As far as video game music is concerned, when the service first started, we either had to limit the number of the tracks or use built-in synth to play each tune in order to accommodate the capacity restrictions. I think that most of these technical problems can be solved now because of recent improvements in the technology. I think that it would be truly interesting if games come about using the powerful sound capabilities of the Xbox 360 while incorporating a system that manipulates sound in real-time so that the music interacts on a deep level with the gameplay.

What's the plan, gang? Got any good gaming planned for the weekend? To the comments, if so!

As I said, it is one of the prettiest games on XBLA, and the visuals alone are worth the $10 worth of points I dropped for it. Playing through as Ruby, one of the two initially available characters, I was really impressed by the variety of enemies, the colorful effects, and the sheer amount of things flying across my screen at the same time. Then I played as Tempest and my jaw completely dropped.

Tempest's weapons are simply breathtaking. Flowing globules of frost and fire issue forth from his weapon, flowing like slime over enemies, splashing against them with impressive physics for a shmup. It really is a sight that online videos do not do justice.

The gameplay itself is pretty standard. Fight your way through hordes of enemies while collecting various power ups and charging up your super weapon. So far the game is relatively easy, and the initial three continues should last you quite awhile once you get the lay of the land. Once you complete a level in arcade mode you unlock it in the challenge mode as well, allowing you to hone your skills alone or with a friend via co-op to a razor's edge.

My biggest disappointment, as I said earlier, comes from the presentation. There is no storyline for Omega Five. You choose a character and off you go, blasting the living hell out of things without any real overly obvious motivation. There are no difficulty options...just a simple menu allowing you to start a new game, play offline multiplayer, adjust the settings and read up on gameplay.

Omega Five is definitely worth the $10 to shmup fans everywhere. It's a beautiful example of what is possible via Xbox Live Arcade, while at the same time being a sometimes painful reminder of what isn't.

Larry Hryb points out that Omega Five and Tron will be hitting Xbox Live Arcade this Wednesday. Omega Five will be 800 points, while Tron will be 400. Gamerscoreblog also posted up this short phone interview with Hudson which also shows you some Omega Five gameplay.

This week on arcade: Omega Five and Tron [Major Nelson]

Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom (X360)
The Kingdom Under Fire series continues. This time as an RPG.

Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity (WII, PS2)
Sonic is at it again. That little blue ball just keeps on rolling.

Omega Five (X360)
Side scrolling shooter action.

NFL Tour (X360, PS3)
More football from EA Sports.

Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law (WII, PS2, PSP)
Harvey Birdman goes all Phoenix Wright style

Jackass the Game (DS)
Words cannot describe the horror.

World Championship Paintball (PS2)
Paintball, a kinder, gentler way to shoot your friends.

Dance Dance Revolution: Disney Channel (PS2)
Get down and funky with your favorite Disney Channel Stars. If you actually have any.

Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure (DS)
Get cozy with creepy underwater dinosaur things.

Hudson Entertainment Dates Omega Five For Xbox Live Arcade

Sci-Fi Side-Scrolling Shooter Coming January 9 for 800 Microsoft Points

REDWOOD SHORES, CA - January 3, 2008 - Hudson Entertainment, the North American publishing arm of Hudson Soft, today announced that Omega Five for Xbox LIVE Arcade will be available to consumers on January 9, 2008 for 800 Microsoft Points. Published by Hudson and developed by Natsume, the game is an entirely new original IP featuring a side-scrolling shooter set in a gorgeous 3D environment.

Taking place in a far-flung future, Omega Five delivers hardcore action never seen before on the platform, while providing visually stunning graphics that pushes the limits for a digital download game. The game is set in multiple 3D environments and features incredible special effects and enormous battles, all in high definition. Omega Five is distinct in that players can choose from multiple humanoid characters, each with their own unique special attacks and upgradeable weapons, which they can shoot in 360 degrees. Omega Five also includes a local co-op function so a friend can join in on the aerial mayhem.

Hudson also released details on the final playable character. R.A.D. is another of Omega Five's unlockable warriors and is very similar to Ruby. Her skintight suit allows her to move much more quickly than Ruby, letting her weave through waves of enemy fire, though it also slows down her aiming.

. Weapon Type A: Vulcan Laser Cannon - R.A.D.'s initial weapon blasts enemies with rapid-fire laser beams. As the weapon is upgraded, the rate of fire increases, allowing her to unleash a non-stop barrage of laser fire.

. Weapon Type B: Reflecting Laser Beam - R.A.D.'s second weapon is a continuous laser beam that allows her to cut a swath of destruction through lesser enemies. Upgrades increase the power of the beam, splitting it in two, which also reflect off of certain surfaces. This lets R.A.D. attack enemies from around corners.

