Sega has just announced a fistful of oldies – and, in a couple of instances, goldies – for re-release on Xbox LIVE Arcade and PlayStation Network this summer.

Gunstar Heroes (XBLA, PSN) is our definite pick of the bunch. This run n’ gun platform/shooter from madcap Japanese developers Treasure impressed, nay dazzled all upon its 1993 Mega Drive release. Indeed, the merest mention of the game still has the ability to make grown men who really are old enough to know better start wibbling like over-caffeinated infants. In short we recommend that you check it the heck out when it’s released.

Also worth a butcher’s is the side-scrolling brawler, Altered Beast (XBLA), which sees players romping through swathes of mythical baddies, transforming from man to toothsome bestial monstrosity along the way. It’s not quite as exciting as it sounds, but it still raised a grin back in the day.

The other vintage offerings are all bound for XBLA only and are decent enough, if rather less crucial. Shinobi is a standard-form ninja battler of some residual repute. Phantasy Star 2 is a 20 year-old RPG with all the ropey visuals and creaky action entailed therein. Comix Zone was innovative but rather unsung, dumping players into the panels of a comic book in order to save the world from some insidious threat or other.

Finally, Sonic the Hedgehog 3(XBLA) is a decent high-speed romp of the style that made the series rightly famous. It’s also the game that unleashed Knuckles the Echidna onto a wholly unsuspecting gaming public. And if that doesn’t sate your appetite for superfluous marsupials Sonic and Knuckles (XBLA) rounds off the package in late summer, and allows owners of Sonic #2 or #3 to access a bit of extra bonus content.

All of the above are part of what Sega has imaginatively called the ‘Vintage Collection 2’. They’ve all been tweaked to support high-definition display too, with additional Leaderboards and online network play in most instances – although not for Phantasy Star 2, Shinobi or Comix Zone.

Prices and precise release dates are still TBC. The Wii version of Gunstar Heroes goes for 800 Points, though, so we reckon a fiver or so a pop would be fair.