Kotaku
For the uninitiated, Treasure's Ikaruga is a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up originally released for arcades, with ports for the Dreamcast and GameCube released in 2002 and 2003 respectively. It uses a simple mechanic of polarity—your ship, the Ikaruga, can switch between black and white states; there are no traditional shooter power ups, black and white beams are your only weapon. It's a system that belies its complexity. When white, the ship can absorb all white-colored incoming enemy fire. When black, the ship can absorb all black-colored incoming enemy fire. However, when firing on ships of the opposite color, the Ikaruga does double the damage. Oh, but there's more to it than that, a layer of depth that makes Ikaruga one part shooter, one part puzzler, with a dash of rhythm and strategy tossed in. How does the Xbox Live Arcade port hold up, with Ikaruga now seven years old?
Warning. The big list of love and hate is approaching at full throttle. No refuge.
Loved
Still Gorgeous Graphics - Ikaruga has the best visual design of any shooter ever. The limited color palette, in black, red, white and blue, is painted perfectly on earthy backdrops. Playing the game in high definition alone is worth the 800 Microsoft Points, even if you have the Dreamcast and GameCube ports
Soundtrack - Shooting game soundtracks are required by shmup law to feature dramatic, blood pumping anthems and Ikaruga does not disappoint. Its boss battle fanfare is classic stuff.
Punishing Difficulty - There's a certain joy to be had in beating your previous shooting performance until, ultimately, you can conquer the barrage of beams and bullets and clear the game's five chapters. After each failed attempt, you may find yourself giving it another go. And another. And another. It's hard, damn hard, but in a very satisfying way.
Options For Everyone - TATE mode lets those with rotating monitors play Ikaruga in its original, portrait aspect ratio. Replays let players save their best runs to the hard drive. Multiple difficulty options let the scrubs enjoy the later levels with continues that accrue with more play time.
Real Replayability, Real Depth - Simply beating the game isn't enough. Ikaruga's real challenge lies in racking up max combo chains—shoot groups of three of the same color consecutively without breaking the sequence—requiring memorization, strategy, twitch controls and genuine skill.
Hated
Online Lag - In a game that demands tight control and pixel accurate perception, a quarter of a second delay in response is unacceptable. System link and local two-player options perform fine, but it's hard to take Xbox Live matches seriously.
Dull achievements - A good portion are only for the hardest of the hardcore, but as a whole they're largely uninspired. Maybe I'm just bitter that I know I'll NEVER get an A on Chapter 4.
Over the past six years, I've logged a few hundred sessions with Ikaruga in its two console incarnations, but playing through it again in high(er) fidelity helped renew my appreciation for it. It also showed how rusty I'd become, requiring nearly a week of playtime to finish all five chapters.
Ikaruga is not for everyone, but it's arguably one of the best values to hit Xbox Live Arcade, considering how much many of us paid for the import Dreamcast version (or the Naomi one!). The appeal may be limited due to its niche genre and unforgiving difficulty, but even if you've never played a Treasure shooter before, you owe it to yourself to see what the fuss is about.
Ikaruga was developed by Treasure and release on April 9. Retails for 800 Microsoft Points ($10 USD). Available on Xbox Live Arcade. Completed single player mode on Normal difficulty and played six Xbox Live two-player games.
Comments
Mr. McWhertor I can see you and I are going to get along just fine. :D
I still gotta get an arcade stick just for this game.
Cant move the way I want to with the analog pad. :x
Ikaruga is the type of game, where I would not try to get the achievements, just beat the game.
@Witzbold: I THOUGHT you were spending time on this over the weekend :)
I'm still a little scared - everyone says it's incredibly difficult and lord knows I'm terrible at twitch-type games.
How'd you like it?
@Iceking5: Ikaruga is the type of game where I would not try to beat the game, but marvel at youtube videos of amazing people.
@Spoony Bard: I used to be terrible too. Ikaruga helped me be good at it. Whether you're good or bad at this, there are also several difficulty levels to choose from (on easy, the enemy ships don't shoot you) as well as credits to pick on the beginning of the game.
I have the gamecube version. I'm golden.
I have the Gamecube version, and I still bought this.
It is just that good.
I downloaded the trial and thought the gameplay was unique, but I'm too much of a wuss to take the kind of self-flagellation necessary to master this game.
