Omega Five

It's warming to see huge developers of the 8-bit to 16-bit era going back to their old ways thanks to XBOX Live Arcade. Hudson Soft created some legendary titles in the past including that cheeky chappie Bomberman and this game is equally retro. With many iconic scrolling shoot-em-up franchises laid to rest or whored out to handheld compilations the market needs fresh blood and with Omega Five Hudson Soft have delivered an entire blood bank.

Ditching the tried and tested 'space ship blasting through the cosmos' routine the game places you in control of a hero on a jet pack. It sounds bizarre but throws new tricks into the mix. Choosing one of four characters including grandmaster samurai Sensei or Ruby, a lingerie-wearing J-Popper this already reeks of Japan and benefits from it. The visuals bleed colour without being too crayola-iffic and the sharp HD presentation looks excellent. It looks and feels like a proper arcade game and retro fans will lap it up.

The control method is so simple that it becomes easy to stay focused on the thousands of enemy bullets spreading around the screen so your hands never trip up in the heat of battle with left stick controlling movement and the right controlling firing direction. Characters use separate weapons like lasers or homing missiles and these can be upgraded up to three times by collecting floating power-ups. Choosing a firing style that suits your method of play is important and will make or break your progress so choose wisely.

Each character has different abilities and these mix up the gameplay. Ruby is accompanied by a satellite which is chained to the back of the jet pack. When fired at an enemy she concentrates her fire at them regardless of which direction of attack you press. This is handy for getting some of the bigger enemies out of the way first although leaves you open for attack on other sides. Alien brawler Tempest has three completely different weapons including flamethrowers and acid sprays while Sensei unleashes sword attacks while hurling throwing stars.

With each character completely altering up the game's formula slightly there is a wealth of replay value. Typical smart bombs are accompanied by a neat move where your character enters another dimension for a few seconds that drains health yet leaves you free to pass through enemy fire. These features make for a very tactical but not too overbearing experience. In addition, the psuedo-3D nature of the levels and their gorgeous scrolling backdrops is a feast for the eyes with funky futuristic music to boot.

Omega may not appeal to everyone, few demo plays will leave probably leave you interested and perhaps slightly confounded. Though those that persist / succumb will find one of the best XBLA games so far, Hudson have delivered a small modern day classic that oozes character.