Traverse USA (c) 1983 Irem corporation.

An excellent motorcycle racing game.

Enjoy the wind of American landscape, accelerating hard your motorbike across highways and desert roads, evading the rivals cars and obstacles on challenging narrow roads and curves, and take a good amount of fuel, to finish the race before running out of fuel!

The levels (and cities) are:
Los Angeles,
Las Vegas,
Houston,
St. Louis,
Chicago,
New York.

The 3 engine classes in this game are: 500 cc, 750 cc and 1200 cc. The higher the engine class is, the higher the speed is, but the motorcycle is harder to control.

The Las Vegas -> Houston and St. Louis -> Chicago stages are ridden across deserts, where the remaining stages - on asphalt roads.

- TECHNICAL -

Irem M-52 hardware

Main CPU: Zilog Z80 (@ 4 Mhz)
Sound CPU: Motorola M6803 (@ 894.886 Khz)
Sound Chips: (2x) General Instrument AY8910 (@ 894.886 Khz), (2x) MSM5205 (@ 384 Khz)

Players: up to 2 (alternate)
Control: 2-way joystick
Buttons: 2
[A] = accelerate, [B] = brake

- TRIVIA -

Traverse USA was released in June 1983. Exported to the USA as "MotoRace USA" with license for Williams electronics inc. Another export release is "MotoTour" licensed to Tecfri S.A.

Later re-released as "Zippy Race". The title can be changed in dip switches, from Traverse USA to Zippy Race.

The speed unit is also changeable in the switches, from a mile per hour to a kilometer per hour.

The engine classes are written in a cubic centimeter, independent on the release.

- TIPS AND TRICKS -
* Hold both buttons to temporarily block speed. Release to go back to normal speed.
* The bike will ride (a bit) slower on desert roads even on the asphalt parts leading to cities.
* You can't control your bike or speed when jumping on desert roads. You can regulate the speed when performing a wheelie (on asphalt), though.
* You'll be unable to finish 1st after 500 cc class: the enemies are also faster.
* You'll get a full tank after a class completion (reach New York), so you may finish with half fuel.
* Watch out for trucks on deserts: the drivers throw barrels down the off-road. Overtake the trucks.

- SOURCES -

Game's ROM.
Machine's picture.

Game Center 12: The Tower of Druaga (c) 1986 NAMCOT (Namco ltd label for home releases).

Portage of their arcade game. 12th and last title of their Game Center series. See the coin-op entry "The Tower of Druaga" for more information about the game itself.

- TECHNICAL -

Players: 1
Controls: arrows, 4 ways
Keys: 1
[SPACE] = wave the sword

- TRIVIA -

The portage was released in October 1986. The 1984 copyright year refers to coin-op game published in June 1984.
This portage uses generic font used in the first games for MSX. Completion of floor #60 throws back to the title screen, showing no credits or any ending message.

- SOURCES -

Game's ROM.
https://www.mobygames.com/game/19625/the-tower-of-druaga/releases/#msx

Game Center 04: Warp & Warp (c) 1984 NAMCOT (Namco ltd label for home releases)

Portage of their arcade game. See the following entry: https://www.arcade-history.com/?n=warp-and-warp&page=detail&id=3142 for more information about the game itself.

- TECHNICAL -

Players: 1
Controls: arrows, 4 ways
Keys: 1
[SPACE] = shoot (when in space) or deploy a bomb (when in maze)

- TRIVIA -

This portage was published in February 1984. The 1981 copyright year refers to coin-op version of Warp & Warp published in July 1981.

- SOURCES -

Game's ROM.
https://www.mobygames.com/game/19634/warp-warp/releases/#msx

Game Center 03: Galaxian (c) 1984 NAMCOT (Namco ltd label for home releases).

Portage of their endless arcade game. See the coin-op entry (https://www.arcade-history.com/?n=galaxian&page=detail&id=901) for more information about the game.

- TECHNICAL -

Players: 1
Controls: arrows, 2 ways (horizontal)
Keys: 1
[SPACE] = shoot

- TRIVIA -

Namco published this MSX portage in January 1984. The 1979 copyright year refers to the coin-op original version published in October 1979.

- SOURCES -

Game's ROM.
https://www.mobygames.com/game/137/galaxian/releases/#msx

Game Center 10: Star Destroyer Bosconian (c) 1984 NAMCOT (Namco ltd label for home releases)

Portage of their arcade game. 10th title of their Game Center series. See more information about the game under the following entry: "Star Destroyer Bosconian (upright model)".

- TECHNICAL -

Players: 1
Controls: arrow keys, 8 ways
Keys: 1
[SPACE] = shoot

- TRIVIA -

This portage was published in July 1984. The 1981 copyright year refers to the coin-op game released in November 1981.
Due to MSX's limitations, the 'Blast off!' command is low quality. All the other speech files (spy ship sighted; battle station; alert alert; condition red) are removed.

- SOURCES -

Game's ROM.
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/msx/934737-bosconian

Magic Jewelry (c) 1990 RCM Group.
A "Columns" clone developed in Taiwan. Match 3 (or more) identical tiles in either vertical, horizontal, diagonal or even all combined.

- TECHNICAL -

Players: 1
Controls: d-pad 3 ways
Buttons: 1
[A] or [B] = swap tile

- TRIVIA -

Magic Jewelry was published in November 1990.
The music played throughout stages is mostly known and copyrighted. Only Jaegerchor (known in English as Hunters' chorus) and Greensleeves (a Medieval folk song) are now in public domain.
Level #000 plays 'All kinds of everything' originally performed by Dana Rosemary Scallon; the song was a winner of 1970 EuroVision held in the Netherlands.
Level #001 plays remixed 'Happy Chinese festival' (also known as 'China festival') originally performed by Chen Yang.
Level #002 plays 'Descendants of the dragon' originally performed by Lee Chien-Fu.
Level #003 plays 'Rise from your grave' originally performed by Tohru Nakabayashi.
Level #004 plays >Hunters&#39; chorus< (or Jaegerchor) originally performed by Carl Maria von Weber.
Level #005 plays &#39;Moonlight on the Colorado&#39; originally performed by Dick Robertson.
Level #006 plays &#39;Greensleeves&#39;; it&#39;s not known who originally wrote or performed it.
Level #007 plays &#39;Speak softly, love&#39; performed by Andy Williams. The last tune is taken from &#39;The Godfather&#39; film.

- TIPS AND TRICKS -
* Don&#39;t litter the playfield: swap the tiles as often as you can. You&#39;ll get a game over when you forget to swap any tile. It&#39;s not a Tetris-style game requiring you to remove lines.
* Special blocks appear every 70 jewels. They remove all the jewels of that type touched first.
* See the hidden RCM&#39;s logo: At the game over screen, hold [Select] + [d-pad right] then press [Start] to see the developer&#39;s logo screen. Press [Start] again to continue the game with the same statistics (score, jewels and current level). CAUTION: This is a cheat!
* The game will start after the word &#39;jewelry&#39; scrolls letter after letter, which takes roughly 40 seconds, so get the pad into your hands quickly.

- SERIES -
1. Magic Jewelry (1990, November)
2. Magic Jewelry II (1991)

- STAFF -

Developed by: Hwang Shinwei

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.
https://handwiki.org/wiki/Software:Magic_Jewelry
https://tcrf.net/Magic_Jewelry

Arcade game. https://angrybirds.fandom.com/wiki/Angry_Birds_Arcade

Assistent 128 (c) 1989 Iskra

- SOURCES -

Machine&#39;s bios.

Pirate

Ame Rug (c) 1980 Shoei.

Shoei bootleg of Atari&#39;s "Atari Football [2-Player model]".

- TRIVIA -

The title of this game is an acronym for American Rugby.

- SOURCES -

Machine&#39;s picture.

Space Invaders (c) 1978 Taito.

Space Invaders is quite simply the most influential video-game of all time. A single player moves an armed &#39;laser base&#39; left or right along the bottom of the screen and shoots the endless waves of aliens marching relentlessly down the screen towards earth.

There are four buildings (shields) at the bottom of the screen that the player can hide behind, but these will eventually be destroyed by either enemy missiles or by direct contact with the invaders themselves. The player&#39;s shots will also destroy the shields.

The aliens&#39; descent quickens as they are eliminated, making them harder to hit. A flying saucer will fly across the top of the screen at regular intervals and can be shot to earn extra points.

- TECHNICAL -

Main CPU : Intel 8080 (@ 1.9968 Mhz)
Sound Chips : SN76477 (@ 1.9968 Mhz)

Players : 2 (alternating)

Control : 2-way Joystick
Buttons : 1 (FIRE)

The game uses a trick that Taito, Midway and others had used in the &#39;70s to get around simpler graphics. The monitor laid flat inside of the machine, it&#39;s reverse image bouncing off of the angled glass above. Behind that was artwork. This "psuedo-holographic" effect made it appear as though the invaders were floating above the moon scene.

- TRIVIA -

Space Invaders was released on June 16, 1978 in Japan. It was also available as a cocktail model known as "T.T Space Invaders".

The development of Space Invaders only took three months, but developing the programming environment alone took almost six months.

Since 1980, it has been stated that Space Invaders was so popular in Japan, that it caused a yen shortage and more coins had to be minted. Research into this claim cast doubts as to the veracity of the story, as the Japanese mint has no evidence supporting this claim. It may have come from individual locations running short on coins, and that being blown up into a nationwide phenomenon. Regardless, the game was still extremely popular, leading to reports in Japanese media of juvenile delinquency - but not of coin shortages.

