up Item will upgrade the shots by 1 level each. However, each shot power up will make the shield meter smaller. Shot power can be upgraded to a maximum of level 7. Adjust the amount of power according to the need for shields.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, the weapons behave the same as they do in Original Mode.

=== Items ===
----
1UP - After destroying a set number of enemies, a 1UP will drop from an enemy after death. After collecting the 1UP, the kills required for the next 1UP increases. The kill counter and requirement reset after using a continue. In Time Attack mode, 1UPs drop as normal, but extend the timer by 15 seconds.

Blue Flash - Collecting the blue Flash item will destroy all bullets on screen. If playing on Advanced mode, the Flash item also reduces the power level and multiplier by 1.

Yellow Flash - Advanced mode exclusive. Operates similar to the blue Flash, but converts bullets into point items.

Wonder Witch - Hidden collectibles unearthed by shooting various environmental details throughout the game, which reward points when picked up.

Power Up - Advanced mode exclusive. When collected, raises the power level and multiplier by 1.

Bonus Point Item

Time Bonus Item

=== Scoring ===
----

==== Original ====

Scoring is relatively straightforward - each wave of enemies, as well as the bosses have timers that give a bonus once complete. Each wave completely cleared will increase the multiplier to a maximum, with the speed and cap of the multiplier varying depending on difficulty:
* Easy - +1 multiplier every 3 waves, maximum of 5
* Normal - +1 multiplier every 2 waves, maximum of 10
* Hard - +1 multiplier every wave, maximum of 20
* Hardest - +1 multiplier every wave, no maximum

Dying will reduce the multiplier by 1, as will failing to destroy an enemy. Using the Flash item when it appears incurs no penalty.

==== Advanced ====

While Advanced mode uses a multiplier similarly to Original mode, there are some important differences. (dumping all of this here for now, some of it belongs in another section most likely)

* This mode enables the power meter and power-ups. The power meter affects various statistics of the ship's main and wide shots - range, screen coverage, and fire rate - and increases by 1 each time a power-up is collected, up to a maximum power level of 6. The ship starts out weaker than Original mode, but is significantly stronger than Original at maximum power (Original mode locks the player at a power level of 4). Collecting either type of Flash item will reduce the power level by 1, as will taking a hit.
* Multiplier speed and cap are similar to Original mode, but the multiplier is separated into two different types: power-up and enemy multiplier, which increase and decrease by different means. These two multiplier values are additive, so the value shown at the left side of the screen is the sum of the power-up and enemy multipliers.
* Enemy multiplier works identical to Original mode, increasing based on waves completing and decreasing when an enemy escapes.
* Getting hit will reduce the enemy multiplier down to one. This means extra caution should be taken during boss encounters, as a 26x multiplier can go crashing back down to 6x should the player get reckless and take a hit. For this reason, and this is merely opinion, I don't think picking up F-bombs in Advanced mode should be stigmatized. It's obviously preferable to yo-yo between 26x and 25x, if you think you're in danger, instead of taking a hit due to your pride and receiving a 6x multiplier as a reward.
* The power-up multiplier is directly tied to the ship's power level, ranging from 0 to 6. A fully powered ship will always have at least 7x multiplier unless the power level is reduced by taking a hit or collecting a Flash.
* Your shield is weakened to these values with each respective powerup: 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, and finally 30 at maximum power.
* Shielding bullets will create purple gems that act as an offensive barrier around your ship. When the shield is lowered, these purple items are automatically collected and converted into points.
* There is no time bonus in Advanced mode, which means speed killing isn't prioritized. There are two ways you can abuse this: waiting for item carriers to give you powerups/F-bombs at a safer time or waiting for a more lucrative bullet cancel. I've provided a list below for when you might want to stall a bit for bullet cancels.
* Yellow Flashes appear only during the stage, while blue Flashes only appear when the power meter is maxed or during boss encounters. The pods that drop items appear to do so in a pattern: the first two drop power-ups/blue Flashes, and every third will drop a gold Flash.
* Wonder witches cancel bullets into purple gems, just like yellow F-bombs - however they do NOT power you down like yellow F-bombs. Good luck finding any decent opportunities to cancel with witches, though.

==== Time Attack ====

Time Attack mode operates similarly to Original mode, but on a time limit. There is no score or multiplier, only the total time used for the game session. There are infinite lives, but dying removes five seconds from the clock. Time is added when clearing a wave or collecting a 1UP. The clock pauses in-between waves, mainly when the camera is maneuvering to another angle. There are no continues for this mode - if time runs out, a game over is triggered. After defeating the final boss, the time left on the clock is subtracted from the current playthrough time to establish a final time.

== Strategy ==
<div style='text-align: center;'>
''See [[(Template Page)/Strategy]] for '''stage maps''', '''enemy and boss descriptions''', '''walkthroughs''', and '''advanced play strategies'''.''
</div>
----

This section details some particular strategic information about the game and its gameplay, such as hidden 1UPs and some basic scoring tricks. For anything particularly deep or highly complex, you can probably leave it in the Strategy page.

''(Currently evaluating whether or not this specific section should even include information outside of the separated Strategy pages. Worth thinking about as a community.)''

== Version Differences ==
* Include information here about differences in a game between various versions. This includes regional differences, patch updates/bugfixes, and the like.
----

== Trivia ==

* While the sparks when grinding bullets look like they indicate a bullet-grinding mechanic, it is just there for visual flair.

== Gallery ==

=== Official Digital Game Manual ===

''[[Eschatos]]'' Game Manual made by [[Qute]] Corporation in digital format, bundled with the purchase of the game vía Steam (PC), Nintendo eShop or PSN.

Contains a brief explanation of the Controls and the Game System.

<gallery>
Eschatos manual 1.png|Manual cover art
Eschatos manual 2.png|Controls
Eschatos manual 3.png|Game System Explanation - Original Mode
Eschatos_manual_EN_4.png|Game System Explanation - ADVANCED Mode
Eschatos manual 5.png|Game System Explanation - Time Attack Mode
Eschatos manual 6.png|Credits Section
</gallery>

== Other ==

We have support for wikitables, giving us the potential to add lots of cool info in a small box on the page somewhere, but we are not using them at the moment. I'm just leaving this here so we can have it handy in case we decide to actually use them. Feel free to not use this section.

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"
|-
! [[(Template Page)]]
|-
| put your stuff here
|}

== References & Contributors ==
<small>
<references />
* [https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/ ESCHATOS Steam page]
<small>

* This template page was assembled by [[User:CHA-STG|CHA-STG]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]].

* Information about the Option Level unlocks provided by Emuser: https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=69338</small>

[[Category:Vertical_orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]

Eschatos

2023-12-01T17:23:00Z

Schwarzgeist:

[[File:Logo_eschatos.png|300px|center]]
----
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #001fbc
|title = Eschatos
|background = #f8f8f8
|image = Eschatos_capsule.jpg
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Cover Art (Steam / Nintendo Switch / PS4)
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = [[Qute]]
|
|music = Yousuke Yasui
|
|program = M-KAI
|
|art = Hiroshi-iro-enpitu, Kunio Jyoduka
|
|releasedate = 2011

|previousgame = [[Judgement Silversword]]/[[Cardinal Sins]]
|nextgame = [[Ginga Force]]
}}

'''Eschatos''' is a vertical 2.5D shooter developed by Qute. It features 2D control with fully rendered 3D objects and backgrounds which occasionally change perspective. It has several modes and difficulty levels, each mode and difficulty level combination having its own dedicated online leaderboard.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Story ==
While there is no in-game dialogue or exposition, the Steam page offers some clues about the lore:

''The year is 21XX. A mysterious alien force, known only as "Purple Erosion", has taken over the Moon! From the captured lunar base, alien UFOs begin their invasion of Earth! Using your advanced space fighter, you must repel the alien invasion, beat them back through space, and finally recapture the Moon to end the alien menace once and for all!''[https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/]

== Gameplay Overview ==

Eschatos has three modes: Original, Advanced and Time Attack. Additionally, Original and Advanced have four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest. Original and Advanced also have an Endless Mode which, contrary to its name, is a mode consisting of Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest played in that order.

