Sengoku Cannon gunning for Japanese PSPs

Psikyo's Sengoku Ace series hasn't seen much action since the last game in the franchise was released nine years ago, but the psychic shooter is due for a revival this summer. According to the latest issue of Dengeki PlayStation, the third installment of this popular button masher is destined to reach Japanese PSPs this July. Titled Sengoku Cannon, the game will be published by Xnauts, which acquired Psikyo in 2002.

Sengoku Cannon will be a side-scrolling shooter, similar to the second game in the series. Players will use beams and bombs to blast through each stage, and holding the fire button down for a few seconds will charge up a supershot. The game will also feature an even more powerful attack called the cannon shot.

Sengoku Cannon will reward players who overpower enemies with bonuses that accumulate according to how much posthumous damage they inflict on foes--the more damage delivered after death, the more bonus points they'll receive.

Two characters returning to Sengoku Cannon are the one-eyed blond samurai Ein and the female shaman Koyori. The game also features two new characters: Mizuka, a girl who is a disciple of the monk from Sengoku Ace Episode 2, and Masamitsu, a young master who's out to find his missing fiancée. Sengoku Cannon's artwork will be drawn by Jun Tsukasa, the artist behind the previous games in the series.