Xbox Live Arcade Ikaruga - confirmed, pictured, played, going to be AMAZING

January 9th, 2008, 15:52 Posted By: JKKDARK

via Xboxer

Microsoft sent out a few shots of Xbox Live Arcade Ikaruga today, the long-rumoured conversion of the must-have Dreamcast/Gamecube shooter.

Now, Microsoft also has a test version of Xbox Live, called Partnernet, that's not accessible to the general public. It's where developers upload test things and can play against each other without YOU PEOPLE bothering them. You can only access Partnernet if you have a development debug Xbox 360 - and you are NOT ALLOWED to talk about what appears on it, or Microsoft gets very angry.

BUT! The hardcore scrolling shooter fans over at the SHMUPS forum don't care and just just couldn't help themselves when a seemingly complete version of Ikaruga went up for test download recently. It is, after all, the best 2D shooting game of the last decade. And here it is on Xbox 360:



Happily, maker Treasure HAS totally upgraded it for Xbox Live - you're able to download replays of other players' goes and see exactly how they managed to score so many more points than you. Plus, of course, there are leaderboards - so no more lying about being able to "chain" all of level four on Medium. Proof will be viewable by all.

The only downside is the screen borders - they were big enough on a standard 4:3 TV "back in the day" on Dreamcast - on a widescreen TV you're going to end up with more border than actual usable playing area.

BUT! The option to stick your TV on its side and have the entire game flipped to vertical display mode is present in the Xbox Live Arcade remake as it was on Dreamcast, so if you fancy attempting to put your 42" Samsung LCD on its side you will have, by far, the most incredible shoot 'em up experience imaginable. The game also supports the less-famed 16:10 aspect ratio rather than the traditional 16:9, for those of you with odd-shaped pixels.

More screens of XBLA Ikaruga can be seen over at Gamersyde. Hopefully it'll be out very soon, seeing as it's clearly finished and ready to go.

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