WELCOME TO THE [REDACTED] ZONE! GET READY...?
ININ Games had given us the green light to post this news and it is in my honor to announce the release date for Air Twister, led by the legendary Sega AM2 director, Yu Suzuki. Originally released on Apple Arcade in 2022, this rail shooter pays homage to other rail shooters of the 80s and 90s. But this isn't just any "homage to retro shooters," as Yu Suzuki himself had worked on this title. Fans of his previous works can already see the influences of Space Harrier in the one-and-a-half-minute trailer as trails of beams fire from the protagonist's gun much like the one from the 1980s arcade classic.
According to the synopsis, players will take control of Princess Arch as she fights over twenty unique enemies and bosses over twelve stages to save her home. While Air Twister will release on all consoles, I have high hopes that the quality of performance will be relative across all major platforms. One of my major complaints about Panzer Dragoon Remake was its inconsistency on the Nintendo Switch compared to other platforms. As Air Twister is a port of a mobile game via Apple Arcade, fans may finally get their rail shooting fix on portable devices.
Air Twister's music score will be composed by Dutch composer Valensia, consisting of a mix of original work and revised renditions of his previous works. There will also be bonus modes and features to keep the replayability high while also keeping up with its influence as an "old-school arcade title." As a personal fan of Yu Suzuki's works, growing up with Virtua Fighter, Shenmue, and other arcade titles he has worked on, it's always great to see a veteran still making games decades later. I checked out Hi Fi Rush and made the argument that despite the game having an "indie" feel, it's not "indie" as it was directed by a series veteran, Shinjji Mikami. This is an inverse of that point. YS Net is very much an "independent studio" despite being run by one of the greatest designers of our time.
As I've also said in the Hi Fi Rush piece, that's perfectly fine! Whether it's a veteran or a newcomer, indie or backed by large studios, seeing new games by creative minds that have been etched into our childhood is always pleasant to see. While this is meant to be an announcement trailer, I would like to talk about Space Harrier as this is the prime influence of Air Twister. Developed by Yu Suzuki and released in the arcades in the 1980s, the player went through various stages and defeated aliens ranging from a giant dragon to floating Moai statues.
It was very weird and I've only played the game through the "You Arcade" in Shenmue, the game's "in-game arcade" that allowed players to engage in minigames. Two of his previous games, Space Harrier and Super Hang-On were included and the player could even unlock the games permanently on their...Sega Saturn...released in-game in the late 1980s apparently. Look, Shenmue was easily one of my top five games of my childhood but I will never understand why such an out-of-place product was included. If we were keeping in context with the time, a Master System would have been a much better choice.
Space Harrier would receive a console port on the Master System and a console-exclusive sequel on the Mega Drive as a launch title for the Sega Genesis. While Air Twister could be considered the game's true "spiritual successor," there was one arcade-exclusive sequel, Planet Harriers. Console ports were rumored to be in development but it never happened and unless Suzuki-san and SEGA reach an arrangement, it may remain as an arcade-only title. That's another topic for another day, but for now here are more screenshots for Air Twister.
Air Twister releases on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on November 10, 2023