“Who on Earth wants to play a game based on fish oil”, were our first thoughts when we initially heard of Omega Five. Then of course we realised that we were being complete idiots, as we were actually confusing Hudson’s new shooter with Omega 3, which of course is something quite different. One thing that isn’t different in Omega Five though is its control scheme. Like virtually every other Xbox Live Arcade game, Hudson’s shoot-’em-up uses one analogue to move and the other to fire. Luckily, while the control method is about as exciting as the thought of a sequel to Two Worlds is entertaining, the actual gameplay is surprisingly good fun.

Omega Five is a good old-fashioned shoot-’em-up. This of course means that everyone without a vested interest in the genre is going to see it as pointless as it’s easily completed with the available credits. However, like those idiots who dismissed Street Fighter III because it was in 2D when every other game was whoring itself out to the third dimension, they’ve already missed the point.

Shoot-‘em-ups are all about getting through the game on a single credit and continually memorising attack patterns, while learning their often intricate score multipliers. In this respect Omega Five succeeds admirably, and boasts finely honed gameplay that’s only beaten by its ridiculously beautiful graphics. Oh, and before any of you write in and say the collision detection is rubbish because bullets go through your characters legs, they’re supposed to. It’s called a hitbox.

Honestly, we’re already crying for the many people that just aren’t going to get this brilliant blaster.