A team of homebrew coders has released Warhawk DS, a reimagining of Firebird's Commodore 64 shoot'em up from 1986. Developed over five months, the game is designed to retain the "old school feel of the original" game without seeming too difficult for modern players.

"It is not an easy ride to clear the 16 levels," explains the group, "though a concession has been made for the modern-day gamer in the addition of continues."

Warhawk DS features 16 normal levels, and another 16 "mental" stages after the first set is completed. Shooting through the second set of levels will unlock the true completion and credit sequence.

You can read the team's release notes and download the game (playable in an emulator or on the Nintendo DS with homebrew hardware) at Headsoft.

[Via DCEmu]