Grendel Games has announced that their retro-arcade themed title Diatomic will be released on WiiWare in North America next Monday (Dec. 14). The game combines gorgeous Geometry Wars-esque vector-style graphics with a unique take on the shoot-em-up – rather than shooting, the player must whip around a long tail which serves as shield as well as weapon. The use of a melee weapon rather than a ranged one should make for some interesting graphics, as should Grendel Games’ notion that one can “play either offensive or defensive and score accordingly,” a refreshing change of pace from the typical kills=points mentality. If the tail-em-up genre sounds appealing to you, hit up the gallery of screenshots after the break, and then sit back and wait - Diatomic can be yours for 800 points come Monday.

Diatomic

“Diatomic” release date confirmed for US!

“Diatomic”, Grendel Games’ original take on retro arcade action games will be available through the WiiWare service in the US from the 14th of December in 2009. A European release will be announced soon.

About Diatomic

“Diatomic” is a hectic arcade action title that focuses on making choices between defensive or offensive play. The player controls a diatomic protagonist equipped with a deadly tail that can be used as a whip or curled around its body as a shield. Defend your petri dish and destroy the invading diatoms. Collect the mystic “spinergy” power ups and engage in the all-devastating spinball move to obliterate your enemies. Stack bonus after bonus, hold the multipliers and become top-dog at the leader boards.

Features

- Hectic retro arcade action previously unseen on Nintendo Wii.
- Physical game play: use your whip tail to destroy multitudes of enemies!
- Play either offensive or defensive and score accordingly.
- Campaign mode features over 75 challenging levels.
- Engage in Spinball mode to obliterate the enemies intricate patterns
- Play co-operatively.

For more information you can check out Grendel Games and “Diatomic” on the following addresses:

http://www.grendel-games.com/diatomic

http://www.twitter.com/grendelgames

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

Related Posts

• PAL gets a handful of VC games this week; no WiiWare
• WiiWare Spoiler: Hudson confirms two WiiWare games for Europe
• Movin’ and groovin’ on WiiWare this week

What happens when I read the words “Galaga-Inspired” and “Free Demo” in a press release? I start downloading ActionSoft’s Insectoid as quickly as I can, punch my modem when it flakes out on me, and end up running through the entire demo instead of doing any work. The game truly is reminiscent of Galaga, with enemies typically entering the screen in formation before settling in, Space Invaders style. The demo gives seven full levels (including a boss fight), and 30 second previews of a handful of other levels. The levels are quite varied, either introducing new enemies (such as a centipede reminiscent of, well, Centipede) or new formation/attack strategies. Players have four ships to choose from, each with different speed, shooting speed, and special ability. The basic gun doesn’t rapid-fire, rather it charges up before releasing a burst of fire – this behavior changes with powerups which are plentiful if not all that exciting. The graphics are decent, with some aspects looking much nicer than others. All in all, the demo of Insectoid is certainly worth a download, and depending on how much you love a good Galaga-esque shooter, it’s likely worth shelling out $20 for the full deal as well.

Insectoid

ActionSoft Releases Insectoid, Its New Galaga-Inspired Space Shooter

ActionSoft has released Insectoid, its new high-intensity space shooter for Windows and MacOS. In development for over two years, this game is now available as a free-to-try download.

http://www.actionsoft.com/games/insectoid/

Insectoid is sure to appeal to anyone who grew up playing classic arcade shooters such as Galaga in the 80′s. Insectoid features fast-paced, adrenaline-inducing gameplay, over 50 unique levels, four custom ships, gorgeous high-res graphics, and a professional musical score. Three finely tuned difficulty levels ensure anyone, from novice gamer to expert, can enjoy the game.

Collect power-ups and use special weapons, including split ship, laser beam, fireball, and shield, as you fight back swarms of angry insects. Advance behind enemy lines and try to catch the enemy off-guard as you aide human forces in galactic war.

