Dreamcast Release Schedule 2018

As reported in March, JoshProd's next batch of Dreamcast titles will be available soon, and will include the likes of sides-scrolling beat-em-up Okinawa Rush, Flashback sequel Fade to Black, vertical shmup Battle Crust, and 2D Adventure game The Escapee. Unlike previous JoshProd batches, none of these are reprints of previous indie games and all are new ports to the Dreamcast, which is terribly exciting.

According to the French online store Rush On Game, these Dreamcast "Unreleases" will be available to order tomorrow, May 3.

In other "new" game news, JoshProd's first release for 2018 might have slipped you by under the radar. After releasing a PAL style reprint in 2017, a US/J-NTSC style release of Ghost Blade was released on March 23. We originally reported this as an exclusive to Video Games New York store, which was taking pre-orders in February, but the game has since showed up at Play-asia.com (link) and The Bit Station (link).

This is the Japanese cover, which is printed on the flip-side of the manual to the US-style cover.

New indie release announced: SLaVE!

Feels like a tradition now for a Dreamcast indie game to be revealed on this anniversary date, doesn't it? At least I hope it hangs around as a tradition anyway. GoatStore Publishing have just revealed via Dreamcast Scene that SLaVE, a doom-like FPS with Robotron 2084 stylings will be released on Dreamcast in April 2015, and is available to pre-order in limited edition and limited limited edition versions. No that's not a typo, they are actually called that. You can get an additional 5% off the price with the voucher code TJOOS as well!

"This is what happens if Robotron 2084 and DOOM got together and had an illegitimate lovechild. SLaVE is the timewarp of 1984's aesthetic and 1994's tech to make a game that is uniquely 2014. It is relentless neon arcade blasting action from a first-person tech utilizing features in the extended DOOM engine 3DGE that gamers could only imagine in 1984, or 1994 for that matter." - Goatstore

The trailer above is from quite a while back, back when it was just known to be a PC game. It's creator Jay Townsend is an animator and game designer I have been following for years and I had been watching the progress of this game over time, so I'm delighted to discover that this is making it's way to the Dreamcast next year!

Redux: Dark Matters due for release December 3rd!

Redux: Dark Matters, the kickstarted sequel to DUX, finally has an official release date! The game will be released on Decmeber the 3rd, and is up for pre-order as a regular edition for 32.95 Euros or as a bundle with DUX 1.5 (released earlier this year) for 39.95 Euros. Because the kickstarter limited edition comes bundled with DUX 1.5, I have had to wait till Redux is released to also get that game, so I will be getting both games at the same time!

Sturmwind has arrived at last! Hooray!

The wait has paid off, as my copy of the limited edition arrived this morning. Phew, I was getting worried there for a moment! Also while the box it was delivered in was a bit squashed the Sturmwind box itself was wrapped in a lot of bubble wrap and arrived safely, despite not paying out for extra special delivery and tracking. Redspotgames are still being oddly quiet on their sites, but at least I can bring you evidence that pre-orders going back to November 2011 have indeed been sent out.

Here is the full content of the box set. The game itself, a booklet listing all the bosses in the game the soundtrack and the little scale model of the spaceship. The spaceship, being a 3D printed object as far as I know feels quite odd: it's kinda fuzzy if that makes any sense. I have yet to open up and play the game yet as I am holding out until I get time to make a InsideOut unboxing and first play of the game, but I'm pretty busy this week so I can't guarantee it very soon unless I find the time to squeeze it in. Typical as I wasn't any where near as busy last week! :P

Sturmwind, Where are you?

Sturmy-sturmy-wind, where are you?

We want to play you really badly.

You're apparently out but you're still not here,

why have you gone so silent?

I have a had a lot of respect for redspotgames, there releases have also been beautifully presented and arrived without a hitch in the past, and releasing games for a dead console must be a daring and tricky process. Games like Wind & Water: Puzzle Battles and Rush Rush Rally Racing couldn't have been published better, they were professionally printed and sit next to all my official Dreamcast games proudly, helped by the fact that they were also fantastic games, and I'm sure Sturmwind is equally brilliant. 