The manual describes Original, Advanced, and Time Attack as follows:

=== Original ===

''The Player will be able to switch between 3 shot types: "Frontal''
''Shot", "Wide Shot", and "Shield." Control your ship and defeat''
''enemies that appear in the area. Different shot types cannot be''
''used at the same time.''

''When you lose all lives, then it is game over. Eliminate all the''
''enemies in the area or stay alive for a certain time to move to''
''the next area.''

''Defeat the final boss to complete a game. Choose the most''
''effective shot type for each situation to eliminate the enemies.''

=== Advanced ===

''ADVANCED mode is based on ORIGINAL, but is more''
''complex with 7 different shot power levels and Bonus''
''Point Items. It's a more challenging mode.''

=== Time Attack ===

''TIME ATTACK mode is based on ORIGINAL mode, except players compete''
''to finish the game in the shortest time. The Player is given a 90 second''
''time limit initially, and keeps extending the time through time bonuses''
''awarded for finishing each area. If time reaches 0, it's game over. When''
''the player loses a life, 5 seconds is deducted as a penalty.''

''The quicker the game is completed, the higher the score on Rankings. If''
''the player does not finish a complete game, players that have survived''
''longer will be listed on the Rankings.''

''Results for TIME ATTACK will not be added to the TOTAL SCORE within''
''the player Report submenu.''

=== Controls ===
----
* '''Directional pad, Left stick:''' Move ship
* '''START:''' Open pause menu
* '''A:''' Frontal Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''X:''' Wide Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''A + X (Hold):''' Shield
* '''RT:''' Shield
* '''RB:''' Change speed

=== Unlockable Secrets ===
----

==== Option Levels ====

As you play Original or Advanced mode, the total of all scores is added up to determine what is called an Option Level. Your current Option Level corresponds to various new features, some more useful than others, up to the maximum level of 50. The following is a list of every unlock provided by this system:

# (default)
# Continue count is increased to 1
# Wallpaper brightness
# Wallpaper number 4
# Player stock / starting lives unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 2
# Demo sound can be toggled on or off
# Continue count is increased to 3
# Starting lives can be increased to 4
# Stage select unlocks, accessible in the "game settings" menu (only stages 1 and 2 are available initially)
# ''Fragment'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 4
# ''Smoke'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 5
# ''Type C'' ship type (green) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Enemy alt. display'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Original Hardest
# Starting lives can be increased to 5
# Continue count is increased to 5
# Leaderboard replays can now be viewed
# Continue count is increased to 6
# Stage 3 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Spark'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 7
# Advanced Hardest
# Wallpaper number 6
# Starting lives can be increased to 6
# Continue count is increased to 8
# Stage 4 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 9
# Wallpaper number 7
# Starting lives can be increased to 7
# "Special settings" unlocked in the options menu
# ''Collision display'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 8
# Stage 5 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Bullet bloom'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''Type D'' ship type (purple) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 9
# Infinite continues
# Starting lives can be increased to 10
# ''Explosion'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''God mode'' is unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Shadow mapping'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 8
# ''Super shot'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 9
# ''Bloom effect'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper 10
# Starting lives can be increased to 99

=== Ship Types ===
----

There is initially one ship type (color), with three other variants being unlocked through the Option Level mechanic. Type A is red, Type B is blue, Type C is green, and Type D is purple. Each ship type is purely cosmetic in nature.

=== Weapons ===
----

==== Original ====

*'''Frontal Shot''' - Concentrated fire in front of the ship with long range and fire power.

*'''Wide Shot''' - Fan-shaped spread fire. Short range but wide area.

*'''Shield''' - A defensive weapon that appears at the nose of the ship. It cannot block attacks from the side or the rear. The shield can also damage enemies that come in contact with it. The Shield will gradually deplete the Shield Meter while it is deployed. The Shield Meter will decrease faster when it blocks an enemy bullet, when it's switched off, and when changing speed.

When the Shield Meter is almost empty, the shield will turn red. When the Meter is completely empty, the shield will be turned off and cannot be used for a while. The Shield Meter will replenish with time. Shield Meter will replenish with time.

==== Advanced ====

ADVANCED mode uses a power up system for the shots. Collecting each Power Up Item will upgrade the shots by 1 level each. However, each shot power up will make the shield meter smaller. Shot power can be upgraded to a maximum of level 7. Adjust the amount of power according to the need for shields.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, the weapons behave the same as they do in Original Mode.

=== Items ===
----
1UP - After destroying a set number of enemies, a 1UP will drop from an enemy after death. After collecting the 1UP, the kills required for the next 1UP increases. The kill counter and requirement reset after using a continue. In Time Attack mode, 1UPs drop as normal, but extend the timer by 15 seconds.

Blue Flash - Collecting the blue Flash item will destroy all bullets on screen. If playing on Advanced mode, the Flash item also reduces the power level and multiplier by 1.

Yellow Flash - Advanced mode exclusive. Operates similar to the blue Flash, but converts bullets into point items.

Wonder Witch - Hidden collectibles unearthed by shooting various environmental details throughout the game, which reward points when picked up.

Power Up - Advanced mode exclusive. When collected, raises the power level and multiplier by 1.

Bonus Point Item

Time Bonus Item

=== Scoring ===
----

==== Original ====

Scoring is relatively straightforward - each wave of enemies, as well as the bosses have timers that give a bonus once complete. Each wave completely cleared will increase the multiplier to a maximum, with the speed and cap of the multiplier varying depending on difficulty:
* Easy - +1 multiplier every 3 waves, maximum of 5
* Normal - +1 multiplier every 2 waves, maximum of 10
* Hard - +1 multiplier every wave, maximum of 20
* Hardest - +1 multiplier every wave, no maximum

Dying will reduce the multiplier by 1, as will failing to destroy an enemy. Using the Flash item when it appears incurs no penalty.

==== Advanced ====

While Advanced mode uses a multiplier similarly to Original mode, there are some important differences. (dumping all of this here for now, some of it belongs in another section most likely)

* This mode enables the power meter and power-ups. The power meter affects various statistics of the ship's main and wide shots - range, screen coverage, and fire rate - and increases by 1 each time a power-up is collected, up to a maximum power level of 6. The ship starts out weaker than Original mode, but is significantly stronger than Original at maximum power (Original mode locks the player at a power level of 4). Collecting either type of Flash item will reduce the power level by 1, as will taking a hit.
* Multiplier speed and cap are similar to Original mode, but the multiplier is separated into two different types: power-up and enemy multiplier, which increase and decrease by different means. These two multiplier values are additive, so the value shown at the left side of the screen is the sum of the power-up and enemy multipliers.
* Enemy multiplier works identical to Original mode, increasing based on waves completing and decreasing when an enemy escapes.
* Getting hit will reduce the enemy multiplier down to one. This means extra caution should be taken during boss encounters, as a 26x multiplier can go crashing back down to 6x should the player get reckless and take a hit. For this reason, and this is merely opinion, I don't think picking up F-bombs in Advanced mode should be stigmatized. It's obviously preferable to yo-yo between 26x and 25x, if you think you're in danger, instead of taking a hit due to your pride and receiving a 6x multiplier as a reward.
* The power-up multiplier is directly tied to the ship's power level, ranging from 0 to 6. A fully powered ship will always have at least 7x multiplier unless the power level is reduced by taking a hit or collecting a Flash.
* Your shield is weakened to these values with each respective powerup: 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, and finally 30 at maximum power.
* Shielding bullets will create purple gems that act as an offensive barrier around your ship. When the shield is lowered, these purple items are automatically collected and converted into points.
* There is no time bonus in Advanced mode, which means speed killing isn't prioritized. There are two ways you can abuse this: waiting for item carriers to give you powerups/F-bombs at a safer time or waiting for a more lucrative bullet cancel. I've provided a list below for when you might want to stall a bit for bullet cancels.
* Yellow Flashes appear only during the stage, while blue Flashes only appear when the power meter is maxed or during boss encounters. The pods that drop items appear to do so in a pattern: the first two drop power-ups/blue Flashes, and every third will drop a gold Flash.
* Wonder witches cancel bullets into purple gems, just like yellow F-bombs - however they do NOT power you down like yellow F-bombs. Good luck finding any decent opportunities to cancel with witches, though.

