New Release: Cannon Dancer - Osman

An enhanced edition of a bombastic arcade actioner, from Mitchell Corporation and ININ Games

New Release: Hazard Saviour

An open world platformer inspired by Crazy Taxi, from Sinclair Strange

New Release: Ginsha

An open world action-adventure that takes place across multiple planets, from PolarityFlow

New Release: Haunted Lands: Burial Grounds

A tough and bloody DOS-style shooter, from Alexey Goryachev

New Release: Curse of the Sea Rats

An open world action-adventure featuring 2D animation and 3D environments, from Petoons Studio

June 27, 2022

New Blip: Rotwood

Klei Entertainment is the studio behind Shank, Mark of the Ninja, and Don't Starve (among others), and now they've returned to their clobbery roots with Rotwood, a hacky-slashy dungeon-crawly rogue-likey buttstomper. Dive in alone or bring along some friends for 4P online co-op as you pummel your way through a forest filled with dark creatures and evil vegetables (!?). The game features arena-style combat with enemies attacking from every direction, along with boss and miniboss encounters... all rendered in a charming cartoony style. Defeat enemies and grab loot to craft weapons, armor, and fortifications for your home base.

The game is coming to PC but does not yet have an announced release date.

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

June 25, 2022

Target Acquired: Pocky & Rocky Reshrined

Pocky & Rocky Reshrined, from NatsumeAtari, doubles as a remake and a brand new adventure. The game starts out as a single player experience (2P is unlocked after you beat the game) where Pocky fights her way through familiar enemies and locations. But at the end of the second level, things get turned on their head as a villain alters the timeline and sends Pocky on a new path. Pocky is joined by her faithful friend Rocky, along with three additional companions, all of whom become playable during the course of the adventure. The game features the same colorful fantasy shooting and deflecting that you remember from the classic SNES games, along with several new abilities, new levels and bosses, and a strange time-bending story that ties it all together. And when it's all over, have your buddy grab a controller as you select from one of five playable characters for a new take on that classic couch co-op experience.

The game is now available for Switch via eShop, and PS4 via PSN, with physical versions available to preorder via Gamesrocket. Check our coverage here.

June 17, 2022

Target Acquired: Final Vendetta

Bitmap Bureau, the developers behind Xeno Crisis, have returned with Final Vendetta, a beat 'em up done up in the style of 90's-era arcade games like Capcom's Final Fight and Konami's... well, Vendetta, starring a cast of colorful characters and 1P or 2P co-op action. Per genre conventions, you team up with some martial arts dudes and set off to rescue your kidnapped sister from a street gang the only way you know how... by beating the holy ass out of every human being who crosses your path and eating hearty snacks off the ground. You've got your choice of three playable characters: the acrobatic Claire, the bare-knuckle boxer Duke, or the mullet-coiffed wrestler Miller. In addition to six areas of belt-scrolling arcade action, the game offers versus, survival, and boss rush modes, plus an intense soundtrack and smoother-than-the-90's animations.

The game is now available on PC, Mac, and Linux via Steam, Switch via eShop, PS5 via PSN, and Xbox One and X/S via Microsoft Store.

Target Acquired: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge

Let's face it, if you're on 2D RADAR, then you probably already know there's a new Turtles game out, but here's the news in case you've been shellshocked...

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the sewers (or something), the frantic 4P TMNT beat 'em up action of the arcade is back with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge, from Tribute Games. You may remember Tribute Games as the studio behind Panzer Paladin, Flinthook, and loads of other kickass 2D video games, and while Konami is off doing who-knows-what, Tribute is bringing their 2D pedigree and charming sprite art to everyone's favorite heroes-in-a-half-shell (turtle power!). So you'd have had to have been living under a rock(steady) to be unaware of the turtles or their famous arcade games (or cartoon, or originating comics, etc.), but just in case... you take on the role of one of four ninja turtles: Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, and Leonardo - April, Splinter, and Casey Jones are playable too! - as you go up against tons of foot soldiers, other mutant baddies, and the Shredder himself, with all of the 80's/90's cartoon glory perfectly preserved and character designs ripped straight outta Turtles in Time... there are no brooding angry Justice League wannabes here. This is classic gnarly brawler action for everyone who grew up with the radical arcade games or the SNES ports. These turtle boys don't cut 'em no slack!