. Weapon Type C: Lightning Gun - Her final main weapon is a high-intensity lightning gun that roasts enemies. Upgrades increase the power, letting R.A.D. slice through enemies at will, as well as adding secondary lightning bolts that shoot out from the main beam at nearby enemies, doing incremental damage.

. Alternate Attack - R.A.D. has one alternate attack, which sends out satellite that can instantly destroy lesser enemies or anchor onto stronger enemies. After the satellite latches onto an enemy, it deals continuous damage, and R.A.D. is still able to fire in any direction. Additionally, while the satellite is floating around R.A.D., it can block enemy fire.

. Dimension Field - All characters can quickly teleport to another dimension for a brief time, allowing them to avoid enemy attacks, though at the expense of a small amount of life.

. Ultimate Burst - All characters can unleash an enormously destructive nuke-like attack, after having collected at least 100 p-chips (the pink triangles that appear after defeating enemies) to fill one p-jail (the golden triangles at the bottom left of the screen).

January 9th Arcade Release Revealed [360 Monster via Destructoid]

Shadowgrounds Survivor (PC)
Fight against aliens for control of the planet.

Geometry Wars: Galaxies (DS)
Now smaller and with multiplayer!

Boogie (DS)
Dance the night away on your DS.

Omega Five (XBLA)
A new sidescrolling shooter on LIVE.

Cruis'n (WII)
Racing to the Wii.

Cranium Kabookii (WII)
The board game in video game form.

Master of Illusion (DS)
Learn magic tricks. Fun at parties, fool your friends.

Speedball 2 - Tournament (PC)
Future sports hurt.

Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (WII)
The insanely addictive RPG puzzle game continues it's system wide dominance.

Disney Princess: Enchanted Journey (PC)
You know you want it.

Q). Do you have any plans to bring Omega 5 to PlayStation's PSN?

A). Not at present, no.

Q). Any particular reasons why not?

A). The specs of the respective hardware were one reason. We also determined that certain aspects of the development would be easier using the 360. The project was conceived of first for the 360, and we kept it exclusive to keep the development team small.

Q). Natsume has a long history of working with publisher Marvelous Interactive. Why the switch to Hudson this time?

A). For one, Hudson is very well established outside of Japan. They would also be able to help us take the game multi-platform if we ever decide to pursue that.

Hudson Entertainment Reveals New Character & Assets for Omega Five on XBLA

Meet Ruby, Omega Five's lithe heroine

Hudson Entertainment today unveiled details and new screen shots of Ruby, a well-rounded warrior who's both nimble and deadly—if just a bit under-dressed. With a stockpile of awesome weapons and dangerous attacks, Ruby is a formidable foe.

Weapon Type A: Vulcan Laser Cannon -

Ruby's initial weapon blasts enemies with rapid-fire laser beams. As the weapon is upgraded, the rate of fire increases, allowing her to unleash a non-stop barrage of laser fire.

Weapon Type B: Reflecting Laser Beam -

Ruby's second weapon is a continuous laser beam that allows her to cut a swath of destruction through lesser enemies. Upgrades increase the power of the beam, splitting it in two, which also reflect off of certain surfaces. This lets Ruby attack enemies from around corners.

Weapon Type C: Lightning Gun -

Her final main weapon is a high-intensity lightning gun that roasts enemies. Upgrades increase the power, letting Ruby slice through enemies at will, as well as adding secondary lightning bolts that shoot out from the main beam at nearby enemies, doing incremental damage.

Alternate Attack -

Ruby has one alternate attack, which sends out a satellite that can instantly destroy lesser enemies or anchor onto stronger enemies. After the satellite latches onto an enemy, it deals damage and Ruby's weapon auto-aims to that spot, giving her near-perfect accuracy until the enemy dies or the satellite detaches. Additionally, while the satellite is floating around Ruby, it can block enemy fire.

Temporal Dodge -

All characters can quickly teleport to another dimension for a brief time, allowing them to avoid enemy attacks, though at the expense of a small amount of life.

Ultimate Burst -

All characters can unleash an enormously destructive nuke-like attack, after having collected at least 100 p-chips (the pink triangles that appear after defeating enemies) to fill one p-jail (the golden triangles at the bottom left of the screen).

Hudson Entertainment Reveals a New Character in Omega Five for XBLA

The Tempest—A Four-Armed, hulking alien—Wields Volcanic Fire, Corrosive Acid and Molten Metal

The Tempest is a hulking, four-armed alien, with no problem plowing through hordes of enemies in Omega Five, thanks to his thick skin.

