How Mega Man X4 and Gunstar Heroes Influenced DekaDuck

Developers reveal how Mega Man X4 and Gunstar Heroes helped shape DekaDuck’s gameplay, combat, and overall design.

As shown off during the May 2026 Insider Gaming Showcase, DekaDuck is a retro-inspired action platformer. With a demo currently available on Steam, players can get a feel for the experience of escaping the Intergalactic Police with Dr. Less.

DekaDuck Developers Cite Mega Man X4 and Sega Genesis Classics as Influences

As part of the Insider Gaming Showcase, representatives of Asteristic Game Studio were interviewed by our Executive Editor Mike Straw. Programmer Andre Silva discussed how Mega Man X4 served as the prototype for DekaDuck.

“For DekaDuck, the main inspiration when we started it was Mega Man X4; the whole game, the prototype, was exactly like Mega Man X4 because I really liked it, but when I saw the potential of it — we tried a lot of things. We tried having DekaDuck’s weapons be like a shooter like Contra.”

Furthermore, he spoke about the Sega Genesis, known as the Mega Drive globally, serving as an inspiration for the title. Specifically, games made by Treasure, such as Gunstar Heroes. A portion of the demo was directly pulled from the 1993 classic.

“The beginning part of the demo, there are a lot of enemies coming at you. I took that from Gunstar Heroes. So everything we love about those games, we’re trying to put together to make our own with it.”

DekaDuck currently has no release date. You can Wishlist it and check out the demo on Steam. To check out a comprehensive list on Steam of all the games featured at the Insider Gaming Showcase on May 28, click here.

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