Dreamcast Shooter Sturmwind Heading To Nintendo Switch

Another day, another Dreamcast-related shooter pops up on the Nintendo Switch eShop. This time, coming absolutely out of nowhere, it's Duranik's much-loved Sturmwind. Sturmwind hit the Dreamcast way back in 2013 after initially starting life as a project for the Atari Jaguar CD titled Native - indeed, there are fleeting references to Atari's maligned system hidden throughout Sturmwind.
Following the likes of Ikaruga, Zero Gunner 2 and Gunbird 2, Sturmwind EX for Nintendo Switch looks to be something of a 'remaster,' with improved screen resolution and totally redrawn graphical assets. The Nintendo Switch version will run at 1080p (docked) and at 60fps, while the upcoming Xbox One version will be full 4K, according to Duranik.

Though Sturmwind was originally released back in 2013, it was given a re-release in 2016 on Dreamcast and time has been kind - it's still as much of a blast to play now in 2019 as it was back when it first came out. This new Switch port has been handled by Duranik and is published by b-alive GmbH - the same outfit which published the recently released Steam version, as well as such gaming behemoths as Equimagic: Gala Show of Horses and Farm World. Hmmm.

Sturmwind EX features ripped directly from the Nintendo website (although I've removed the multiple typos and added some punctuation):

In Sturmwind EX you can play mission mode with all 16 levels, saving your progress with every finished level, or play arcade mode with 6 levels and no continues. Other features include:
  • 2 different game modes: mission mode and arcade mode
  • 16 Levels
  • 3 difficulty levels
  • Different weapons selectable
  • Upgradeable weapons, drones and different weapon-/drone-formations
  • Additional super weapons like super beam and smart bombs
  • More than 20 large boss enemies
  • Hundreds of different enemies
  • Achievements, Highscore and Level statistics
  • Customizable user interface
We've covered Sturmwind here at The Dreamcast Junkyard multiple times, and even interviewed Johannes Graf, the man behind Duranik a few years ago, so it's pretty safe to assume we're pretty big fans of the indie shooter.
Sturmwind EX releases on Nintendo Switch on Friday 8 November 2019 and is priced at £11.69. No word on a physical release yet, but we'll be sure to give it the same Dreamcast/Switch comparison treatment as we did with Ikaruga, Gunbird 2 and Zero Gunner 2.

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6 comments:

DCGX said...

I'm surprised it took this long. It was a great exclusive for a long period of time, but now more people will get to play this great game, at least.

Blondejon said...

Great article, even though i amn not and have no intention of being a switch owner its great to see titles that began life on our beloved dreamcast getting the chance to reach a new generation of gamers.

Also, missed you mate, nice to hear you on the podcast today :)

Tom Charnock said...

Thanks man, it was cool being back on the DreamPod after all this time!

Outlaw said...

Cool to have the option to play Sturmwind on the go. I still play it every now and then on the DC. :-)

hoogafanter said...

Wasn't a huge fan of the Dreamcast version but I also didn't give it the time of day it deserves. Might have to revisit it next chance I get...

Unknown said...

The game is great on the switch, but just for the record, the game is also out for xbox one. Also, if anyone wants to play it handheld, it runs gloriously in Reicast. I can hardly see a difference between it playing on dc or on my jxd s6800, an old android conslle.