Video Games : Ikaruga

In association with Amazon.com
  

from: Atari

: Ikaruga

Price: $138.94
Prices subject to change.



Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
More Information



Amazon Maximum Age: 20 years
Amazon Minimum Age: 60 months
Binding: Video Game
Brand: Nintendo
EAN: 0722242519781
ESRB Age Rating: Everyone
Label: Atari
Manufacturer: Atari
Platform: GameCube
Publisher: Atari
Sales Rank: 3967
Studio: Atari



Accessories: Related Items:

Editorial Review:

Product Description:


Amazon.com Product Description:
Ikaruga is a 2-D scrolling space shooter (with options for either a vertical or horizontal display) set against a 3-D backdrop with a combination of rich Japanese storytelling and high-powered fighter-pilot heroics. Players take the role of hero Shinra, the lone survivor of a freedom federation that was massacred by the evil, power-hungry conqueror Tenro Horai. Now Shinra, in his newly-built ship, the Ikaruga, must fight for aging, exiled people who are depending upon him for their survival. Join the sole warrior as he battles the evil Horai in the hopes of restoring peace.

Those already familiar with Ikaruga from the Japanese Dreamcast release will appreciate vital game upgrades such as enhanced graphics, a new demo mode that clues players in to the "perfect" round and private passwords; high scorers can post their accomplishments on the official Ikaruga web site and establish bragging rights within the worldwide Ikaruga community.



Customer Reviews
Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Brutal Masterpiece
Ikaruga is short, fast, and brutal. It's not for everybody, but if you're a fan of shooters, there's nothing better. The enjoyment of this game comes from working at it, trying over and over, and increasing your skills gradually. You're in pretty good shape if you can even reach the end of this game, even though it's possible to play through it in a single sitting. As your skills with Ikaruga develop, you're sure to get more and more addicted. The gameplay is ingenious; the pacing, perfect. Even the graphics are beautifully done, and the music is grand and quite fitting. Ultimately, Ikaruga is a game that many people may find difficult to appreciate for it's brutal difficulty, but nonetheless, it is a true masterpiece of a game, and will forever be known as a legendary shooter from a legendary developer.


Rating: 4 out of 5 stars - Incredibly hard and clever shmup
This is an absolute must for any shmup fan. The twist here is that there is two colors of enemies; white and black. You can switch the color of your own ship to alternate between these two colors, which lets you absorb the bullets of the color you are in order to build up your special attack. It is an extremely hard game. I've read that there is only 5 levels but so far I could not even make it through the third. There is a lot of challenge and sometimes there is so much bullets in the screen that your eyes hallucinate and your brain almost switch off. Only for the most hardcores.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Spectacular, as expected
If you've ever played radiant silvergun or the dreamcast version of Ikaruga, chances are you already own this game. If not and you meet one of the above conditions, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!!
For those of you who haven't played ikaruga, it's a top-down futuristic flying shooter, similar to raiden/etc. There are basically three buttons in the game, but it is extremely fun. However, it's also extremely HARD. If you haven't played this type of game before, or aren't very good at games in general, you probably shouldn't touch ikaruga. While it is true that you get much better with practice, you'll be pulling your hair out early. To see what I'm talking about (in terms of difficulty), just search for ikaruga on youtube.
For those of you who are like me and love an intense challenge, go ahead and pick up a copy of this game. And for anybody trying to get lots of hours out of one game, well, this is no FF7, but you'll pull a lot of time out of it for sure. The game is not that long but it takes a while to get your skills up to par and beat it. Once you've beaten the game, it's time to go back and do it again without dying ONCE. Once you've done that, it's time to run through without dying AND try to maintain a max chain. At that point, congratulations...but you probably still haven't beat the high scores of the ikaruga masters. I'm not saying I ever will, because I won't. But the better you get at this game, the more often you get to hear your friends say, "dude...I will NEVER play against you in a video game."


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Amazing game, though beware: it's short.
I first played this game using a friend's copy. I normally am not a fan of shoot 'em ups, but this game struck a chord with me. It was beautiful, fun, and difficult without being too difficult.

As I said, the game is a shoot 'em up. This is a genre that's in the old style of games where you are a plane/spaceship where the terrain scrolls vertically/horizontally and you shoot everything in sight (note that this game was built to be vertically scrolling, but you can set it to side-scrolling that either changes the control scheme to match it or keeps it the same, which is amazingly intuitive for people who have cool enough T.V. setups to utilize that, such as a projector).

The big draw to this game is the yin/yang motif centralized around the bullet shield mechanics. What bullet shield is is a always-on shield that absorbs bullets of one color; black or white. You can switch the shield on the fly with the press of the A button. The color you are is the color you absorb. If an opposite color hits you, you die. Your fire, which is basically a constant laser beam, changes depending on what color shield you have on. Black for black, white for white. Enemies can always be hurt by any type of fire you throw out, but if you shot them with the opposite color you do DOUBLE the damage (if your unsure of whether it's doing so, the sound your weapon makes when striking an enemy differs depending on how much damage its doing). Another weapon you have fires a bunch of powerful homing lasers. When bullets that are your shield's color hit you, it fills up part of a gauge to the right. When this gauge is full (and even before it is), you can press are to fire a whole bunch of homing lasers. The amount of individual lasers fired depends on how many squares you fill in that gauge.

The bullet shield comes into play heavily in this game. This game has what I like to call either a "bullet nightmare" or "bullet choreography." Either way, without the bullet shield, you'd probably die more than if you didn't have it (make no mistake, you WILL die a lot in this game even with it). These two in combination make the game VERY intense, forcing you to think on the fly and put your mad maneuvering skills to their fullest. In fact, one boss... well, I won't spoil it for you.

There's only one real annoyance I have with Ikaruga (for which I was about to dock a point). It's short, short, short! This game only has five stages. Granted, the stages are a tad longer than is normal for a shoot 'em up, but still hardly sufficient for those who want more game in their game.

Regardless of that drawback, I saw fit to buy this game at $40 (used) even knowing how short it was. It's certainly worth playing once, if you can manage such an insurmountable feat, but if you're like me it may also make a great part of your collection. It's truly an amazing game to behold.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - You think you have what it takes?
It is becoming more and more known that shooters are dropping off the earth. Why? I'll tell you why, because people are forgetting what geat games are all about.
If you think you are good at games, think again. Ikaruga will blow you away!! We live in a world today where everything is fast paced. Ikaruga will deliver it to ya ten fold. Let's get to specifics:

Frame rate- Excellent, not once in the gameplay will you experience the action slowdown due to the emmense amount of action on the screen. Warning! Keep your eyes open at all times.

Graphic- Unbelieveable STUNNING! Everthing is detailed. You must see for yourself.

Sound- Most shooters have mediocre music, Ikaruga is way above average. From the explosions to the music. Atari did superb on this title! Man, the music is intense.

Difficulty- I doubt highly that you can beat it with one credit. The game is so addictive, you will keep trying though.

To sum it all up, Ikaruga is a must have. I'll bet your eye-hand coordination isn't what you thought it was. Like one of the other reviews said, "Prepare to have your brain raped"!

see more


More Information
Browse for similar items by category:

 

HOME

Car Credit - Online Advertising - Hotel Las Vegas - Remortgages - Problem Mortgage