Tales Gear HD Remake Brings Absorb-and-Counter Bullet Hell to Steam
The remake trades pure dodging for an aggressive absorb-and-counter system built around the Tail Pod, which is the series' first Steam release and could widen the bullet hell audience beyond original fans.
Reporting from 1 source: Game Spark.
Tokyo Game Dungeon 13 featured Tales Gear HD, a remake of BLUE&WHITE's 2007 shooter. The 2.5D vertical-scrolling bullet hell adds a Tail Pod system that converts absorbed enemy fire into power-ups and counterattacks. Developer Morikemu confirmed it is his 11th work and his first Steam release.
Tales Gear HD keeps the 2007 original's core premise: a former corporate soldier named Herman Arnold pilots the prototype Dinosaur Tail through a world five years past a war between the Unified Forces and Astraltech. The remake rebuilds the game in 2.5D with full 3D models and HD arrangements of every BGM track.
The defining mechanic is the Tail Pod, an option weapon that deploys a shield around the craft. Instead of only dodging, players block barrages and convert absorbed energy into power-ups and counterattacks, pushing play from passive evasion toward diving into fire for fuel. The system demands quick calls on where to raise the shield and when to release stored power.
Developer BLUE&WHITE's Morikemu, who has made shooters since the doujin software era, called this his 11th work and his first Steam release. The game supports keyboards and various gamepads, with a clearly visible hitbox for precise positioning.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.