Requirements
- MacOS X 10.4 or newer OR Windows 7, XP or Vista
[Univeral Binary runs on both Intel and PPC based Macs]
- 1.2 GHz processor or faster (1.8 GHz recommended)
- 160 MB free RAM

Insectoid is free to try, and costs $19.95 to purchase.

http://www.actionsoft.com/games/insectoid/

Related Posts

• 
  SEGA’s space shooter Vanquish gets a demo on August 31
• World at War to be “the best shooter on the Wii”
• 
  Kinect-exclusive Sonic Free Riders gets Xbox LIVE demo

The classic 80s shmup known as R-Type is making its way onto the iPhone and iPod Touch, thanks to a collaborative effort between Irem Software Engineering Inc. (the original creators of R-Type), and developer/publisher DotEmu. Details are scant so far, with no screenshots or videos, no reveal as to how true-to-original the graphics and sound will be, and only a vague release window (“the following months”). DotEmu’s other ports, such as their iPhone port of Krypton Egg have been rather faithful to their classic counterparts, leading me to believe that this will essentially be the R-Type we all know and love. I’m always happy to see new ports and rereleases of games that I love – assuming they can offer solid touch controls for a game best played on an arcade cabinet.

R-Type iPhone

Paris, France – Tuesday, November 10, 2009.

DotEmu, developer and publisher dedicated to 80’s/90’s games porting over new platforms, is proud to announce the acquisition of the exploitation rights of R-Type™ for iPhone and iPod Touch. The famous 90’s Shoot ‘Em Up will hit the Apple’s AppStore in the following months. No picture and video are available yet but additional information will come on http://dotemu.com/r-type/

“We are very pleased to work on R-Type™ and to start our collaboration with Irem Software Engineering Inc. Our main goal is to make the best touch version possible of this great game to seduce both fans and new players. This is really a great game and we are eager to release it!” said Xavier Liard, CEO of DotEmu.

R-Type ™, the most popular shot ‘ em up of the 90s, allowed his original owner, Irem Software Engineering Inc, to definitely enter the legend of video games. The game provided numerous graphic and gameplay innovations, such as the charge shot feature, but also giant bosses at the end of every level. R-Type™ has been ported on numerous platforms, ranging from PC to 8-bit and 16-bit home computers and consoles.

Keep you updated about R-Type™ on http://dotemu.com/r-type/

Related Posts

• Tilt to Live released for iPhone/iPod Touch
• 
  Tilt to Live (iPhone/iPod Touch) – Review
• 
  Add retro style with NES iPhone/iPod sleeve

Enjoy Gaming has launched the DSi title, System Flaw, calling it the “first augmented reality game to be released.” That claim immediately raises my eyebrows – while ‘augmented reality’ may be an imprecise buzzword that gets thrown around a lot these days, I’d say that Treasure World already meets my personal criteria moreso than System Flaw appears to, simply by nature of its level of immersion. That is to say, just by watching Enjoy’s unembeddable trailer, the game looks rather fun. Fun, but not explorative. Fun, but not especially reactive to your surrounding environment. It doesn’t appear to give any incentive to get up and discover you world, the incentive seems to be merely in rotating and pointing.

Still, the game looks at least somewhat enjoyable. It’s essentially a shmup where you shoot oncoming alien invaders by moving the DSi around to target them. A live view of your surroundings is presented, as well as a radar to show where the pesky critters are hiding. System Flaw is available now for $30.

System Flaw

3rd November 2009

FIRST AUGMENTED REALITY GAME ‘SYSTEM FLAW’ LAUNCHED

System Flaw is the first augmented reality game to be released. Exclusive to the Nintendo DSi, System Flaw – an innovative 3D action shooter from new publisher Enjoy Gaming – makes full use of the DSi camera as an integral part of the gameplay.

The mission is to hunt down alien invaders – the Flaw – who are only visible through the DSi, and the radar tracker screen gets the player gyrating and spinning from room to room or running outside in pursuit! Developed by Visual Impact, System Flaw features 100 levels of enemies which seem to appear right out of the real-time environment of the gamer. The game has also generated great interest before its launch being awarded the “Best Innovation” nomination by Agence Française pour le Jeu Vidéo.

With its US launch this week and UK and Europe scheduled for February 2010, System Flaw is the first game to come from new family-oriented publisher Enjoy Gaming. “It’s a unique take on portable excitement,” says Paul Tresise, managing director of Enjoy Gaming. “With 360 degrees of optical flow, and motion technology not yet utilised in handheld gaming, System Flaw is a revolutionary gaming experience and a great first product for Enjoy Gaming.”

For more information, go to www.systemflaw.com.

Related Posts

• Sega Master System coming to the Virtual Console
• Archaic Sealed Heat battle system
• 
  Deus Ex: Human Revolution’s Augmented Edition, preorders revealed