Alice Extend is an alright fighting game with only two choices for playable characters and limited number of moves to learn. Most likely a work in progress, Emblem of Red is still the recommended download among all of EXZAM's released works.

Name: Alice Extend
Developer: EXZAM
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 10MB

Arahabaki is a poor vertical shooter by Rust Fairy Garden, featuring mostly pale color for sprites and backgrounds. Enemy designs are largely uninspiring, and from a download of this size one would certainly had expected more content.

Click here for a trial version.

Name: Arahabaki
Developer: Rust Fairy Garden
Category: Shooter
Type: Demo
Size: 20MB

Just one of the guys who made Sierra's Space Quest series, speaking out.

Here's an interesting one: The Many Ends to Roger Wilco.

Warning: Contains scenes of violence, blood and gore.

Ben Jordan Case 1 Deluxe is actually a remake of the first in the series, with several new additions. The file size had increased drastically, thanks to the amount of voice work done for this game. There are quite a few mundane puzzles though it's no fault of the developer, since the source material had to be followed closely.

Nothing spectacular, but will definitely please fans of Grundislav's work.

Name: Ben Jordan Case 1 Deluxe
Developer: Grundislav
Category: Adventure
Type: Freeware
Size: 30MB

Ben Jordan: Paranormal Investigator Case 5 is the latest release from Grundislav Games, featuring our favorite hero in another globe-trotting adventure. All plausibility goes out the window in this episode, in which your character gets to assist police investigation work without any solid credentials besides fame.

Japanese businessmen also seemed particularly free to talk to strangers, and some items are procured using strange methods. Still, the music is great and fans of the series would probably have this in their collection by now.

Name: Ben Jordan: Paranormal Investigator Case 5
Developer: Grundislav
Category: Adventure
Type: Freeware
Size: 30MB

Splat is an addictive game that should not be judged by its screenshots. Your task is to guide Zippy around a maze while trying avoid touching the edge of the screen and other hazardous obstacles.

There are plenty of items to collect around each level for points, useful to earn a respectable placing when your score is finally submitted online.

Name: Splat
Developer: Spooky
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 1MB

The Battle City Remake by AFSoft is an updated version of Namco's arcade classic, in which you drive a tank around shooting enemies in similar vehicles while trying to protect your base marked with the emblem of an eagle.

Featuring music by Maniacs of Noise.

Name: Battle City Remake
Developer: AFSoft
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 5MB

A new puzzler by GameDesign which will definitely please Crossword fans seeking a quick fix. No clues, just fit the alphabets into their appropriate squares to advance.

Name: Crossword
Developer: GameDesign
Category: Puzzle
Type: Flash
Size: 1MB

Flipull Advantage is a rather dated remake of an obscure puzzler by Taito, in which the player has to match blocks to remove them from the screen and meet the quota to advance.

The keyboard control and graphics could use some improvement, but overall it works well enough to please fans of the original. Not one of Acoder's best releases.

Name: Flipull Advantage
Developer: Acoders
Category: Puzzle
Type: Freeware
Size: 5MB

Another early effort by Pixel, Glasses is a short game in which you have to catch a pair of glasses for points. Three attempts are allowed.

Get a score of thirty or above for the bonus Space Invaders game.

Name: Glasses
Developer: Pixel
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 1MB

I had high hopes for Sat-Elite 2, after being impressed with Hyper Wars, Invisible Vision and Alien Invasion but this is an utter disappointment. There's no difficulty setting and shades of green are only used as a gimmick.

Worse still, you need to download two separate zip files to get this working. Avoid.

Name: Sat-Elite 2
Developer: Wartagon
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 1MB

What's new in the showcase section:

DotVille by finefin
(Newgrounds Daily 3rd Place)
Criminal by jaj (Adventure)
Admiral Overalls (Platformer)
Glow by ravuya (Action RPG)
TVMAN by nooly

Previously:
Fluffoidz (Asteroids-style)
Walaber's Trampoline
Xenoblast (Galaga-style shooter)
Jimmy's Lost His Marbles
Alphasix

Work in Progress:
Ultraman Game by Khris
(beat 'em up, Final Fight-style)

Ikachan has been largely ignored by many due to the Japanese text, but finally a proper English version was recently released and made available for download. This translation is much better than the one that has been making it's rounds, with most of the storyline kept intact and understandable.

The game itself is a nice little underwater exploration number that won't take more than an hour or two to solve. Fans of Cave Story certainly wouldn't be disappointed with one of Pixel's earlier work.

A partial walkthrough can be found in this forum thread.

Name: Ikachan
Developer: Pixel
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 1MB

A new web trial version for Akatsuki BK was recently released. [Akatsuki BK review]

Pause the game during a fight to access the moves list.

Spud's Quest walkthrough and world map are now available. [Spud's Quest review]

And here's a nice little article in PDF format about the trouble with detecting multiple key presses.

