Japanese developer PiXEL announced it’s developing a new horizontal Shoot’em Up titledWing of the Asteria, coming to PC, Steam, and Switch in 2021.
The character design and artwork was handled by Shuzilow.HA (Shujirou Hamakawa) an artist and animator who worked at Konami onTwinbeeandGaiapolis. When it comes to anime, he worked on series such asSPT Layzner, Dream Hunter Rem, orSeirei no Moribito. He was also the Character Designer and Chief Animation Director ofSolty Rei, an anime which already aired 15 years ago now, reminding me how fast time passes by.
The BGM inWing of the Asteriawas handled by Kawagen (Yoshinori Kawamoto) of the Bandai Namco Entertainment Sound Team. Kawagen previously worked onPheliosandBurning Force.
All the games we’ve cited had a typical Japanese Bishoujo aesthetic, as in cute anime girls with sexual fanservice to some extent, so it’s not surprising to seeWing of the Asteriahas the same feel to it. While we haven’t seen any actual gameplay yet I’m already pretty interested thanks to that oldschool feel.
Wing of the Asteriais based on Greek mythology. The playable protagonist is Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, who shoots with a bow and rides a pegasus in battle. She wishes to save her lover Orion, who died following the plotting of Apollon, her brother who wouldn’t accept their relationship. This also triggered a great disaster endangering both the realms of the gods and the human world. One mid-boss, Gryphon, was also revealed:
Wing of the AsteriaArtwork:Artemis, Orion, Gryphon
PiXEL’s works includeHorgihughon Switch andSteam, another horizontal shoot ‘em up.
It also developedEnryuu Seiken Xiaomei,a 16bit stylized Beat’em all on PC.
PiXEL also handled the music ofSaiaku Naru Saiyaku Ningen ni Sasagu,an ADV by Kemco on PS4, Switch, iOS and Android in Japan.
Lastly, it also organizedan eventon July 12, 2025 for the 30th anniversary of PC-8801mkIISR RPGEmerald Dragon, with Charadesigns by Akihiro Kimura, who was present at the event.
Old shmup games are regularly newly released on Switch, but it’s not often we hear about a brand new game. The only example that immediately comes to mind is Granzella’sR-Type Final 2.I don’t know about you, but one discussion often coming back in French otaku circles is why Japanese developers don’t make as many Shmup and Danmaku games as in the past. I have an online friend who always summarize the situation pretty well, it’s simply that people stopped buying these games, despite the vocal fans’ presence. Everything is a matter of money in the end, and companies don’t take the risk.
Anyway, I wishWing of the Asteriaall the best and will be keeping an eye on it personally. More details will be coming onPiXEL’s Twitter.