· Weapon Type A: Volcanic Fire - The Tempest's initial weapon is a scorching stream of fire. The weapon's alternate attack allows The Tempest to attack enemies around corners, as it locks onto a target while the fire curves to roast enemies.

· Weapon Type B: Corrosive Acid - The Tempest's second weapon is a highly corrosive blast of acid. Like the fire, the main attack comes out in a stream of liquid death, but the acid's alternate attack shoots the acid in a wide angle, allowing The Tempest to destroy enemies in a wide area with limited range.

· Weapon Type C: Molten Metal - The third main weapon for The Tempest is a blast of molten metal. While the other two weapons are streams, the metal comes out in boiling bursts. For this weapon's alternate attack, The Tempest shoots four bursts at once, which home in nearby enemies.

· Reflector Barrier - When an enemy shot gets close to The Tempest, it slows down, and The Tempest is able to reflect it back at enemies (by flicking the right analog stick), using their own fire against them!

· Temporal Dodge - All characters can quickly teleport to another dimension for a brief time, allowing them to avoid enemy attacks, though at the expense of a small amount of life.

Ultimate Burst - All characters can unleash an enormously destructive nuke-like attack, after having collected at least 100 p-chips (the pink triangles that appear after defeating enemies) to fill one p-jail (the golden triangles at the bottom left of the screen).

Unlike Forgotten Worlds, you won't purchase weapon upgrades from shops. However, there is an undeniable series of moments, enemy types and aesthetic decisions that invoke memories of Capcom's futuristic shooter.

Each character—two of which were on hand today, a female humanoid and a male four-armed alien—is equipped with a unique weapon. Hers is a satellite that fires independently and, when the right trigger is depressed, clamps onto whatever enemy you're aiming at. Yes, for massive damage. Shots are upgraded by grabbing one of three power up types that swarms of enemies drop. Similar to the Raiden series, shots can be upgraded up to three times. The female fighter, for example, upgrades her laser shot to the point where it bounces off surfaces.

The male fighter plays quite differently, employing a bizarre hose-hand that squirts one of three liquid shots. He can also deflect enemy fire back at enemies by moving dangerously close to bullets, then reflecting projectiles with a quick flick of the right analog thumbstick.

The controls, by the way, are simple, familiar, and tight. Left analog stick moves your character, right analog stick aims, right trigger modifies your shot—launching the satellite as mentioned earlier for her, changing the flow of the goo for him—and the left trigger launches a screen clearing nuke. Up to three of these are earned by collecting pink triangles dropped by destroyed enemies.

Oh yeah. Omega Five is hard. The team at Natsume certainly weren't catering to casual players with their upcoming shmup, giving it a challenging arcade difficulty and limiting your continues to three credits. As an XBLA game, Omega Five is planned to feature two-player co-op... and gamers will have to share these credits.

I managed to beat the demo on my second play through, but imagine that the game will require plenty of repeat plays to finally finish (sans credit feeding).

For an Xbox Live Arcade title, the game is absolutely stunning. It's arguably the best looking game on the service to date, filled with beautifully modeled characters and candy colored lighting effects. It has a crisp clean look in motion with some solid character designs.

Omega Five looks like it'll be packed with old school fun, offering plenty of challenge. It's quickly moved to the top of my list for future Live Arcade purchasers and anyone with a shmup streak in them need to give this game a shot. Me? I'm going back to the Hudson booth to gaze lovingly at it while waiting for time to pass.

Omega Five Gunning for Xbox LIVE(R) Arcade

Hudson to Release an All-New Sci-Fi Themed Side-Scrolling Shooter

REDWOOD SHORES, CA - September 12, 2007 - Leading video game publisher Hudson Entertainment has partnered with Natsume to bring gamers an all-new IP titled Omega Five for the Xbox LIVE(R) network. Omega Five is a graphically intense, side-scrolling shooter set in a three-dimensional environment, and features some truly hardcore action never before seen on the platform. The game is expected to launch worldwide in November 2007.

Set in a futuristic world, Omega Five is a shooter that pushes the visuals to the limit for a digital download game. The game feature 3D environments, dazzling special effects, and massive battles, all in high definition. Omega Five is unique in that players can choose from multiple humanoid characters, each with their own unique special attacks and upgradeable weapons, which they can shoot in 360 degrees. Omega Five also includes a local co-op function in which a friend can join in on the aerial mayhem.

"Hudson is truly pleased to be working with Natsume on bringing an all new franchise to shooter fans worldwide," said John Greiner, President and CEO of Hudson Entertainment. "Omega Five promises to be the most challenging shooter in the Xbox LIVE Arcade library, and will appease the most hardcore fan of the genre."