Ikaruga on Steam - User reviews, Price & Information

Shoot! Dodge! and... Get Hit!? "Ikaruga" is a vertical shoot 'em up that features an unique polarity-switching gameplay. Switch the ship's polarity and "get hit and absorb" enemy bullets! Achieve High Score with the chain bonus!

Ikaruga is a shoot 'em up, bullet hell and arcade game developed by and published by Treasure.
Released on February 18th 2014 is available only on Windows in 2 languages: English and Japanese.

It has received 2,214 reviews of which 2,097 were positive and 117 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.0 out of 10. 😍

The game is currently priced at 8.99€ on Steam.

The Steam community has classified Ikaruga into these genres:

Shoot 'Em Up Bullet Hell Arcade Classic Action Great Soundtrack Shooter Sci-fi Difficult Indie Local Co-Op Addictive 2D Singleplayer Retro Space Co-op Controller Local Multiplayer Puzzle

Media & Screenshots

Get an in-depth look at Ikaruga through various videos and screenshots.

System requirements

These are the minimum specifications needed to play the game. For the best experience, we recommend that you verify them.

Windows

OS *: Windows 8 / 7 / Vista / XP
Processor: Intel Core2 Duo / Athron64 X2
Memory: 1 GB RAM
Graphics: DirectX 9.0c support (256 MB VRAM)
DirectX: Version 9.0c
Storage: 512 MB available space
Sound Card: DirectX 9.0c support

User reviews & Ratings

Explore reviews from Steam users sharing their experiences and what they love about the game.

Feb. 2025

Incredibly difficult, but it's seminal for its innovation. From a casual perspective, your ability to play offensively or defensively with the mode switch is immediately intuitive. Also incidentally, the best concept art of any shmup -- even if it has "I'm not regret" printed on top.

Dec. 2024

It's a little too difficult for its own good at times - I'm mostly talking about stage 4 to be honest lol - but Ikaruga holds up really well, despite how short it is! It's got a fantastic sense of style, very polished presentation and fittingly bombastic music. But msot of all, (most of) its level design is actually very clever, and pushes you to think about your next move isntead of merely dodging the many bullets, making for some sort of puzzle/shmup hybrid that's honestly pretty addictive! That, coupled with the fun scoring system, makes Ikaruga fun to play, die to, and replay over and over! Again, it only having four and a half stages and some of its design really bordering on unfair on Normal and above stops it from being one of my faves... but I'm glad I got around to beating it without unlimited continues <3 it was worth it :3

Nov. 2024

"I will not die until I achieve something. Even though the ideal is high, I never give in. Therefore, I never die with regrets."

Oct. 2024

"Don't worry, we will understand each other someday." I felt like this was the game talking to me, after dying for what felt like hundreds of times on my first playthrough. I took this comment to heart. I thought, maybe, if I kept playing, the game and I would end up understanding each other. Because we didn't really click at first, I misunderstood how the Energy gauge worked, I didn't even realize I could release it for an attack, I didn't interact with the chain system, I didn't bother reading about the story, didn't know the extent of the polarity mechanic; we were still strangers to each other, but I was intrigued. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I became obsessed after that first playthrough and started learning everything I could about this game. I read the story, learned about the characters, I learned about the different buddhist themes and references this game has, read up about Treasure, the connection to Radiant Silvergun, watched superplays, looked at the beautiful art (really, look at it, it's some of the best video game art out there imo). I just became enamored with how much soul this game radiated. Going from clueless to understanding the game inside and out was a transcendent experience. I have a hard time thinking about gaming experiences that were as satisfying as realizing that I could, after a few attempts of failing miserably, /survive/ and get a bunch of chains in Chapter 4, when I thought beforehand that this was utterly impossible for me. I understood what the game wanted to tell me, I understood what it asked of me, and knowing that, I was able to give it what it wanted. I finally felt in sync with Ikaruga, as if the game and I were working together, rather than against each other. I had never even enjoyed a shmup before playing this game, but it's quickly become one of my favorite games of all time. It's an infinitely replayable masterpiece, and I can't see myself getting tired of it anytime soon. It will always have a place in my heart.

July 2024

This game will rip your balls off with its difficulty. The scoring system sucks, but can be oddly fun in certain moments since you have to be more methodical in your shooting. Only recommend this title for gamers who have patience and quick reflexes. I have neither.

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Data sources

The information presented on this page is sourced from reliable APIs to ensure accuracy and relevance. We utilize the Steam API to gather data on game details, including titles, descriptions, prices, and user reviews. This allows us to provide you with the most up-to-date information directly from the Steam platform.

Additionally, we incorporate data from the SteamSpy API, which offers insights into game sales and player statistics. This helps us present a comprehensive view of each game's popularity and performance within the gaming community.

Last Updates

Steam data	07 April 2025 21:04
SteamSpy data	09 April 2025 22:07
Steam price	13 April 2025 12:42
Steam reviews	11 April 2025 12:06

If you'd like to dive deeper into the details about Ikaruga, we invite you to check out a few dedicated websites that offer extensive information and insights. These platforms provide valuable data, analysis, and user-generated reports to enhance your understanding of the game and its performance.

SteamDB - A comprehensive database of everything on Steam about Ikaruga
SteamCharts - Analysis of Ikaruga concurrent players on Steam
ProtonDB - Crowdsourced reports on Linux and Steam Deck Ikaruga compatibility

8.99€

9.0

2,097

117

Online players

Publisher

Treasure

Release 18 Feb 2014

Platforms