Many regular produce and goods stores in Japan removed their products and converted into Space Invaders parlors overnight, complete with giant speakers broadcasting the &#39;thump-thump-thump&#39; of the marching invaders. A true classic in every sense of the word.

As one of the earliest shoot&#39;em ups, Space Invaders set precedents and helped pave the way for future titles and for the shoot&#39;en up genre. Space Invaders popularized a more interactive style of gameplay with the enemies responding to the player controlled cannon&#39;s movement, and was the first video game to popularize the concept of achieving a high score, being the first to save the player&#39;s score. While earlier shooting games allowed the player to shoot at targets, Space Invaders was the first in which targets could fire back at the player. It was also the first game where players were given multiple lives, had to repel hordes of enemies, could take cover from enemy fire, and use destructible barriers, in addition to being the first game to use a continuous background soundtrack, with four simple diatonic descending bass notes repeating in a loop, which was dynamic and changed pace during stages, like a heartbeat sound that increases pace as enemies approached.

Space Invaders contains the first attract mode with a sense of humor. It would first display &#39;PLAY SPACE INVADERS&#39; with the &#39;Y&#39; in &#39;PLAY&#39; upside-down, and an invader would come along taking the offending upside-down &#39;Y&#39; and carrying it off the screen, and then coming back with the &#39;Y&#39; right side up and putting it back in place. The invader would then disappear from the screen. The attract mode would also display &#39;INSERT CCOIN&#39; and an invader would come along and bomb the offending extra &#39;C&#39;.

There are exactly 55 invaders per screen and exactly 11 different in-game sounds.

Space Invaders was the first arcade game to work its way out of seedy arcades and into pizza parlors and ice cream shops.

An upright unit of the Taito release of Space Invaders appears in the Nazareth music video &#39;Holiday&#39;.

Export (Licensed) releases:
"Space Invaders [Model 739]"
"Space Invaders [Model 775]"

- UPDATES -

Clone "CV Version" uses the same color monitor and color generator board as "Space Invaders Part II", where anything not black will turn red during the explosion of the player&#39;s laser base once the player has been hit by enemy fire (during actual gameplay only, not during attract mode).

- SCORING -

Large Invader : 10 points.
Medium Invader : 20 points.
Small Invader : 30 points.
UFO : 50 to 300 points.

- TIPS AND TRICKS -

* When you start the game, your laser base will be in the bottom left corner of the screen, below the buildings. Your goal is to blast the invaders into dust. Keep in mind that once the invaders make it to either the right or left edge of the screen, they will drop down a row and head in the opposite direction. You should plan your strategy to prevent them from making it to an edge.

* A good strategy is to start blasting out the columns on the opposite edge of movement. This is if the invaders are moving right, they start blasting out the leftmost columns first. This way, their return trip is longer and you have more time to deal with them.

* Do not attempt to hit the invaders dead center. They fire their laser bombs from dead center and your shots will collide, wasting your shot and letting them move closer to an edge.

* Speaking of shots, you can only have one shot out at a time so make it count.

* Use your buildings to your advantage. &#39;Peek&#39; around buildings to get shots and blast a hole in the middle of your buildings to give you protection while you knock out columns of invaders. Keep in mind, this protection will only last about two columns before the invaders blow open a hole wide enough to destroy your laser base.

* Every other wave of invaders starts one row lower. Eventually, the waves will start one row above your buildings. Be prepared to do some fast shooting to keep them from getting any lower because once they reach your level, the game is over.

* When you are down to taking out the last invader on a wave, that invader will zip across the screen. The strange thing is that the invader travels faster going left to right than going right to left. Keep this in mind when trying to shoot it.

* The mystery saucer (or UFO) will appear at random times. If you have a good shot at it, try to hit it. Don&#39;t go out of your way, however, to go after it; it isn&#39;t worth the risk or time wasted.

* The Hidden Message Trick : To get the hidden message, you must do the following :
1) When the demo starts, you need to press the following keys at the same time on the machine : LEFT, RIGHT, FIRE, 1P START, 2P START.
2) Continue to press these keys rapidly as fast as you can.
3) If you are successful, the message (&#39;TAITO CORP&#39;) will appear under the high score.

* Shot Counting Trick : To get 300 every time you hit the mystery saucer. It is named the &#39;Furrer Trick&#39; named after Eric Furrer who perfected it. To do this trick, perform the following :
1) Once the new level begins, start counting the shots from your base.
2) When you have fired 22 shots, stop shooting and wait for the mystery saucer.
3) Use the 23rd shot to blast the mystery saucer.
4) After this, start counting shots again, this time count only to 14.
5) Use the 15th shot to hit the mystery saucer.
6) Continue using the 14 shot rule until the level is finished.
7) At the next wave, start with the 22 shot rule, then use the 14 shot rule to finish that wave.
8) Remember, all shots count regardless of hits or misses.

* Eric Furrer writes : Here&#39;s a variant of the Counting Trick that most people don&#39;t know and it&#39;s the exact trick I used to play that darn game for 36 hours over 20 years ago. The shot count trick works great for level 1,2,3 but you can&#39;t use 22-14-14 counts for mystery ships on the 4th wave because the invaders are too low. If you wait around for the ship after 22-14, then the invaders will be down too quick and you will surely die. Most players at this point do a 22 count and abandon the remaining 14 counts and just clear the board. This slows point accumulation.

My solution is simple and the shot count works in progressions as well : On the 4th wave count 22, wait, and clobber the 300. Now instead of counting 14, shoot the 29 invaders in the bottom rows and get the ship. Now the invaders are high enough to do two more 14&#39;s.

Here&#39;s the grid for rolling the machine&#39;s score in about 6 minutes by the forth wave using 29. Otherwise, you&#39;d have to wait until the 5th wave. Seems minor, but it saves 30 seconds per roll, which could mean a 30 minute lead against a good player on a head to head speed match, a difference of about 50,000 points!

1st wave - 22, 14, 14, 14, 14, 14 (bonus = 3000 + 990 = 3990 first wave)
2nd wave - 22, 14, 14, 14 (bonus = 1200 + 990 = 2190 total score now = 6180)
3rd wave - 22, 14, 14, 14 (bonus = 1200 + 990 = 2190 total score now = 8370)
4th wave - 22, 29, 14 (bonus = 900 + 990 = 1890 total score now = 0260 or 10260) (if you counted 22, 14, you couldn&#39;t get the 3rd 14 without severe risk of death row)
5th wave - 22, 29, 14 (same as 4th wave)
6th wave - 22, 14
7th wave - 22 14
8th wave - 22
9th wave - 22

Then back to the first wave!!

- SERIES -

1. Space Invaders (1978, ARC)
2. Space Invaders Part II (1979, ARC)
3. Return of the Invaders (1985, ARC)
4. Majestic Twelve - The Space Invaders Part IV (1990, ARC)
5. Space Invaders DX (1994, ARC)
6. Akkanvader (1995, ARC)
7. Space Invaders Virtual Collection (1995, Virtual Boy)
8. Space Invaders X (2000, PS)
9. Space Invaders Anniversary (2003, ARC)
10. Space Invaders DS (2005, DS)
11. Space Invaders - Galaxy Beat (2005, PSP)
12. Space Invaders Extreme (2008, DS/PSP)
13. Space Invaders Extreme 2 (2009, DS)
14. Space Invaders Frenzy (2017, ARC)

- STAFF -

Designed & programmed by: Tomohiro Nishikado

- PORTS -

NOTE: For ports released outside Japan, please see the Midway upright model entry.

* CONSOLES:
[JP] Atari 2600 (1983)
[JP] Sega SG-1000 (1985) "Space Invaders [Model G-1045]"
[JP] Nintendo Famicom (apr.17, 1985) "Space Invaders [Model 01 TF-4500]"
[JP] Nintendo Virtual Boy (dec.1, 1995) "Space Invaders - Virtual Collection [Model VUE-VSPJ-JPN]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (jul.28, 2005) "Taito Memories Joukan [Model SLPM-66057]" : Color version
[JP] Sony PS2 (aug.25, 2005) "Taito Memories Gekan [Model SLPM-66092]"

* HANDHELDS:
[JP] Bandai WonderSwan (1999)
[JP] Sony PSP (may.12, 2005) "Space Invaders Pocket [Model ULJM-05015]"

* COMPUTERS:
[JP] MSX (1985)
[JP] Sharp X68000 (1989)
[JP] NEC PC-9801 (1992)

* OTHERS:
[JP] VFD handheld game (19??) by Gakken

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.
Game&#39;s picture.
Game&#39;s cabinet
All In Quarter For A Quarter Blog Post "Video Game Myth Busters - The Space Invaders Yen Shortage"
F.A.Q. by Kevin Butler A.K.A. War Doc

- DESCRIPTION -
Sega beena game.
- SOURCES -
https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Best_Wishes:_Intelligence_Training_Pok%C3%A9mon_Big_Sports_Meet!

- DESCRIPTION -
CoCoPad game.
- SOURCES -
https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pocket_Monsters_Advanced_Generation:_Pok%C3%A9mon_Super_Drill_Let%27s_Learn_Numbers_from_1_to_20!!

- DESCRIPTION -
Made by BAFCO LTD. in the 1980s, this ride had a mini sized train that had a smile on it.

- TECHNICAL -
Runs on the Sound Master for sound.

- TRIVIA -
Amutec and Jolly Roger also made Mini Trains, but a Bafco one has a smile on it.

- DESCRIPTION -
Nintendo 3DS game.
- SOURCES -
https://m.bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Picross

- DESCRIPTION -
NDS Download Play game.
- SOURCES -
https://m.bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9Park:_Fishing_Rally_DS

- DESCRIPTION -
Unreleased Game Boy Color game.
- SOURCES -
https://m.bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Picross_(Game_Boy_Color)

Redemption video game

Rescue Ron [Model WMH-206RR] (c) 2008 Wu Mar Harng Enterprise Company, Limited.