The game is now available for PC via Steam, Switch via eShop, PS4 via PSN, and Xbox One and X/S via Microsoft Store and Game Pass.

June 15, 2022

New Blip: Gunbrella

From Doinksoft, the creators of Gato Roboto, comes a game with lots more colors, but lots fewer kitties in weaponized exoskeletons (presumably). Gunbrella is set beneath the darkened sky of some dystopian landscape that's filled with bad mofos, mutants, and monsters. You take on the role of a woodsman -slash- amateur detective as he investigates the seedy underbelly of a chaos-wrought world on a mission of revenge. The weather is cloudy with a chance of bullets, but fortunately you've packed your gunbrella, which doubles as a weapon and an environmental navigation tool. Summon your inner Penguin and use the gunbrella to glide through the air, bash enemies, deflect bullets, and of course... fire your gun.

The game is headed to PC and Switch in 2023.

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

June 14, 2022

New Blip: Shinobi non Grata

Sometimes the title of a game just jumps right up and bops you in the moon unit, and one such game is Shinobi non Grata, from Studio Pico and Esquadra. Matching that outlandish title is an equally dweezil-popping actioner with about eleventeen colors and larger-than-average sprites for such a retro-looking game. It's Japan, it's 1838, and a bunch of bad guys just made friends with some demons so they can rise to power. But a lone demon-killing shinobi stands against them... Kaina uses his murasame sword to slice through his enemies, tosses shuriken and bombs, swings a kusarigama, and makes use of a number of magical abilities, such as firing electrical bolts or creating shadow versions of himself. Fight your way through loads of baddies, traverse dangerous environments, and defeat giant demon bosses.

The game is coming to PC later this year. A demo is available on Steam.

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

June 12, 2022

Target Acquired: Remote Life

Remote Life, from Next Game Level, is a horizontal shmup with twin stick shooter controls, set in a dark Giger-esque alien hellscape. You take on the role of John Leone, a pilot tasked with entering a gigantic alien hive that's slowly making its way toward Earth. You have access to an array of 20+ weapons, along with the occasional time-limited options, super weapons, turrets, and mobile assault platforms. In addition to fighting your way through enemies, you must avoid lots of environmental hazards, including doorways that open and shut and fast-moving alien machinery, with gameplay changing up in some levels to allow for free exploration within enclosed environments. The game uses 3D pre-rendered sprites to create realistic environments with a foreboding tone, and some truly terrifying boss creatures.

The game has been on PC via Steam for a while, but it was just ported to consoles, so it's now available for Switch via eShop, PS4 and PS5 via PSN, and Xbox One and X/S via Microsoft Store. Check our coverage here.

June 3, 2022

Target Acquired: Belle Boomerang

You know what? There just aren't enough boomerangs in video games. Sure, we get plenty of boomeranging bad guys, but what about us adventurers? Where's our boomerangageddon!? Well, Narwhalnut is here to shore up our boomerang deficit with Belle Boomerang, starring a young lady (named Belle) who can 'rang with the best of 'em. The game is a retro-style platformer done up in the classic 8-bit style with chunky chunks and blippy blips. In a tale as old as the games that inspired it, the people of the land have been transformed into cute monsters, with the monarchs becoming boss beasts. Belle is able to learn the abilities of her enemies, making use of eight different powerups that aid her in combat and environmental navigation.

The game is now available for PC via Steam.

Target Acquired: Souldiers

Souldiers, from Retro Forge Games, is a retro-style action-adventure set in a colorful fantasy world. You play as one of a trio of characters who suddenly find themselves transported from a battlefield in their own world to a place called Terragaya. Terragaya is a land that seems to sit at the border of the afterlife, offering a chance for these warriors to revive their fallen comrades. Each of the three playable characters has different abilities, with an archer who can strike quickly from a distance, a scout who attacks with a sword, and a caster who uses magic to strike enemies at close and medium range. Players explore a large interconnected world populated by a variety of detailed enemies and boss creatures while platforming, solving environmental puzzles, searching for artifacts, and upgrading their abilities along an expansive skill tree to increase their effectiveness in combat.

The game is now available for PC via Steam, Epic, and GOG, Switch via eShop, PS4 and PS5 via PSN, and Xbox One and X/S via Microsoft Store.