Konami Revisits Rocket Knight Adventures For XBLA, PSN

The retro revival streak at Konami has already spawned a handful of new downloadable releases: Gradius, Contra and (soon) Castlevania have all been given the "ReBirth" treatment. Konami will also be revisiting Rocket Knight Adventures, but in a different fashion.

Unlike the ReBirth revivals, the newest Rocket Knight, as revealed by 1UP, will be given a 3D graphical makeover, staying true to its 2D gameplay roots. And unlike previous Konami retro spin-offs, this one's coming to Xbox Live Arcade, the PlayStation Network, and PCs via Steam.

For those unfamiliar with the Rocket Knight Adventures series and its armored opossum protagonist Sparkster, the mascot-starring original spawned over 15 years ago on the Sega Genesis, with two follow up titles quickly following. The side-scrolling platformer (and occasional shoot 'em up-like) was designed by Nobuya Nakazato, responsible for some of the strongest and most difficult entries in the Contra series.

According to 1UP's report, the Rocket Knight sequel is being developed by Climax Studios, the UK development team that created Silent Hill: Origins and Silent Hill: Shattered Memories for Konami. Further details and a handful of high res images of the newest Rocket Knight can be seen at the 1UP reveal.

Rocket Knight Preview [1UP]