Redemption video game

Mug Stop [Model WMH-206MS] (c) 2008 Wu Mar Harng Enterprise Company, Limited.

Redemption video game

Interstellar Brick [Model WMH-206IB] (c) 2008 Wu Mar Harng Enterprise Company, Limited.

Redemption video game

Brave Navigator [Model WMH-206BN] (c) 2008 Wu Mar Harng Enterprise Company, Limited.

Released in USA as "Pirate Pete!"

Medal video game

Tropical Chance (c) 1999 Konami Co., Ltd.

- TRIVIA -

Released in August 1999.

Super Speed Race (c) 1977 Taito Corp.

The 4th game in Taito&#39;s &#39;Speed Race&#39; series, now in full color. Zoom along the highway and avoid oncoming traffic to get as far as you can, just like in the original.

This came in a sit-down cabinet with a vertical oriented monitor.

- TRIVIA -

Released in Japan in December 1977. This and Fisco 400 were Taito&#39;s first full color games, although Fisco was just a clone of Atari&#39;s Indy 4.

This was Taito&#39;s first sit-down driver.

Export releases:
Released in North America by Midway as "Super Speed Race [Model 762]" (November 1979), although that one was technically Super Speed Race V.

- SERIES -

1. Speed Race (1974)
2. Speed Race Deluxe (1975)
3. Speed Race Twin (1976)
4. Super Speed Race (1977)
5. Super Speed Race V (1978)
6. Speed Race CL-5 (1980)
7. Super Speed Race GP V (1980)
8. Super Speed Race Jr. (1985)

DS game. 9https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICarly_2:_iJoin_the_Click!

Wii game. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICarly_2:_iJoin_the_Click!

Attack (c) 1976 Taito.

A military shooter where players shoot on-screen enemy vehicles including tanks, jeeps and trucks. The graphics were slightly similar to Taito&#39;s Western Gun.

There are a pair of mounted guns on the cabinet with nicely designed shells.

- TRIVIA -

Released in September 1976.

This is possibly the very first video game to employ parallax scrolling, where layers of the playfield scroll by at different distances and speeds.

The guns were nicely detailed and were a precursor to the types of games that are seen in modern arcade games.

This was also the first instance where Taito placed the monitor in the bottom of the cabinet and by using an angled mirror, created an illusion of depth.

- SOURCES -
Game&#39;s Flyer
Japanese video showing the game in action

Terra Cresta (c) 1985 Nichibutsu.

Terra Cresta is a vertically-scrolling shoot-em-up set over a scrolling landscape of islands and enemy installations. The player pilots the &#39;Wing Galibur&#39; and is under constant attack from enemy spaceship waves, ground-based guns and turrets, dinosaurs and three up to different mothercraft ships.

Ground-based silos bearing numbers appear at regular intervals, these can be shot to release a ship upgrade component, which then attaches to the player&#39;s current ship, increasing both its size and firepower. Every numbered component the following abilities:

1 (Alpha): This is the Wing Galibur, the default craft and the fleet&#39;s lead ship. It fires twin projectiles from the front.

2 (Beta): This doubles both the Galibur&#39;s firepower and its size.

3 (Gamma): Ship number three gives the Galibur tail guns, enabling it to shoot behind as well as in front.

4 (Delta): The fourth ship provides a concussive beam that tears through smaller enemies and inflicts greater damage on larger enemies.

5 (Epsilon): The fifth ship generates a force field behind the Galibur, protecting it from attacks from the rear.

Using the &#39;Formation&#39; button splits the ship components into a wide formation for limited time, giving increased fire power. The number of parts acquired determines the formation. For example, if the player has picked up two ship parts then a triangle is formed, with the player&#39;s main ship at the rear of the formation. During this, the components are invulnerable to all enemy fire, while Wing Galibur itself is not and if the Galibur itself is hit, the player will lose a life

When all four numbered parts have been collected, the player&#39;s ship transforms into a firey Phoenix and is indestructible for a limited time.

- TECHNICAL -

Main CPU : Motorola 68000 (@ 8 Mhz)
Sound CPU : Zilog Z80 (@ 4 Mhz)
Sound Chips : (2x) Yamaha YM2203 (@ 4 Mhz), (2x) DAC

Screen orientation : Vertical
Video resolution : 224 x 256 pixels
Screen refresh : 60.00 Hz
Palette colors : 256

Players : 1
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 2
=> [A] Shoot, [B] Formation

- TRIVIA -

Terra Cresta was released in November 1985.

You can become a phoenix like in the title screen if you collect all the ship parts :).

Pony Canyon / Scitron released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (G.S.M. Nichibutsu 1 - D28B0004) on September 21, 1988.

- UPDATES -

New version uses a YM3526 (@ 4 Mhz) sound chip instead of a YM2203

- SERIES -

1. Moon Cresta (1980)
2. Terra Cresta (1985)
3. Dangar - Ufo Robo (1986)
4. Terra Force (1987)
5. Terra Cresta II - Mandoraa no Gyakushuu (1992, NEC PC Engine)

- STAFF -

Staff : Shigeki Fujiwara, Isao Shiki, Hisaya Tsutsui, R. Yamada
Music composed by : Kenji Yoshida

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
[JP] Nintendo Famicom (September 27, 1986) "Terra Cresta [Model NBF-TC]"
[US] Nintendo NES (March 1990) "Terra Cresta [Model NES-TQ-USA]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (October 27, 2005) "Terra Cresta [Oretachi Geasen Zoku] [Model SLPM-62661]"
[JP] Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] (November 20, 2014) "Arcade Archives - Terra Cresta [Model CUSA-01254]"
[AS] Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] (May 14, 2015) "Arcade Archives - Terra Cresta"
[US] Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] (May 19, 2015) "Arcade Archives - Terra Cresta [Model CUSA-00983]"
[EU] [AU] Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] (September 15, 2015) "Arcade Archives - Terra Cresta [Model CUSA-02658]"

* COMPUTERS:
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1986)
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum (1986)
[US] [EU] Commodore C64 (1987)
[JP] Sharp X68000 (November 20, 1992) "Moon Cresta + Terra Cresta [Model DP-3205023]"

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s picture.
Game&#39;s ROMs.
Game&#39;s screenshots.

Rabio Lepus (c) 1987 V-System.

- TECHNICAL -

Main CPU : Motorola 68000 (@ 8 Mhz), Zilog Z80 (@ 4 Mhz)
Sound Chips : Yamaha YM2151 (@ 4 Mhz), UPD7759 (@ 640 Khz)

Players : 2
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 2

- TRIVIA -

Released in September 1987 in Japan.

This game is known in US as "Rabbit Punch".

The main character appears as a secret character in "Aero Fighters 3".

- UPDATES -

Cut scenes from the original Rabio Lepus were eliminated in "Rabbit Punch". These include a picture appearing when the spaceship flies out of the castle at the start, pictures when the two bunny girls and Rabbit King are rescued and scenes at the ending.

- SERIES -

1. Rabio Lepus (1987)
2. Rabio Lepus Special (1990, NEC PC Engine)

- STAFF -

Main programmer : T. Honda
Sound, music : K. Okuda, E. Murakami, Y. Ishida
Designer : Shin Nakamura

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
[JP] Sony PS2 (mar.23, 2006) "Oretachi Geasen Zoku [Model SLPM-62707]" : Collection of 19 arcade games.

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.

Pac & Pal (c) 1983 Namco.

Pac-Man has a new friend named Miru, but she tries to steal stuff and take it to the ghost pen. Pac-Man now not only has to collect the stuff lying around the board, but he must also watch Miru to make sure she doesn&#39;t take the stuff for her own use.

- TECHNICAL -

Game ID: PAP

Main CPU : Motorola M6809 (@ 1.536 Mhz)
Sound CPU : Motorola M6809 (@ 1.536 Mhz)
Sound Chips : Namco 8-channel WSG

Players : 2
Control : 4-way joystick
Buttons : 1

- TRIVIA -

Pac & Pal was released in July 1983 in Japan.

In the game&#39;s title, the &#39;Pal&#39; refers to Pac-Man&#39;s new friend, Miru.

An alternate version of this game features Chomp Chomp, Pac-Man&#39;s dog from the 1982-84 animated cartoon series by Hanna-Barbera, in place of Miru, and the game&#39;s name is changed accordingly : "Pac-Man & Chomp Chomp".

Pac & Pal was the first "Pac-Man" game to have music during gameplay.

- SCORING -

Cards : 10-100 points, dying resets cards to ten points.
Regular Items: 50-500 points.
Power Items : 1,000 points.
Stunning Ghosts : 200, 400, 800, 1,600 points.
Key : 700 - 5,000 points.
End of round bonus : 100 X items eaten.

Bonus Rounds :
Cards : 100-1000 points.
Uncovering Miru : doubles points of cards uncovered afterwards
Uncovering Blinky : ends round

- TIPS AND TRICKS -

* Easter Egg : enter service mode and enter the following sequence : Left, Right(x9), Down(x5), Up(x6). &#39;(c) (p) 1982 NAMCO LTD.&#39; will be added at the bottom of the screen.

* Don&#39;t let Miru take the stuff to the ghost pen. Bonus points are awarded for &#39;perfect boards&#39; when Pac-Man eats all the fruit himself, and the bonus increases with each &#39;perfect board&#39;.

