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Zanrai Interactive is bringing its four-player couch multiplayer mecha battling game Stardust Vanguards out on PC this week. It’s available on Steam and the Humble Store for Windows and Linux at $9.99.
Each player is suited up in a high-speed mecha before taking to a 2D space battlefield. Each player’s mecha can attack with a sword for up close attacks, fire auto-targeting machine guns with limited ammo, and reflect bullets back at enemies with a well-timed boost.
They also have the ability to earn and summon numerous reinforcements to help take out the other players, adding a dash of bullet hell to the mix. The idea is to capture the precise combat and overwhelming chaos of style “old-school anime space operas,” according to the game’s creators.
Upping the ante is the Stardust Vanguard’s random event system. At any point during a battle, computer-controlled space pirates can invade the screen and try to take out each player. It’s possible for the space pirates to win the battle if they’re not taken out so it may require that the players call a temporary truce to take them out before battling each other once again.
Find out more about Stardust Vanguards on Zanrai’s website. You can also listen to and purchase the soundtrack on Bandcamp.
