Akai Katana was released in 2010 to the arcades. Sadly, arcades have been in the decline for years and most likely, you may have missed it. Luck for all of us, the game was recently ported to the consoles. Clocking in at about 1.16 gigs, Akai Katana is such a direct port that for the most part, there is very little English. Although the menus are in English, none of the voice dialogue are spoken in English, so when the bosses say something, they might as well be talking to themselves. Since it’s fairly obvious when the boss fights are, you don’t need to worry about boss confusion, just aim and shoot away. Oddly, the Epilogue was in English, and there’s nothing better than beating a game and then getting the story.

Akai Katana comes with 3 playing modes, Origin, Climax and Slash. Under these three modes, you can play 2 of them as a Novice, although I didn’t notice a difference. You can also play the 3 modes under Deploy, or Scoring. Scoring allows for players to compare their scores against other Live members or friends. Under Training, you can select any level and any type of vehicle and summon to practice under. I expected the training levels to actually explain things like; why am I shooting? Why are they shooting at me? What is the difference between blue, green and pink bullets? Why do I have a summon? What does my summon do? What does my charge do? Why are the bosses freakishly huge in comparison to my teeny tiny ship? Why does nothing here make sense?

The last question is a doozy, and even after beating the game in under 45 minutes, I still can’t tell you what happened. All I know was I held down the trigger and kept shooting until I died. When I died enough times, I hit the continue button and just kept going until I died again. And that is exactly how gameplay was for the entire 45 minutes. There was no upgrades, no weapon switch, no power ups, no summon boost, no up front story. I was surprised there actually was an Epilogue at all, since there wasn’t a hint of a story beforehand. This was a straight out shooter that clearly was designed for you to pump quarters in.

The game sadly doesn’t offer a multiplayer online play. It does however offer a 2 player option to local players. However, I found this option to only be available to Origins. Neither Climax nor Slash allowed for 2 players, although a single person could play as either 1P or 2P, but there was no reason for this option. This may have been the most disappointing aspect of this game. Origin turns out to be a 4:3 scale lower resolution version of the game. Climax and Slash are widescreen, HD versions. With so much going on in the game, why wouldn’t I want 2 players in a bigger screen? Instead, if you want to share this game with someone else, you need to do it on the lowest resolution, on the smaller scaled screen. If I had a friend come over and wanted to get them interested in this game, this would be a hard sell. What makes it even worse is that there’s no hint to Origin being the only 2 player version. If you enter Climax or Slash, the menu option for selecting vehicle and summon still shows both sides for 2 players, and so I spent more time figuring out which mode allowed for 2 players, than it did for me to beat the game.

The only saving grace to this game is the graphics. They are top notch and when the storm of bullets stop every once in a while, you can see some great details in the landscapes, tanks, planes, battleships and bosses. The art is so good that most people might not even notice the low resolution verse the HD if it were not for the 4:3 scale verse widescreen. The art work is also well done. Unfortunately the only time you see the drawings are in the selection menus and the Epilogue. And truthfully, with so much noise from the bullets, you most likely won’t see much of the art either. I’m not saying this game would be better if all enemy tanks were allowed to only shoot once and then sit back and wait to be killed, but this version of bullet hell is just way too over the top. Having landscapes and background art seems almost pointless when you can’t see it.

If you’re looking to blow off an hour and aren’t looking for a game with substance, Akai Katana might be the game you’re looking for. It offers nothing but mindless shooting in such a barrage of bullets. If you want to share this game with a friend, you may want to at least let them play Climax or Slash by them self so they know they aren’t being completely cheated when it comes time to play simultaneously. Although it’s nice to know this game originated in the arcades, it’s also a reminder of why we haven’t been back to the arcades in a while.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360.

Rising Star Games the publishers of Akai Katana have announced that the game is now available on Xbox Live. It’s a shoot em up arcade game which will be available via Games on Demand for the Xbox 360.