- SERIES -

1. Pac-Man (1980, ARC)
2. Ms. Pac-Man (1981, ARC)
3. Super Pac-Man (1982, ARC)
4. Pac-Man Plus (1982, ARC)
5. Jr. Pac-Man (1983, ARC)
6. Professor Pac-Man (1983, ARC)
7. Pac-Land (1984, ARC)
8. Pac-Mania (1987, ARC)
9. Pac-Attack (1993, SNES, Genesis; 1994, Game Boy, Game Gear)
10. Pac-Man 2 - The New Adventures [Model SNS-25-USA] (1994, SNES, Genesis)
11. Pac-In-Time [Model SNS-APTE-USA] (1994, SNES, PC)
12. Pac-Man Arrangement (1996, ARC) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.2"
13. Pac-Man VR (1996, ARC)
14. Pac-Man World [Model SLUS-00439] (1999, PS)
15. Pac-Man - Adventures in Time (2000, PC)
16. Ms. Pac-Man - Maze Madness [Model SLUS-01018] (2000, PS)
17. Ms. Pac-Man - Quest for the Golden Maze (2001, PC)
18. Pac-Man All-Stars (2002, PC)
19. Pac-Man Fever [Model SLUS-20197] (2002, PS)
20. Pac-Man World 2 [Model SLUS-20224] (2002, PS2, GC, XBOX)
21. Pac-Man Vs. [Model DOL-PRJE-USA] (2003, GC)
22. Pac-Pix [Model NTR-APCE-USA] (2005, DS)
23. Pac-Man Pinball Advance [Model AGB-BP8E-USA] (2005, GBA)
24. Pac-Man Arrangement (2005, PSP) : part of "Namco Museum Battle Collection [Model ULUS-10035]"
25. Pac&#39;n Roll [Model NTR-APNE-USA] (2005, DS)
26. Pac-Man World 3 [Model SLUS-21219] (2005, PSP, PS2, GC, XBOX, PC, DS)
27. Pac-Man World Rally [Model SLUS-21328] (2006, GameCube, PS2, PSP, PC)
28. Pac-Man Championship Edition (2007, XBLA)
29. Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (2010, XBLA, PSN)
30. Pac-Man Party [Model RVL-SP7E-USA] (2010, Wii)
31. Pac-Man Battle Royale (2011, ARC)
32. Pac-Man Tilt (2011, 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions [Model CTR-APGE-USA]"
33. Pac-Man Championship Edition DX+ (2013, XBLA, PSN, Steam)
34. Pac-Man Dash! (2013, Android/iOS)
35. Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures (2013, 3DS, XBOX 360, PS3, Wii U, PC)
36. Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2 (2014, 3DS, XBOX 360, PS3, Wii U, PC)

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
[US] Nintendo Wii (oct.23, 2007) "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-R2NE-USA]"
[JP] Nintendo Wii (dec.6, 2007) "Minna de Asobou! Namco Carnival" [Model RVL-P-RNWJ]" : Translated as "Everybody plays! Namco Carnival".
[EU] Nintendo Wii (apr.18, 2008) "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-RN2P]"
[KO] Nintendo Wii (apr.26, 2008) "Namco Museum Remix"
[AU] Nintendo Wii (may.1, 2008) "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-2N2P]"
[US] Microsoft XBOX 360 (nov.4, 2008) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade [Model 21022]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (may.15, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[AU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (june.3, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[JP] Microsoft XBOX 360 (nov.5, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]"
[US] Nintendo Wii (nov.16, 2010) "Namco Museum Megamix"
[US] Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] (feb.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum [Model NPUB-31383]"
[US] [KO] [EU] [AU] Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (feb.26, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[EU] [AU] Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] (feb.26, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum [Model NPEB-01892]"
[KO] Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] (feb.26, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[JP] Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (june.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[JP] Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] (june.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"

* COMPUTERS:
[JP] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (june.9, 1998) "Namco History Vol.3"
[US] [EU] Steam (feb.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum [Model 236470]"
[AU] PC [Online] (feb.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"

* OTHERS:
[US] Super Pac-Man TV game (2006) by Jakks Pacific
[US] Arcade Gold featuring Pac-Man (2007) by Jakks Pacific
[US] Retro Arcade featuring Pac-Man (2008) by Jakks Pacific
[US] Pac-Man Connect and Play (2012) by Bandai
[US] Arcade (2018) "Pac-Man&#39;s Pixel Bash"

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.

Kick and Run (c) 1986 Taito Corp.

A soccer game from Taito.

- TECHNICAL -

Prom Stickers : A87

Main CPU : (3x) Z80, Motorola M68705
Sound Chips : YM2203

Players: 4
Control: 8-way joystick
Buttons: 2

- TRIVIA -

Kick and Run was released in November 1986.

The spelling of &#39;Argentina&#39; is wrong, it is spelt &#39;Argentine&#39; (this is the French word for Argentina).

- STAFF -

Programmer : Takeshi Ishizashi

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
Nintendo Famicom Disk [JP] (sept.13, 1988) "Kick and Run [Model TFD-KIC]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (jan.25, 2007) "Taito Memories II Joukan [Model SLPM-66649]"

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.
Machine&#39;s picture.

Hellfire (c) 1989 Taito Corp

Nice horizontal shoot&#39;em up feature a selectable shooting direction.

- TECHNICAL -

Game ID: TP-014
Prom Stickers: B90

Main CPU : Motorola 68000 (@ 10 Mhz), Zilog Z80 (@ 3.5 Mhz)
Sound Chips : YM3812 (@ 3.5 Mhz)

Players : 2
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 2

- TRIVIA -

Hellfire was released in April 1989 in Japan, USA and Europe.

Early version title is &#39;Captain Lancer&#39;.

Polystar released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (Tatsujin : Toaplan Game Music Scene One - H24X-10005) on 25/06/1989.

- TIPS AND TRICKS -

* Hidden Functions : If the &#39;Invulnerability dip switch&#39; is enabled, you are invulnerable but you may also &#39;Pause&#39; the game with P2 Start and restart with P1 Start.

- STAFF -

Developed by Toaplan.

Music and Sound created by: Tatsuya Uemura

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
Sega Mega Drive (1990) "Hellfire [Model T-25073]"
Nec PC-Engine CD-ROM² (1991) "Hellfire [Model NAPR-1017]"

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.

Growl (c) 1991 Taito America Corp.

Export version. For more information about the game itself, please see the original Japanese version entry; "Runark".

- TECHNICAL -

Runs on the "Taito F2 System" hardware.

- TRIVIA -

Even if the title screen says 1990, Growl was released in February 1991 in US.

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
[US] Sega Genesis (1991) "Growl [Model 11076]"
Sony PlayStation 2 [AU] (mar.30, 2006) "Taito Legends 2 [Model SLES-53852]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (mar.31, 2006) "Taito Legends 2"
[EU] Sony PS2 (mar.31, 2006) "Taito Legends 2 [Model SLES-53852]"
[US] Sony PS2 (may.16, 2007) "Taito Legends 2 [Model SLUS-21349]"

* COMPUTERS:
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (mar.31, 2006) "Taito Legends 2"
[US] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (jul.10, 2007) "Taito Legends 2"

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.

Galaxy Force II (c) 1988 Sega Enterprises, Limited.

A superb sprite-scaling shoot-em-up from Sega, in which a single player must battle their way through a number of superbly rendered, space-themed levels. Action switches between open space battles and planet-based levels; with tight, enemy packed tunnel sections (enemy bases) seperating each level.

Galaxy Force II took the space-based shooting action of 1985&#39;s "Space Harrier" and, to a lesser degree, "After Burner" and improved upon both in every conceivable way. The game&#39;s pace is much slower paced than either "Space Harrier" or "After Burner", making game progression more a result of actual skill than the blind luck often associated with those earlier titles.

Elements of Galaxy Force II were also influenced by several NON-shooting Sega games; in particular the branching roads of 1986&#39;s "Out Run". At the end of each of Galaxy Force II&#39;s stages, after the player has fought through the end-of-level &#39;enemy fortress&#39;; are tunnel sections offering a choice of left or right. Again, the choice made dictates which level the player tackles next.

Galaxy Force II also demonstrated just how far Sega could push its then legendary sprite scaling technonolgy, with the visual rendition of some levels - such as when the player is flying above the surface of a volcanic planet, complete with solar flares and volcanic eruptions - being nothing short of spectacular.

- TECHNICAL -

[Deluxe model]
Sega Y Board hardware

- TRIVIA -

Released in July 1988 in Japan.

Also released a Galaxy Force II [Super Deluxe model]

Pony Canyon / Scitron released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (G.S.M. SEGA 1 - D28B0002) on 07/07/1988.

A Galaxy Force II unit appears in the music video for "Kid Candy" by the grunge rock group Seaweed.

- SERIES -

1. Galaxy Force (1988)
2. Galaxy Force II [Deluxe model] (1988)
2. Galaxy Force II [Super Deluxe model] (1988)

- STAFF -

Designer : Kondo Masaki
Main programmer : Katsumi Sachiko
Support programmers : Eishi Kawatake, Maki Yokata
Music composers : Koichi Namiki (Micky/Pritty K.N.), Katsuhiro Hayashi (Funky K.H.)

