Toaplan Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game developer based in Tokyo responsible for the creation of a wide array of scrolling shooters and other arcade video games. The company was founded in 1979 but its gaming division was established in 1984 by former Orca and Crux employees, who wanted to make games, after both companies declared bankruptcy. Their first shoot 'em up game, Tiger-Heli (1985) on arcades, was a success and helped establish Toaplan as a leading producer of shooting games throughout the 1980s and 1990s that would continue to characterize their output.
Ikaruga is a shoot 'em up developed by Treasure. It is the spiritual sequel to Radiant Silvergun (1998) and was originally released in Japanese arcades in December 2001. The story follows a rebel pilot named Shinra as he battles an enemy nation using a specially designed fighter called the Ikaruga which can flip between two polarities, black and white. This polarity mechanism is the game's key feature and the foundation for its stage and enemy design. All enemies and bullets in the game are either black or white. Bullets which are the same color as the player are absorbed while the others will kill the player. The game features both single-player and cooperative modes.
Batsugun is a 1993 vertically scrolling bullet hell arcade video game originally developed and published by Toaplan in Japan and Europe by Taito, as well as Korea by Unite Trading. The last shoot 'em up created by Toaplan, the title takes place on a distant Earth-like planet where a global takeover operative led by king Renoselva A. Gladebaran VII is set into motion, as players assume the role from one of the six fighter pilots conforming the Skull Hornets squadron taking control of submersible jets in a last-ditch effort to overthrow the invading military force from the planet. Its gameplay mainly consists of shooting mixed with role-playing game-esque elements using a main two-button configuration.
DoDonPachi is a vertically-scrolling bullet hell shoot' em up developed by Cave and published by Atlus in 1997. It was the second game developed by Cave, and the sixth on Cave's first-generation arcade hardware. As with its predecessor DonPachi, the title is both a Japanese term for expressing the sound of gunfire, and a term that relates to bees. The sequel to this game is DoDonPachi II, which was made by a different developer. The original developer later released its own sequel, DoDonPachi DaiOuJou.
Twinkle Star Sprites is a competitive vertically scrolling shooter arcade video game created by ADK and published by SNK in 1996. It was ADK's last production for the Neo Geo. Two players are each in separate, side-by-side, vertically scrolling levels. Combinations of shots and timed power-ups damage the other player. These attacks also serve as counters to the opponent's attack.
Progear is a 2001 horizontally scrolling bullet hell arcade video game developed by CAVE and published by Capcom for the CP System II board. Set in the fictional kingdom of Parts, players assume the role of children controlling a plane equipped with the titular propelling engine to overthrow the Metoruin sages and their new world order. It was the sixth shoot 'em up game from CAVE, their first horizontally oriented shooter, and their eighth video game overall.
Dangun Feveron is a 1998 vertical-scrolling shooter arcade game developed by Cave and published by Nihon System in Japan. Players control a fighter craft and must destroy waves of enemies throughout a series of scrolling stages that increase in difficulty. The game's scoring system is designed to encourage players to destroy as many enemies possible, as points are subtracted based on how many enemies leave the screen. It is known for its elaborate disco-inspired presentation, soundtrack, and sassy voiceovers.
DoDonPachi DaiOuJou is the fourth arcade game in Cave's DonPachi series. The history section of DoDonPachi Resurrection on iPhone calls it DoDonPachi Blissful Death in localisation. CAVE later ported the game to iOS under this localised name.
Espgaluda is a 2003 manic shooter by Cave and published by AMI. It is the spiritual successor to ESP Ra.De. and is followed by Espgaluda II.
Mushihimesama is a manic shooter developed by Cave, originally distributed by AMI in 2004 and later redistributed to arcades in 2011 as the significantly changed "version 1.5". It was ported to the PlayStation 2 in 2005 and iOS in 2011. An Xbox 360 port was released in May 2012. A version for Microsoft Windows was also published by Degica in 2015. In 2021, the game was ported to the Nintendo Switch.
Deathsmiles is a horizontally scrolling shooter arcade video game by Japanese developer Cave, released in late 2007. It has heavy occult and gothic influences. It is the second Cave shooter to be played using a horizontally-oriented monitor. It was the first Cave shooter released in North America on a console, and the first one in Europe. Cave has also released it for iOS. A sequel, Deathsmiles II, was released to Japanese arcades on May 14, 2009. A compilation of both Deathsmiles I and Deathsmiles II was released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch in Japan on December 16, 2021.
Crystal Defenders is a set of two tower defense video games developed and published by Square Enix. The games use the setting of Ivalice and design elements from Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, forming part of the wider Final Fantasy franchise. The games feature a selection of characters sporting Final Fantasy-based character classes, and play out tower defense scenarios against recurring series of monsters. The first game in the series is Crystal Guardians, which was released in three parts for Japanese mobile phones in 2008. It was adapted for iOS later that year as Square Enix's first game for the platform, and renamed Crystal Defenders. Under that name, the game was also released between 2009 and 2011 for Android, Xbox Live Arcade, WiiWare, and PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable via the PlayStation Store. It was re-released with graphical improvements for iOS as Crystal Defenders Plus in 2013. A sequel, Crystal Defenders: Vanguard Storm, was released for iOS in 2009.
Galaga Legions DX is a 2011 twin-stick shooter video game developed and published by Namco Bandai Games for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. It is the sequel to Galaga Legions (2008), and is the fourteenth entry in the Galaxian series. The player controls the AEf-7 "Blowneedle" starship in its efforts to wipe out the Galaga forces before they destroy all of mankind. The objective is to clear each of the game's nine stages in the quickest time possible by destroying waves of enemies. The Blowneedle has a pair of satellites that can be pointed at enemies to shoot them down. New additions have been made to the core gameplay, such as a "slowdown" effect when the player is about to collide with an enemy.
Repulse is a fixed shooter arcade video game developed by Crux and published by Sega on June 1985. In the game, players battle against the invading Aquila nation to defend Earth from world domination. The title is notable for being created by most of the same team that previously worked on several projects at Orca and Crux before both companies declared bankruptcy, after which a group of employees from the two gaming divisions would go on to form Toaplan.
Qute Corporation is a Japanese video game company founded in 1999. Apart from game development, they offer technology consultancy in other areas such as health care or graphic design.
Science Adventure is a multimedia series consisting of interconnected science fiction stories, created mainly by Mages, Nitroplus, and Chiyomaru Studio. The main entries mostly take the form of visual novel video games, but side entries span across several different mediums.
Steins;Gate: My Darling's Embrace is a visual novel video game developed by 5pb., originally released for the Xbox 360 in 2011. It has since been ported to several other platforms, and was released by Spike Chunsoft in English for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Microsoft Windows in 2019. It is part of the Science Adventure series, and a spin-off from the 2009 game Steins;Gate. The game is a romantic comedy set in a different world from the one in the original Steins;Gate, where the player builds romantic relationships with Steins;Gate characters. By making certain choices and interacting with the player character's cell phone, the player can affect the direction of the plot.
Sol Divide is a scrolling shooter released as an arcade video game in 1997. It was developed by Japanese studio Psikyo. Ports were published for the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and later PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Judgement Silversword is a vertical-scrolling shooter video game developed and published for the WonderSwan Color by Qute.
ESP Ra.De. is a 1998 vertical-scrolling bullet hell arcade game originally developed by Cave and co-published by Atlus and Nihon System in Japan. Set in the year 2018, players assume the role from one of the three ESPers to overthrow Lady Garra and her Yaska syndicate from taking over Tokyo.