==== Time Attack ====

Time Attack mode operates similarly to Original mode, but on a time limit. There is no score or multiplier, only the total time used for the game session. There are infinite lives, but dying removes five seconds from the clock. Time is added when clearing a wave or collecting a 1UP. The clock pauses in-between waves, mainly when the camera is maneuvering to another angle. There are no continues for this mode - if time runs out, a game over is triggered. After defeating the final boss, the time left on the clock is subtracted from the current playthrough time to establish a final time.

== Strategy ==
<div style='text-align: center;'>
''See [[(Template Page)/Strategy]] for '''stage maps''', '''enemy and boss descriptions''', '''walkthroughs''', and '''advanced play strategies'''.''
</div>
----

This section details some particular strategic information about the game and its gameplay, such as hidden 1UPs and some basic scoring tricks. For anything particularly deep or highly complex, you can probably leave it in the Strategy page.

''(Currently evaluating whether or not this specific section should even include information outside of the separated Strategy pages. Worth thinking about as a community.)''

== Version Differences ==
* Include information here about differences in a game between various versions. This includes regional differences, patch updates/bugfixes, and the like.
----

== Trivia ==

* While the sparks when grinding bullets look like they indicate a bullet-grinding mechanic, it is just there for visual flair.

== Gallery ==

=== Official Digital Game Manual ===

''[[Eschatos]]'' Game Manual made by [[Qute]] Corporation in digital format, bundled with the purchase of the game vía Steam (PC), Nintendo eShop or PSN.

Contains a brief explanation of the Controls and the Game System.

<gallery>
Eschatos manual 1.png|Manual cover art
Eschatos manual 2.png|Controls
Eschatos manual 3.png|Game System Explanation - Original Mode
Eschatos_manual_EN_4.png|Game System Explanation - ADVANCED Mode
Eschatos manual 5.png|Game System Explanation - Time Attack Mode
Eschatos manual 6.png|Credits Section
</gallery>

== Other ==

We have support for wikitables, giving us the potential to add lots of cool info in a small box on the page somewhere, but we are not using them at the moment. I'm just leaving this here so we can have it handy in case we decide to actually use them. Feel free to not use this section.

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"
|-
! [[(Template Page)]]
|-
| put your stuff here
|}

== References & Contributors ==
<small>
<references />
* [https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/ ESCHATOS Steam page]
<small>

* This template page was assembled by [[User:CHA-STG|CHA-STG]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]].

* Information about the Option Level unlocks provided by Emuser: https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=69338</small>

[[Category:Vertical_orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]

ZeroRanger

2023-11-28T15:19:08Z

Schwarzgeist: /* Weapons */

[[File:ZR_Logo.png|200px|center]]
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #008080
|innerbordercolor = #004f4d
|title = ZeroRanger
|background = #ffbc79
|image = ZR Title.png
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Title screen
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = SystemErasure
|music = eebrozgi<br>Qwesta
|art = ebboshidori
|releasedate = October 2018
}}

'''''ZeroRanger''''' (ゼロレンジャー) is a vertically scrolling [[shoot'em up]] developed and published by SystemErasure released on Steam and itch.io in 2018. A new game mode called White Vanilla was added in 2020, along with the official soundtrack. The game is notable for its unique color pallet, and for being densely packed with references to other shooters and anime. A demo that serves as a prologue to the story can be found on the developer's website.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Gameplay Overview ==
'''ZeroRanger''' uses 3 buttons by default. An optional Slow and Auto-fire 3 can be set in the options menu if the player desires.

=== Controls ===
*'''Z:''' Fire 1 (Main Weapon).
*'''X:''' Fire 2 (Back/Side Shot).
*'''C:''' Fire 3 (Charge/Lock-on).
*'''Fire 1+2+3:''' Alternates between Fighter and Mech (Sword/Drill) Modes.

=== Characters/Weapons ===
There are two playable ships: Type-B "Rybb" and Type-C "Decker". Both share the same weaponry, but with unique properties depending on the chosen ship. After defeating a boss in the first three stages, the player can choose which weapon they wish to collect. It's possible to collect none at all by destroying the Power-Ups or simply letting the time run out. However, doing so will lock you into the Fake Ending. Both ships can also transform into a Mecha after collecting the Power-Up from the boss in Stage 3. In this mode, they only have access to either the Drill or Sword weapon, depending on what the player chooses to collect. '''Charge, Lock-on, and Type-B's Sword can only be Auto-fired by mapping the Auto-fire 3 button'''.

Both ships have a passive shield to protect against '''collision damage'''. The shield can absorb three hits. On the fourth, damage will be sustained and a life will be lost. The shield does recharge after not receiving damage for a moment. Upon losing a life, the player craft will be momentary stunned, but immune to further hits. If the player double taps a direction, they can perform a dash in that direction at the cost of the remaining period of invincibility.

=== Weapons ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; width:100%;"
|-
! style="width:10%;" |'''Weapon'''
! style="width:45%;" |'''Type-B'''
! style="width:45%;" |'''Type-C'''
|-
| '''Main Shot'''
| Wide forward shot. Must point-blank for maximum damage.
| Narrow forward shot. Always does full damage but requires precise aiming. Resembles the main shot in ''Ikaruga''.
|-
| '''Back Shot'''
| A flamethrower that pierces targets. Sticks to the borders of the screen for just a second before disappearing.
| Fires a stream of bullets backwards, with powerful afterburners to the sides. A weak forward fire is also included. Point-blank for maximum damage. Resembles the back shot in ''Radiant Silvergun''.
|-
| '''Side Shot'''
| A lightning pillar fired directly to the side and at a 45-degree angle on both sides of the ship. Does continuous damage.
| Fires bullets at the same angle as Type-B's. They are slower but much more powerful.
|-
| '''Lock-on'''
| Creates a lock-on reticle around the ship that can lock up to 8 targets. Release the button to fire. If tapped, it will quickly lock and fire at the nearest enemy. Can hit background enemies.
| Same as Type-B's, but the reticle appears a set distance in front of the ship.
|-
| '''Charge Shot'''
| Fires a piercing plasma ball. If charged, it creates a field around the ship that absorbs bullets and contact damage. If too much damage is absorbed, the ship will be unable to fire the Charge Shot for a while. At max charge, the shot will linger on screen as a big fireball for a while. Resembles the Charge Shot in ''Recca'92''. A hidden, extremely powerful variant can be used if the charge is held for a full minute.
| Also fires a piecing plasma ball. Charging it creates a small plasma shot directly in front of the ship, that can absorb a limitless number of shots and does damage on contact. The hidden variant is also present as works the same way as Type-B's. Mechanically works similar to the Shield weapon in ''[[Eschatos]]''.
|-
| '''Sword'''
| Tapping the button will unleash a single sword slash with high damage. Holding the button will charge a more powerful slash. A low charge does more damage and reflects bullets. At max charge, Type-B unleashes a flurry of slashes that besides reflecting bullets, also fire short range projectiles.
| Tapping the button result in a single slash that can reflect bullets. Tapping at the right rhythm will unleash a 3-hit combo. The third attack will hit multiple times. Mashing or holding the button will do a continuous sword swing, but with less range and no bullet reflection.
|-
| '''Drill'''
| Holding the button will unleash a big drill that can gather debris from hitting enemies. It slows down big bullets and outright destroy weaker ones. The debris circle around the ship, further shielding Type-B from enemies and bullets.
| Holding it unleashes a small drill that grows in size and damage as it hit enemies. Otherwise, it's the same as Type-B's drill.
|}

