Terra Galactica
Terra Galactica is a horizontal shoot 'em up for the Game Boy Advance. It is currently in development by Shadowsoft Games.
Gameplay
Gameplay takes place over seven stages, many containing two boss enemies and a selection of routes for the player to take.
Terra Galactica breaks with shmup convention in a variety of ways. Most notably, it is one of few shmups to include a 'health bar', allowing the player to take multiple hits before being destroyed - something often discouraged in the shmup community for being difficult to balance and often too easy. To compensate, five difficulty levels have been implemented to allow a wide range of players to enjoy the game. Another unusual feature is the weapon system, which allows the player to choose a selection of five weapons to use in a stage, from a planned total of fifteen. This is intended to give a greater strategic depth, distinct from the power-up oriented systems found in many games of the genre.
Shadowsoft Games is also planning to include single and multi cartridge cooperative multiplayer for every stage.
Customization
The game has a notable ship customization system in-place which allows the player to choose various parts of the ship to suit their own tastes. This system allows for over 200,000,000 different possible ships. From the screenshots released on the website, it is clear that there are 24 possible colours and 57 types of 'booster'. There is also a random ship generator.
Graphics
The game utilizes a unique graphical style blending cartoon and realistic scenery. All sprites have a black outline, giving it a cel-shaded feel and increasing visibility for users of the original Game Boy Advance. However, the typical flat colours employed in cel-shading are ignored in favour of more detailed artwork.
Music
The music is being composed by The Vodkatron Sound Team, most notable for their efforts in other shooter music such as 'Ride the Boss'. A sample of their compositions for Terra Galactica are available on the website.