Pictured right, another screenshot from Wolverine's unreleased platformer.

Ether Vapor updated to version 1.07. [Ether Vapor review]

Chalk reviewed by Inverted Castle.

Fraxy gets a new update. [Fraxy review]

Bernie confirms that his next game will be a platformer with minor dialogue options and inventory. [origamihero.com, Darkside Adventures, A Game with a Kitty, Reactor 09, Cedric and the Revolution review]

Screenshot from Daniel Remar's Iji posted. [Iji preview, past projects by Daniel Remar]

Chaos Code is a new fighting game by FK Digital, the development team responsible for Super Cosplay War Ultra. Play as a cook! [FK Digital web site]

More development notes from the Space Quest 2 remake revealed.

3Punge competition entries available from this page. Certain games require the installation of runtime packages.

Cryptic Sea is hiring.

Doopv is a decent Snake clone by N.I in which the player controls a bird instead of a reptile, but with a similar aim of collecting items while dodging harmful obstacles. Certain items should be avoided whenever possible, as acquiring them could mean adverse effects such as random teleportation or loss of health.

Use the cursor keys to change the bird's direction. When an item is collected, temporary invincibility is granted and the duration indicated by a gauge shown at the top of the screen.

Name: Doopv
Developer: N.I
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 1MB

In Speed Thrasher, you control a car with a skateboarder on tow. Only the left and right arrow keys are used to steer the car. Points are scored by getting the skateboarder to jump off the back of other cars, while grass can be used to time your movements.

Yellow arrows provide more speed. A speed boost is awarded when you crash into a beer truck. The game ends if you manage to escape the police and cross the county line, or get caught by the long arm of the law.

Name: Speed Thrasher
Developer: Joe Lesko
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 2MB

Teaser from Oddbob's latest project.



A montage of screenshots from Return to Sector 9. [Return to Sector 9 preview, Chris Roper interview, soundtracks, The Pyramid, Ambush in Sector 9, Super Blazing Vortex, Orbit Racers, Revenge of the Robot Cats from Mars, Project Microlife review]



Photos of the complete kit for Muchi Muchi Pork, Cave's latest shooter. Right-click here to save the 6mins gameplay video and scoring instructions.

The title track is available for download, though instructions were purposely made ambiguous. [official web site, Arcade Shock]

Perhaps one of the most well-known doujin fighters made using the free 2D Fighter Maker engine, Super Cosplay War Ultra is a collection of popular Japanese manga and anime culture all compiled into a comprehensive versus battle game.

Much like Capcom's Puzzle Fighter, your character changes to an appropriate costume when a move is successfully executed, then switches back quickly afterwards. A complete set of moves list can be downloaded from the web site.

Use the password 'http://www.fkdigital.net' to unzip the file.

Name: Super Cosplay War Ultra
Developer: FK Digital
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 250MB

Axel City is a decent doujin fighting game with easy-to-learn moves, but requires the installation of files for East Asian Languages. [instructions]

Created using the Enterbrain's popular 2D Fighter Maker, this 160MB download features six playable characters - each with their own individual moves and special attacks conveniently displayed before each battle.

Keyboard controls should be configured first before starting a game, since the cursor keys are not mapped to a character's movements by default. Press the F4 function key to play in full screen mode.

Quite likely inspired by Hokuto no Ken.

Name: Axel City
Developer: Atsuki Koitabashi
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 160MB
Download page: click here
Gameplay video: right-click to save (10MB)

Pictured right, a screenshot from Erin Robinson's Nanobots. Due out very soon. [Spooks review]

Nigoro announces Rose and Camellia.

Narcissu Side 2nd is out, the sequel to a fan-favorite freeware visual novel by Stage Nana.

Insani's translation team has begun working on a language patch. [Narcissu download page]

A new NaaC release with dual analog joypad support will be released soon. [NaaC, Tubopac review]

DAISESSEN is working on a new game. [Lethal Application review]

tte-may is a new shooter by N.I, made in the mold of Space Invaders and Robotron but with a mix of the frantic gameplay that Japanese developers are notorious for. Only the Z and cursor keys are needed for this game, but a bit of strategy goes a long way in securing a comfy little spot on the online high score table.

Power is deducted whenever your ship takes a bullet, but can be increased by acquiring hearts. Bonus items only appear when you've destroyed a certain number of enemies in a short time. Bombs in the shape of Arkanoid paddles destroys all enemies on screen when collected.

Your ship freezes when the last enemy on screen is eliminated, and proceeds instantly to the next stage if the Z key is pressed during this period.

Name: tte-may
Developer: N.I
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 2MB

Mountain of Faith is the latest vertical shooter from ZUN, featuring two playable characters and three stages with customary difficult boss fights, the hallmark of Team Shanghai Alice's releases.

Hold the Z key to shoot, or press the X key for a special attack. Use this move sparingly since it destroys one of your options and downgrades your weapon by one level. The pause menu is accessible by pressing the escape key.