=== Items ===
ZeroRanger only has two types of items. The first is the '''SE-Bonus''' (System Erasure). They're point caches present in every stage, and are uncovered when certain conditions are met. The first bonus collected in each stage is worth 1000 points, with each subsequent Bonus being worth double the last. There are 3 in every stage of Green Orange mode except for the last one. In White Vanilla mode they're much more abundant, and thus their value is tweaked slightly: the first is worth 222 points and each subsequent Bonus is worth 222 more than the last.

The other item is a Life Up that awards an extra life. Like SE Bonuses, these can be uncovered by fulfilling certain conditions. The maximum number of lives you can have is eight.

=== Extends ===
Extends are rewarded fairly frequently in ZeroRanger. The less lives a player has, the easier it is to earn an extend. This is indicated in the score on the top-left corner of the screen: as you earn points, the numbers will turn into a paler shade of orange. An extra life is awarded when the score turns fully pale, then it turns back to regular orange and the process repeats. This makes for a fairly forgiving game for beginners, while also encouraging scoring.

=== Loops ===
ZeroRanger has a second loop that you access automatically for story reasons, no special conditions required. Loop 2 levels offer new secrets, new bosses, and the chance to change your first two weapons if you so desire. Please note that to access stage 2-4, you'll need to show the miniboss of 2-3 the ZeroRanger form, triggering a new boss and allowing you to finish the game.

== Scoring ==
Both game modes in ZeroRanger have their unique spin on the game's scoring mechanics.

=== Green Orange ===
Base game mode. Scoring in Green Orange revolves around a multiplier that can be found in the top-right corner of the screen. The multiplier increases as enemies are destroyed—the bigger the enemy, the bigger the increase—and it can be maintained by hitting enemies, absorbing bullets with Charge Shot, or locking-on to enemies. Not attacking for a long period of time causes it to rapidly decrease. In Fighter form, the multiplier caps at 6.4x. In Mech form, it can be "overloaded" to a max of 12.8x, but it will decrease much faster. Note that you do not need to stay in Mech form to maintain the "overloaded" multiplier, but you cannot increase it past 6.4x in Fighter Form either.

During minor bosses (those without a health bar), your multiplier stays in effect, and the text "BOSS BREAK" will appear to indicate that. During major bosses, the multiplier is replaced with a timer. Destroying the boss before it hits 0 will reward you a Time Bonus (the value is "remaining seconds x 100"). Additionally, failing to destroy a boss before it hits 0 will more often than not have the boss flee, leaving behind only a single power-up. Ending a stage with extra lives will award 1,000 points per life. If 8 lives are in stock, the bonus will be of 8,888 instead of 8,000. There's also an overkill mechanic present in both modes: you can continue to shoot certain enemies for an extra few points.

Overall, the general strategy for Green Orange can be summarized like this:
*Max out the multiplier as fast as you can and keep it from decreasing.
*Every stage has certain moments where there will be very few enemies on screen. In these cases, you'll want to slowly shave away their health instead of destroying them. This will keep the multiplier high.
*Look for SE Bonuses. Their location and conditions are fixed. Memorizing and incorporating them into your route can make all the difference.
*Speed-killing in encouraged. Completing sections fast will cause golden enemies to appear, and those are worth more points than regular ones.

=== White Vanilla ===
Score Attack mode. This mode consists of a remix of various segments from every stage in the game. On a fresh install, it has to be unlocked by reaching a Game Over in Green Orange for the first time. In White Vanilla, the Multiplier is fixed, increasing based on how well the player performs during each segment. After each segment is completed, the player will be given a grade on three criteria: '''Hits''', '''Time''', and '''Destruction'''. All criteria are ranked individually. The higher the grade, the more the Multiplier increases. Grades go from E (0.5x increase) to Z (1.0x increase). The Multiplier maxes at 16x in this mode and resets back to 1x at the start of the next stage. Between stages, there are bonus levels for increased score. The player cannot lose lives in these levels, but they automatically end if a single hit is taken.

Players are limited to a maximum of five continues in White Vanilla. The TLB can be fought if the player plays from the beginning and destroys the "Congratulations!!" message with the drill after defeating the regular Last Boss. Continiues do not invalidate the requirement.

General Strategy:
*Speed-killing is king. Not only does this contribute to your Destruction Rank, completing sections early makes the screen scroll faster. This is key to obtain the Speed Zone achievement in the final segment of Stage 4.
*Some segments have been altered slightly. Don't expect exactly the same things from Green Orange.
*The Ex-Boss uses the scoring mechanics from Green Orange, and this is the only place where milking is feasible. For every other section, the Time Bonus vastly overshadows any milking. Dying to this boss still counts as a clear.

== Story and Themes ==
''"This is the story of a fighter who wanted to become . . ."''

''ZeroRanger'' takes place on the fictional planet '''Daikon''', where aliens called "'''Green Orange'''" have invaded. The Green Orange invaders end up taking control of Daikon's defense systems, and the two remaining ships (Type-B and Type-C) blast off to destroy the menace.

During the game, the playable ships unlock latent powers resting within, building on the running theme of "''enlightenment''" <small>(which is highlighted on the game's Steam page, and in several messages that are displayed during gameplay)</small>.

== References ==
# https://zeroranger.miraheze.org/wiki/Main_Page

[[Category:Vertical orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]
[[Category:True Last Boss]]

ZeroRanger

2023-11-28T15:16:40Z

Schwarzgeist: /* Characters/Weapons */

[[File:ZR_Logo.png|200px|center]]
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #008080
|innerbordercolor = #004f4d
|title = ZeroRanger
|background = #ffbc79
|image = ZR Title.png
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Title screen
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = SystemErasure
|music = eebrozgi<br>Qwesta
|art = ebboshidori
|releasedate = October 2018
}}

'''''ZeroRanger''''' (ゼロレンジャー) is a vertically scrolling [[shoot'em up]] developed and published by SystemErasure released on Steam and itch.io in 2018. A new game mode called White Vanilla was added in 2020, along with the official soundtrack. The game is notable for its unique color pallet, and for being densely packed with references to other shooters and anime. A demo that serves as a prologue to the story can be found on the developer's website.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Gameplay Overview ==
'''ZeroRanger''' uses 3 buttons by default. An optional Slow and Auto-fire 3 can be set in the options menu if the player desires.

=== Controls ===
*'''Z:''' Fire 1 (Main Weapon).
*'''X:''' Fire 2 (Back/Side Shot).
*'''C:''' Fire 3 (Charge/Lock-on).
*'''Fire 1+2+3:''' Alternates between Fighter and Mech (Sword/Drill) Modes.

=== Characters/Weapons ===
There are two playable ships: Type-B "Rybb" and Type-C "Decker". Both share the same weaponry, but with unique properties depending on the chosen ship. After defeating a boss in the first three stages, the player can choose which weapon they wish to collect. It's possible to collect none at all by destroying the Power-Ups or simply letting the time run out. However, doing so will lock you into the Fake Ending. Both ships can also transform into a Mecha after collecting the Power-Up from the boss in Stage 3. In this mode, they only have access to either the Drill or Sword weapon, depending on what the player chooses to collect. '''Charge, Lock-on, and Type-B's Sword can only be Auto-fired by mapping the Auto-fire 3 button'''.

