måndag 30 december 2019

Xydonia has a big (alpha) update

For those with memories that stretch that far, way back in 2016 the shmup Xydonia was successfully kickstarted and (it seemed) all but abandoned soon after. But the Xydonia team has come up for air every now and again through the years and that happened most recently yesterday.


There is now a downloadable, playable "Alpha 3" of the game available:
The game's mechanics went through many changes since the last build and we'd like you guys to test them directly. We thought that the best way to showcase them would be by splitting this into two different versions.

The first build (ALPHA VER. 3) is a sneak peek at part of the new content (WIP) that was added to Xydonia. The other one (ALPHA FIGHTER SPECIAL VER. 01) is shorter, more gameplay-centered, with a new approach to level design and scoring, while also including some of the upgrades we made to the engine, like tighter controls, aspect ratio switching and precise collision detection. This build represents a more faithful vertical slice of the final game and will act as a blueprint for the upcoming playable content we'll be releasing exclusively for backers starting from the ALPHA FIGHTER tier.

So, considering that we have two builds on our hands, maybe sharing one of them with everyone would be a good way to repay both the trust and patience you've put into our project.
Click HERE to download XYDONIA ALPHA VER. 3!

Maybe Xydonia will see the light of day as a real game some day but with this development pace i'm placing release around 2030 for this one.

Shmups on Switch continues the top countdown

After the 25 through 11 best shmups/STGs available on the Shmup machine here's the top 10, the créme de la créme, of the lot:

What a list and what an abundance we have on the Switch now. The shmup/STG community is stronger than it has been for many years, a trend I hope continues.

Rolling Gunner Over Power new preview trailer

lördag 28 december 2019

NG DEV Teams end of year news: new shmup coming!

Except for a gaggle of updates about releases shipping (Krautbuaster AES 1st Print starts shipping early 2020 (Collector's Editions first) as does MVS 2nd Printing) NG DEV also revealed they are working on a new shmup:
New NEOGEO game:

The next new vertizontal NEOGEO shmup made by our CGI graphics team (Razion/Fast Striker) will be announced for MVS between April and June.

They close out the letter saying that Gunlord X is available worldwide for PlayStation 4 on the Playstation Store/PSN.

Coming soon to Steam and eventually to Switch: Dark Gravity

Set to be released soon on Steam, Dark Gravity will also make an appearance on the Nintendo Switch in 2020:
The pitch:
I expect this to be a switch title later in the year... Shoot, destroy, collect, craft and destroy even more!
"Dark Gravity" is a fast-paced, low poly vertical shoot'em up game that features a non-linear campaign mode with lots of enemies and bosses. Craft new weapons, upgrade your fighter and build an ultimate aerial war machine! After the fifth world war, there was peace in the world.
For over a decade, the Grand Alliance has been leading humanity towards a better tomorrow by stifling all dangers in the bud. For some time, however, there is suspicion of a new threat that cannot be ignored. As a member of SAF forces, your mission is to take over the Shielton base, captured by unknown rebels. No one knows who they are and what they want. What's worse, even IMC forces couldn't drive them away from the base because of their advanced weaponry. Weaponry out of this world. But... are those rebels the main threat? Isn't there anything bigger behind all this? No time for questions! You must stop them at all costs!
Gameplay mechanics are very simple - destroy all enemies and try to avoid every bullet... well, at least those which can be avoided. Your special maneuver allows you to dodge normal projectiles. Even if you get hit, you will only lose one extra weapon! However, watch out for powerful bosses! They can thorn you into pieces with their ultimate unavoidable attacks! The story mode can be completed in a few various ways. Military operations are carried out on several fronts simultaneously. It's up to you which path you will choose. From battles high in the sky, through military bases, underground factories, collapsed mines and abandoned laboratories, to secret Arctic research facilities and the interiors of unknown civilization artifacts - you must go through all of this several times to accomplish all missions. Every difficulty level is different. Improving your skills and fighter will help you out at facing hard and insane mode bosses, as they don't appear at easier levels. Enemies' layouts will change as well as their shooting patterns.

fredag 27 december 2019

Shmups on Switch sums up the best of the shmup/STG genre

What are the best shmups on Nintendo Switch? Well, here's one take:
One thing is for sure; we've been absolutely spoiled with great shmups and i'm eager to see places 1 to 10 in an upcoming video!

onsdag 25 december 2019

fredag 20 december 2019

Bullet Heaven reviews Bangaio N64

Bangaio was a likeable 2D shooter on older systems that seems to have been largely forgotten. This is Bangaio for the Nintendo 64 being reviewed, and while the Nintendo 64 re-ignited my interest in console gaming when it came out it has a serious shmup/stg deficit.
An EverDrive 64 is still, however, very much worth it.

onsdag 18 december 2019

Blast from the (recent) past: The Cave Collection unboxing

Unboxing of the Cave Collection Kan, the second and most recent of the Cave Collections for the Xbox 360. Kan has an extra game included compared to the first edition, Akai Katana, but doesn't include the soundtracks for the games which are in a separate box included with the first collection.
The Cave Collections for Xbox 360 were released in 2013 and 2014 respectively and are quite pricey.

