“Official launch of the perfected return of Shikhondo finally here!”

CFK :

- Eastern fantasy shoot’em up Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage gets global release to Steam on April 18th, 2024 (Thursday)!
- A perfected reworking of Shikhondo – Soul Eater, featuring a variety of improvements to gameplay and other elements
- Promotional discount to celebrate this release! Owners of the previous title can get up to 55% off!
 
Global game publisher CFK (headed by Chang-sig Koo) is proud to announce the global Steam release of the Easter fantasy shoot’em up game Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage today (4/18).
 
Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage, developed by Korean indie game company Deerfarm, is a vertically scrolling shoot’em up (bullet hell) game set to an Eastern background, centered around a plot where our protagonists must avoid the attacks of the youkai who have escaped from hell, collect souls, and then topple their foes with their powerful attacks.
 
● Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage official trailer
https://youtu.be/D9KyHbx784M
 
● Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage Original Soundtrack Sample
https://youtu.be/nKZM6o_v67c
 
● Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage Steam store page
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2712480/Shikhondo_Youkai_Rampage/
 
The team behind the 2017 Shikhondo - Soul Eater worked together with CFK to produce the ‘perfected version’ of this game as Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage by improving gameplay and adding in new modes to take the game to the next level, planning to continue its release to a new global audience from Steam to the Nintendo Switch™. Together, they plan to make the game more accessible to all players, from casual gamers to manic shooter enthusiasts alike.
 
After the announcement of this partnership with CFK, Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage was introduced to the world through various online and offline events, attracting attention along the way. This started in February with Steam Next Fest and the Tokyo Indie Games Summit 2024, continuing on to the April 6th Shoot’em Up Grand Showcase 2024 that was planned and operated by the Mikado Retro Arcade Center. In all the events, the game successfully introduced all the fun it had in store for gamers as a complete rebirth of the Shikhondo series.

● Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage Story

One day, the soul-starved youkai escape from the depths of hell.
 
Thus, the journey begins for the girl who fell into this other world by accident and the Grim Reaper who happens to encounter her along the way.
Seal away the resisting youkai with your powerful, ornate attacks!

   
● Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage game features

▲ A unique concept hard to find among indie, shoot’em up games
Created by Korean developer Deerfarm, Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage is a shoot’em up (bullet hell) game that tells the story of the protagonists who must seal away the youkai that have escaped hell, all set to an Eastern fantasy concept.
Among the popular shoot’em up series currently on the market, Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage stands out for having been created by a Korean developer and having a unique setting that’s hard to find among other games in the genre. In staying true to the shoot’em up genre, Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage features colorful bullet patterns and quick movement while also flavoring the game with new systems unique to this game.
 
▲ Reimagining Korean folktales and legends from a new perspective
Featuring the Shingiwonyo (신기원요/伸妓寃妖), Chang-gui (창귀), and other mythical creatures from Korean folk legend, Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage presents a creative reimagining of this material as it reworks the youkai from Korean traditional stories into bosses with uniquely grotesque designs.

▲ Soul Collect System
The ‘Soul Collect’ system allows players to gain souls every time they avoid attacks, gaining more souls the closer they get to enemy bullets. Once the Soul Gauge has been filled with souls, it can be activated.
Activating Soul Collect temporarily turns all bullets on screen into souls. If players make good use of this, they can use it to break past dicey encounters while also using it as an opportunity to gain a large amount of souls at once and earn more points.
With its feature of getting closer to enemy bullets to charge the gauge faster, the game presents a ‘high risk, high reward’ system that increases the danger in the moment.
 
▲  New modes and a new array of difficulties
Shoot’em up games are normally only focused on and held in high regard by serious fans of the genre, but Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage has expanded and adjusted the modes and difficulty levels of its base game to open up the fun of the game to more players.
- Game modes

1) Arcade: A mode for enjoying the classic shoot’em up experience
2) Boss Rush: A mode for taking on the bosses all in a row
3) Hardcore: A high difficulty mode that charges the soul gauge twice as quickly, but any damage will result in a game over
4) Novice: A mode that unlocks the bombs and life given as clear rewards
5) Dual: A new single player mode added to Shikhondo: Soul Eater Refine, allowing players to enjoy both characters by switching between the two when moving at lower speeds. This allows players to switch out and attack according to the situation or enjoy the co-op story through a new single player mode.  
- Difficulties
Difficulties range from Easy to Normal and Hard, with added Extreme and Story modes. The Story mode plays out like Extreme mode, but players avoid all damage, allowing them to enjoy flashy bullet hell gameplay in relative comfort.