Both ships have a passive shield to protect against '''collision damage'''. The shield can absorb three hits. On the fourth, damage will be sustained and a life will be lost. The shield does recharge after not receiving damage for a moment. Upon losing a life, the player craft will be momentary stunned, but immune to further hits. If the player double taps a direction, they can perform a dash in that direction at the cost of the remaining period of invincibility.

=== Weapons ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; width:100%;"
|-
! style="width:10%;" |'''Weapon'''
! style="width:45%;" |'''Type-B'''
! style="width:45%;" |'''Type-C'''
|-
| '''Main Shot'''
| Wide forward shot. Must point-blank for maximum damage.
| Narrow forward shot. Always does full damage but requires precise aiming. Resembles the main shot in ''Ikaruga''.
|-
| '''Back Shot'''
| A flamethrower that pierces targets. Sticks to the borders of the screen for just a second before disappearing.
| Fires a stream of bullets backwards, with powerful afterburners to the sides. A weak forward fire is also included. Point-blank for maximum damage. Resembles the back shot in ''Radiant Silvergun''.
|-
| '''Side Shot'''
| A lightning pillar fired directly to the side and at a 45-degree angle on both sides of the ship. Does continuous damage.
| Fires bullets at the same angle as Type-B's. They are slower but much more powerful.
|-
| '''Lock-on'''
| Creates a lock-on reticle around the ship that can lock up to 8 targets. Release the button to fire. If tapped, it will quickly lock and fire at the nearest enemy. Can hit background enemies.
| Same as Type-B's, but the reticle appears a set distance in front of the ship.
|-
| '''Charge Shot'''
| Fires a piercing plasma ball. If charged, it creates a field around the ship that absorbs bullets and contact damage. If too much damage is absorbed, the ship will be unable to fire the Charge Shot for a while. At max charge, the shot will linger on screen as a big fireball for a while. Resembles the Charge Shot in ''Recca'92''. A hidden, extremely powerful variant can be used if the charge is held for a full minute.
| Also fires a piecing plasma ball. Charging it creates a small plasma shot directly in front of the ship, that can absorb a limitless number of shots and does damage on contact. The hidden variant is also present as works the same way as Type-B's.
|-
| '''Sword'''
| Tapping the button will unleash a single sword slash with high damage. Holding the button will charge a more powerful slash. A low charge does more damage and reflects bullets. At max charge, Type-B unleashes a flurry of slashes that besides reflecting bullets, also fire short range projectiles.
| Tapping the button result in a single slash that can reflect bullets. Tapping at the right rhythm will unleash a 3-hit combo. The third attack will hit multiple times. Mashing or holding the button will do a continuous sword swing, but with less range and no bullet reflection.
|-
| '''Drill'''
| Holding the button will unleash a big drill that can gather debris from hitting enemies. It slows down big bullets and outright destroy weaker ones. The debris circle around the ship, further shielding Type-B from enemies and bullets.
| Holding it unleashes a small drill that grows in size and damage as it hit enemies. Otherwise, it's the same as Type-B's drill.
|}

=== Items ===
ZeroRanger only has two types of items. The first is the '''SE-Bonus''' (System Erasure). They're point caches present in every stage, and are uncovered when certain conditions are met. The first bonus collected in each stage is worth 1000 points, with each subsequent Bonus being worth double the last. There are 3 in every stage of Green Orange mode except for the last one. In White Vanilla mode they're much more abundant, and thus their value is tweaked slightly: the first is worth 222 points and each subsequent Bonus is worth 222 more than the last.

The other item is a Life Up that awards an extra life. Like SE Bonuses, these can be uncovered by fulfilling certain conditions. The maximum number of lives you can have is eight.

=== Extends ===
Extends are rewarded fairly frequently in ZeroRanger. The less lives a player has, the easier it is to earn an extend. This is indicated in the score on the top-left corner of the screen: as you earn points, the numbers will turn into a paler shade of orange. An extra life is awarded when the score turns fully pale, then it turns back to regular orange and the process repeats. This makes for a fairly forgiving game for beginners, while also encouraging scoring.

=== Loops ===
ZeroRanger has a second loop that you access automatically for story reasons, no special conditions required. Loop 2 levels offer new secrets, new bosses, and the chance to change your first two weapons if you so desire. Please note that to access stage 2-4, you'll need to show the miniboss of 2-3 the ZeroRanger form, triggering a new boss and allowing you to finish the game.

== Scoring ==
Both game modes in ZeroRanger have their unique spin on the game's scoring mechanics.

=== Green Orange ===
Base game mode. Scoring in Green Orange revolves around a multiplier that can be found in the top-right corner of the screen. The multiplier increases as enemies are destroyed—the bigger the enemy, the bigger the increase—and it can be maintained by hitting enemies, absorbing bullets with Charge Shot, or locking-on to enemies. Not attacking for a long period of time causes it to rapidly decrease. In Fighter form, the multiplier caps at 6.4x. In Mech form, it can be "overloaded" to a max of 12.8x, but it will decrease much faster. Note that you do not need to stay in Mech form to maintain the "overloaded" multiplier, but you cannot increase it past 6.4x in Fighter Form either.

During minor bosses (those without a health bar), your multiplier stays in effect, and the text "BOSS BREAK" will appear to indicate that. During major bosses, the multiplier is replaced with a timer. Destroying the boss before it hits 0 will reward you a Time Bonus (the value is "remaining seconds x 100"). Additionally, failing to destroy a boss before it hits 0 will more often than not have the boss flee, leaving behind only a single power-up. Ending a stage with extra lives will award 1,000 points per life. If 8 lives are in stock, the bonus will be of 8,888 instead of 8,000. There's also an overkill mechanic present in both modes: you can continue to shoot certain enemies for an extra few points.

Overall, the general strategy for Green Orange can be summarized like this:
*Max out the multiplier as fast as you can and keep it from decreasing.
*Every stage has certain moments where there will be very few enemies on screen. In these cases, you'll want to slowly shave away their health instead of destroying them. This will keep the multiplier high.
*Look for SE Bonuses. Their location and conditions are fixed. Memorizing and incorporating them into your route can make all the difference.
*Speed-killing in encouraged. Completing sections fast will cause golden enemies to appear, and those are worth more points than regular ones.

=== White Vanilla ===
Score Attack mode. This mode consists of a remix of various segments from every stage in the game. On a fresh install, it has to be unlocked by reaching a Game Over in Green Orange for the first time. In White Vanilla, the Multiplier is fixed, increasing based on how well the player performs during each segment. After each segment is completed, the player will be given a grade on three criteria: '''Hits''', '''Time''', and '''Destruction'''. All criteria are ranked individually. The higher the grade, the more the Multiplier increases. Grades go from E (0.5x increase) to Z (1.0x increase). The Multiplier maxes at 16x in this mode and resets back to 1x at the start of the next stage. Between stages, there are bonus levels for increased score. The player cannot lose lives in these levels, but they automatically end if a single hit is taken.

Players are limited to a maximum of five continues in White Vanilla. The TLB can be fought if the player plays from the beginning and destroys the "Congratulations!!" message with the drill after defeating the regular Last Boss. Continiues do not invalidate the requirement.