However, the handling of Sturmwind's release has been something of a complete misfire. Redspotgames Facebook page is flooded with comments from fans still waiting for the arrival of the game. People who paid out extra for special delivery recently have not even received their tracking numbers. The worst part of all this is redspotgames have been deadly silent ever since the launch day of April the 24th. Not a single tweet, Facebook update or comment has been uttered from the company in two weeks.

Many are probably starting to think that the game does not even exist in fully printed form at this rate, and I wouldn't blame them for thinking that as since the launch there has been no evidence from redspotgames to prove as such. Whenever Hucast or NG:Dev Team release a new game, we see photos of the print run all over their Facebook and website. In this case, nothing.

It does exist, however. Here is a photo of the special edition along with a huge pile of them behind it. This photo was found on eBay, where it currently has an asking price of just over £100.There are several other buy it nows on there too that also have the game, but again for beyond the retail price.

Better yet here is an actual unboxing of the limited edition and direct gameplay footage from pinkbullets.com. This video was only uploaded yesterday however, so there is still hope yet. Play-asia also have both versions of the game up for order, though they currently have no stock of the limited edition.

So what is going on? Much like many other I pre-ordered this game back in late 2011 and they have had my money, but it sure is taking a long time to show up for anyone, compared to previous releases from redspotgames. I want a raise of hands...who actually owns it?

This is a real shame because this game looks like it could by by far and beyond the greatest indie Dreamcast game yet, and really I just wanna play it.

The Ghost Blade teaser trailer!

Wow, the Dreamcast indie game scene is on fire lately! We now have gameplay footage from an early alpha build of Hucast's The Ghost Blade. The video features stage 4 including it's boss, and apparently more videos are on the way soon. Graphics are very nice indeed, though that sea animation looks a bit funky, but that's being worked on apparently. Also there is now both regular and special editions of the game to preorder at hucast.com, with the regular edition at 32 Euros and the special edition, limited to 1000 copies, which adds a soundtrack CD and different cover art is 50 Euros. They also still have the collector's edition with the soundtrack and super play DVD for the hardcore collectors.

Sturmwind releases tomorrow, launch trailer!

The long awaited Sturmwind from Redspotgames is the second new Dreamcast game of 2013 to release, or the first if you decide not to count Dux 1.5 as a brand new game, launching tomorrow! To hype us up there is a brand new trailer above, showing levels and bosses yet seen anywhere, and it's looking incredible. Looking forward to receiving this soon and will be bringing you a video of said arrival with an unboxing of the special edition and a first impressions look, direct feed this time, none of that pointing a camera at the screen stuff!

Dux 1.5 is shipping! Unless you pledged to the ReDux kickstarter..

Hucast Games revealed today that Dux 1.5 begins shipping out tomorrow, earlier than planned, so if you pre-ordered this expect your copy in the mail soon! If you pledged enough for Redux: Dark Matters on kickstarter to get that game with this one, apparently Hucast will not be shipping Dux 1.5 until Redux is out, as they are in a bundle box set I assume. A bit of a weird snag there; anyone that pledged any amount on the kickstarter gets discounts on the hucast store on everything so in theory I could buy it now at a discount, but I already technically bought it with Redux, but I guess I can wait for them both to arrive together, although a release date for ReDux is yet to be confirmed.

Dux 1.5 Trailer: Release date April 22nd

Looks like our first Dreamcast game of 2013 to ready to escape into the wild, though in this case it's not an entirely new game. Much like Last Hope: Pink Bullets, Dux 1.5 is a revision of, well...Dux, which came out back in 2009, and has made changes to make the game more balanced with adjustments to various gameplay elements, bug fixes and enemy patterns, instant re-spawn instead or re-loading from a check point, a new soundtrack and 'custom controls' which I assume means you can customize anything to any button.

