Think Rez was the only too-good-to-be-true announcement for Xbox Live Arcade at the Microsoft Japan presser? Hah. WRONG. Not only are we getting Rez, we are also getting another Dreamcast favourite. Ikaruga. For real. Same colour-crossing, same perfect shooter, just with shinier new graphics. Please, begin pinching yourselves. We need to make sure this isn't some mysterious, mass hallucination.
Ikaruga Announced For Xbox Live Arcade
12:35 AM on Wed Sep 12 2007
By Luke Plunkett
6,388 views
85 comments








Comments
First REZ then this? Holy shit.
wasnt this already known before, though? maybe unofficially, i guess....either way, still one of the last great shooters, glad to see it ported, and again, i hope this starts a trend of more dreamcast games on XBLA, its a fantastic idea.
@TheIrishNinja:
Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was rated on the ESRB a while ago or something...or someone just mentioned it, or it was shown on the XBLA test server by accident. But this is old news becoming confirmed news, so no complaints here.
...even if I have the original Dreamcast version.
Its nice to see that its finally confirmed after being rumored way back when.
Thank god its gonna live on XBLA!
Please, oh please let it have online co-op play. That's the only thing that would make me buy it again.
@TheIrishNinja: I keep trying to catch you, but you're hopping around too much.
Wish the PSN Store got Ikaruga...
wasn't ikaruga on gamecube???
that's a easy buy fro me XD.
Yeah but it had a limited release. Or just one print I think.
Holy piss. First the REZ news and then this?
I think I'm going to die tomorrow. No day that has this much awesome news without something extremely bad happening.
Getting my point card tomorrow.
@ashtar: Yeah, but it's pretty hard to find, from what I've seen/heard.
Man, I want this pretty bad. Sony better have some damned good news at TGS to make up for this and Rez. Like the release of, I dunno, just off the top of my head, THE RAIDEN PROJECT! I fucking loved that game on PS
@ChickenOfTheSea: yeah, my bad, keep just signing back on when i get tired of xenosaga 3, and im so close to the end its sad.
since im planning to get a 360, again, just happy to see DC classics go somehwere. PSN-wise, im up on loco roco, everyday shooter and a few others..not expecting any sega titles personally, but a few more PS1 surprises & such sure would be nice.
Best shooter ever? I think so!
@ashtar: Yeah, it was later. Cube version is easier to find than the DC one.
Never got a chance to try REZ but used to love some Ikaruga action. Now if they could just find a way to make everyone happy with the money and get us an online version of Marvel vs Capcom 2. I'm trying to think what else I need off the Dreamcast to come to XBLA.
Once again my roommate shall gape in awe as I deftly navigate through the first two-and-a-half levels of Ikaruga before meeting my ignominious end. To quote The Brain, YES!
And if they come out with Power Stone 2 and Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 on XBLA I'll finally be able to put my Dreamcast in the closet.
Couldn't care less about Rez but this game looks pretty sweet. Screw Attack rated it number two on their list of the ten best 2D shooters and while I didn't agree with with all their choices they got the number one (UN Squadron) right IMHO so I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt on number two (at least until I can confirm it for myself).
I sure hope PSN gets some Ikaurga. If not now, eventually is fine.
...And I lean further towards purchasing an Xbox 360.
Omg, I paid full price for this game on my GCN. ;_;
This game clocks in at just over 20MB on the DC, so it's a good fit for XBLA. I was about to say Rez would be over, but 150MB would fit it.
Overall some very nice gifts. Happy TGS everyone!
When I bought Ikaruga for GCN I got it for like $15 at the time on amazon. Now it's $55. Haha..
I hope it has online co-op too. Although I didn't really like the co-op that much because you shared lives. So if your friend sucks then the game isn't going to last long.
Nice one. This is great on GCN.
Definitely a game you'd want to be stranded on a desert island with.
Woo hoo! I already have it for Dreamcast but it's good to just see it get some attention again. It's a good warmup for whatever Treasure has planned for the 360.
I would really like to have Ecco: DotF on Xbla, if only because a HD 60fps version of the game would be the perfect excuse for me to beat it a 10th time.
Is the GCN version of Ikaruga in 720p or 1080p?
no Trigger Heart Exelica love?
it's also announced...
This kind of makes me feel like somewhere inside the xbox is a little bit of the soul of the dreamcast. I don't know, maybe they share a chromosome, an atom, or something. Ahh now I remember. The dreamcast had some sort of windows OS. It all makes sense now.
The guys over at ScrewAttack just released their list of best 2D shooters. When they got to Ikaruga, they mentioned it might be on XBLA. And now it is. How cool is that?
Their first inclination wasn't co-op though. More like... leaderboards. For Ikaruga.
Hot.