General Strategy:
*Speed-killing is king. Not only does this contribute to your Destruction Rank, completing sections early makes the screen scroll faster. This is key to obtain the Speed Zone achievement in the final segment of Stage 4.
*Some segments have been altered slightly. Don't expect exactly the same things from Green Orange.
*The Ex-Boss uses the scoring mechanics from Green Orange, and this is the only place where milking is feasible. For every other section, the Time Bonus vastly overshadows any milking. Dying to this boss still counts as a clear.

== Story and Themes ==
''"This is the story of a fighter who wanted to become . . ."''

''ZeroRanger'' takes place on the fictional planet '''Daikon''', where aliens called "'''Green Orange'''" have invaded. The Green Orange invaders end up taking control of Daikon's defense systems, and the two remaining ships (Type-B and Type-C) blast off to destroy the menace.

During the game, the playable ships unlock latent powers resting within, building on the running theme of "''enlightenment''" <small>(which is highlighted on the game's Steam page, and in several messages that are displayed during gameplay)</small>.

== References ==
# https://zeroranger.miraheze.org/wiki/Main_Page

[[Category:Vertical orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]
[[Category:True Last Boss]]

ZeroRanger

2023-11-28T15:14:56Z

Schwarzgeist: /* Controls */

[[File:ZR_Logo.png|200px|center]]
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #008080
|innerbordercolor = #004f4d
|title = ZeroRanger
|background = #ffbc79
|image = ZR Title.png
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Title screen
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = SystemErasure
|music = eebrozgi<br>Qwesta
|art = ebboshidori
|releasedate = October 2018
}}

'''''ZeroRanger''''' (ゼロレンジャー) is a vertically scrolling [[shoot'em up]] developed and published by SystemErasure released on Steam and itch.io in 2018. A new game mode called White Vanilla was added in 2020, along with the official soundtrack. The game is notable for its unique color pallet, and for being densely packed with references to other shooters and anime. A demo that serves as a prologue to the story can be found on the developer's website.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Gameplay Overview ==
'''ZeroRanger''' uses 3 buttons by default. An optional Slow and Auto-fire 3 can be set in the options menu if the player desires.

=== Controls ===
*'''Z:''' Fire 1 (Main Weapon).
*'''X:''' Fire 2 (Back/Side Shot).
*'''C:''' Fire 3 (Charge/Lock-on).
*'''Fire 1+2+3:''' Alternates between Fighter and Mech (Sword/Drill) Modes.

=== Characters/Weapons ===
There are two playable ships: Type-B "Rybb" and Type-C "Decker" both share the same weaponry, but with unique properties depending on the chosen ship. After the first boss, the player can choose which weapon they wish to collect. It's possible to collect none at all by destroying the Power-Ups or simply letting the time run out. However, doing so will lock you into the Fake Ending. Both ships can also transform into a Mecha after collecting the Power-Up from the boss in Stage 3. In this mode, they only have access to either the Drill or Sword weapon, depending on what the player chooses to collect. '''Charge, Lock-on, and Type-B's Sword can only be Auto-fired by mapping the Auto-fire 3 button'''.

Both ships have a passive shield to protect against '''collision damage'''. The shield can absorb three hits. On the fourth, damage will be sustained and a life will be lost. The shield does recharge after not receiving damage for a moment. Upon losing a life, the player craft will be momentary stunned, but immune to further hits. If the player double taps a direction, they can perform a dash in that direction at the cost of the remaining period of invincibility.

=== Weapons ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; width:100%;"
|-
! style="width:10%;" |'''Weapon'''
! style="width:45%;" |'''Type-B'''
! style="width:45%;" |'''Type-C'''
|-
| '''Main Shot'''
| Wide forward shot. Must point-blank for maximum damage.
| Narrow forward shot. Always does full damage but requires precise aiming. Resembles the main shot in ''Ikaruga''.
|-
| '''Back Shot'''
| A flamethrower that pierces targets. Sticks to the borders of the screen for just a second before disappearing.
| Fires a stream of bullets backwards, with powerful afterburners to the sides. A weak forward fire is also included. Point-blank for maximum damage. Resembles the back shot in ''Radiant Silvergun''.
|-
| '''Side Shot'''
| A lightning pillar fired directly to the side and at a 45-degree angle on both sides of the ship. Does continuous damage.
| Fires bullets at the same angle as Type-B's. They are slower but much more powerful.
|-
| '''Lock-on'''
| Creates a lock-on reticle around the ship that can lock up to 8 targets. Release the button to fire. If tapped, it will quickly lock and fire at the nearest enemy. Can hit background enemies.
| Same as Type-B's, but the reticle appears a set distance in front of the ship.
|-
| '''Charge Shot'''
| Fires a piercing plasma ball. If charged, it creates a field around the ship that absorbs bullets and contact damage. If too much damage is absorbed, the ship will be unable to fire the Charge Shot for a while. At max charge, the shot will linger on screen as a big fireball for a while. Resembles the Charge Shot in ''Recca'92''. A hidden, extremely powerful variant can be used if the charge is held for a full minute.
| Also fires a piecing plasma ball. Charging it creates a small plasma shot directly in front of the ship, that can absorb a limitless number of shots and does damage on contact. The hidden variant is also present as works the same way as Type-B's.
|-
| '''Sword'''
| Tapping the button will unleash a single sword slash with high damage. Holding the button will charge a more powerful slash. A low charge does more damage and reflects bullets. At max charge, Type-B unleashes a flurry of slashes that besides reflecting bullets, also fire short range projectiles.
| Tapping the button result in a single slash that can reflect bullets. Tapping at the right rhythm will unleash a 3-hit combo. The third attack will hit multiple times. Mashing or holding the button will do a continuous sword swing, but with less range and no bullet reflection.
|-
| '''Drill'''
| Holding the button will unleash a big drill that can gather debris from hitting enemies. It slows down big bullets and outright destroy weaker ones. The debris circle around the ship, further shielding Type-B from enemies and bullets.
| Holding it unleashes a small drill that grows in size and damage as it hit enemies. Otherwise, it's the same as Type-B's drill.
|}

=== Items ===
ZeroRanger only has two types of items. The first is the '''SE-Bonus''' (System Erasure). They're point caches present in every stage, and are uncovered when certain conditions are met. The first bonus collected in each stage is worth 1000 points, with each subsequent Bonus being worth double the last. There are 3 in every stage of Green Orange mode except for the last one. In White Vanilla mode they're much more abundant, and thus their value is tweaked slightly: the first is worth 222 points and each subsequent Bonus is worth 222 more than the last.

The other item is a Life Up that awards an extra life. Like SE Bonuses, these can be uncovered by fulfilling certain conditions. The maximum number of lives you can have is eight.

=== Extends ===
Extends are rewarded fairly frequently in ZeroRanger. The less lives a player has, the easier it is to earn an extend. This is indicated in the score on the top-left corner of the screen: as you earn points, the numbers will turn into a paler shade of orange. An extra life is awarded when the score turns fully pale, then it turns back to regular orange and the process repeats. This makes for a fairly forgiving game for beginners, while also encouraging scoring.

=== Loops ===
ZeroRanger has a second loop that you access automatically for story reasons, no special conditions required. Loop 2 levels offer new secrets, new bosses, and the chance to change your first two weapons if you so desire. Please note that to access stage 2-4, you'll need to show the miniboss of 2-3 the ZeroRanger form, triggering a new boss and allowing you to finish the game.

== Scoring ==
Both game modes in ZeroRanger have their unique spin on the game's scoring mechanics.

=== Green Orange ===
Base game mode. Scoring in Green Orange revolves around a multiplier that can be found in the top-right corner of the screen. The multiplier increases as enemies are destroyed—the bigger the enemy, the bigger the increase—and it can be maintained by hitting enemies, absorbing bullets with Charge Shot, or locking-on to enemies. Not attacking for a long period of time causes it to rapidly decrease. In Fighter form, the multiplier caps at 6.4x. In Mech form, it can be "overloaded" to a max of 12.8x, but it will decrease much faster. Note that you do not need to stay in Mech form to maintain the "overloaded" multiplier, but you cannot increase it past 6.4x in Fighter Form either.

