Tempest 2000 successor TxK in development for PlayStation Vita, says Jeff Minter

Developer Jeff Minter is bringing a successor to classic Atari Jaguar game Tempest 2000 to PlayStation Vita under the name TxK, according to an update on the Llamasoft website.

Minter wrote that he's long thought about revisiting Tempest 2000, which was released in 1994, calling it "one of the best games Llamasoft ever made." The developer says he'll be taking a back to basics approach with TxK.

"We're going to base it on the essence of the original T2K," Minter explained. "It'll be the pure, straightforward shooter that maybe you hoped for when you first saw [Xbox Live Arcade game] Space Giraffe. We're not going to overload you with ultra psychedelia, but we will make it fluid and colourful and awesome-looking on the Vita's delicious, vibrant OLED screen.

"We're going to give you a perfect treat for your eyes, ears and thumbs with a modern extrapolation of one of the best shooters ever made on hardware that's just perfectly suited for it, and in a way that retains the purity of the original design."

Llamasoft does not provide a release date, but Minter said he'll be chronicling the game's development on his blog.