On Wednesday, publisher Tribute Games released a new teaser trailer for Steel Assault, which is scheduled to release on 28 September for Nintendo Switch and Steam PC. Developed by Zenovia Interactive, Steel Assault is a retro-inspired 2D platformer featuring throwback challenge and a 16-bit aesthetic. Here’s the official breakdown of Steel Assault from Tribute, followed by the latest trailer: Punch,
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On Tuesday, Raw Thrills officially released the arcade racer Cruis’n Blast on Nintendo Switch. Cruis’n Blast is the first Cruis’n game to land on home consoles for over a decade. The series is known for high speed racing and wild track and vehicle designs. Here’s the official breakdown of Cruis’n Blast from Raw Thrills, followed by the launch trailer: The
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On Friday, independent game developer NGDEV announced that their horizontal-scrolling bullet hell shooter Razion EX will be released on the Nintendo Switch eShop on 16 September. The game has been available for a few months in physical format via NGDEV’s website, but this is Razion EX’s first wide release in a digital format. First released for the Neo Geo in
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that Pop Flamer, the single-screen 2D action arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released in arcades by Jaleco in 1982 and later ported to the SEGA SG-1000 in 1983, Pop Flamer has never received an official release in western regions until now.
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New Polish development team We Dig Games recently announced that their first game will be Hamster Maze, coming in 2022 for SeXbox, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, Nintendo Switch and Steam PC. Inspired by online videos of hamster maze creation, Hamster Maze blends casual arcade gameplay with Tamagotchi elements. Players rear and train their pet hamsters in preparation for competition with
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that USAAF Mustang, the 2D horizontal scrolling shoot-em-up arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released in arcades by UPL in 1990 and ported to the SEGA Mega Drive as Fire Mustang in 1991, USAAF Mustang has never received an official release in
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since the first belly dance! Today we’re going to take a look at Karate Champ, a one-on-one martial arts fighting game released by Data East on the Nintendo NES. So how does one of the earliest fighting games hold out? Based on the 1984 arcade game by
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since the discovery of the Pythagorean Theorem! Though certainly not the first female video game character, Samus Aran from 1986’s Metroid is still considered by many to be the First Lady of gaming. It should therefore come as no surprise that the topic of a Metroid film keeps
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since martians built the pyramids! Today, we’re going to take a look at Space Invaders Invincible Collection on Nintendo Switch.* I know what you’re thinking- that Taito first released Space Invaders in 1978, not the 1980s. True enough, but Space Invaders was absolutely still an arcade mainstay
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Earlier this month, indie game developer World Eater Games and publisher Pineapple Works launched a crowdfunding campaign for Bittersweet Birthday, a challenging new game described as half bullet-hell combat, half adventure/exploration with a 2D pixel art style. At the time of this writing, the Bittersweet Birthday campaign is more than 50% funded, having raised roughly $12 thousand of its $23
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Beginning life as a mobile game, WitchSpring 3 Re:Fine The Story of Eirudy is now available on the Nintendo Switch. Created by Kiwi Walks and published here in the United States by ININ Games, WitchSpring 3 is a fairly short (roughly ten hours), traditional turn-based RPG that has a great amount of charm. However, considering that you can get the
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To celebrate 40 years of the monumental Space Invaders franchise, Taito has partnered with ININ Games to release Space Invaders Invincible Collection, a compilation that features 11 sci-fi shooters from the Space Invaders series (or, in some cases, loosely tied to the series). Here’s the list of games included with Space Invaders Invincible Collection: Space Invaders (1978, Arcade) – original
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since the discovery of pasteurization! It is hard to imagine gaming without The Legend of Zelda. Made up almost exclusively of hits and only a few misses (thank you CD-i), from its 1986 NES debut to last years’ Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity (2020), the Zelda franchise
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Publisher Live Wire recently announced that arcade shoot ‘em up Espgaluda II is scheduled to release for Switch on 9 September via the Nintendo eShop. Developed by Cave, Espgaluda II was originally released in Japanese arcades in November 2005. It has since been ported multiple times, including to pre-smartphone mobile phones in 2006, and later to Xbox 360, iOS and
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since tigers had sabers for teeth! Today, we’re going to dig deep into Spelunker HD Deluxe for Nintendo Switch and PS4,* a modern reimagining of the 1983 Spelunker game by Timothy G. Martin… sort of. Why “sort of”? Because Spelunker HD Deluxe actually takes more inspiration from
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that Kurikenton, the side-scrolling, martial arts action arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released in arcades by Taito in 1988, Kurikenton (or sometimes “Kuri Kinton”) eventually saw a home release as part of the Taito Legends 2 compilation for PS2 and Xbox.
