It's been a while since we've spoken about Locomalito, but some of you surely know the cherished freeware developer for its familiar but fresh-feeling games like Maldita Castilla (a veritable must-play for Ghosts 'n Goblins fans) and The Cu...   read

Resogun graced the PS4 back in 2013, and was one of the console's first PlayStation Plus games. But Housemarque (a wonderful developer that knows its niche) isn't done with it yet, as it has announced a 4K/HDR update alongside of its new ga...   read

I've talked in the past about game preservation, and I can't stress enough how important it is. While many pine for "the old days," and are somewhat blinded by impartial nostalgia, there are a lot of incredible works in our past that need t...   read

I wasn't sure what to expect when I loaded up Starr Mazer: DSP for the first time. I haven't played a shoot-'em-up game seriously since R-Type and Gradius III back on the SNES. After a surprisingly lengthy initial load, it booted ...   read

After years of being relegated to the sidelines in niche markets, Touhou is finally (and rightfully) coming front and center. NIS is publishing a pair of games in the west, which includes Genso Rondo: Bullet Ballet, a versus shoot 'em ...   read

Imagine, if you will, Syndicate as a shooter. No, not that one. A shooter from the older days, when console and consumer PC hardware lacked the power to render violence in the first-person. That's Brigador, and it's glorious that ...   read

Hearing that Housemarque's twin-stick shooter Super Stardust Ultra would be getting PlayStation VR support, I figured, "Oh, cool, you'll get to look at the spherical levels like they're right there floating in front of you. Sort of like how...   read

I wish shoot-'em-ups were as popular as other leading genres. 20 years ago you were hard-pressed to find a system that wasn't loaded up with them, and now, they're more fleeting fancies for esoteric collectors. And there really isn't a...   read

Dimension Drive...Dimension Drive...where have you heard that name before? Probably from the trolled Kickstarter debacle. After not hitting their goal they came back for more, and, they've made quite a bit of progress about a year later. I ...   read

For quite some time now animator Paul Johnson (of TIE Fighter fame) and a small team have been working on an animation homage to R-Type, and it's finally done. Released under the Mashed umbrella, it tells the story of a ...   read

NISA is publishing Touhou Genso Rondo: Bullet Ballet in the west, and it just unveiled a pretty packed special edition that's listing at $50 this week. It comes with tons of art, pins, the soundtrack, digital themes and avatars, and a ...   read

Over 25 years after the original Raiden was released, Raiden V will hit the Xbox One. It'll make its North American debut on May 11, and will feature light multiplayer elements like a "cheer system," where you can buff other players (t...   read

Just hearing the phrase "Cave shooter" evokes so many memories from just about every defining era of my life. From the very first time I ever played Espgaluda, to listening to the gang's adventures in shmups on Destructoid's very own R...   read

Deathsmiles is basically Shmup 101 at this point, and if you haven't played it, you're free to download it on iOS until February 29. As a note, it's typically $11.99, and the touch controls actually work great -- in fact, there's even ...   read

Cave's Deathsmiles is coming to Steam for Windows PC on March 10, publisher Degica Games has announced. The entrancing gothic shoot-'em-up first appeared in Japanese arcades in 2007 before later spreading to the rest of the world ...   read

Touhou game Genso Rondo is coming west this summer, NIS America just announced. The shoot-'em-up fighting game hybrid will hold the distinction of being the first Touhou Project game to be officially localized for western release....   read

The highlight of this game for me was when a disco ball played a cheap sound-alike of Sandstorm. That should be all you need to know. But, if those words don't paint a bleak enough picture for you, read on to find out all about the sad inte...   read

Raiden V heading to Japan this month, and strangely enough, will arrive as an Xbox One exclusive. Last generation -- I get it -- the 360 was a decent system for Japanese shmups, and Japan as a whole didn't outright detest the system. But wi...   read

While the shoot 'em up genre isn't the king it once was, more and more gems are coming out every passing year. New development studios are taking to Steam and mobile, and even Cave is coming out of the woodwork to become relevant again. It'...   read

Who polices the AI Police? Good question.   read

It's sad that Bizarre Creations was shut down after Activision's purchase of the studio, especially considering the circumstances behind the situation. Whatever the case may be, Lucid Games has been doing a good job of recapturing the serie...   read

Deathsmiles is gearing up for a Steam release next spring, publisher Degica has announced. One of just a few horizontally-scrolling shooters in Cave's library, Deathsmiles initially launched in Japanese arcades back in 2007 before later com...   read

DoDonPachi IchimeBanchou lives! As Cave's latest experiment, this brand new game is a free-to-play shooter for iOS, and it's actually live right now internationally, including in the US. It's a bit hard to find though as the listing is rela...   read

Try to say DoDonPachi IchimeBanchou three times fast. One of my favorite things about visiting Japan this year was the arcades, as I've said in the past. I was pretty much in heaven in the shmup sections, with tons of classics to choos...   read

Who wants to read a Destructoid review from 2011? Strania - The Stella Machina has come to Steam today apropos of nothing (the product page notes it's developer G.rev's "long-awaited debut on Steam," by whom I do not know). G.rev is made u...   read