Truxton Extreme is a modern take on Truxton, aka Tatsujin, and it’s a modern shoot-’em-up developed by Toaplan’s Masahiro Yuge.
Fans of 1980s and 1990s shoot-’em-ups – especially those made by Japanese studio Toaplan – rejoice. Truxton, known in Japan as Tatsujin, is getting a modern sequel in the shape of Truxton Extreme.
Better still, the game’s developer is Masahiro Yuge, who was responsible for the sound and design of Toaplan’s finest shooters, including Tiger-Heli, Hellfire, Zerowing, and the aforementioned Truxton.
Like the original Truxton, the upcoming Truxton Extreme is a vertically-scrolling shooter marked out by its colourful laser attacks and screen-filling, screaming skull smart bombs. If Truxton Extreme is anything like its predecessors, it’ll also be incredibly difficult (‘tatsujin’ translates to ‘master’ in English).
“With jaw dropping 3D graphics and non-stop shooting intensity, Truxton Extreme provides white-hot shooter thrills for masters and novices alike,” reads the game’s press release. “Take down a horde of alien invaders with your Power Shot, Truxton Beam, Thunder Laser and Homing Shot, and remember to breathe as you face off against gigantic bosses in the ultimate battle for the survival of the human race!”
Masahiro Yuge’s latest company is itself called Tatsujin, and Truxton Extreme is one of three new ventures it’s announced as part of the Tokyo Game Show. There’s also Snow Bros Wonderland, a revival of the Bubble Bobble-like arcade platformer Toaplan originally released in 1990, and Amusement Arcade Toaplan, which is a collection of 25 of the studio’s games all bundled in one free-to-download Android/iOS app.
Tatsujin’s press release says that Truxton is available within the collection “free of charge”, so it sounds as though you’ll have to pay to unlock the other 24 titles housed in the app.
As you’ve probably gathered, it’s Truxton Extreme that’s the big ticket item among Tatsujin’s announcements, at least for us. Although it’s unusual to see a vertical shooter take place over such a wide battlefield as this one, the presence of Yuge alone leaves us hopeful that this will be a worthy successor to the 1988 classic.
Truxton Extreme is currently in development for PS5 and due for release in 2024 – there’s no news about other platforms yet. Snow Bros Wonderland is in development for PS4, PS5 and Switch and is also due out next year.
Read more: Twin Tiger Shark | A modern take on classic Toaplan shoot-em-ups