@Maldron: BUT ACHIEVEMENTZ!
Love this game, it really brings me back to the days when I was a little boy and would play shooters in the arcades. Definitely not for everybody you have to have a mild interest in the genre to appreciate the complexities and get pass the difficulty level.
This game is ridiculously difficult...however it's also one of the most fun and most enjoyable games to hit the Arcade. Be ready to be frustrated, but the sense of accomplishment after beating a stage is exhilarating and only drives you to play more...regardless of the number of deaths you toll up.
I have a masochistic penchant for agonisingly difficult Japanese schmups.
I only had brief attempts of the 'Cube version, but bought it when it came on Live anyway. I can't get past halfway through chapter 2 though XD
I Loved this game... on the Gamecube. Damn you Treasure box. VC or PSN too plz.
Man, I remember playing this for hours a day only to have my girlfriend call me and hang up because I'd scream "Dot Eater..."
Good times... Good times. The XBLA version looks cool too.
I can pretty reliably beat parts 1 and 2 without dying, but I usually foul up in part 3. Part 4 is just a credit sink...
I think I'll pop my cube disc into my Wii and reminisce...
I remember having the first two chapters memorized for the Gamecube version, and then always having a heck of a time even making it through Chapter 4. Good times.
@Krytha: Hehe yeah.
I also heard the default controls are a bit iffy.
I dunno. People said Omega 5 was going to be hard but i got through that pretty well after a try or two.
but i do love a good schmup so i'll be getting this soon. And i'v never played it before so it'll be even more amazing im sure
wonderful port and its one of the best arcade purchases I've ever made. If you never played it you must buy it because its pretty much the pinnacle of the genre. I've yet to say "damn they need to improve on this part of the game." Every death is your fault and yours alone and almost never because of some issue.
Does it really look that much better than my Dreamcast + VGA cable setup? I mean, sure, it's only $10 and I just got my 360 back from refurb, but dammit I'm cheap!
anyone have 800 extra ms points they can give me?
yah, I own both the Dreamcast import AND the Naomi gd-rom. Still I coughed up 800ms points for this game. This game is the only game I've bought trice, Radiant Silvergun being the only one I've bought twice and since there's no port in sight I guess it will stay at two.
Seriously, 800 ms points? I would have paid 2000 easy.
I screamed with glee the day I beat this game. So many continues....
TATE mode ... lying on the couch :)
Let me just say, if you ever have a chance to play the game with the Dreamcast controller, do so. While the Gamecube (and I'm guessing 360) controls are totally competent, nothing can beat the pixel-perfect control of the DC controller.
I still think Rez has the best visual design of any shooter ever, but Ikuruga is quite awesome. I played it a ton on the Dreamcast ... and, you're right, HD makes a huge different.
@AnEternalEnigma: I also don't have a 360.
gahhhh..this or new halo maps...
Fell in love with this game the first time I played it.
:( Just playing Ikaruga on the GC just reminded me of another GREAT game that had polar attributes: Silhouette Mirage :( When will you come back to me instead of making me scrounge ebay for you?
One of the best games I have ever played. I played for months and got an A on chapter 4. Can't wait to try the XBLA version of it.
Got the GC version, I'm straight. I'd love Radiant Silvergun through...how about that on PSN and Sin and Punishment 2 on Wii?
does this feature the option to turn your widescreen monitor sideways and play it like that? the gamecube version offered this which i though was cool but i didnt have the ability to do at the time.
@Darthearl:
This, definitely.
I did some online co-op with a mate. He complained of slight lag in places, especially key hard moments in each level (though that may have been his stock excuse for messing up). I, however, suffered none of this lag. Weird.
The game itself is epic. I hardly play Shmups besides a few free Mac ones and Aegis Wing last year, but this has really given me a passion for the kind of deep game design you can put forward within such a simplistic concept and genre.
@_Perp: Of course. TATE mode is available just like Michael McWhertor said in the review.
I just don't get it! How do you beat this game?! I'm getting owned in level 4! ARGH!
So i have my 360 hooked up to my 40" HDTV, but decided to run a line to my 20" monitor just so I could play in verticle mode. It is BLOODY amazing. I love how it warns that you might rape your TV if you try it. It just is stunning and fun as hell to play like this.
