Radiant Silvergun / Ikaruga Sequel Upcoming?
We knew a while back that famed developer, Treasure (of Gunstar Heroes, Sin and Punishment, and Guardian Heroes fame — plus many others), committed to developing the 2D games that us hardcore gamers have grown to love, but more details are starting to flesh out.
As previously suspected, it is looking like Treasure is developing a new 2D shooter for the XBox 360 to carry on the tradition of it’s Treasure siblings Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga. That is according to top-notch gaming mag, Play Magazine — a recent issue reads:
“Treasure Shooter
The best for last? Perhaps, friends, perhaps. Right before press time, Treasure dropped a bomb in the form of an “original shooting game” announcement…and that can mean only one thing: RS3. Always planned as a trilogy, the Radiant Silvergun/Ikaruga (known in preproduction as “RS2″) series will receive it’s final installment on Xbox 360. Watch this space for more information.
Developer: Treasure
Publisher: Undetermined
Release date: Unknown “
racketboy.com member, SegaVega passed this tip on to me and added, “It was written by maybe the most respected game mag writer ever (who now lives in Japan), so you can be sure of it’s accuracy. There’s no release date yet either, but I’m looking forward to Tokyo Game Show for something more…”
As many people know, Ikaruga was once touted as the sequel to the Saturn masterpiece Radiant Silvergun and went by the code name Project RS2. The gaming media is already proclaiming this new announcement to be the dawn of a “Radiant Silvergun 3″. Treasure fanatics also insist that Treasure has intended the Radiant Silvergun line of games to be a trilogy.
The most puzzling thing to me is the choice of the XBox 360 as the platform. The 360 is performing miserably in Japan (where most of Treasure’s fanbase lies). However, part of me wonders if this third shooter will be an XBox Live Arcade title instead of a normal retail release. (Of course, another platform port isn’t out of the question — Ikaruga jumped from the Dreamcast to the Gamecube).
I’ll be sure to post further information once (and if) it is availible.
Until then, be sure to join in on our Treasure shooter trilogy speculation thread in the forums.
Additional Links:
Ikaruga Gameplay Videos
Dreamcast Shmups Library - 2D Shooters Galore
Shmups: Sega Saturn vs. Sony Playstation
Essential Imports: The Best Import Dreamcast Games
Nintendo Gamecube Retro Game Library
19 Comments:
I smell a sequel — for Wii.
And it has a speaker in it which I’m sure Treasure could use in a cool way…
Simply because of these things:
a) Treasure has developed on GC before. Wii is a “trumped-up” GC. Hence, Treasure can wring close to 100% out of the Wii.
b) Wii is shaping up for a huge market share in Japan, hence it makes economic sense to develop for it. And the Wii marketplace (or whatever it’s called) makes it easier for a smaller devco like Treasure to sell their game.
c) The Wiimote — a simple, pure 2-button pad with the cross-d-pad. Well, maybe that’s my own preference, but Nintendo’s d-pad is the most accurate of the current lot
*of course* … I could be absolutely wrong!^_^
For those who do not know. G. Revolution and Treasure Co developed Ikaruga and Border Down. Seeing as Senko No Ronde X was just released on Xbox 360 G.Rev should be assisting on porting the game to the console. I see a possible Xbox live Arcade release and maybe even a possible standard ARCADE release in Japan only.Ikaruga was only 17mbs of data compressed and most XBLA titles are under 50 MB’s . Food for Thought The Japheigod Speaks.
Masato Maegawa of Treasure had said Ikaruga made it to the Gamecube only because of the ease of porting it from the DC/Naomi hardware. I doubt it will be a Naomi title, even with all the new ones still being developed, so the GC-based Wii is a little out of luck. Even if it were on Naomi, it would still be ripe for the 360, seeing as how G-Rev just ported Senko no Ronde, a Naomi title, to the platform (and G-Rev does indeed help out with everything). Xbox 360 is fast becoming a new home for independent arcade games in Japan.
Also, this upcoming “shooting game” was announced for the 360 months after it had become clear that the system was a Japanese flop. Treasure’s fan base is quite large in other parts of the world (cummulatively larger than in Japan, I’ve heard), even for this genre. I’m hoping we see a sort of “Treasure Box” with Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga included, now with the new rumor of Radiant Silvergun being translated and localized. Then again, Sin and Punishment was also translated.
So all in all, this title might not be RS3. Whatever it is, though, it’s in development for 360. But after five quiet years since Ikaruga’s arcade release, it does seem about time for the series finale; RS3 is a safe and joyous bet.
(and to Treaure: I’ll take a version for the Naomi Universal cabinet too)
(and Dreamcast)
Hate to say that but “original shooting game” pretty much means that if this is true it won’t be a sequel. I just wouldn’t hold my breath…
A Play magazine writer, living in Japan? The “most respected game mag writer ever”? Wait a minute, we aren’t talking about Nick Rox are we? Blue Shadows Rox? Respected? The most? Ever? No wonder I went colorblind this morning, I must have stepped in the Twilight Zone by accident.