Akai Katana combines the spirit of adventure offered through a true side-scrolling experience with the adrenaline-filled gameplay of today’s bullet hell genre. Players are tasked with restoring peace and order to the world they once knew while taking on a tyrannical empire of bloodshed.

The game is developed by CAVE Interactive and published by Rising Star Games, Akai Katana is available now through Games on Demand for $24.99.

Check out the complete features below.

• Gorgeous hand-drawn artwork
• Full HD 16:9 support
• Three modes of gameplay
  • Origin (Arcade)
  • Slash
  • Climax
• Fully animated UI
• Original Arcade settings (optional) for an authentic experience
• Online leaderboards and replays
• Local two-player co-op
• Frantic ‘bullet hell’ action

Set in a parallel world resembling Japan’s Taisho period, the people have discovered the powerful Blood Swords. Requiring human sacrifices to unleash their immense destructive power, these swords have been used by the empire to crush neighbouring countries. However, all the bloodshed and power gained through sacrificing close family members has made some of the swordsmen reconsider. With new fighter planes and the powered up swords at their disposal, this small band of rebels now fight back against the tyrannical empire.

Created specifically with the Xbox 360 in mind, Akai Katana is the first CAVE release to feature horizontal combat in sumptuous HD and eye-watering full 16:9 support.

Tell us what you think in the comments section below.

Have a look at it, you might find it helpful.

Set in a parallel world resembling Japan’s Taisho period, the people have discovered the powerful Blood Swords. Requiring human sacrifices to unleash their immense destructive power, these swords have been used by the empire to crush neighbouring countries. However, all the bloodshed and power gained through sacrificing close family members has made some of the swordsmen reconsider. With new fighter planes and the powered up swords at their disposal, this small band of rebels now fight back against the tyrannical empire.

Rising Star Games have detailed the four upcoming DLC packs for Akai Katana.

The game is set to launch on May 15 in the U.S.

Akai Katana combines the spirit of adventure offered through a true side-scrolling experience with the adrenaline-filled gameplay of today’s bullet hell genre. Players are tasked with restoring peace and order to the world they once knew while taking on a tyrannical empire of bloodshed.

The new DLC will include two Akai Katana gamer picture packs containing 10 gamer pictures each, and two theme packs for the Xbox 360 dashboard. The complete list of DLC packs and their live dates include:

• Theme pack 1 (240 MSP) – May 7
• Picture pack 1 (160 MSP) – May 14
• Theme pack 2 (240 MSP) – May 21
• Picture pack 2 (160 MSP) – May 28

Developed by CAVE Interactive and published by Rising Star Games, Akai Katana for Xbox 360 will launch in North America next week.

We also have a new trailer of the game which you can check below:

Rising Star Games today announces the availability of Xbox 360 exclusive Akai Katana in stores from May 11.

Roaring out of the arcade and on to Xbox 360, Akai Katana players will experience all the action in jaw dropping high definition, including the original arcade version. For those looking for the ultimate arcade experience, the original 4:3 mode is also available for those craving authenticity.

“Cave are world renowned for creating the biggest and best arcade shooters around, and we’re delighted to add Akai katana to that list, come May 11,” commented Martin Defries, managing director, Rising Star Games. “No other arcade shooter offers the same explosive entertainment and wanton destruction as Akai Katana, and we can’t wait to let this lose on the public.”

Stay tuned to GB for more news and updates.

The game will include:

• Gorgeous hand-drawn artwork
• Full HD 16:9 support
• Three modes of gameplay
• Origin (Arcade)
• Slash
• Climax
• Fully animated UI
• Original Arcade settings (optional) for an authentic experience
• Online leaderboards and replays
• Local two-player co-op
• Frantic ‘bullet hell’ action

Developed by Cave Interactive and published by Rising Star Games. The game is an exclusive to Xbox 360.

Based in California, Rising Star Games Inc. will launch its first product, Akai Katana for Xbox 360, in Q2 2012. Akai Katana, developed by Japanese shooter specialists CAVE, will be the first title from Rising Star Games to be launched simultaneously in Europe and North America.