However, it dosn't help that I suck ass at the game. I can barely make it to the end of the 2nd level before I run out of continues on the "default" (read: hard) mode.
Best feature by far however, is the ability to download ANYONEs replay and see just how much better people are than you.
I tried the Xbox demo version, and I'm honestly TERRIBLE at shoot-em-ups, and of course I died before I even passed the first stage on EASY-MODE. But I must say the music and grpahics were top notch. Too bad I won't flip my 40 inch LCD on TATE mode to take up more use of the screen estate space. I might consider picking it up for 800 points - which will be my first MS Points purchase ever.
@DELICIOUS BUNNY: Best 800 points you'll ever spend!
This game makes me want to take my Ninja Gaiden Black and laugh at it. Laugh at it for thinking it's even remotely difficult.
I loved the GameCube version, I think I should give this a try.
I've been playing Ikaruga since it was released on the Gamecube and I still can't get an A on Chapter 1. And getting past the boss of Chapter 3 without continues? No way. Watching the replays from the top-ranked players on XBLA is humbling.
It's still fun despite my suckitude, though. It's one of the most polished, well-made shmups I've ever played, and it's aged fantastically.
This is a great game. I'll stick with my cube version though.
@Scazza: "Best feature by far however, is the ability to download ANYONEs replay and see just how much better people are than you."
That's the worst feature. I was getting my ass kicked all over the place, so I downloaded one of the top overall scores and watched them go to work, and my already-fervent feelings of utter inadequacy at Ikaruga deepened to unmeasurable depths.
I'm not surprised at all that online isn't all that great. These games require millisecond timing and pixel perfect accuracy. It's a damn shame there aren't many arcade stick around for the 360. Why Hori hasn't made a RAP for it yet is totally beyond me.
@Pinhead: Parakeets 4 u for buying the game.
Just keep practicing and learning the patterns.
@Zeliard: Just tell yourself that they're cheating ... it always makes me feel better ^_^;
Yeah I found it terribly difficult as well, and I have no patience at all for it. I appreciate that it's a fantastic game, but I missed it the first time around and really can't spend the time on it now hehe.
it sucks that this is only on xbla. i would buy this in a heartbeat on the psn :( i have a dreamcast copy but my dreamcast is on the other side of the fucking country right now :(
Played the trial and, honestly, I don't know if I'm enough of a sadist anymore to do this to myself. Its no badge of honor for me anymore and is more of a chore to play games of such EXTREME difficulty.
The best control set up I found was to map the polarity switch to the trigger buttons and have the missile attack as B. This makes more sense to me for some reason.
Overall, love the game and after playing it a couple times, my shmup skills have waned in the past few years.
@Phlycheez: Nah, I'd say the best is to have the fire set to A and the polarity switch to X. That way you just control the fire with your thumb joint and keep the tip on the polarity button. Missile can rally go anywhere.
@jayntampa: Yeah, right up until you see the YouTube videos that show that they actually ARE playing both ships at once and still managing S++.
Honestly I'm pretty bad at shooters, but with persistence Ikaruga was the first I ever actually beat (on easy mind you). I found the fact that it stripped out all the collecty aspects and simplified things down to a easy to understand but deep polarity concept something that really fueled my desire to keep playing. I have the GC version and turned my old CRT TV sideways to play it vertical style, though it made the colors on the screen screwy after a while. Definitely my favorite Treasure game and my favorite shooter.
@DARTH_TIGRIS: Dude, it's not JUST one of the hardest games ever; it's ALSO one of the best. And I'm not even a huge shmup fan.
The 1st level's good and all, but just make a leap of faith and buy it, 'cause it doesn't become "BEST GAME EVAR" until the second level.
I love this game but it is just so damn hard.
I love the fact that replays are under 20kb each. Seeing the top players go through levels is a wake up call to remind me of how mediocre I am at videogames like this. But then again, I haven't spent days upon days trying to master it. This game is bliss.
I love Ikaruga.
I hate the 360 d-pad.
I will say that as difficult as I think Ikaruga is, it's still a very rewarding type of difficulty. And no more how many times I die, and I die a lot, it never stops being fun. And gorgeous. The game tends to make you want to keep playing it no matter how much you die. That's the mark of excellence.
@Vexorg: I'll still live in my fantasy and believe that they are cheating ... no visual evidence will be able to convince me otherwise :P