The good news is if you already own the original Dux you can get your hands on this new edition. I;m not entirely sure how you go about claiming one but this is mentioned on hucast.com so if you log in from there and contact them they will let you know I would imagine. Also if you pledged to the Redux kickstarter you can get a discount on anything from their store, and if you pledged enough for Redux you will get Dux 1.5 as well.

The game has been revealed to be on it's way at the end of this month, the 22nd of April, although there is still no release date for Redux as of yet. As for wherever kickstarter pledgers will get this on street date or will have to wait till Redux is out, I'm just asked Hucast about that on Twitter..

Either way when this pops through the mail I will bring you a video including side by side comparisons with the 2009 release. I was pretty darn awful at Dux, so hopefully the changes will help go towards me getting further in it! :P

1500+ subscribers on Youtube? About time I posted something!

The Dreamcast Junkyard Youtube channel has been dormant for about 9 months now, since my Gunlord inside out video, and with over 1500 subscribers still about, it's about time I updated it! So here's a quick video about all the games announced to be releasing for the Dreamcast this year, which I will be featuring on the channel as soon as they arrive in the post, starting with Sturmwind at the end of April.

For this year of new content I thought it was about time I gave the channel a new lick of paint. I updated the channel design and in the video there is a new intro featuring that Dee Cee mascot I designed a while back. I'm also thinking about something for the 15th anniversary of the Dreamcast consoles Japanese release, but it's too early to say just yet. I did leave a clue though.

Sturmwind finally has a release date: April 24th!

Redspotgames announced on their Facebook page that Sturmwind now has a release date of April 24th. I pre-ordered this such a long time ago now, so I hope the wait has been worth it! Here's the press release in all it's cheesy glory!

We are under attack: Sturmwind pilots, fall in for saving the world in April 2013!

Antritt zur Weltenrettung!

The fierce enemy‘s troops have already reached our world‘s doorsteps and we are running out of time! Our reconnaissance drones have detected 16 promising locations for our search of „Mother“, the planet of our living ancestors. 

After several development steps by Duranik and redspotgames the launch date for your mission is clear. Sturmwind pilots, your all-dominant mission will begin on April 24th 2013. All documents will be sent to you until this very date.

Fight over 20 boss enemies in 16 levels. In addition to the so-called “Award Trophy System”, there will also be an internet highscore list in which your performance can compete against each other worldwide.

Your wings of steel are now our last resort. Stay ready for further instructions. Over and out.

This release date is for both the regular and limited editions. When the limited edition arrives I will be bringing you a unboxing and first impressions video! For the mean while, there is a preview article at That Darn Pixel that recently popped up, check them out! Also make sure to visit the Redspotgames Facebook for more details of the games development.

The Ghost Blade Announced! Neo XYX Trailer!

Hucast, while busy on the kickstarted Redux: Dark Matters, has ended up announcing another Dreamcast shooter! The Ghost Blade is a TATE style vertical shooter, so if they time it' release right we might get two at the same time, the other being Neo XYX from NG: Dev Team!

They have a deluxe special edition up for pre-order right now, which contains the game, an artbook, a soundtrack CD and a superplay DVD! It's quite pricey at 80 Euro, but a cheaper regular edition to due to be put up for pre-order soon. If you do want this one though they only have just over 100 copies left so be quick!

Going back to Neo XYX, NG:Dev Team has released a trailer of the game. I get a proper Toaplan feel from it, in particular games like Truxton, which is a-ok by me! This game is due out in June, and is up for pre-order on both limited and regular editions.

At this rate we are going to get hopefully SIX Dreamcast games this year: Sturmwind (eventually), NEO XYX, Redux: Dark Matters, DUX 1.5 and Pier Solar! Phew!

Let's get back up to speed! News! News! News!

Yikes, looks like the Junkyard of Dreamcast has started gathering dust and there has been quite a bit of Dreamcast news lately! Apologies on my part for having seen said news but not having time to type it all up here, time for a catch up!

For starters: Oh hey two new Dreamcast games were announced recently! First off is the latest from our friends at NG:DEV TEAM.. NEO XYX!

