Thexder Neo Coming to PSP

Kris Erickson • Sep 23, 2009 • Comments ()

Do you know what's really retro? Thexder. The Game Arts classic, released in 1985, featured a mech that could transform into a fighter jet to maneuver through tricky enemy-filled levels. If you grew up in North America, you probably knew it as a Sierra computer game. The software publisher bought the licensing rights and released the game on a bunch of platforms including the Apple II and the Tandy home computer.

Like most retro arcade titles, Thexder was hard. Mazes were littered with tons of enemies that would swarm you and quickly whittle down your shields. Knowing when to transform into fighter mode was key to success, although death was almost a given. The original developers went on to make another little game called Silpheed, which was itself quite innovative in the shooter genre.

Somewhere along the line, Square Enix picked up the rights to Thexder, and the company is launching a new PSP game based on the original called Thexder Neo. Square Enix will be showing off the title at the Tokyo Game Show, but you can check out a trailer for the game below (it looks awesome). Fans also won't have long to wait: Thexder Neo is launching worldwide on October 1st via PSN.