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
Sega Master System (1989)
[JP] Sega Mega Drive (Sep. 13, 1991) "Galaxy Force II [Model T-68013]"
[JP] Sega Saturn (jul.02, 1998) "Galaxy Force II [Sega Ages] [Model GS-9197]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (Jul. 26, 2007) "Galaxy Force II Special Extended Edition [Sega Ages 2500 Vol.30] [Model SLPM 62766]"
Nintendo 3DS [eShop] (2013) "3D Galaxy Force II"

* HANDHELDS:
Nintendo 3DS [eShop] [JP] (jul.24, 2013) "3D Galaxy Force [Model CTR-JGFJ-JPN]"
Nintendo 3DS [eShop] [US] (dec.12, 2013) "3D Galaxy Force [Model CTR-JGFE-USA]"
Nintendo 3DS [eShop] [EU] (dec.12, 2013) "3D Galaxy Force [Model CTR-JGFP-EUR]"
Nintendo 3DS [eShop] [AU] (dec.12, 2013) "3D Galaxy Force [Model CTR-JGFP-AUS]"

* COMPUTERS:
[US] Commodore C64 (1989)
[EU] Commodore Amiga (1990)
[EU] Atari ST (jan.1990)
[EU] Amstrad CPC (jan.1990)
[EU] Commodore C64 (jan.1990)
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum (jan.1990)
FM Towns PC (mar.1991) "Galaxy Force II [Model HMB-168]" by CSK

- SOURCES -

Machine&#39;s picture.

Elevator Action (c) 1983 Taito.

Agent 17 (code name &#39;Otto&#39;) is to secure the top secret documents from the security building. The enemy spies are in pursuit and their orders are to stop him at any cost. Having made it to the top of a 30 story building, Agent 17 has to make his way down to the basement to get to the getaway car and save the documents. Enemy spies are everywhere and the documents are hidden behind the red doors (bonus points awarded). He has to open the door and keep moving. If either of them shoots the lights out there will be a temporary blackout. If Otto finds himself on top of the elevator the player will not be able to control the elevator. If he gets caught in the elevator he is a sitting duck and cannot duck the bullets. By using the escalator he can reach the basement quicker. Otto can defeat his enemy by jump kicking or firing at them. Help Otto to grab all the documents and escape the spies.

- TECHNICAL -

Elevator Action was available in 2 different arcade formats, a cocktail table and an upright dedicated cabinet. Both versions used the same internal hardware though.

* The upright version came in the standard &#39;Taito Classic&#39; cabinet, which was the same one used for Jungle Hunt, Zoo Keeper, Alpine Ski, and many others. These cabinets normally did not have side art that advertised the name of the game, instead they had a painted design of lines and shapes, along with a Taito logo. Different titles had different designs and color schemes, although they have been known to ship games in the wrong cabinets. But lets get back on track here. Elevator Action should come in a brown cabinet with a Taito logo up near the top. The marquee shows a scene of Agent 17 waiting for an elevator while an enemy agent shoots at him. While the monitor bezel shows agents on either side, has game instructions at the bottom, and shows an elevator floor display at the top. This bezel artwork is silk screened on glass, and is prone to peeling, be very careful if you have to handle one of these. The control panel has a single 4-Way ball-top joystick mounted centrally, with jump and fire buttons located to either side.
Internally the machine uses a 19 inches open frame monitor mounted horizontally, and a set of game boards that conform to the &#39;Taito Classic&#39; wiring standard. Many other early Taito games (such as "Jungle Hunt" and "Bubble Bobble") will plug directly into this cabinet without modification.

* The cocktail version came in a table similar in design to the one used for Space Invaders and Carnival. It was not decorated except for a pair of instruction cards underneath the glass. Most Japanese game makers purchased their tables from the same few manufacturers, and were quite likely to change the exact model of cocktail that they shipped in mid production. So assume any Elevator Action cocktail is original unless it is obviously converted from another title.

Runs on the "Taito SJ System" hardware.
Prom Stickers : BA3 / EA

Players: 2
Control: 4-way joystick
Buttons: 2 (FIRE, JUMP)

- TRIVIA -

Elevator Action was released in July 1983 in Japan and in October 1983 in North America.

G. Ben Carter, Jr. holds official the record for this game with 143,450 points.

- SCORING -

Shooting an enemy agent : 100 points
Jumping on an enemy agent : 150 points
Dropping a light on an enemy agent : 300 points
Getting a secret document : 500 points

The bonus is 1,000 points x the level you are on. After 10th level, you will get 10,000 points per level completed.

- TIPS AND TRICKS -

* When you start the game, a quick animation will show a hook with a line connecting to the top of the elevator. Then your character will slide down the line to the roof. Then he will enter the building, in the elevator, at the 30th floor. It is now up to you to get all the secrets and make it to your car. The first thing you must know, obviously, is how to eliminate the enemy agents that are after you. There are a few ways you can do this :
1) Just shoot them. Of course, especially in the later levels, enemy agents make themselves an impossible target by lying down. You can only take them out by riding an elevator down.
2) Jumping on them will take care of them. In addition, you may avoid some of their fire.
3) On the non-dark floors, shoot the light down on top of an enemy agent. You must do this from the elevator. This also has the added effect of causing temporary darkness in the building, making enemy agents harder to see.
4) Crush an enemy agent using the elevator. This is hard to do since they move around. You may get lucky, however, and get one under or on top of the elevator you are on.
5) This way is pretty hard. You might be able to get an enemy agent to follow you and fall down the hole created by the missing elevator.

* You must know how to use the escalators and open the red doors :
1) To use the escalators, just stand on the little rectangle. Then push the joystick UP or DOWN depending on which direction you need the escalator to take you.
2) To open the red doors, stand on the little rectangle. Face the doorknob and press RIGHT on the joystick.

* You have full control over any elevator you enter. This means you can move UP and DOWN on a dime to keep your character safe. This works until the alarm goes off.

* Speaking of elevators, your character cannot duck while in an elevator. Also, while riding the escalators, your character cannot duck, jump, or fire his weapon.

* Also on elevators, you do not have control when you are riding on top of them. This means you are at the mercy of the elevator or the enemy agent controlling it. Be very careful if you ride on top of the elevator. You also cannot go past the bar on the top of the elevator.

* Enemy agents usually come out of the doors on the current floor or the floor above and below. A lot of times it is good to lay a wall of fire down a hallway. This way, you can pick off any enemy agents that happen to come out of one of the doors.

* When you enter through one of the red doors, the enemy agents will lose track of your character but will have a general idea of where your character is. When you exit the room, crouch and lay down fire both left and right to clear off the floor.

* As the levels progress, the enemy agents get better at their tactics. They start to crouch more to mess up your fire. They also may lay down which makes it impossible to hit them unless you are on an elevator and can shoot along the floor.

* As you move up in levels, there will be red doors in odd areas. Areas such as on the lower five floors where only elevators can take you across. Of course, if you get good with the jump button, you can jump those gaps to get to either side quicker. The downside is that enemy agents will usually flood the area and lay down a lot of fire.

* If you happen to get to the B1 floor and you have forgotten to get a red door, the game will automatically put your agent at the door you missed. If it is multiple doors, then you will be placed at the highest floor first.

* There is an internal time limit on how long you can take to get everything out of the building. If you take too much time, an alarm sounds and the following things occur :
a) Although you still have control over the elevators, it is much harder to get them to respond to your commands. If you are in a tight situation that requires a little bit of time, don&#39;t wait till the last minute or you may be an ex-agent.
b) The enemy agents move much quicker and their shots move faster. Plus, additional enemy agents will start appearing to really make your life miserable.
c) If your character happens to die, the next man will still be facing the same alarm situation. The only way to resolve the situation is to get all of the secrets and make it out of the building.

* Watch out for the double elevator. If you are in the top car, it will stop two floors short of the bottom since there is a one floor gap, and the bottom car. Try to always get into the bottom car of a double elevator so that you can make a hasty exit and not be trapped with enemy agents firing on you.

- SERIES -

1. Elevator Action (1983)
2. Elevator Action Returns (1995)
3. Elevator Action EX (2000, Nintendo Game Boy Color)
4. Elevator Action - Death Parade (2009)
5. Elevator Action Deluxe (2011, PSN)

- STAFF -

Music by : Yoshino Imamura

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
[US] Atari 2600 : planned, but never released
[US] Atari 7800 : unreleased prototype
[JP] Nintendo Famicom (june.28, 1985) "Elevator Action [Model 04 TF-4900]"
[JP] Sega SG-1000 (1985) "Elevator Action [Model C-55]"
Sega SG-1000 [TW] (198?) "Die Dui Die"
[US] Nintendo NES (aug.1987) "Elevator Action [Model NES-EA-USA]"
Sega Saturn (Feb 14, 1997) "Elevator Action Returns" : As hidden/unlockable game
[JP] Sony PS2 (aug.25, 2005) "Taito Memories Gekan [Model SLPM-66092]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (oct.14, 2005) "Taito Legends"
[EU] Sony PS2 (oct.14, 2005) "Taito Legends [Model SLES-53438]"
[US] Microsoft XBOX (oct.25, 2005) "Taito Legends"
[US] Sony PS2 (oct.25, 2005) "Taito Legends [Model SLUS-21122]"
[KO] Sony PS2 (jul.18, 2006) "Taito Legends [Model SLKA-15056]"

* HANDHELDS:
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy (1991) "Elevator Action [Model DMG-EA-NOE]"
[JP] Nintendo Game Boy (aug.9, 1991) "Elevator Action [Model DMG-EAA]"
[US] Nintendo Game Boy (dec.1991) "Elevator Action [Model DMG-EA-USA]"
[JP] Nintendo GBA (dec.20, 2002) "Elevator Action - Old & New [Model AGB-ANWJ-JPN]"
[JP] Sony PSP (jan.5, 2006) "Taito Memories Pocket [Model ULJM-05076]"
Sony PSP [KO] (feb.10, 2006) "Taito Memories Pocket"
[EU] Sony PSP (oct.6, 2006) "Taito Legends Power-Up [Model ULES-00473]"
[AU] Sony PSP (nov.9, 2006) "Taito Legends Power-Up [Model ULES-00473]"
[US] Sony PSP (may.17, 2007) "Taito Legends Power-Up [Model ULUS-10208]"

* COMPUTERS:
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum (1987) "Elevator Action [Model QSS 142]"
[US] Commodore C64 [EU] (1987)
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1987)
[JP] MSX (1985) "Elevator Action [Model MSX-7]"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (oct.14, 2005) "Taito Legends"
[US] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (nov.10, 2005) "Taito Legends"

* OTHERS:
Mobile Phones [US] (nov.20, 2003)

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s manuals.
Game&#39;s picture.
Game&#39;s ROMs.
Game&#39;s screenshots.
F.A.Q. by Kevin Butler A.K.A. War Doc

Darius (c) 1987 Taito Corp.

