Akai-Katana
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Cave Vita games reportedly canceled as COO resigns
Mikio Watanabe, Cave's executive vice president and COO, is leaving the company as of May 31 for personal reasons, according to a press release issued by the company today. Watanabe will continue as representative director until the next shareholder meeting in August. Following his departure, CEO Ito Masahito will become the only remaining representative director.At the same time, the latest Famitsu magazine (reported by Andriasang) lists two Vita games by the publisher as canceled. One of the games is a Vita release of its casual/social castle building game Shirotsuku; the other is an unspecified shooter.If you're feeling worried about the seemingly vulnerable company, now might be a good time to remind you that Akai Katana Shin, the company's latest Xbox 360 shooter, is out in North America this week.
Akai Katana trailer is a whirlwind of introduction
This trailer for Akai Katana goes by pretty quickly and can be intensely confusing, so consider it practice for the real game.This crazy shooter from Cave is coming to Xbox 360 in Europe and North America thanks to Rising Star Games, who has been publishing niche Japanese stuff in PAL territories forever, and is only just starting up in America. Rising Star promises more details about the American version (currently set for Q2) soon, giving you more time to figure out what's happening in the video.
Rising Star Games to bring JP titles to US, starting with Akai Katana
Rising Star Games, UK publisher of Japanese franchises such as Harvest Moon and No More Heroes, is making a foray into US publishing, MCV reports. Rising Star has opened an office in California and plans to release its first title, Cave's Akai Katana, on Xbox 360 in Q2 2012. We've watched with bitter jealousy as Japan and Europe enjoyed some of these releases exclusively, and Cave in particular has been very good at rubbing it in our faces. Party's over, Cave.Rising Star has also launched an offshoot to handle its downloadable releases, called Rising Star Games Digital. "Rising Star Games Digital has been something we've been working on for a while," company MD Martin Defries said. "We envisage a huge growth in downloadable product over the coming years, and intend to play a big part shaping the future development of our exciting industry."
Way too much Akai Katana Shin footage
After the break, you'll find four videos of Akai Katana Shin, the (unfortunately region-locked) Xbox 360 version of Cave's latest arcade shmup, including one clip of the console-exclusive "Zetsu" ("Absolute") mode, one "expert mode" clip, one "beginner mode," and finally a new trailer. This may prove to be too much sensory input for your brain. Just a warning. After watching this, it's kind of a bummer to think that it's stuck in Japan, but the good news is that it's possible to justify the purchase of a Japanese Xbox 360 and this game by comparing the cost to that of an arcade board. Right? Sure. Or you could wait for someone to localize it.
Cave's Akai Katana now available for home arcades
Allow us to dispel any casual thought of picking up an arcade cabinet and populating it with new games. Cave has put the circuit board for its latest arcade release, Akai Katana, up for sale on its international online shop. The price? 220,000 yen, or $2,597.73. Rather a lot of money for a single game -- one that requires you to already have a JAMMA-compatible cabinet, and one that's already been announced for a much cheaper home release. However, there are some important mitigating factors to consider: for that $2,600, you also get a poster and a screwdriver shaped like a red sword (or ... akai katana, in Japanese), for use with the volume adjustment setting on the board. The board available through the website is a special version of the game, intended for home use. It only supports free play, so owners can't charge quarters or tokens, and it has balance tweaks and an optional higher difficulty level, which weren't found in the arcade version.
Cave shmup Akai Katana coming to 360 in region-locked Japan release
Akai Katana ("Red Katana," or, we suppose, "Red Sword," depending on how much translation you need) is a horizontal scrolling shooter released in arcades last year by shmup master Cave. During an event last week, the developer announced that the game is coming to the Xbox 360 in an upgraded version called Akai Katana Shin. Shin adds redone graphics, an unspecified new gameplay system, a new stage, and a 16x9 mode that redesigns enemy and bullet patterns to fit better on a widescreen display. The original version will also be available on the disc, which is due in Japan on May 26 in both standard and limited editions. Unlike some other Cave Xbox games, the company announced that Akai Katana Shin will be region-locked when it arrives in Japan. "Hopefully one of our publisher friends will be interested as it looks grand." Aksys Games published Cave's Deathsmiles last year, so Cave does have at least one "publisher friend."
Cave announces two more shmups
Now that Cave shooters like Deathsmiles on Xbox 360, the upcoming XBLA release of Guwange and the iPhone's EspGaluda 2 are being made available to gamers worldwide, the announcement of a new Cave game is less depressing and more exciting -- because no longer do shmup fans have to assume they'll be paying $100+ to import them. The next slice of bullet hell from the developer is Akai Katana ("Akai" meaning "red," and "katana" meaning ... "katana"). The teaser trailer doesn't do much to teach us about the game, instead showing anime characters looking pained. It's safe to assume that some of those characters will be able to fly and fire upgradeable weapons while dodging screen-filling bullet patterns. Cave will hold location tests for the arcade game in Akihabara next week, so there will be more information (and probably off-screen footage) then. The company also announced (PDF) an iPhone port of DoDonPachi Daifukkatsu for this summer. You can see an intense trailer for that after the break, as well.