When holding the shift key to activate focus mode, items which are close to your character will be collected automatically. All power-ups on screen can also be collected in a dangerous manner by crossing the item get border line, which is displayed at the start of stage one.

The control key can be used to skip cutscenes. When fighting a boss, a position marker shows up on the bottom margin of the screen, indicating where the boss is on the horizontal axis.

d3dx9_31.dll should be placed in the same folder as the unpacked game files.

The full version will be released during Comiket this August. [from the shmups forums]

Name: Mountain of Faith
Developer: ZUN
Category: Shooter
Type: Demo
Size: 150MB

Congratulations to Christopher McC. from California!

A signed copy of Mr. Robot and the limited edition mouse mat is headed your way.

Thanks again to Moonpod for sponsoring the fantastic prize.

You can keep an eye on Moonpod's Mr. Robot page, the forums or subscribe to their newsletter for the latest news on future contests.

XIQ is a game about trapping. Your avatar can fire in four directions, creating lines. If those lines form a box, the triangles in the box are destroyed and you score points.

Move with the arrow keys or joystick. Shoot in all four directions with W, A, S and D keys. Once a bullet is fired, it creates a trailing line. This line forms the edge of a box. Use four lines to create a box, trapping triangles inside.

Any triangle touching a line will freeze in place until that line disappears. Once the line disappears the triangle becomes quite anxious to collide with the player.

The amount of points you get for a box is dependant on the size of the box and the number of triangles inside it. Temporary powerups disappear after five seconds, but effects granted by the permanent ones stay until the end of the game.

Name: XIQ
Developer: Shawn McGrath
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 10MB

Arcanacra is a new vertical shooter by Kei Mesuda, the same developer responsible for brilliant releases such as Nomltest FS, Invisible Vision and Quantized Blaze.

Click on the screen to add credits. Press the Z key to shoot and hold the shift key to target enemies with your ship's homing lasers. The Cho Ren Sha 68K method of acquiring power-ups can also be used here, by staying in the middle of the circle and avoiding all items for a couple of seconds. Unfortunately this move does not reward the player with all collectibles.

Switch between rapid and spread shot by holding either one or both shoot buttons. The boss of each stage can be beaten easily once your ship has a persistent lock on it, especially when the lock weapon has been upgraded.

A larger game window is accessible by clicking on the second link from the bottom of the page. Two stages only.

Name: Arcanacra
Developer: Kei Mesuda
Category: Shooter
Type: Browser
Gameplay video: click here

GameTunnel's May Monthly Round-Up was recently posted.

Here's a summary, presented Famitsu-style:

A combination of Front Line, Gun.Smoke, Space Invaders and Ikari Warriors, Non-Stop Action Hero is a decent action game that is impossible to lose.

Every wave introduces a different weapon to use, and the ten stages included allow plenty of chance for the player to get accustomed to each.

Name: Non-Stop Action Hero
Developer: Joe Lesko
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 5MB

Bugs Attack is a short vertical shooter with four stages and the obligatory boss fights at the end of each. Autofire can be enabled by pressing the shift key. The bug follows your cursor around, hence cursor keys are never actually needed for this game. Use the space key to launch a bomb.

Collect power-ups to upgrade your weapon. Bug Attack is also playable using a browser window. The second choice allows you to access a special boss rush mode.

Name: Bugs Attack
Developer: Fargenius
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 5MB
Direct download link: click here

More screenshots from Mountain of Faith posted. A demo will be released tomorrow, specifically on the 20th of May. The manual is available to view online. [Mountain of Faith preview]

The soundtrack for Haluz is available here. [Haluz review]

Binary Zoo is working on a new game, currently titled Tension.

Dave Gilbert is expected to announce a sequel to The Blackwell Legacy on June 1st. A secret project will also be revealed on the same date.

Kairos is working on a new platformer. [Ikaruga clones article]

Artesneit is currently developing a new RPG.

The teaser page for Lexaloffle's upcoming release, Jasper's Journeys is up.

Crostar is working on a new platformer. [rhacp review]

Warsow updated to version 0.3. [Warsow review]

New screenshots from Vulkaiser posted. [DHC's past projects]

As indicated by the last post in this forum thread, Streets of Rage remake version 5.0 will feature seven new stages. [Streets of Rage Remake review]

Captain Kickass is a new arena shooter by Nobody which mimics gameplay elements from Geometry Wars and several other similar arcade games. Firing is automatic, while the ship follows your cursor around hence cursor keys are never needed.

Rotate your firing direction left or right by using the mouse buttons. Much like Ablation, power-ups can be collected immediately when they appear or be left alone to wander the screen until absolutely needed. Delay power-up effects by holding down the middle mouse button.

Expect a full screen option, cooperative play, and a complete campaign mode to be included in future releases.

Name: Captain Kickass
Developer: Nobody
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 2MB

Space Cabbage is a retro action game by Minion, based on an idea from an old BBC show about computers. Incorporating elements from Space Invaders with vegetables for enemies, this release features nine stages with a final boss battle at the end if the player manages to survive long enough.

Name: Space Cabbage
Developer: MinionSoft
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 1MB