This will be a TATE scrolling shooter, with six stages and bosses, and like all their other games will be appearing on both Neo Geo and Dreamcast! There is only one, off screen teaser video of the game which you can check out below.

Pesonally I can't get enough of these classic style scrolling shooters, but I can imagine some people would want something different from the indie Dreamcast scene once in a while, so how about an RPG?

Those in the Sega fandom may of already heard of Pier Solar: it was the most ambitious indie effort on the Mega Drive/Genesis, a huge classic style RPG that was sold in very limited supply and now goes for three figure prices. Well Watermelon Co. have set up a kickstarter for a HD remake, which they plan to release on PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox Live Arcade and, most excitedly for us...the Dreamcast!

The graphics are being redone in high definition and while the Dreamcast is obviously not a HD console (by todays standards anyway), that version will be getting the same new graphics at 480p with VGA support. The disc will also include the original Mega Drive version too for those who missed out on the original (like me) and love the sprite art!

With 22 days to go the kickstarter is already 64% of the way and if you want to grab this game for your Dreamcast a $49 pledge will get you the standard edition, available in any Dreamcast region style packaging you choose to match up (PAL, US or Japan) with your shelf of games, and a $125 pledge will get you a collectors edition full of extra goodies in a big box set!

So er...how about those games still due? In the case of ReDux: Dark Matters, the other Dreamcast game that debuted on Kickstarter: it is apparently almost complete. According to the twitter account, anyway.

As for Sturmwind? Hmm, well, Redspotgames have not updated us about the status of that game since June, where they have a big Q&A about why the game is so delayed and the complications that have caused it's current 'TBA' date. It's a tad frustrating, but looking forward to the game when it's eventally released none the less. I just hope they update us on this soon.

UPDATE: According to Duranik's Facebook page the release date should be revealed in a few days as they are currently in the pre production test run. There is a new preview about the game here.

DCJY InsideOut: Gunlord Limited Edition

Here is a unboxing and first impressions video of the first new Dreamcast game of 2012 Gunlord, the limited edition version with the extra soundtrack disc! This might be the most beautifully presented release NG:DEV TEAM have done to date, with lots of stinning artwork all over it. The game is great fun too, the first level is really quite large and can take up to around 20 minutes if you explore it fully.

Since making this video yesterday morning when it arrived i have played it some more and got up to the boss of the 3rd level. The 2nd and 3rd levels were not quite as long or as large as the 1st unless I;m missing the alternative routes and the 2nd stage was a rather kick arse (but also kinda short and easy) scrolling shooter stage!

So first impressions are very good! Look forward to playing it some more!

Gunlord release date!

Just got an e-mail from NG.DEV.TAm about the release date for Gunlord! There are also reprints of Fast Striker and Last Hope pink Bullets on the way, in case you missed out on those before. Here's what the e-mail said.

finally after a long wait we can announce the official release dates for the Dreamcast versions of Gunlord.

Newcomer Bundle DC      21.06.2012
Gunlord DC Limited Edition  21.06.2012
Gunlord DC Double Bundle  21.06.2012
Gunlord DC Regular Edition 21.06.2012

The collector's edition needs a few days more time due to more complex packaging and printing. The three movie size posters of the CE are shipped separately a week or two later rolled in tubes.

Gunlord DC "Dragon Box" Collector's Edition [CE]  25.06.2012

Reprints:

Fast Striker 1.5 DC Regular Edition [Reprint]    19.06.2012
Last Hope Soundtrack Bundle      19.06.2012
Last Hope Pink Bullets DC [Reprint]      19.06.2012

 Looks like Gunlord will be the first 2012 release for the Dreamcast in gamers hands! Looking forward to it!

Sturmwind features in latest Retro Core

Retro Core is one of my personal favourite web shows about video games and is produced by Yakumo, the same man behind the excellent website Segagaga Domain. For the latest episode he has something special for us Dreamcast fans: a exclusive preview of upcoming redspotgames release Sturmwind! We get around 10 minutes of gameplay footage here, so if you were still on the fence about pre ordering this game, now we have plenty of footage to get a gist of what it will be like!

