A few months ago Microsoft announced that a number of former import shooters would be making their way to Xbox Live Arcade, one of these titles being Ikaruga, of former Dreamcast and Gamecube fame, which was basically the second Radiant Silvergun. Triggerheart is another one of these titles and is the first one to hit Xbox Live Arcade.
Originally released back in 2007 on the Dreamcast (yes, a newer Dreamcast game), this title has been faithfully ported to the Xbox 360. It's an import shooter in the finest accord as it’s the type of title that attempts to throw as many bullets at a player as is possible.
There are two characters to choose from, Exelica or Crueltear. Exelica is more of the new player type character as she has a spread-styled fire. Crueltear is just that — cruel, as she is stuck with the straight shot. Both rates of fire are the same, it is just a matter of which style you prefer. The twist in this shooter is the anchor system. It’s basically a leech cable that "hacks" the enemy characters so you can use them as weapons. It’s an interesting feature, a little confusing at first, but very effective as you understand how to use it.
The graphics are straight out of the Dreamcast, no slowdown and bright colors. The sound effects and music are repetitive, but given the short length of the title they don't become annoying. Short is an understatement; it's about 15 to 20 minutes from start to finish. Scoring is a bit different as you have a typical score as well as a coin score which is a bonus point system. It's also part of the unlockables in the game, as few as they are. It’s almost like the game was designed for the Xbox; online leader boards and achievements are the only true replay value.
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