A horizontally scrolling shoot-em-up that was unique at the time for featuring a game screen that was three times wider than the conventional size, with the arcade cabinet utilizing three CRT screens to accommodate it.

In the game, the player flies an ornate fighter craft called a Silver Hawk. The craft is equipped with two attack weapons : Missile (forward-firing standard gun) and Bomb (drops from the bottom of the ship). The Silver Hawk is also equipped with the &#39;Arm&#39; (armor); a green energy shield that can absorb enemy attacks without harm to the ship.

During the course of the levels the player must navigate the terrain and battle a variety of fighter craft, ground vehicles, turrets, and other obstacles. At the end of every level, players are greeted with the obligatory end-of-level boss. The bosses in Darius are often in the form of mechanical aquatic animals, such as fish or squid. If the player defeats the boss, the tunnel splits into two and the player must decide whether to take the upper or lower tunnel, both of which lead to a different stage. This allows many different paths to be taken through the game.

Power-ups can be obtained by shooting enemies of a certain color, with the power-ups appearing in the form of colored bubbles. Each color corresponds to one of the ship&#39;s three weapons :
* Red - Missile
* Green - Bomb
* Blue - Arm

If the player powers up a weapon more than seven times, the weapon changes to a new, more powerful version. This then becomes the player&#39;s default weapon, and can be powered up further. There are also two other colors of power-up bubble, white and orange; which can be obtained by shooting at certain sections of the terrain; unfortunately, there are no visual clues as to where these may be on any given level. These hidden power-ups offer the following :
* White - Gives a score bonus.
* Orange - Smart bomb that kills all on-screen enemies.

- TECHNICAL -

Prom Stickers : A96

Main CPU : (2x) Motorola 68000 (@ 8 Mhz)
Sound CPU : (2x) Zilog Z80 (@ 4 Mhz)
Sound Chips : (2x) Yamaha YM2203 (@ 4 Mhz), OKI MSM5205 (@ 384 Khz), (18x) Volume (@ 384 Khz)

Players : 2
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 2

- TRIVIA -

Even if the title screen says 1986 (it was announced in 1986 in Japan), Darius was released in February 1987 in Japan. It was then released in March 1987 in North America.

Darius was unique in the shoot &#39;em up genre for having a game screen three times longer than the usual size, and thus required a huge mirror to align the three screens in order to play.

The player flies a small spacecraft called a Silver Hawk, which is also distinctive in being highly detailed in design - indeed, Taito devised mock blueprints for it. The Silver Hawks are a trademark of the series.

Another trademark of the series is the unique branching level structure. The levels are arranged in a large binary tree, and at the end of each level, the player must choose one of two paths to follow. This means that there are many different paths that can be taken through the game.

The heroes&#39; names in Darius series, &#39;PROCO&#39; and &#39;TIAT&#39;, spell &#39;TAITO CORP&#39; backwards.

The first stage music is a remix of the "Metal Soldier Isaac II" intro music (1985).

Pony Canyon / Scitron released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (Darius - PCCB-00093) on August 21, 1992.

Zuntata Records released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (Zuntata History L&#39;ab-normal 1st - ZTTL-0038) on April 1, 1999.

- UPDATES -

In the oldest version of the game, when Silver Hawk&#39;s missiles are upgraded to either the laser or wave weapons, each boos life increases. However, in the new version (Revision 1), the game has been rebalanced such that boss fights are easier even when the Silver Hawk has been powered up.

- TIPS AND TRICKS -

* Progression of the bubbles:
Weapons (red) : Bullets --> Lasers --> Wave
Shields (blue) : Green --> Silver --> Gold
Bombs (green) : Single --> Dual --> Quad

* Miscellaneous bubbles:
Points (grey): Points
Extra-ship : Bomb certain key spots on the terrain.

* Power levels: There are eight power levels (0-7) within each armament category. Your weapons, shields, and bombs improve as you go from 0-7 :
Weapons : The shots move faster and therefore recharge more quickly.
Bullets increase in number and waves increase in height, thus destroying more enemies at once. Waves, once fired, will go through anything until leaving the screen to the right.
Shields : They just recharge, but the better classes of shields absorb more hits. Gold shields will also protect your ship from collisions with objects as well as shots, but on certain screens that have lots of little squeezeways, gold shields can actually kill you by ricocheting your ship back and forth until you die.
Bombs : They get &#39;smarter&#39; in seeking out targets.

* How to complete the game : Completing the game is easiest with triple bullets.
Explore the different paths this way, and when you&#39;re ready for a challenge, try to get wave.
Lasers are not weapons so much as a handicap you have to endure while building to wave.

* Recommended version: the newest (revision 1).

* Recommended paths (easiest): A-C-E-H-M-R-X

- SERIES -

1. Darius (1987, Arcade)
2. Darius II (1989, Arcade)
3. Darius Twin [Model SHVC-DT] (1991, Super Famicom)
4. Darius Force [Model SHVC-DH] (1993, Super Famicom)
5. Darius Gaiden - Silver Hawk (1994, Arcade)
6. G-Darius (1997, Arcade)
7. G-Darius ver.2 (1997, Arcade)
8. Darius Burst (2009, Sony PSP)
9. Darius Burst - Another Chronicle (2010, Arcade)
10. Darius Burst - Another Chronicle EX (2011, Arcade)

- STAFF -

Directed and produced by : Toshio Kohno
Game designers : Toshio Konho, Akira Fujita, Kazuya Mikata
Programmers : Ken Hasegama, Takashi Kuriyama, Hideaki Tomioka, Tohru Sugawara, Hidenori Sasatani, Hideki Hashimoto
Art designers : Tetsuroh Kitagawa, Yoshihiro Wakita, Junji Yarita, Yukio Ishikawa, Kohzoh Igarashi, Genya Kuriki, Taira Sanuki, Masami Kikuchi, Mitsuru Ogama
Mechanical engineers : Takeki Nakamura, Eiji Kubota
Cabinet designers : Takeo Shiraishi, Hisayoshi Nakane, Natsuki Hirosawa
Hardware designers : Takashi Ohhada, Syuji Kubota, Seigo Sakamoto
Music composers : Yasuhiko Tanaka, Hisayoshi Ogura, Naoto Yagishita, Tsukasa Nakamura, Eikichi Takahashi, Masahiko Takaki

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
[JP] NEC PC-Engine (1990) "Darius Alpha"
[JP] NEC PC-Engine (sept.21, 1990) "Darius Plus [Model NAPH-1009]"
[JP] NEC PC-Engine CD (mar.16, 1990) "Super Darius [Model HACD 0003]"
[JP] Sony PS4 [PSN] (aug.26, 2016) "Arcade Archives - Darius [Model CUSA-03707]"

* HANDHELDS:
Nintendo Game Boy [AS] (1991) "Sagaia [Model DMG-116 CHN]"
[JP] Nintendo Game Boy (dec.13, 1991) "Sagaia [Model DMG-S8A]"
[JP] Nintendo GBA (dec.13, 2002) "Darius R [Model AGB-A2DJ-JPN]"

* COMPUTERS:
[EU] Atari ST (1989) "Darius Plus"
[EU] Commodore Amiga (1989) "Darius Plus"
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum (1990) "Darius Plus"

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s pictures.
Game&#39;s ROMs.
Game&#39;s screenshots.

Prototype

Super Tank Attack (c) 1992 MicroProse Games, Inc.

- TRIVIA -

Released in November 1992.

Xevious (c) 1982 Namco.

Xevious (pronounced &#39;zeevious&#39;) is a vertically-scrolling shoot-em-up in which the player pilots the heavily-armed &#39;Solvalou&#39; combat ship and must destroy the evil Xevious forces trying to take over the planet. The Solvalou is equipped with two weapon systems; the forwards-firing "air zapper" for shooting air-based enemies and &#39;blaster bombs&#39;, for destroying ground-based enemies. To enable accurate targetting of the air-to-ground blaster bombs, a white and blue targeting indicator is situated in front of the Solvalou. This flashes when an enemy is in its sights.

Enemy craft appear in a number of different guises; from the standard variety that arrive in large numbers but shoot slow-moving projectiles, to exploding black spheres that shoot projectiles at high speed. There are also rotating shields that cannot be destroyed and must be carefully avoided. Ground enemies are a combination of both stationary bases and moving vehicles, most of which fire slow-moving projectiles. A gigantic, floating fortress called &#39;Andor Genesis&#39; appears in certain areas; this is defeated by knocking out its core.

Xevious is divided into 16 different areas, each separated by an area of forest. If the player dies before less than 70% of an area has been completed, play restarts at the beginning of the same area; should a life be lost AFTER 70% of an area has been completed, however, play restarts at the beginning of the next area. After Area 16 has been completed, the game loops back to Area 7.

