RayStorm Reborn Next Week

Scrolling shooter fans have every reason to get fired up over Xbox Live Arcade next week, when Square Enix releases the remake of Taito classic shmup, RayStorm HD.

RayStorm HD takes the lock-on shooting action of Taito’s 1996 arcade game, slaps on a fresh coat of HD graphics, widens the playing field, and tosses in a new ship – the homing missile-firing R-Gear – for good measure. The remake features several different game modes, including Arcade, Extra, and an all-new Ranking mode.

McWhertor got his hands on the game at the Tokyo Game Show last year, and while it may have missed the “later this year” window mentioned in his preview, the authentic RayStorm game play should still be intact.

RayStorm HD will be available on Xbox Live Arcade next week for 1200 Microsoft points.