During minor bosses (those without a health bar), your multiplier stays in effect, and the text "BOSS BREAK" will appear to indicate that. During major bosses, the multiplier is replaced with a timer. Destroying the boss before it hits 0 will reward you a Time Bonus (the value is "remaining seconds x 100"). Additionally, failing to destroy a boss before it hits 0 will more often than not have the boss flee, leaving behind only a single power-up. Ending a stage with extra lives will award 1,000 points per life. If 8 lives are in stock, the bonus will be of 8,888 instead of 8,000. There's also an overkill mechanic present in both modes: you can continue to shoot certain enemies for an extra few points.

Overall, the general strategy for Green Orange can be summarized like this:
*Max out the multiplier as fast as you can and keep it from decreasing.
*Every stage has certain moments where there will be very few enemies on screen. In these cases, you'll want to slowly shave away their health instead of destroying them. This will keep the multiplier high.
*Look for SE Bonuses. Their location and conditions are fixed. Memorizing and incorporating them into your route can make all the difference.
*Speed-killing in encouraged. Completing sections fast will cause golden enemies to appear, and those are worth more points than regular ones.

=== White Vanilla ===
Score Attack mode. This mode consists of a remix of various segments from every stage in the game. On a fresh install, it has to be unlocked by reaching a Game Over in Green Orange for the first time. In White Vanilla, the Multiplier is fixed, increasing based on how well the player performs during each segment. After each segment is completed, the player will be given a grade on three criteria: '''Hits''', '''Time''', and '''Destruction'''. All criteria are ranked individually. The higher the grade, the more the Multiplier increases. Grades go from E (0.5x increase) to Z (1.0x increase). The Multiplier maxes at 16x in this mode and resets back to 1x at the start of the next stage. Between stages, there are bonus levels for increased score. The player cannot lose lives in these levels, but they automatically end if a single hit is taken.

Players are limited to a maximum of five continues in White Vanilla. The TLB can be fought if the player plays from the beginning and destroys the "Congratulations!!" message with the drill after defeating the regular Last Boss. Continiues do not invalidate the requirement.

General Strategy:
*Speed-killing is king. Not only does this contribute to your Destruction Rank, completing sections early makes the screen scroll faster. This is key to obtain the Speed Zone achievement in the final segment of Stage 4.
*Some segments have been altered slightly. Don't expect exactly the same things from Green Orange.
*The Ex-Boss uses the scoring mechanics from Green Orange, and this is the only place where milking is feasible. For every other section, the Time Bonus vastly overshadows any milking. Dying to this boss still counts as a clear.

== Story and Themes ==
''"This is the story of a fighter who wanted to become . . ."''

''ZeroRanger'' takes place on the fictional planet '''Daikon''', where aliens called "'''Green Orange'''" have invaded. The Green Orange invaders end up taking control of Daikon's defense systems, and the two remaining ships (Type-B and Type-C) blast off to destroy the menace.

During the game, the playable ships unlock latent powers resting within, building on the running theme of "''enlightenment''" <small>(which is highlighted on the game's Steam page, and in several messages that are displayed during gameplay)</small>.

== References ==
# https://zeroranger.miraheze.org/wiki/Main_Page

[[Category:Vertical orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]
[[Category:True Last Boss]]

Eschatos

2023-11-28T15:04:50Z

Schwarzgeist:

[[File:Logo_eschatos.png|300px|center]]
----
{{GameInfobox
|bordercolor = #001fbc
|title = Eschatos
|background = #f8f8f8
|image = Eschatos_capsule.jpg
|width = 324px;
|imagecaption = Cover Art (Steam / Nintendo Switch / PS4)
|imagescalepx = 180px

|developer = [[Qute]]
|
|music = Yousuke Yasui
|
|program = M-KAI
|
|art = Hiroshi-iro-enpitu, Kunio Jyoduka
|
|releasedate = 2011

|previousgame = [[Judgement Silversword]]/[[Cardinal Sins]]
|nextgame = [[Ginga Force]]
}}

'''Eschatos''' is a vertical 2.5D shooter developed by Qute. It features 2D control with fully rendered 3D objects and backgrounds which occasionally change perspective. It has several modes and difficulty levels, each mode and difficulty level combination having its own dedicated online leaderboard.

{{VideoIndex}}
__TOC__
{{clear}}

== Story ==
While there is no in-game dialogue or exposition, the Steam page offers some clues about the lore:

''The year is 21XX. A mysterious alien force, known only as "Purple Erosion", has taken over the Moon! From the captured lunar base, alien UFOs begin their invasion of Earth! Using your advanced space fighter, you must repel the alien invasion, beat them back through space, and finally recapture the Moon to end the alien menace once and for all!''[https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/]

== Gameplay Overview ==

Eschatos has three modes: Original, Advanced and Time Attack. Additionally, Original and Advanced have four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest. Original and Advanced also have an Endless Mode which, contrary to its name, is a mode consisting of Easy, Normal, Hard, and Hardest played in that order.

The manual describes Original, Advanced, and Time Attack as follows:

=== Original ===

''The Player will be able to switch between 3 shot types: "Frontal''
''Shot", "Wide Shot", and "Shield." Control your ship and defeat''
''enemies that appear in the area. Different shot types cannot be''
''used at the same time.''

''When you lose all lives, then it is game over. Eliminate all the''
''enemies in the area or stay alive for a certain time to move to''
''the next area.''

''Defeat the final boss to complete a game. Choose the most''
''effective shot type for each situation to eliminate the enemies.''

=== Advanced ===

''ADVANCED mode is based on ORIGINAL, but is more''
''complex with 7 different shot power levels and Bonus''
''Point Items. It's a more challenging mode.''

=== Time Attack ===

''TIME ATTACK mode is based on ORIGINAL mode, except players compete''
''to finish the game in the shortest time. The Player is given a 90 second''
''time limit initially, and keeps extending the time through time bonuses''
''awarded for finishing each area. If time reaches 0, it's game over. When''
''the player loses a life, 5 seconds is deducted as a penalty.''

''The quicker the game is completed, the higher the score on Rankings. If''
''the player does not finish a complete game, players that have survived''
''longer will be listed on the Rankings.''

''Results for TIME ATTACK will not be added to the TOTAL SCORE within''
''the player Report submenu.''

=== Controls ===
----
* '''Directional pad, Left stick:''' Move ship
* '''START:''' Open pause menu
* '''A:''' Frontal Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''X:''' Wide Shot. Autofire when held.
* '''A + X (Hold):''' Shield
* '''RT:''' Shield
* '''RB:''' Change speed

=== Unlockable Secrets ===
----

==== Option Levels ====

As you play Original or Advanced mode, the total of all scores is added up to determine what is called an Option Level. Your current Option Level corresponds to various new features, some more useful than others, up to the maximum level of 50. The following is a list of every unlock provided by this system:

# (default)
# Continue count is increased to 1
# Wallpaper brightness
# Wallpaper number 4
# Player stock / starting lives unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 2
# Demo sound can be toggled on or off
# Continue count is increased to 3
# Starting lives can be increased to 4
# Stage select unlocks, accessible in the "game settings" menu (only stages 1 and 2 are available initially)
# ''Fragment'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 4
# ''Smoke'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 5
# ''Type C'' ship type (green) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Enemy alt. display'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Original Hardest
# Starting lives can be increased to 5
# Continue count is increased to 5
# Leaderboard replays can now be viewed
# Continue count is increased to 6
# Stage 3 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Spark'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 7
# Advanced Hardest
# Wallpaper number 6
# Starting lives can be increased to 6
# Continue count is increased to 8
# Stage 4 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# Continue count is increased to 9
# Wallpaper number 7
# Starting lives can be increased to 7
# "Special settings" unlocked in the options menu
# ''Collision display'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 8
# Stage 5 is unlocked for stage select in the "game settings" menu
# ''Bullet bloom'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''Type D'' ship type (purple) unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# Starting lives can be increased to 9
# Infinite continues
# Starting lives can be increased to 10
# ''Explosion'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# ''God mode'' is unlocked in the "game settings" menu
# ''Shadow mapping'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 8
# ''Super shot'' is unlocked in the "special settings" menu
# Wallpaper number 9
# ''Bloom effect'' is unlocked in the "effect settings" menu
# Wallpaper 10
# Starting lives can be increased to 99

=== Ship Types ===
----

There is initially one ship type (color), with three other variants being unlocked through the Option Level mechanic. Type A is red, Type B is blue, Type C is green, and Type D is purple. Each ship type is purely cosmetic in nature.