The game becomes progressively more difficult as the player becomes more skilled - once the player does well at destroying a certain enemy type, a more advanced enemy type will replace it. This can be reverted by destroying flashing-red &#39;Zolback&#39; radars found on the ground, which will cause the more advanced enemies to be replaced with weaker ones.

- CAST OF CHARACTERS -

AIR UNITS :
These are the air units you will encounter during the game. A players skill will determine what air units they may face.
* Andor Genesis (mother ship) - the large ship in Areas 4, 9, and 14.
* Bacura (resistor shield) - the large rotating floating walls which are indestructible.
* Brag Zakato (energy blaster) - medium black ball, with a red dot, that explode and send several shots at your Solvalou.
* Bragza (crystal) - the crystal core of the Andor Genesis mother ship which escapes upon its destruction.
* Garu Zakato (energy bombarder) - large black ball that explode sending out a multitude of shots in all directions.
* Giddo Spario (energy blast) - small, white crystal-like projectiles that come in diagonally at your Solvalou.
* Jara (spinner) - looks like a UFO with a spinning gear in the middle.
* Kapi (deflector) - flat-looking fighter with two front projections that flies in, fires multiple shots, then escapes quickly.
* Sheonite (escort) - small spinning diamond-shaped craft which escort your Solvalou for a bit and fly off.
* Terrazi (destructor) - flat looking, diamond shaped fighter that flies in, fires multiple shots, then escapes quickly.
* Torkan (scout ship) - ridged fighter that flies in, fires one shot, then escapes quickly.
* Toroid (fleet) - ring-shaped fighter which is traditionally the first enemy you encounter.
* Zakato (energy launcher) - small black ball that explodes sending a single shot at your Solvalou.
* Zoshi (death squad) - the round spinning fighter which can sometimes attack from behind.

GROUND UNITS :
These are the ground units you will encounter during the game.
* Barra (energy station) - small pyramid-shaped buildings.
* Boza Logram (dome network) - a structure of four Lograms surrounding a Derota.
* Derota (defense site) - the small octagonal-shaped gun batteries that fire multiple shots at your Solvalou.
* Domogram (rover) - looks like a mobile Logram that travels along the roads and fires shots at your Solvalou.
* Garu Barra (energy base) - medium and large pyramid-shaped buildings.
* Garu Derota (mega site) - the large octagonal-shaped gun batteries that fire multiple shots at your Solvalou.
* Grobda (tank) - the tank-like vehicles that travel along the road. They can detect when your bombsight is on them and they will move out of the way.
* Logram (sphere station) - silver circular domes that fire single shots at your Solvalou.
* Sol (citadel) - underground structures which rise up when initially bombed.
* Zolbak (detector dome) - domes with red squares on top and around their base.

- TECHNICAL -

Game ID : XVI

Main CPU : Zilog Z80 (x3), MB88xx
Sound Chips : Namco 3-channel WSG, discrete circuitry (for the explosion sounds)

Players : 2
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 2
= > [1] Zapper, [2] Blaster

- TRIVIA -

Xevious was released in December 1982 in Japan.

Xevious is not the world&#39;s first vertically-scrolling shoot-em-up but has a huge and lasting influence on the genre.

Xevious was the first game to use pre-rendered graphics and, among its countless innovations, was also the first vertical shoot-em-up that allowed accurate targeting of both airborne and ground-based enemies. The graphics were hugely revolutionary for their time; the sprites were rendered with remarkable clarity and detail due to the game&#39;s clever use of colors and shades as well as palette-shifting. Xevious was also the first game to feature &#39;hidden characters&#39;, which, being hidden, are not mentioned in the game&#39;s instructions but can be revealed by performing a secret maneuver. Among these was the &#39;special flag&#39;, which gave the player an extra life. This feature was carried over to a number of subsequent Namco games.

While Xevious enjoyed limited popularity in North America, the game was a huge cult hit in Japan, and to this day is considered one of the greatest video games of all time. Popular Japanese musicians, Haruomi Hosono (Yellow Magic Orchestra) and Kuwata Keisuke (Southern All Stars) were known to be fans of the game, and the former produced an album of music from Namco video games, with Xevious as its centerpiece. A follow-up 12-inch single featured in its liner notes an entire science-fiction short story by Endoh, set in the world of Xevious, with even included a rudimentary fictional language.

At one point in the game, the Solvalou flies over the Nazca lines. The Nazca Lines are geoglyphs (drawings on the ground) located in the Nazca Desert; a high, arid plateau that stretches 37 miles between the towns of Nazca and Palpa, situated in the Pampa region. They were created during the Nazca occupation of the area, between 200 BC and 600 AD.

The graphic ROMs contain several additional enemies which don&#39;t actually appear in gameplay including a silver-grey Galaxian flagship. These enemies do appear in the game-play of "Super Xevious" which uses the same graphics data as Xevious.

The highest score possible is 9,999,990, at which point the game terminates abnormally and resets. Some time before this score is reached, the game starts to award extra ships on every blaster shot fired.

Marco Borroni holds the official official record for this game with 7,009,560 points (!) on August 16, 1984.

The background is actually one large 1024x2048 image. Each of the 16 game areas is a 224x2048 strip starting at a different horizontal offset in the image.

- UPDATES -

* The high-score names are ten characters long on the Namco versions, but only three characters long on the Atari versions.

* The Zapper and Blaster buttons were reversed between the Japanese and American versions.

- SCORING -

Scoring in this game is relatively complicated due to all the different units.

AIR UNITS
Andor Genesis : 1,000-4,000 points
Brag Zakato : 500 points
Garu Zakato : 1,000 points
Giddo Spario : 10 points
Jarra : 70-100 points
Kapi : 300 points
Terrazi : 700 points
Torkan : 50 points
Toroid : 30 points
Zakato : 50 points
Zoshi : 100 points

GROUND UNITS
Barra : 100 points
Boza Logram : 2,000 points
Derota : 1,000 points
Domogram : 800 points
Garu Barra : 300 points
Garu Derota : 2,000 points
Grobda : 400 points
Logram : 300 points
Zolbak : 200 points

Specials (see Tips and Tricks below for how to get them)
Flag : 1,000 points for uncovering it, bonus Solvalou for flying over it
Sol Citadel : 2,000 points for making it surface; 2,000 points for destroying it

- TIPS AND TRICKS -

When you start the game, your Solvalou will be at the bottom of the screen. Keep in mind, this is a scrolling game. This means you can go no faster then the top and no slower then the bottom of the screen. You can, however, vary your speed in-between by pushing the joystick up and down. The biggest key in getting through this game is learning how to use the joystick to speed up and slow down because you will sometimes be put into some very tight areas that will require precision joystick control.

* One interesting aspect of this game is the fact if you are too successful against a particular kind of enemy, the game will adjust itself to send different enemies until you have difficulty dealing with them.

* Make sure you know what you will be encountering in each area.

* If you hold down the fire and bomb buttons, you will constantly be doing both at a slower rate. This is great when you are in the thick of things with both air and ground targets swarming the area.

* Speaking of bombs, your Solvalou is equipped with smart bombs (so to speak). They are launch and forget weapons. When you &#39;paint&#39; the target with your bomb-sight and launch your bomb, it will hit that target even when you have already flown over it. There are a couple of strategies to make your bombing runs more effective :
1) When you have targets close together (usually bomb batteries are arranged this way), put a bomb between them. You will have a very good chance of taking out both batteries with one hit since you can only have one bomb on the screen at a time.
2) For moving targets (such as Grobdas), anticipate the targets direction and &#39;lead&#39; it a little. This basically means putting the bomb at the point where the target will run into it.
3) Your bomb-sight will turn red whenever any target is &#39;sighted&#39;, even if the target is hidden like Sol Citadels and flags.

* Keep away from the corners. These can become death traps real quickly if you are swamped by enemies.

* Since you have free reign of most of the screen to move around, make sure you use all that room for maneuvering. Enemy fighters have a nasty habit of either shooting from behind your fighter or re-entering the screen from random sides. It also is handy when you are dodging a heavy volume of enemy fire.

* Make sure when you are maneuvering around the Bacuras, you always leave yourself a clear &#39;out&#39;. What I mean by this is there another direction to escape instead of having to move along with the Bacuras. An occasional enemy likes to put up shots at your fighter since it is very difficult to maneuver around the rolling plates.

* The Andor Genesis Motherships are pretty easy to destroy if you work quickly. Most of the time, Zakatos and Brag Zakatos precede the arrival of the Andor Genesis Mothership. Blast these out of the sky and avoid the shrapnel. When the Andor Genesis Mothership appears, lead the target a little and quickly move up and plant your bomb at the point the center of the ship will be. The less time you waste taking on this ship, the better.

* Secret Message : The designer of Xevious has included a trick for generating his name right at the beginning of the game. When Solvalou appears, move to the right edge of the screen, wait a few seconds and drop a single bomb as soon as the music changes (after the long note). The message &#39;Namco ORIGINAL Program by EVEZOO&#39; will appear on the screen.

* THE FLAGS : There are four flags hidden throughout the game. These flags occur in areas 1, 3, 5, and 6. All flags are along a horizontal line across the terrain. The only way to uncover a flag is to bomb it so you will have to lay a string of bombs along the entire horizontal line. This basically means moving up quickly, dealing with enemies quickly, and dropping your bombs quickly. Once a flag is uncovered, you must fly over it to get the benefits from it.

FLAG 1 : The first flag is located in the first river you encounter after you start the game. Look for the three Grobdas in a row. Just above them is a river that cuts horizontally across the terrain. Just bomb the river from left to right and around the bank closest to you. The flag should appear.