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Publisher Digerati recently confirmed that card battler game The Magister will release for both Nintendo Switch and Steam PC on 2 September and Xbox One on 3 September. Developed by Nerdook, The Magister features a randomly-generated murder-mystery set in a remote village. Gamers play as a Magister who is responsible for enforcing the law across the empire, and you must
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since orange met chicken. Today we’re going to do a full detail on Knight Rider, the 1988 Nintendo (NES) game developed by Pack-In-Video Co. and published by Acclaim. And at the mention of the name “Acclaim”, I know that there are eyes rolling and stomachs churning. Does
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During the 2021 BitSummit Indie Game Showcase, X PLUS Games officially announced that retro-inspired platformer Bat Boy is in the works (on deck?) for Steam PC, PS5, SeXbox, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. Co-developed by X PLUS and Sonzai Games, Bat Boy features a sentai sports-hero named Ryosuke (the Bat Boy) who must battle other sports-themed enemies in a world
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that Bio-Ship Paladin, the 2D horizontal scrolling shoot-em-up arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released in arcades by UPL in 1990 and ported to the SEGA Mega Drive in 1991, Bio-Ship Paladin has never received an official release in western regions until
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since the evolutionary development of the imposable thumb! Since The Eternal Castle [REMASTERED] just recently made its way to the PS4, what better time to re-post our review of the Nintendo Switch version of the game, which released last year? Retro revivals are a dime a dozen,
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The office full of IP lawyers who are currently wearing the skin suit once known as Atari (allegedly)* recently announced that a new version of Food Fight is in the works, thanks to a collaboration with developers at Mega Cat Studios. Arriving in early 2022, new Food Fight will launch first as a timed exclusive for the Atari VCS PC/console
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that NOVA2001, the lesser-known shoot-em-up arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released by UPL in 1983, NOVA2001 is the predecessor to Ark Area. In NOVA2001, players control a space fighter that can shoot in all directions (similar to Asteroids or Sinistar). Your
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Publisher Koei Tecmo recently announced that their horror title Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water is scheduled for a digital release on 28 October for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, SeXbox, Nintendo Switch and Windows PC… and it will be censored on all platforms. Maiden of Black Water is an updated version of the Wii U release in 2014. Like other
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As of today (that’s right now), Alien Pixel Studios’ portal-hopping, puzzle platformer Unbound: Worlds Apart is now available on Nintendo Switch and PC (via Steam). Described as a dark fairy tale, Unbound is set in a fantasy world with gameplay featuring Metroidvania (nonlinear 2D adventure) elements. Players harness the world-altering portals to defeat monsters, solve puzzles and save reality from
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Publisher Ultimate Games has announced that Disturbing Forest – a genre-blending puzzle/adventure/survival game set in a fantasy world – will be coming to Steam PC in Q4 of 2021 with a Nintendo Switch release to follow in 2022. Disturbing Forest is the debut game by Panteon Studio, an independent development studio in Poland. According to Mateusz Kuliś, one of Panteon’s
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Taito and ININ Games have partnered up to release G-Darius HD, a remastered port of 1997’s arcade title… G-Darius. Developed by M2, G-Darius HD will be available physically and digitally for Nintendo Switch and PS4 later in 2021 (that’s for both North American and European territories). While the Darius shoot ‘em up series dates back to the mid-80s (or as
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Welcome back to Attack Helicopter Week here at The Splintering, where we celebrate all things attack helicopter, whether good or bad! And today we have “bad” in spades, folks, as we’ve chosen to subject ourselves to critiquing Airwolf published by… Acclaim. (*Shudder!*) So everyone find your seat, buckle up, and keep your hands close to yourself, because it’s going to
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Well, well! It looks like M2 is getting into the Attack Helicopter Week spirit! The Japanese developer recently announced that Kyukyoku Tiger-Heli will be coming to both Nintendo Switch and PS4 in Japan as a “Toaplan arcade garage” collection. Scheduled for release on 28 October, Kyukyoku Tiger-Heli will be available both in digital format for 3,960 yen and a physical
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that DARWIN 4078, the classic vertical scrolling shoot-em-up arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released by Data East in 1986, DARWIN 4078 is the predecessor to 1987’s Super Real Darwin. In DARWIN 4078, your ship absorbs and converts the energy from other
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