Publisher Clear River Games and City Connection have announced a western release for Under Defeat, the 2000s Japanese shoot ’em up game set in World War II.
Under Defeat is coming west sometime this fall for Switch, PS4, and PS5 both at retail and digital stores. The previously announced PC (via Steam) and Xbox versions are coming later, and will be digital only. The Japanese release also just confirmed for a December 5th, 2024 release.
Under Defeat’s modern re-release will include new features and content with the big re-release, including:
- New songs added! (Boosted) with a new BGM set composed by Shinji Hosoe himself
- Contribution and rank display function!
- Communication / subtitle display function!
- +More
Here’s a rundown on the re-release:
Under Defeat plunges the gamer into an alternative history where all-out war has erupted across the fictional ‘continent’ and players battle against their mortal enemies ‘The Union’ in a nail-biting fight for survival.
The development of this new release is being handled by City Connection, valued partner of Clear River Games, under supervision by Takehiro Eda and Zerodiv Fukushima Factory, renowned in the shooter community for their high-quality ports of classic games.
Originally released in Japanese arcades in 2005 via G.rev’s arcade release, Under Defeat has the player assume control of a weapon laden helicopter as they manoeuvre across a semi-isometric playfield taking on a non-stop barrage of enemy airborne and ground-based combat vehicles. Renowned for its impressive 3D graphics and high intensity gameplay, Under Defeat now arrives on modern console platforms with no less than three game modes designed to suit the gamers’ preference and supervised by G.rev.
Arcade Mode faithfully replicates the original arcade experience, presenting the game in a 4:3 ratio and a pseudo vertical screen, for the purest possible representation of the game. New Order Mode adapts the game for modern displays, transforming the adrenaline packed shooting action to widescreen 16:9 ratio, and New Order Mode+ brings a host of additional elements to the game, not least being a ‘WARNING GAUGE’, which adds a risk/reward mechanic to assist the player as they shoot, bomb and swerve through the hordes of enemy invaders. All modes have access to a choice of four unique helicopters to pilot into battle, each with different attributes and weapon systems. In addition, this new release also features newly added practice features for each mode, along with a choice of all 3 existing soundtracks, and a new Boosted soundtrack by video game music veteran, Shinji Hosoe (Ridge Racer series, Tekken series, etc) and his company, Super Sweep.