Haha! Yes, it was was “Blue Shadows” Des Barres. Don’t forget the Lunar fiasco either. I don’t celebrate him quite as much, it’s the rest of the industry that loves him. But in all seriousness, he’s done some major insider work in the past and often has these things pegged. The sides seem to favor him a bit in this one, if not in the way he poetically puts it: “can mean only one thing”.
“Original” was a loose usage, and doesn’t have to refer to an entirely new proprety or IP or idea, it can just as easily mean a shooter that hasn’t already seen release.
Nice speculation post. Let us know when you have some real news.
Also, to whoever is getting stupid in the comments here, G.Revolution had nothing to do with Ikaruga, and Treasure had nothing to do with Border Down. I don’t know if you meant to do that intentionally, but its wrong.
This post has been removed by the author.
deleted?:
“G.Revolution had nothing to do with Ikaruga, and Treasure had nothing to do with Border Down.”
No, the guy that mentioned their collaboration was actually correct. G-Rev has worked with Treasure in developing the graphics engine (I believe) for Ikaruga, employees from G-Rev are listed in the credits. and other places on the net. Look for something here: http://www.classicgaming.com/shmups/reviews/ikaruga/index.html and on other place across the net.
Both G-Rev and Treasure are well established resources for development help and have collaborated with developers on even cell phone games
Hey Man!
Your blog is Amazing!!!!
I read everyday, its a pleasure for a gamer found in internet a blog like this. (sorry for my crap english :$)
o
Thanks man! I appreciate it!
And to those that think I was pushing the direct sequel thing too much, I didn’t intend to. The game will probably be significantly different to both Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga much like Ikaruga was different from RS.
Since I don’t see an e-mail address to contact you by, and since I really don’t want to sign up for a forum just to say this, I’m gonna post here. I’ve been having trouble getting your feeds lately, and it turns out they don’t validate.
http://validator.w3.org/feed/check.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.feedburner.com%2FRetrogamingWithRacketboy
http://validator.w3.org/feed/check.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.feedburner.com%2FRoomPlay
If you have changed the default feeds at all in Feedburner, you might want to look into it.
Thanks,
A loyal reader
I haven’t changed anything lately, but I’ll look into it.
Thanks!
btw, racketboynick at gmail dot com with work
Most of Treasure’s fans are Westerners. Their titles perform poorly in Japan. This is why I assume hey chose Xbox 360.
Imagine Radiant Silvergun on X-Box Live Arcade. It would freakin’ sell like mad. No more e-bayin’
You people who are afraid that the 360 is not a suitable console for such small independent games are mistaken. The 360 is fastly becoming the perfect console for independent/niche games as opposed to the other two. Not to mention Senko no Ronde sales were solid, plus the ease of development, I wouldn’t be surprised if in a few years the 360 becomes the new console of choice.
Ever since Blue Dragon was released for the Xbox 360, the Xbox 360 has been completely sold out in Japan!
To give you a comparison of performance:
When the Playstation 3 launched, Sony sold only 87,000 systems in Japan.
When Blue Dragon was released for the Xbox 360, a total of 100,000 Xbox 360 systems were sold that same day, each with Blue Dragon packed in.
The next shipment of the Playstation 3 was for 40,000 systems, and it didn’t completely sell out.
The next shipment of Xbox 360 systems with Blue Dragon packed in was for 35,000 systems, and ALL of them sold out very quickly!
Xbox 360 now sells respectably well in Japan. Microsoft had set up a “relaunch” campaign for the Xbox 360 in Japan, because the original Japanese launch didn’t get the games like Dead or Alive 4 that were originally scheduled. Microsoft sold about 80,000 systems at the original launch of the Xbox 360 in 2005.
When you add those numbers up, it is easy to see why Treasure would want to release Radiant Silvergun 3 for the Xbox 360 rather than the Playstation 3…BECAUSE THERE ARE ABOUT 100,000 MORE XBOX 360 OWNERS IN JAPAN!!! AND ABOUT 9.2 MILLION MORE OWNERS OF THE XBOX 360 WORLDWIDE!!!
The console game that is currently receiving a LOT of hype in Japan is Blue Dragon for the Xbox 360!!!
And the next console that that people in Japan are looking forward to is called, Lost Odyssey!!!
Both of those games were developed by the original creators of Final Fantasy. The original creators of Final Fantasy are not working on Final Fantasy XIII.
And by the way, Final Fantasy XIII will not see a release date until “sometime in 2008″ in Japan, which means that we will not see it until “sometime in 2009″ in North America and Europe!
