Proximity Alert: Piko Piko

Piko Piko, from Marquet Games, is a metroidvania starring a cute redheaded anime girl with a big hammer. The titular Piko is a senior at Hammer Academy and uses her blacksmithing skills to modify her toy hammer into an implement of destruction. She teams up with her half-fox pal to fight her fellow Hammer Academy smithies and prove that she is the best blacksmith around. With her weapon, she can smash foes, deflect bullets, and transform it into a drill to demolish destructible blocks or shoot lasers... oh, and her foxy friend has a drill tank!

The game is coming to PC on August 9. A demo is available on the developer's Itch page.




To find more promising 2D games currently under development, be sure to check out our Master List.

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Target Acquired: Blazing Chrome

Joymasher, the studio behind Oniken (our 2012 Game of the Year) and Odallus: The Dark Call, returns with Blazing Chrome, a run-and-gun inspired by the likes of Contra and Metal Slug. The game can be played alone or with a friend in 2P co-op, with players selecting between a human member of the resistance named Mavra, or a rebel robot named Doyle in the apocalyptic world of 21XX. Players use machine guns, grenade launchers, and lasers to blast grotesque alien and robot creatures with a style reminiscent of Contra III: The Alien Wars and Contra Hard Corps, with its dark cityscapes and barren deserts, angled platforms, the ability to hang and shoot simultaneously, and of course, its stylish detailed bosses.

The game is now available for PC via Steam, GOG, and Humble Store, as well as PS4 via PSN, Switch via eShop, and Xbox One via Microsoft Store. Check our coverage here.

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New Blip: Gigabuster

Gigabuster, from Waller, is an actioner heavily influenced by the Mega Man X and Mega Man Zero series, and stars Liz, a blonde-haired scarf-wearing fighter who is taking down CEO's one-by-one to stop them from funding "Happiness". You must break into nine different companies - offered in blocks of three that may be played in any order - using your ability to grapple, climb, dash, wall jump, and grind rails to make your way to the CEO offices to give them the beat-downs they deserve. Along the way, you slash enemies to build up a combo meter that lets you unleash a huge laser, and you can acquire upgrades, armor, and a number of melee weapons to help you in your fight.

The game is coming to PC later this year. A demo is available on the game's Itch page.




To find more promising 2D games currently under development, be sure to check out our Master List.

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Proximity Alert: The Ninja Saviors - Return of the Warriors

The Ninja Saviors - Return of the Warriors, from Natsumi Atari Inc. (the current holder of the long-meaningless Atari brand), capitalizes on the success of Taito's mediocre arcade game entitled The NinjaWarriors, which featured ultra-wide 3-monitor single-plane beat 'em up action at a plodding pace. Fortunately, this forgettable tech demo was superseded by Natsume's superior SNES game entitled Ninja Warriors (with a space and everything), which offered a somewhat more technical experience that more closely resembled the mechanics found in Final Fight, but sticking with single-plane action. Now, the ninja warriors have returned, and they've brought along a couple of new friends, as the game now features five playable android ninjas (three from the SNES game) fighting their way through a dystopian world filled with evil grunts in need of a good smackdown. Go it alone or grab a friend in 2P co-op as you smash your way through eight areas, waves of enemies, and hulking bosses, all presented in hi-rez pixel art.

The game is coming to Switch and PS4 on August 30. Check out the trailer below featuring all five playable characters:




To find more promising 2D games currently under development, be sure to check out our Master List.

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Proximity Alert: Atma

In Atma, from the self-titled Team Atma, you take on the role of Shaya, a woman who is capable of communicating with the spirit world. Shaya mourns her lost love, Atma, who died but failed to move onto the next realm. Atma instead lies in torment, attempting to reach out to Shaya in hopes that she can return him to the world of the living. To help him, Shaya must speak to Atma's relatives, enter their minds, and steal their memories of him. As the player, you must choose whether you're willing to defy the laws of nature to bring Atma back as you travel through a lush colorful world, fighting enemies, delving into dungeons, solving puzzles, and taking on terrifying monsters.

The game will be released tomorrow (July 10) for PC via Steam.


To find more promising 2D games currently under development, be sure to check out our Master List.

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Proximity Alert: Grelox

Grelox, from Sunteam, is a game that takes its inspirations from Zillion on the Master System, and the developer has even gone so far as to limit the color pallette to that of Sega's famed 8-bit console... although the graphical fidelity is more in line with a 16-bit game. You take on the role of a woman named Grelox who is out hunting a crime boss on a distant planet. In order to explore the environment, Grelox must access various computer terminals and disable them, which in turn opens locked doors. The game takes place in across seven themed areas in a nonlinear world made up of single screen environments.

The game is nearing the end of development as is planned as a free release for PC soon.

To find more promising 2D games currently under development, be sure to check out our Master List.

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