Turrican Flashback was developed by Factor 5, the studio behind the Amiga ports of the first two games in the Turrican series, and developers of the Turrican series sequels, and also the developers behind the popular Star Wars: Rogue Squadron trilogy. Turrican Flashback offers four classic games in the Turrican series, including the original Turrican, Turrican II: The Final Fight, Mega Turrican, and Super Turrican. The first two games were seminal titles in the eurostyle shooter genre were some of the best graphical, audio, and gameplay showcases available on the Commodore 64 and Amiga systems, which led to several follow-ups in the ensuing years... but the series went by the wayside once the 3D era began. This collection offers four of those classic games and adds modern niceties like save states, a rewind feature, and the ability to add scanlines and curvature to simulate CRT displays.
The game is now available for Switch via eShop and PS4 via PSN. Check our coverage here.
Strictly Limited Games is also selling physical editions of Turrican Anthology, which contains a different and more expansive collection of games. Volume 1 of the anthology contains:
Turrican (Amiga)
Turrican 2 (Amiga)
Super Turrican (SNES)
Super Turrican Director's Cut (SNES) - previously exclusive to the Analogue Super NT
Olija, from Skeleton Crew Studio, is a swashbuckling adventure set in an Asian fantasy world and featuring a group of castaways who have found themselves stuck in the country of Terraphage. A man named Faraday leads the group on a mission to escape the clutches of a mysterious woman named Olija, aided by his trusty harpoon. This harpoon serves many purposes, allowing Faraday to slice through ropes, slash through enemies, and zip to the harpoon's location to quickly traverse dangerous trap-filled environments. He can even impale an baddie and pull himself to the enemy's position to deliver a killing blow. This versatile weapon allows players to strategically target enemies from a distance, attack in multiple directions, and get up close for fast-and-furious melee action with a number of secondary weapons.
Metal Unit, from JellySnow Studio (game site), is a fast-paced actioner set in a world where humans are fighting for survival against rampaging robots and ancient aliens. The last hope for the human race is Joanna, a warrior who is able to equip the powerful Metal Unit armor and fight against the forces that threaten them... and maybe get revenge upon her sister who has sided with the aliens. Joanna is able perform a wide variety of attacks, firing numerous projectile types, performing up-close melee strikes, unleashing deadly special attacks, and building up huge combos to lay the hurt on baddies and bosses. She is also quite agile and able to mount high platforms and dash quickly out of the way of danger. There is a large world to explore, with hidden areas and NPC's to interact with, and a story that changes depending on your dialogue choices. In addition, the game features roguelike elements, with death resulting in the conversion of items into points that can be used to unlock new skills and items.
The game is now available for PC via Steam and is also planned for release on Switch later this year.
Cyber Shadow, from developer Aarne Hunziker, is a throwback to classic ninja games, starring a blade-wielding warrior with access to elemental-based special attacks... provided you are willing to take the lives of your clansmen; otherwise, you can go the tougher route of taking on enemies with just your sword. Those who move beyond the sword will find fast-flying shuriken, a fire attack, and explosive kunai. Players can expect classically-tough gameplay with loads of ninja enemies, as well as flying robots, deadly machinery, and and huge bosses ready to mete out a swift end.
The game is now available for PC, Mac, and Linux via Steam, Switch via eShop, PS4 and PS5 via PSN, and Xbox One via Microsoft Store.
Skul: The Hero Slayer, from SouthPAWGames, stars a young skeleton warrior and member of the castle guard, as he fights against brave heroes, plucky adventurers, and warriors of light, across a colorful pixellated world. Skul's king has been taken by an army of the living, and he must kill them all by smashing them with his bone club and tossing his skull Decap Attack-style, or he can take on new abilities by swapping skulls... By taking off his skull and replacing it with others, he is able to gain new abilities and weapons, such as equipping a warrior's helmet in order to attack as an armored knight with a sword, or using a samurai's skull to perform quick slashes with a katana.
The game is now available for PC, Mac, and Linux via Steam, and it's coming soon for PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
ENDER LILIES: Quietus of the Knights, from Live Wire (game tweets), stars a girl named Lily who awakens to a world that has fallen into ruin due to a cursed rain that transforms living beings into undead creatures. The game is an open-world metroidvania with multiple paths of travel available, and new skills unlocked by defeating creatures known as the Blighted. Lily begins her journey in the basement of an ancient church, emerging into the rain-soaked Kingdom of End. This gloomy landscape holds beauty, as nature has overrun the workings of mankind and bloomed into lovely flora, but the world is now inhabited by deadly beasts that Lily must fight as she uncovers its mysteries. Throughout her journey, Lily defeats bosses to free the spirits of long-dead warriors that aid her in her quest, allowing her to attack with swords, bows, magic, and more, and granting her new environmental traversal abilities.
The game is coming to PC via Steam Early Accesson Thursday (1/21), with the full version due this Spring on PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox S/X.
To find more promising 2D games currently under development, be sure to check out our 2D Watchlist.
In 2017, Batterystaple Games released 20XX, which featured colorful fast-paced robot action inspired by the Mega Man X series, but with a roguelike twist. And now, a mere 1,000 years later... er, a few years later anyway, they have returned with a follow-up entitled 30XX. The game once again features roguelike action with single player and 2P local or online co-op options. You take on the role of a blue armored character who can fire regular and charged buster shots similar to X, or a red armored character with a sword that plays more like Zero. Combat is fast and fluid with detailed characters, colorful environments, and lots of enemies and bosses ready for a good thrashing... plus new powers to unlock, and a level editor.
And you don't have to wait until the 30XX to play it, becuase it will be coming to Steam Early Accesson February 17, with releases on PS4, Switch, and Xbox One to follow.
To find more promising 2D games currently under development, be sure to check out our 2D Watchlist.