=== Weapons ===
----

==== Original ====

*'''Frontal Shot''' - Concentrated fire in front of the ship with long range and fire power.

*'''Wide Shot''' - Fan-shaped spread fire. Short range but wide area.

*'''Shield''' - A defensive weapon that appears at the nose of the ship. It cannot block attacks from the side or the rear. The shield can also damage enemies that come in contact with it. The Shield will gradually deplete the Shield Meter while it is deployed. The Shield Meter will decrease faster when it blocks an enemy bullet, when it's switched off, and when changing speed.

When the Shield Meter is almost empty, the shield will turn red. When the Meter is completely empty, the shield will be turned off and cannot be used for a while. The Shield Meter will replenish with time. Shield Meter will replenish with time.

==== Advanced ====

ADVANCED mode uses a power up system for the shots. Collecting each Power Up Item will upgrade the shots by 1 level each. However, each shot power up will make the shield meter smaller. Shot power can be upgraded to a maximum of level 7. Adjust the amount of power according to the need for shields.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, the weapons behave the same as they do in Original Mode.

=== Items ===
----
1UP - After destroying a set number of enemies, a 1UP will drop from an enemy after death. After collecting the 1UP, the kills required for the next 1UP increases. The counter and requirement reset after using a continue. In Time Attack mode, 1UPs drop as normal, but extend the timer by 15 seconds.

Blue Flash - Collecting the blue Flash item will destroy all bullets on screen. If playing on Advanced mode, the Flash item also reduces the power level and multiplier by 1.

Yellow Flash - Advanced mode exclusive. Operates similar to the blue Flash, but converts bullets into point items.

Wonder Witch - Hidden collectibles unearthed by shooting various environmental details throughout the game, which reward points when picked up.

Power Up - Advanced mode exclusive. When collected, raises the power level and multiplier by 1.

Bonus Point Item

Time Bonus Item

=== Scoring ===
----

==== Original ====

Scoring is relatively straightforward - each wave of enemies, as well as the bosses have timers that give a bonus once complete. Each wave completely cleared will increase the multiplier to a maximum, with the speed and cap of the multiplier varying depending on difficulty:
* Easy - +1 multiplier every 3 waves, maximum of 5
* Normal - +1 multiplier every 2 waves, maximum of 10
* Hard - +1 multiplier every wave, maximum of 20
* Hardest - +1 multiplier every wave, no maximum

Dying will reduce the multiplier, as will failing to destroy an enemy. Using the flash item to accomplish this is possible, and incurs no penalty.

==== Advanced ====

While Advanced mode uses a multiplier similarly to Original mode, there are some important differences. (dumping all of this here for now, some of it belongs in another section most likely)

* Your shield is weakened to these values with each respective powerup: 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, 30.
* Shielding bullets will create purple gems that act as an offensive barrier around your ship.
* Each powerup will increase your multiplier by 1, up to the maximum multiplier. Collecting a Flash item will reduce the multiplier by 1.
* Multiplier speed and cap are similar to Original mode, but appear to be increased somewhat.
* Most enemies that escape the screen will not drop the multiplier (it's inconsistent as to which do and don't).
* Getting hit will reduce the multiplier by 1 and, if over 5, will drop it down to that value. This means extra caution should be taken during boss encounters, as a 25x multiplier can go crashing back down to 5x should the player get reckless and take a hit. For this reason, and this is merely opinion, I don't think picking up F-bombs in Advanced mode should be stigmatized. It's obviously preferable to yo-yo between 26x and 25x, if you think you're in danger, instead of taking a hit due to your pride and receiving a 5x multiplier as a reward.
* There is no time bonus in Advanced mode, which means speed killing isn't prioritized. There are two ways you can abuse this: waiting for item carriers to give you powerups/F-bombs at a safer time or waiting for a more lucrative bullet cancel. I've provided a list below for when you might want to stall a bit for bullet cancels.
* Yellow Flashes appear only during the stage, while blue Flashes only appear when the power meter is maxed. The pods that drop items do so in a pattern: the first two drop power-ups/blue Flashes, and every third will drop a gold Flash.
* Wonder witches cancel bullets into purple gems, just like yellow F-bombs - however they do NOT power you down like yellow F-bombs. Good luck finding any decent opportunities to cancel with witches, though.

==== Time Attack ====

In Time Attack mode, there is no score, only the total time used for the game session. Dying removes five seconds from the clock, but there are items that add to the available time. The clock will also stop if you eliminate waves quickly enough.

== Strategy ==
<div style='text-align: center;'>
''See [[(Template Page)/Strategy]] for '''stage maps''', '''enemy and boss descriptions''', '''walkthroughs''', and '''advanced play strategies'''.''
</div>
----

This section details some particular strategic information about the game and its gameplay, such as hidden 1UPs and some basic scoring tricks. For anything particularly deep or highly complex, you can probably leave it in the Strategy page.

''(Currently evaluating whether or not this specific section should even include information outside of the separated Strategy pages. Worth thinking about as a community.)''

== Version Differences ==
* Include information here about differences in a game between various versions. This includes regional differences, patch updates/bugfixes, and the like.
----

== Trivia ==

* While the sparks when grinding bullets look like they indicate a bullet-grinding mechanic, it is just there for visual flair.

== Gallery ==

=== Official Digital Game Manual ===

''[[Eschatos]]'' Game Manual made by [[Qute]] Corporation in digital format, bundled with the purchase of the game vía Steam (PC), Nintendo eShop or PSN.

Contains a brief explanation of the Controls and the Game System.

<gallery>
Eschatos manual 1.png|Manual cover art
Eschatos manual 2.png|Controls
Eschatos manual 3.png|Game System Explanation - Original Mode
Eschatos_manual_EN_4.png|Game System Explanation - ADVANCED Mode
Eschatos manual 5.png|Game System Explanation - Time Attack Mode
Eschatos manual 6.png|Credits Section
</gallery>

== Other ==

We have support for wikitables, giving us the potential to add lots of cool info in a small box on the page somewhere, but we are not using them at the moment. I'm just leaving this here so we can have it handy in case we decide to actually use them. Feel free to not use this section.

{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;"
|-
! [[(Template Page)]]
|-
| put your stuff here
|}

== References & Contributors ==
<small>
<references />
* [https://store.steampowered.com/app/378770/ESCHATOS/ ESCHATOS Steam page]
<small>

* This template page was assembled by [[User:CHA-STG|CHA-STG]] and [[User:Plasmo|Plasmo]].

* Information about the Option Level unlocks provided by Emuser: https://shmups.system11.org/viewtopic.php?t=69338</small>

[[Category:Vertical_orientation]]
[[Category:Tate support (PC)]]