If Treasure was interested in Audio/Video Performance more than Sales, then they would still want to create the game for the Xbox 360, because the Xbox 360 offers high-definition graphics and true Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, while the Wii doesn’t offer those things.
Making a shooter game for the Wii that uses the 2-button pad seems illogical, because game developers would want to make the best game possible, and the Wii doesn’t offer that kind of performance.
If the developers wanted to use the unique gameplay that the Wii could provide, it would be very difficult to do so with a “shooter” like Radiant Silvergun. A shooter is not like a sports game where you arm gets to rest while the catcher throws the ball back to the pitcher, or while the football team is huddled up. It would be just like all the magazines and websites say: Your arms would be tired out after 30 minutes playing with the Wii..and it would start to become a very inaccurate controller.
As far as the Xbox Live Arcade goes, this seems like something that could NOT currently take place, because Microsoft has made it so games cannot be larger than 50MB on Xbox Live Arcade. Microsoft wants all games to be able to be carried in the 64MB memory card for the Xbox 360, so that theory is out of the question.
Playing Radiant Silvergun 3 on the Xbox 360–with online play, high-definition graphics, and true dolby-digital 5.1 sound–is something that nobody should be forced to live without!
Xbox 360 is the BEST!!!
Okayyyy… So, just how much is M$ paying you for this incredibly fanboyish post? I mean… please!
Let’s take a quick dive into what I like to call “reality” as far a game console sales in Japan:
- Here are the latest Japanese console hardware sales for the week of July 16 - 22, 2007.
1. NDS Lite - 154,459 [4,404,924] units
2. Wii - 86,786 [2,226,671] units
3. PSP - 32,894 [1,186,565] units
4. PlayStation 2 - 14,059 [464,329] units
5. PlayStation 3 - 12,187 [531,302] units
6. Xbox 360 - 2,664 [126,559] units
7. GB Micro - 315 [22,725] units
8. GameCube - 131 [8,830] units
9. GBA SP - 122 [19,160] units
10. NDS - 45 [2,366] units
11. GBA - 24 [773] units
See those Xbox360 numbers? That’s 2,664 units sold in the last week for a total of 126,559 units for the year 2007. That’s roughly 58 times LESS than NDS sales for the week and about 34 times LESS than NDS sales for the year 2007….
Let’s keep comparing, shall we? Comparing sales figure is fun! Xbox360 also sold 32 times LESS than Nintendo’s Wii for the week and 17,5 times LESS for the whole year 2007… Even the ancient PS2 did better, both for the week (selling 5 times LESS) and for the year 2007 (selling 3.5 times LESS).
So, in short, my über-fanboy friend, get your facts straight. Xbox360 is a good console, a great one even… but it’s failing miserably in Japan, and thats a fact.
There are a few things to keep in mind, here. First off, Treasure has been committed from day one to never make a true sequel to any of their original games. There was a big deal about this a few years back. They have done sequels for other companies of those companies games, but never of their own. Radiant Silvergun was never truely planned as part of a trilogy, the story is actually designed to thwart any chance of a sequel. It will be nice to see what they do but SHMUPs have so little demand nowadays that I doubt we will ever truely see something anywhere close to what Radiant Silvergun was on the Sega Saturn.
Treasure has never been one to develop exclusively for one specific console, so it’s extremely possible that we will see a variety of games from them for Wii, XBOX, and PS3. They are very good at utilizing the best features of most consoles they develop on. Personally, I would love to see them develop a shooter designed around using the nunchuk and wiimote together, there is a great deal of potential there, especially considering this is Treasure we are talking about. I won’t hold my breath on that, though.
As far as the original Radiant Silvergun, every attempt to port the game has been thwarted so far. The original Playstation hardware could not run even a heavily scaled-down version of the game. There is also a serious problem with the current game pads available. The game was very specifically designed around a control scheme that had three buttons in a row. I’ve tried playing the game with a Playstation controller and it is impossible to find a button combination that doesn’t cause a lot of problems. I have heard that this was one of many things that prevented a supposed PS2 port of the game.
If they do port the game, it is highly likely that we will see a port of the arcade version with some modifications rather than a true port of the Saturn version. The amount of work that would go into localization would cost so much they would have to charge practically the same price as a store bought game to justify it and the download could be very large with all the dialog.
There is also a chance that, since the different markets, such as Japan vs US, have different titles available, the game could end up only being released only in Japan with all the Saturn upgrades, since there would be no localization costs. Other countries would only get the arcade port, or possibly no port at all.
Before anyone says it, the dialog in the Japanese release of Sin and Punishment was originally in English with Japanese subtitles, the only localization they had to do was translate a couple of menu screens.
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[...] Xevious, it has Triggerheart and Ikaruga coming to it, which are fairly recent games. In addition, Treasure’s Project RS3 is supposedly coming out sometime. Also, can’t forget that Shikigami no Shiro III is expected [...]