Update (Thu 12th Jan, 2023 14:30 GMT): Zvitor announced on Twitter yesterday that his promising fan game Golden Axe Returns will be released on PC on the 17th of January. So, there's not long now to wait!
The game is being made using OpenBOR, the open-source 2D-sidescrolling engine, and will see the return of familiar characters from across the series like Sara Burn, Tyris Flare, Ax Battler, and Kain Blade. You can watch some recent footage of the game in action below. The following two videos demonstrate the game's co-op mode:
Original article (Thu 29th Sep, 2022 13:00 GMT): Golden Axe is one of Sega's most popular arcade series, so it's a bit of a shame that we haven't seen an entirely new game in the series since 2008's much-maligned Golden Axe: Beast Rider. Nevertheless, for fans chomping at the bit for new experiences, it seems like there are a ton of great fangames to dip into, which brings us to the topic of today's article.
Recently, on YouTube, the developer ZVitor showed off an impressive demonstration of a new fangame he's been working on, Golden Axe Returns. The game shows the fan-favorite Amazonian warrior Tyris Flare as she battles through wave after wave of Longmoan soldiers with the use of her fists, swords, and fire attacks. A second video posted the day after, meanwhile, gave us a better look at the rideable Chicken Leg, a creature that originally debuted as an enemy in another Sega game Altered Beast before turning up in Golden Axe and Golden Axe 2.
Over on his Twitter, ZVitor has also been sharing development images. These include a closer look at the sprite for Ax Battler and images of the various mounts we'll see in the game.
So far everything is looking promising, which shouldn't really be a surprise given ZVitor's other fangames. In 2021, he released an impressive game based on the Dungeons and Dragons Animated Series, and he's also created numerous comic book tie-ins for stuff like Marvel Infinity War and Justice League Legacy. We can't wait to see what he'll be able to accomplish with this new Golden Axe fangame.
Given ZVitor's track record, we expect this to launch on PC when it's complete. You can keep up to date with the development - which again, is still early days - on ZVitor's Twitter or on their YouTube.
What do you think of the footage? Is this one you'll be keeping an eye on? Let us know in the comments!
[source youtube.com]
Comments 12
Can we puh-leeese get a re-release of the original arcade version of GA1 and Revenge of Death Adder? I don't know if the sequel ever made it to consoles, and I believe the original is stuck in limbo because it uses voice samples from Rambo/Conan... 😓
What a great series. A reboot a la Streets of Rage would be very welcome.
Where did Tyris get the hairspray she needed for that Genesis cover in the barren wasteland in which the game is set? This looks pretty cool. My problem with OpenBOR stuff when I tried it was finding stuff that was complete and worth playing. Plus I also since lost track of something I tried and wanted to revisit. With that said, thanks to this being highlighted here, I'll definitely look into it. It's kind of exciting too.
Looks kinda cool but also reminds me of the Udon SSF2 HD from 2008ish. At first it was cool but after a short while I was thinking "I miss the real sprites."
I'm kinda surprised no one has converted the Capcom AD&D beat 'em ups into a Golden Axe game.
@Hikingguy Are you implying that Ax Battler isn't all natural there? Gilius Thunderhead assured me personally that he was.
@Hexapus I see what you're saying, though obviously the difference between Street Fighter 2 and its HD remake were much bigger so that effect was more pronounced than it is here for me. I assume this is made at a higher resolution, thus the need to enlarge the characters. Overall, I think they stayed mostly true to the original spirit of those designs. It also looks to me like they tweaked Tyris Flare's sprite since earlier videos as the character looks better to me in the most recent video compared to the earlier one I saw.
@sdelfin I agree that the newer video looks better. Don't get me wrong, it looks like they did an amazing job putting this together. However, in my opinion the sprites look a little cheap and more cartoon like, which could work with the right pixel artist but I think they missed the mark.
It might be higher resolution and have more animation but it's kind of a step backwards in terms of aesthetics. I guess I'm saying this looks more like a fan game and less like a beloved Sega arcade game.
I wonder how easy or possible it will be to get this working on steam deck
I've got to give this a go just to keep my profile thumbnail happy!
@Stocksy According to Reddit OpenBOR runs on Steamdeck. I have a RG351P with OpenBOR on it and that device is not as advanced as a Steamdeck.
@Hexapus thank you, I’ve just looked into it and apparent emudeck has an openBOR folder in it and you can just drop games in there similar to the other systems I have used on there. This is welcome news. I will definitely have a poke about at some point.
I was super impressed how easy emudeck was to set up on it
Cool stuff. Really don't know why devs like this don't just make "spiritual successors" rather than straight up use an existing IP. They can try to monetise it then which given the effort they put in I think they deserve.
Nothing wrong with doing it as a hobby of course and good on them but yeah, I can't wrap my head around putting so much work in given the huge risk of receiving a cease and desist once you go live.
This looks great. Love the original Golden Axe.
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