Besides getting the collection you also need a JP Xbox 360 or a modded 360 machine to play some of the games as they are decidedly region locked. Let's hope all these games get re-released on current consoles.

måndag 16 december 2019

The EXA-arcadia hardware is getting Infinos


The EXA-arcadia hardware is available to pre-order. It's a new system meant for arcade systems and is not aimed at the consumer.

Infinos is one of the shmups getting ready to launch on the system. AKA & BLUE Type-R, Super Hydorah AC, Blazing Chrome AC, Rival Megagun XE and Akyrios EXA are other titles in preparation for the system.

Iro Hero comes to PlayStation 4



Iro Hero, already available on Steam and Nintendo Switch is coming to PlayStation 4.
What the blurb says:
Features: Iro Hero is a vertical shoot ’em up with beautiful pixel art graphics inspired by many old-school classics. Staged across 9 action-packed levels, Iro Hero features a unique and fresh approach to the popular color polarity mechanic, with interactive level elements, color zones, reflective surfaces and much more. Encounter 10 different types of enemies with over a hundred different behaviors, and defeat 10 final bosses in the vein of classic arcade games. Unlock special skills throughout the game to help you land a final blow or escape from desperate situations. Features: • A four-color polarity system, emphasizing risk vs reward gameplay where you charge up your powers in matching colors. • Discover an exciting story that takes place across 9 action-packed levels. • Encounter 10 different types of enemies with more than one hundred different behaviors. • Defeat 10 final bosses in the vein of classic arcades. • Unlock special skills, offering many creative and strategic options. • Play four exciting game modes offering varying degrees of difficulty. • Acquire upgrades to increase the firepower and capabilities of your spaceship. • Rise to the top of the online leaderboards.

Jets'N'Guns is heading to Switch

Jets'N'Guns is supposed to be released today for the Nintendo Switch but I can't for the life of me find a link to the eShop for it? You can get the game on Steam already if you can't wait for the Switch release.

torsdag 12 december 2019

Gemini Arms debuts December 19th on Switch

Gemini Arms debutes December 19th on the japanese eShop.



And the Nintendo Switch STG/Shmups wiki is updated too.

Mythical Xbox One STG Natsuki Chronicles gets December 25th release date

Natsuki Chronicles has been teased for Xbox One for a long time with some suspecting this was never actually going to be released. But now developers Qute has announced a December 25th release date for this (so far) Xbox One exclusive shmup and you can pre-order it. Seeing as the Xbox One is dying a quick and painful death when it comes to actual sales in Japan I think this title will jump to one or more of the other consoles in the not too distant future - or face a similar fate.

New trailer:

Jamestown+ for Switch releases today

tisdag 10 december 2019

Pawarumi & Gunlord X, more details

While the announcement trailers yesterday were very welcome to PlayStation 4 owners they were decidedly short on details.

Gunlord X is available on PSN today. Gunlord X will also be available in Asia and Japan for both PS4 and (a first) for Nintendo Switch.


Pawarumi on the other hand comes to PSN and gets a limited (2000 copies) physical edition available as per usual from Play-Asia on December 12th.

It's a great time to be a pilot these days with so many STGs/shmups that just keep on coming!


måndag 9 december 2019

Pawarumi coming to PlayStation4 too!


This is turning out to be a great day for PlayStation 4 shmup gamers, first Gunlord X gets announced and now the neo-aztec bullet-hell shmup Pawarumi gets announced too!

Good times!

Gunlord X coming to PlayStation 4


Yes, soon PlayStation fans can enjoy this awesome run´n´gun.

Bosconian has been ported to the Atari 5200

Namco's 1981 multi-directional scrolling shooter Bosconian has been ported to the Atari 5200 in what is billed as an "ultimate" version:

M2 to port (almost) entire Toaplan library to modern consoles

There's just a lot of good new to spread around lately and this surely must come close to the cream of the crop: the absolute masters of porting old titles to modern hardware, M2, are going to port most of Toaplans library to modern consoles.


The titles are set to start arriving next year. Oh man! Toaplan has made so many great shmups!

torsdag 5 december 2019

Alpharay is a new shmup for Commodore 16/+4

Why target something s mainstream as the Commodore 64 or even the Amiga when you can aim for the decidedly more obscure Commodore 16 and +4 computers.



Well, that's exactly what the makers of Alpharay did and it's available to pre-order now in three different editions (and downloadable from itch.io).

Nintendo Switch Online gets some new interesting titles

Star Fox 2 (SNES) and Journey to Silius (NES) joins the roster of shmup-esque games available via Nintendo Switch Online. Full line-up below:

tisdag 3 december 2019

Blink: Rogues is a new PvP shmup on Steam

Plays like a Shmup, feels like a Deathmatch! Engage in short and intense matches, flip your ship, teleport to the enemy lane, steal their loot or simply frag for points! Own your opponent in PVP/Splitscreen or top the leader boards by mastering the Single Player missions.

50% off right now, launches December 16th. There's also a Facebook page.