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Thanks to TotalVideoGames for its article discussing the announcement of the Treasure-developed GBA title, Advanced Guardian Heroes, a "sequel to the much-loved [cult Sega Saturn] title" According to the story, "up to two players [can] link up and take on the Story mode, whilst four players can link up to see who is the best in the VS mode", and there are also screenshots of the game and an official Japanese-language homepage available, and the portable side-scrolling beat-em-up from the uber-cult developers, also makers of Ikaruga, Gunstar Heroes and Radiant Silvergun, is "scheduled for release in Japan" for Game Boy Advance on September 16th, with no Western release date yet announced.

Thanks to TotalVideoGames for its article discussing the announcement of the Treasure-developed GBA title, Advanced Guardian Heroes, a "sequel to the much-loved [cult Sega Saturn] title" According to the story, "up to two players [can] link up and take on the Story mode, whilst four players can link up to see who is the best in the VS mode", and there are also screenshots of the game and an official Japanese-language homepage available, and the portable side-scrolling beat-em-up from the uber-cult developers, also makers of Ikaruga, Gunstar Heroes and Radiant Silvergun, is "scheduled for release in Japan" for Game Boy Advance on September 16th, with no Western release date yet announced.

Thanks to Gamers.com for their article discussing a brief survey of the 2D shoot-em-up (shmup) market. The article summarizes: "Shooters seem to have a very basic appeal, rewarding as they usually do indiscriminate destruction. They're also a pure example of the most basic of videogame challenges - simple, instantaneous, twitchy response... there are still a few gamers who seek classic shooting action, and a few companies willing to support them." It goes on to reference classic Japanese shmup companies such as Irem, Treasure, and Cave, and provide information on their former and current projects.

US conversions of Japanese games can either be beautifully done or amateurishly botched. And the 2D shoot-'em-up (aka shmup) genre has seen both over the past few weeks. First, there's been Atari's conversion of Treasure's vertical 2D shmup for Gamecube, Ikaruga, which has been generally hailed as 'a great thing', with the preservation of turn-to-vertical mode (play with your TV on its side to exactly replicate the arcade version!) and even an online score ranking system. On the other hand, the budget US release of vertical shooter Mobile Light Force 2 (actually Shikigami) from XS Games has prompted howls of derision from the hardcore fans, with a bizarre Charlie's Angels-aping cover that has nothing to do with the game, and vertical mode and cut-scenes removed. But then, the game is still fundamentally intact - so how much should these import changes matter if you can snag the game cheap? Opinions, as always, welcome.

US conversions of Japanese games can either be beautifully done or amateurishly botched. And the 2D shoot-'em-up (aka shmup) genre has seen both over the past few weeks. First, there's been Atari's conversion of Treasure's vertical 2D shmup for Gamecube, Ikaruga, which has been generally hailed as 'a great thing', with the preservation of turn-to-vertical mode (play with your TV on its side to exactly replicate the arcade version!) and even an online score ranking system. On the other hand, the budget US release of vertical shooter Mobile Light Force 2 (actually Shikigami) from XS Games has prompted howls of derision from the hardcore fans, with a bizarre Charlie's Angels-aping cover that has nothing to do with the game, and vertical mode and cut-scenes removed. But then, the game is still fundamentally intact - so how much should these import changes matter if you can snag the game cheap? Opinions, as always, welcome.