I own the game for Gamecube and don't even have a 360 and I'm excited about it.
Aw, men, finally I'll have to buy a X-Box-Three-Sixty someday. Two of my favourite DC games ever coming out into this system again... Two games that I can not play since I decided, don't know why, to sell my DC and small collection of games.
If it wasn't for the beautiful and deadly red dawn of the three suns...
Sooooold
Oh dear god yes. I can't even get through the first stage, but damn is it fun trying.
Theres been talk about this for a while, glad its finally come to fruition. I've held off on buying it for the Gamecube ever since I read it was coming to Xbox Live (according to the comments, hard to find?). That was back in March, April. Extras better be worth it.
Still have my copy for the Cube, so I won't be buying it, but it's great that a wider audience will finally have a chance to play it.
like we said here, "CHAMPAGNE!!!"
pity the awful digital pad on the xbox controller is going to make this harder than it already was huh?
It was very playable with the GC analog stick. I'm still hoping for somebody to come up with a widescreen mount that can rotate 90 degrees.
The Dell comes close except it only rotates clockwise while the GC could only be set in the anti clockwise mode.
I should go buy an arcade stick for my 360. Fucking puzzle fighter is a pain in the ass to play with the analog stick, and lets not even get into the shit D-pad.
need new pant :p
@Witzbold:
Protip: get/make a custom build controller, the Hori one has a rather strange button setup, B X Y ; A LT RT, when the more logical setup would be X Y B ; A LT RT. And from what I've read, it's so difficult to mod that one would be better off making a new case.
That said, you live in japan, and I don't think they even sell the Hori stick there...
Relevent links: [forums.shoryuken.com] and [forums.shoryuken.com]
Registration required, probably.
@Witzbold: Streets of Rage 2 plays surprisingly well with the D-Pad. Mmmmmmh, Streets of Rage 2...
@ESE_INCOHERENT
I feel the same way about the xbox having a bit of the soul of the old dreamcast, especially the old original XBox. Games like Jet Set Radio Future, Panzer Dragoon Orta...
Man gotta plug in that old XBOX
Holy crap, I have to buy a freaking Xbox360 so I can play Ikaruga.
I'm not even joking, either.
Damn it.
wh 15$ GC ver LOL, Lame, Bought my DC ver for over 150$ for over 4 years ago.
Xbox wins the console war, period! :-P
Rez AND Ikaruga, my god... both these games were awesome. I don't remember how many times I've beaten Ikaruga. Let's just hope we get them here in the states right away.
I just play it on my Gamecube
awesome game...been waiting for the official announcement...
I missed out on playing this game on the Dreamcast and I keep hearing so much good stuff about it that this is definitely a must-have for me when it drops.
I have only bought two Arcade games since launch. I will be buying Rez and Ikaruga.
XBLArcade scooped this months ago...
I have this on GC and it's an awesome game. I may have to buy this again, we'll see.
Man XBLA is going to kill the value of these older rare games. Oh well not a problem for me.
I've been waiting for this ever since the rumors of it ran a few months back. Glad I didn't rush out and buy a GameCube just for this game...
Just more proof that the Dreamcast was the greatest game console of the modern era... everyone wants a piece of those games that were created for it ;)
Now all we need is Shenmue III, Skies of Arcadia II and Space Channel 5 pt 3 (amongst others) and we'll be set.
This is all great and everything, except my roommate has the Gamecube version with freeplay unlocked (difficult to get, trust me), and I was under the impression (I heard it on Kotaku, folks) that the spiritual successor to Ikaruga was coming to Live Arcade, not the actual game. Of course, this could just be wetting our appetites. Let's hope.
Can't wait till they announce Powerstone for xbla ;)
Rez is a huge announcement but this was announced back in like March after people started seeing references to it show up on PartnerNet. Still cool to see confirmation as it hasn't been mentioned since.
yea cool!
Say... does the "Plasma" flow out of the display if I put it on the side??!? ;]
Now all they need to do is announce a 360 HD port of Radiant Silvergun and the 360 will be the best console ever.
Too much awesome for one day. Ninja Gaiden 2 offical, Rez and Ikaruga XBLA bound. I can't take anymore.
@ese_incoherent:
Agreed. I've kinda felt the connection myself. 360 is the spiritual successor to the Dreamcast. Now get Power Stone 2 and Marvel v. Capcom 2 on XBLA already!
Or you could all go out and buy Dreamcasts... where Rez AND Ikaruga first spawned.
If only people had this kind of interest in Dreamcast games first time around... we might be playing on the DC 360!
Ikaruga on XBLA makes me a happy panda.
Urgh... I guess this means I'm gonna have to get a 360...
@Flazh:
i did that long ago =P(in 2000) im totally rebuying this too XD