Xyanide Preview

When thinking of genres that seemed to skip over the Xbox, one immediately comes to mind; RPGs, but most people probably don't even think about shooters, arguably one of the most niche genres in the 21st century. No, not first- or third-person shooters, shmups of course! Recent critical hits include Ikaruga and Gradius V, but those are on the GameCube and PS2 respectively. The Xbox in Japan has seen some, such as Psyvariar and Shikigami no Shiro (known as Castle Shikigami in the U.S.), but the localization of Castle Shikigami was cancelled, for obvious monetary reasons. So, where does that leave us, well, with Xyanide of course! The oft-delayed shmup is finally making its way to the Xbox, but how does it stand up and more importantly, how does it play?

Before even getting into Xyanide, there is a relatively lengthy CG cutscene that clocks in at over seven minutes! So if you've got an itchy trigger finger, you can skip it, although I do highly recommend that you watch it at some point. The story of Xyanide isn't really a necessity in order to enjoy the game, as it's a shmup, but you play as Drake, a space pilot whom is selected to escort a witch named Aguira to a black hole when things go wrong. An asteroid made up of xyanide collides with the ship and Aguira is now full of power thanks to the xyanide, not to mention very angry, so what else could you do in a situation like this, other than shoot a lot of stuff?

The unique part of Xyanide comes into play when the game combines 2D shooting with 3D, because not only are the backgrounds 3D, but you will be moving in 3D at certain points in the game, adding an entire new layer of depth and challenge to the game. Shooting is done similar to games like Geometry Wars, where the left analog stick moves and the right analog stick shoots. Like Ikaruga, there are two modes of fire (mechanic and organic), which are easily changed by hitting the right trigger. Each mode of fire has its own advantages and disadvantages; organic is more suited towards the smaller enemies, while mechanic is better suited for stronger enemies and bosses. In addition to these modes of fire, missiles are included and can even be aimed after pressing the left trigger to select them. The face buttons will allow you to use different specials; defensive, offensive, support and shielding.

Like most other shmups, Xyanide is no walk in the park, you’ll be fighting throughout six levels, with your choice of five difficulty settings. Two-player support is here, and in addition to the expected co-op play is counter-op play, another fairly unique feature of Xyanide. Xbox Live support comes in the form of Scoreboards, but unfortunately there is no online multiplayer. The blending of 2D and 3D is easily the best and most distinctive feature of the game. In the end, Xyanide is a unique and approachable shmup and the first and last one on the Xbox, fans and non-fans of the genre should both check the game out.