For me, this would have to be the best news of the year. Being a HUGE fan of shmups, and Cave in particular, I was ecstatic when I heard that the innovative shmup "Deathsmiles" would be getting a european release.

It'll be brought over courtesy of Rising Star Games (who also gave Europe Deadly Premonition), and it seems like they're actually putting a bit of effort into the release.

For starters, it has totally rad looking cover art. It also comes with 3 discs, one being the game disc, a soundtrack CD, and a "Desktop Accessory" disc (I imagine this'll be wallpapers, sound effects, themes and the like).

The real news for this release however, is the inclusion of the Mega Black Label, free on the disc. Those in Japan and the US had to buy this separately for 1200 points as DLC. It's great to see them include it right out the box instead of pining for the extra money. A bit of a shame it doesn't come with the 360 faceplate the limited US edition on came with, but at least it's coming over in the first place. Here's what the package looks like as a whole (manual not included in the shot):



The product page at Rising Star Games includes a feature list which is as follows:

* Left/right shooting mechanic, surrounding you with enemy units and gunfire from both sides of the screen

* The player will need to employ strategy and think about enemy positioning as your shots may be blocked by obstacles

* Deathsmiles features a selectable difficulty level that allows you to choose how to proceed through the game, ensuring that newcomers are as welcome as veterans

* Different stories and conversations will appear during both single player and two-player cooperative play, depending on the character(s) chosen

* Arcade Mode - featuring the same gameplay and accuracy as the original arcade release
Xbox 360 Mode - a high resolution version of the arcade game
Version 1.1 - an original mode for the Xbox 360.

* Mega Black Label - an expanded version of the game included on the disc and features:
New playable character Sakura
New stage Ice Palace
More challenging scoring system
New difficulty setting, level 999

* Play with a friend via Xbox LIVE, where the player can also measure up their success by submitting their scores to the online ranking service



You can pre-order it now from hmv or play. It's proposed release date is 18th of February 2011, so fingers crossed for a clean port and no delays!

EDIT: The American version of Deathsmiles did come with the Mega Black Label on the disc. The japanese version didn't.