Dig Dug drilling into DS

According to the latest issue of Famitsu, Namco is bringing a new installment of its Dig Dug series to the Nintendo DS. Titled Dig Dug: Digging Strike, the game is slated for release in Japan on September 8 at the price of 5,040 yen ($47).

Digging Strike will effectively be a combination of Namco's classic Dig Dug and Dig Dug II with updated graphics and gameplay additions. The game's top screen shows an overview of an island like Dig Dug II, and it acts as the map for each of the stages. The original Dig Dug II let the player sink a part of the island by directly drilling the land and creating a huge long crack, and the objective in Digging Strike is pretty much the same. You need to make a long crack through the island to sink a part of the land, and then you need to drown the stage boss to advance to the next level.

However, the method in making the crack is a bit different from Dig Dug II. Instead of directly drilling the land, you'll need to go underground to sink in the huge stakes that are located throughout the island. There are a number of holes on the island that lead you to the underground, and when you enter them, you'll control your character in the classic side-view underground screen from the original Dig Dug. You'll be able to see a huge stake extending from the surface, and your objective is to dig underneath it so the stake will fall and cause a crack on the island. Meanwhile, you'll also need to beat the enemies that come at you by digging passageways and then luring them beneath falling objects or by inflating them until they pop like balloons. Furthermore, be careful that enemies don't grab any of the food located throughout the underground. If this happens, they can send it to the surface, where the stage boss will eat it and evolve into a more powerful form.

Fortunately, the game features various power-ups, such as a boxing glove that lets you punch an enemy to the other side and a lighting bolt that stuns any nearby enemies. There's also a bonus item that lets you summon the main character from the Mr. Driller series (the son of Dig Dug's player character), who will help out by appearing on the surface in various forms, depending on what kind of item was picked up. In one screenshot, he's seen shooting at enemies on the surface in a spaceship similar to those in Namco's classic shooter Xevious.

Digging Strike also features a two-player mode in which the player's objectives will be to collect more coins than his or her opponent.

Development on Dig Dug: Digging Strike is currently 80 percent complete.