Pug Fugly is picking up development on Return to Sector 9. [Pug Fugly's past projects: The Pyramid, Super Blazing Vortex, Ambush in Sector 9, Project Microlife, Revenge of the Robot Cat from Mars]

Bunny Must Die is a nice but rather difficult platformer in the style of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night with directional knife-throwing, among other weapons. The inventory slots shown at the bottom of the screen indicates the protagonist's current abilities, acquired by collecting items scattered around the castle.

Instructions are in Japanese, though when the main menu is left alone for about fifteen seconds a handy demonstration will begin to play and provide subtle hints on getting past the first boss encounter. Doesn't quite qualify as a direct replacement for Konami's hallmark series, nonetheless it's another fine addition to Murasame's stable of quality doujin releases.

Click here for the direct download link.

Name: Bunny Must Die
Developer: Murasame
Category: Platform
Type: Demo
Size: 10MB

During the installation of Ys Typing Tutor, a donation button appears even before you've sampled any part of this bland word game. A sign of desperation, perhaps.

There is some variety in the gameplay but it really doesn't stand a chance against Sega's Typing of the Dead.

Name: Ys Typing Tutor
Developer: Falcom
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 3MB

Shikigami No Shiro III is a vertical shooter with great 3D graphics but slightly underwhelming boss encounters, not counting the last one. Plenty of characters to choose from, each with their own unique standard and special shots.

The full package includes a simultaneous two player mode, adjustable difficulty level, voice work for cutscenes, vibration and even tate for players with a monitor capable of such video output. Alfa System had outdone themselves this time to deliver an excellent shmup but with a high retail price and only five stages it is a difficult purchase to recommend.

For the best experience, choose full screen for window size and normal 3 or vertical 3 for screen mode. Scroll all the way down and click on the red button to download the 73MB trial version.

Name: Shikigami No Shiro 3
Developer: Alfa System
Category: Shooter
Type: Demo
Size: 70MB

Reviewed by Maenny (www.runtime-hq.com)

The world of Netstorm is original, its gameplay fast paced and intense and the graphics and animations are excellent. I will play this title for a long time because its strategical depth is huge, despite of being an action game.

The gameplay really is special and interesting. In general you have the same elements as usual, small moving fighting-units, peasants, buildings with upgrades, defensive and offensive structures. And yet... everything feels and behaves differently. The whole world consists of flying island, for a start. For your peasants being able to collect their energy at the magical fountains, you have to build "bridges" to the resource island. To attack an enemy island, you again first have to build bridges. Combat is NOT, like in other RTS a big battlefield with hundreds of units you first trained, but it is a strategical placement of turrets, towers and other stationary weaponry. These offensive buildings you again only can place and the end of a bridge. You win by sacrificing the enemy priest on your altar.

In the "history of Netstorm" it says: "NetStorm: Islands of War was a true underdog of a game. Despite not having any publicity, NetStorm has been strongly supported by its players and fans throughout the years." And so shall it be for a long time, because it would be a great loss, if this treasure of a game would sink into the abyss of oblivion...

Read the entire review at www.runtime-hq.com

Name: Netstorm
Developer: Titanic Entertainment
Category: Strategy
Type: Freeware
Size: 20MB

Shikigami No Shiro III trial version.

Scroll all the way down and click on the red button to download the 73MB trial version.

Unfortunately, the only place to buy it is over at Play-Asia. It's the best vertical scrolling shooter on the PC at the moment but with only five levels I can't recommend a purchase at that price. [Shikigami No Shiro II review and download links]

Takase's Dot Fighters is an impressive work, though there is less to admire in his debut effort. Arm Joe features inconsistent sprite design and unbalanced gameplay issues, among other glaring problems. Certain characters depend on slide moves to win, while others have a special attack that could drain the entire life gauge in mere seconds.

The final boss is impossible to beat, which is understandable since by using Judgment a player can actually complete the game by pressing a single button repeatedly. No timing or directional keys required even.

Name: Arm Joe
Developer: Takase
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 120MB

Undoubtedly one of the best Qix clones on the PC, the only drawback to be found in Gal Pani X is the use of suggestive images as backgrounds. The gameplay involves drawing lines to uncover parts of a picture while trying to avoid collision with enemy projectiles.

A player has to reveal at least eighty percent of the silhouette to complete the main objective. Most bosses have attack patterns which resemble those found in classic scrolling shooters as well. Difficult to recommend due to it's subject matter but as a freeware remake this is definitely one for the collection.

Name: GalPaniX
Developer: D5
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 15MB

[Discuss]

Angel, Destroyer is a decent one level horizontal shooter demo by Team DEVICE with four difficulty settings to choose from and standard issue special weapons. Detailed sprites but very little gameplay to be had from a 45MB trial version.

Name: Angel, Destroyer
Developer: Team DEVICE
Category: Shooter
Type: Demo
Size: 45MB

Shikigami No Shiro is a vertical shooter by Alfa System that features gorgeous 3D backgrounds and the classic gameplay that everyone expects out of a shmup. A lot of effort has gone into making this game and it shows.

Press the return key to pause the game, and alt-Enter to play in full screen mode. The sequel is available for download as well.

Name: Shikigami no Shiro
Developer: Alfa System
Category: Shooter
Type: Demo
Size: 40MB