▲ Reworked Customize mode
While Customize mode originally centered around choosing the Soul Gauge recharge method, this perfected rebirth of the game gives players the opportunity to enjoy the game according to their tastes. With this new reworking, they are presented with a new way to experience the game with a wide array of options. Check the added elements below.

 

1) Game mode: Can select either Arcade or Boss Rush mode
2) Soul Gauge type: Can choose one of existing Graze or Attack modes
3) Dual mode: Can toggle Dual mode on or off
4) Hardcore: Can toggle Hardcore mode on or off
5) Starting stage: Can select the starting stage  
▲ New content and Korean voice acting added
To increase the quality of Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage and add new content at the same time, this rework has added a new stage and Korean voice acting. >From the original five stages, the new rework adds one new stage, bringing the total to six stages to experience. In order to increase player immersion, new voice acting has also been added. The voice actresses chosen are popular voice actresses, extremely active in voicing animations in addition to games, and they are as follows:

The girl voiced by: Hyun-ji Kim
Grim Reaper voiced by: Si-u Bang  
▲ Providing a wide variety of game options
Game options in Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage can now be customized to a greater degree than before.
The game originally only allowed for the customization of music volume, sound effect volume, and language, but it now features new additions, including resolution, window type (windowed, full screen), screen angle adjustment, and language (subtitles available in Korean, English, and Japanese). In addition, players can adjust in-game play settings, including life count, bomb count, number of continues, and boss times.

▲ Various other features added
In addition to the wide variety of changes listed above, there are even more changes to Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage that will add enjoyment and accessibility to the game. In addition to the professional Korean voice acting, they will dramatically improve the quality of the game.

- New title illustration and game screens
- Added portrait screen mode for arcade gameplay experience
- New tutorial added with game system explanation
- Reworked miniboss designs starting at stage 2
●Key characters in Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage

1) The girl (Homing attack & induction type character): A girl who fell into a strange new world one day, forgetting even her own name. She begins her journey of hardship, fighting against the youkai in search of her hometown, family, and the memories she lost.

2) Grim Reaper (Straight attack & power type character): The celestial emissary performing her given duties by facing those whose grudges have turned them into youkai. She happens upon the girl and decides to join her to help.

 

 
CFK is holding a promotional discount event for Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage to celebrate its April 18th release. Gamers can purchase Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage at a 10% discount from the date of its release until May 2nd.
 
On top of that, CFK is offering an additional loyalty bundle promotion to celebrate the April 18th release of Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage for those who purchased the previous version, Shikhondo – Soul Eater. Those who purchased Shikhondo – Soul Eater can receive an additional 40% discount on the base Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage game and a 45% discount on the digital deluxe version that includes the game’s soundtrack.
 
Since these two promotions stack, owners of Shikhondo – Soul Eater can get up to a 55% discount on Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage during the discount period to celebrate the April 18th release of this new version. Following the release of Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage, sales will close for Shikhondo – Soul Eater on October 14th.

In cooperation with CFK, Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage, the completed rework, is coming to Steam and Nintendo Switch™, dropping first to the globe on Steam today (4/18). The Nintendo Switch™ version of Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage is planned to be announced at a later date.
 
● Screenshots

● Product information
Title: Shikhondo: Youkai Rampage
Platform: Steam, Nintendo Switch™
Genre: Eastern fantasy manic shooter
Release date: Steam – April 18th, 2024 (Thurs.) / Nintendo Switch™ – TBA
Price: $14.99 USD
Supported players: 1 player
Supported languages: English, Korean, Japanese
Publisher: CFK Co., Ltd.
Copyright information: ©2024 Deerfarm. All Rights Reserved. Published by CFK.
 
● CFK Official Channels
Official homepage: https://www.cfk.kr/
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