Personal opinion: I think it looks stunning and appears to be quite a fun mix of elements from all sorts of shmups like Gradius, Thunder Force and R Type. The production values are are simply unprecedented for an indie dreamcast game. I can't wait to get my mitts on this!

2012 Dreamcast game #3: Dux sequel Redux!

With Gunlord and Sturmwind due to released at some point this year, who would have thought we would get an announcement for a THIRD release for the Dreamcast in 2012? Sure enough, here comes a sequel to the 2009 shooter Dux. It looks to be pretty similar to the previous game but with much more fire power. What's really unusual is how this one is going about being released: with a kickstarter project.

For the project they need $25,000 pledged in a month to fund both the Dreamcast release, as well as releases for iOS, Playstation Network, Xbox Live Arcade and Stream, and finally a 4 disc soundtrack. Pledging $55 will get you the soundtrack, $65 would get you the Dreamcast game and $100 would get you both. Only 1000 copies of the Dreamcast game will be made, and this is the only way to grab one!

What's more, the game will be bundled with another game...an update to the original DUX! So if you never bought the original this is not a bad deal if the new version is as much of an improvement as Pink Bullets was to Last Hope!

It's certainly a first for the Dreamcast scene to have a game funded by the fans in such a way. Could this be how future Dreamcast projects come to fruition? Either way the Dreamcast even in 2012 STILL refuses to die, thanks to these slightly batty but brilliant developers who love the console so much.

Update: The $25,000 target has been met in just 5 days! You can still pledge for a copy of the Dreamcast version for another 25 days so if you're planning to grab it make sure you do before them days are over! Congrats to the Redux team for hitting their target and well done Dreamcast fan base for supporting this so well! :)

New Sturmwind screenshots. Phew!

Sega Portal has got their mitts on some new details on Sturmwind, the upcoming indie shooter from Redspotgames and Duranik, including the fact that the game box will have dual cover artwork, so if the big green octopus thingy is not your cuppa tea there is the flip side art of a pilot's helmet. Take your pick I guess!

If that's not enough they also obtained a whole slew of new screenshots, showing the newly revised hud amongst other improvements. You can check out the rest of the screens over at Sega Portal. Safe to say this game is looking rather good. I mean look at this mean fella of a boss!

Pre-rendered for sure but still massively impressive looking, especially when you see it moving. here's hoping it is fun to match! Still no solid release date yet but we'll keep you posted when we find out!

New Gunlord trailer and release date of 14th June!

NG: Dev Team have released a new trailer for their upcoming run and gunner Gunlord. Once again we get tons of gameplay footage (which if you rather be surprised by some of the level and enemy elements you may wanna skip through like I did) as well as the hilarious opening cut scene. You'll see what I mean. The release date is now confirmed for June 14th. Rather looking forward to this!

In other news Redspotgames have also announced that they can get back to work on Strumwind now that they have solved the issues they had with the production. So that's two DC games for 2012 on the way still! :)

Sturmwind delayed again!

Just heard this from redspotgames website. Bum cakes. 

In spite of best planing, the release of Sturmwind has to be postponed: Our long-term CD-ROM manufacturer surprisingly had to declare bankruptcy after 19 years in business. From 40 employees only a few remained. Therefore this resulted in the situation that the scheduled delivery date for Sturmwind could not be met in the end.

The only possibility has been to relocate the production – to avoid further delays of the bankrupt facility. Nevertheless items like the spaceship models have been completely manufactured already. Our new partner is one of the largest videogame CD / DVD press plants in Europe with over 50 years of experience in medium production. In the meanwhile we already placed our production order for Sturmwind. 

The release date is set to TBA (“to be announced”) consequently.

Details are currently clarified between redspotgames, Duranik and the new facility. Also we are arranging material for another announcement with more exact information within December, which will be after Christmas however. All orders in the redspotgames online shop will remain valid.

At least they've let us know why and this is clearly something that couldn't be prevented. Just more waiting I suppose, shame that this has now become a 2012 release but we'll eventually get to play it!