FLAG 2 : After you get past the plates, look up and to the right. There is a little lake with a small river feeding into the ocean. Start in the middle of the lake and bomb toward the little river. The flag should appear around where the river dumps into the ocean.

FLAG 3 : When you cross the first ocean, you will eventually see a dock/harbor at the top. The flag is located around the horizontal line that the longest pier projecting out is part of. You will need to quickly bomb that entire length to find and get the flag before the bottom scrolls your Solvalou too far up.

FLAG 4 : You will see a big bird picture on the desert. At the lowest point of its tail-feathers (in the lower right corner), start to bomb horizontally from right to left. The flag will appear.

* Sol Citadels : These structures require you to bomb them once to cause them to surface. They look like large storage tanks or grain silos. You then need to bomb them again to destroy them. You have a potential to collect several hundred thousand points by taking out these structures. They come in groups of 1, 4, or 8. Unlike flags, these structures are always in the same place. There are six sets of Sol Citadels.

FIRST SET : One in area 2. When you see the three Grobdas in a row on the road, start laying bombs in the area around the cul-de-sac below the last tank in a right and diagonal-down point. The citadel will be even with the cul-de-sac.

SECOND SET : One in area 3. When you see the Garu Bara, go to the left of the Garu Bara and start bombing. This is also the area that the second flag can be found.

THIRD SET : Four in area 9. There is a clear area right before you tangle with the second Andor Genesis Mothership. Where the road splits around the woods, start to lay bombs a little below the bottom edge of the road that goes to the right. You should uncover four Sol Citadels.

FOURTH SET : Eight in area 13. At the point the desert ends, there is a little grass, then the air field starts. Use the birds leg as a reference and fly straight up. When the bomb-sight glows, start bombing. This will be the lower left Sol Citadel of the group which is arranged in two rows of four citadels. You will be hard pressed to get all eight citadels.

FIFTH SET : Four in area 14. After the plates roll by, look for where two roads merge into one road. At the top edge of the slanted right hand road, start dropping bombs to uncover some more citadels.

SIXTH SET : Four in area 15. Look for a forest on the left side. There will be a small clearing and then a river. Bomb the small clearing to bring the citadels up. There will be very intense ground fire in this location so be especially watchful.

- SERIES -

1. Xevious (1982, Arcade)
2. Super Xevious (1984, Arcade)
3. Super Xevious - Gump no Nazo [Model SX-4900] (1986, Arcade)
4. Xevious - Fardraut Saga (1988, MSX2)
4. Solvalou (1991, Arcade)
5. Xevious 3D/G (1995, Arcade)
6. Xevious Arrangement (1995, Arcade): part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.1"
7. Xevious Resurrection (2010, PS3/PSN): part of "Namco Museum.com"

- STAFF -

From highscore table : Masanobu Endoh (Evezoo End), Masaya Nakamura (M.Nakamura), Eirry Mou, Shin-ichiro Okamoto (S.Okamoto), Shin-ichi Kojima (S.Kojima)
Music by : Yuriko Keino

- PORTS -

NOTE: For ports released in North America, please see the Atari version entry.

* CONSOLES:
[JP] Nintendo Famicom (nov.8, 1984) "Xevious [Model NXV-4900]"
[EU] Nintendo NES (oct.25, 1989) "Xevious [Model NES-XV-EEC]"
Nintendo Famicom Disk [JP] (may.18, 1990) "Xevious [Model NDS-XEV]"
[JP] NEC PC-Engine (june.29, 1990) "Xevious Fardraut Densetsu [Model NC90004]"
[AU] Sony PlayStation (1996) "Namco Museum Vol.2 [Model SCES-00267]"
[JP] Sony PlayStation (feb.9, 1996) "Namco Museum Vol.2 [Model SLPS-00210]"
[EU] Sony PlayStation (nov.1996) "Namco Museum Vol.2 [Model SCES-00267]"
[JP] Sony PlayStation (mar.28, 1997) "Xevious 3D/G+ [Model SLPS-00750]"
[EU] Sony PlayStation (aug.1997) "Xevious 3D/G+ [Model SCES-00736]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (jan.26, 2006) "Namco Museum Arcade Hits! [Model SLPS-25590]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (mar.24, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[EU] Sony PS2 (mar.31, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model SLES-53957]"
[EU] Nintendo GameCube (may.5, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NP-EUR]"
Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] [EU] [AU] [JP] [KO] (may.23, 2007)
[JP] Nintendo Wii (dec.6, 2007) "Minna de Asobou! Namco Carnival [Model RVL-RNWJ-JPN]"
[EU] Nintendo Wii (apr.18, 2008) "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-RN2P]"
[KO] Nintendo Wii (apr.26, 2008) "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-RNWK-KOR]"
[AU] Nintendo Wii (may.1, 2008) "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-RN2P]"
Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] [JP] (jan.29, 2009) "Namco Museum.comm [Model NPJB-00012]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (may.15, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[AU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (june.4, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console Arcade] [JP] (sept.1, 2009)
[JP] Microsoft XBOX 360 (nov.5, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]"
Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] [EU] (apr.1, 2010) "Namco Museum Essentials [Model NPEB-00104]"
Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] [AU] (apr.1, 2010) "Namco Museum Essentials"

* HANDHELDS:
[EU] Sony PSP (dec.9, 2005) "Namco Museum Battle Collection [Model UCES-00116]"
[JP] Sony PSP (feb.23, 2006) "Namco Museum Vol.2 [Model ULJS-00047]"
[EU] Nintendo DS (feb.29, 2008) "Namco Museum DS [Model NTR-YNMP-EUR]"
[JP] Nintendo DS (oct.11, 2007) "Namco Museum DS [Model NTR-YNMJ-JPN]"
Sony PSP [KO] (nov.8, 2007) "Namco Museum Vol.2"
Nintendo 3DS [3DSWare] [JP] (june.7, 2011) "3D Classics: Xevious [Model CTR-SABJ-JPN]" : Re-mastered version, featuring 3D effects.
Nintendo 3DS [3DSWare] [EU] (jul.21, 2011) "3D Classics: Xevious [Model CTR-SABP-EUR]" : Re-mastered version, featuring 3D effects.
Nintendo 3DS [3DSWare] [AU] (jul.21, 2011) "3D Classics: Xevious [Model CTR-SABP-AUS]" : Re-mastered version, featuring 3D effects.

* COMPUTERS:
Sharp MZ2500 [JP] (1982)
Atari 800 (1984)
Apple II (1984)
Tandy Color Computer (1984) "Devious"
Fujitsu FM-7 [JP] (1984)
NEC PC9801 [JP] (1985) by Enix Corporation
[EU] Commodore C64 (1986)
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1986)
[EU] Atari ST (1987)
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum (1987)
MSX 2 [JP] (dec.23, 1988) "Xevious Fardraut Densetsu"
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [JP] (apr.25, 1997) "Namco History Vol.1"
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [AU] (mar.27, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (may.19, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[JP] Sharp X1

* OTHERS:
Let&#39;s! TV play classic series - Namco Nostalgia 1 [JP]

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.
F.A.Q. by Kevin Butler A.K.A. War Doc

Wing War (c) 1994 Sega.

Wing War is a flight/combat simulation. The object of the game is by where the players fight head-to-head in airplanes trying to shoot the other players out of the sky.

- TECHNICAL -

Runs on the Sega "Model 1" hardware.

Control: stick
Buttons: 7

- TRIVIA -

Released in June 1994 in Japan and in August 1994 in USA. This is the last game produced for the Sega Model 1 hardware.

Soundtrack releases :
Dynamite Deka vs Wing War Original Soundtrack - Wavemaster Inc. - WM-0528 - Apr 27th, 2006

- UPDATES -

The US version is slightly different, it has the "Recycle It, Don&#39;t Trash It!" screen.

- STAFF -

Director : Makoto Uchida
Sound Composers : Tomoyuki Kawamura (Muu)

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
Sega 32X : Unreleased prototype

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s picture.
Game&#39;s ROMs.
Game&#39;s screenshot.

Vs. Pinball (c) 1984 Nintendo.

A great pinball simulator game from Nintendo.

Enjoy a familiar pinball game where the player controls the paddles of a virtual pinball machine. The game has two screens to represent the traditional pinball table and one for a bonus mode. Play begins when the player launches a ball with the plunger from the first screen the bottom of the pinball table through the top of the screen to the second screen. Play will move to the first screen if the ball falls through the bottom of the top screen and will return to the top screen if the ball is hit back through the space at the top of the first screen. The player controls the flippers on either screen to deflect the ball to keep it from falling off the bottom of the lower screen.

Pinball has some many bonnus and also had a secondary Breakout like mode, which the player reaches by hitting the ball into a bonus hole that takes the player to a bonus stage where they control Mario carrying a platform. The object of this mode is to rescue Pauline. The player achieves this by bouncing the ball on the Mario&#39;s platform and hitting various targets, the destruction of which also earns them points. When the blocks under her are all gone, she will drop. you must catching her on Mario&#39;s platform to earns bonus points, but you must release pauline it in one of the side platforms and not let it fall, while holding the ball bounce to continue to earn points until the ball falls and go to start.

- TECHNICAL -

Main CPU : Zetex N2A03 (@ 1.789772 Mhz)
Sound Chips : Zetex N2A03 (@ 1.789772 Mhz), DAC

Screen orientation : Horizontal
Video resolution : 256 x 240 pixels
Screen refresh : 60.00 Hz
Palette colors : 64

Players : 2
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 2

- TRIVIA -

Vs. Pinball was released in the arcade as part of Nintendo&#39;s Vs. series, allowing to players to sit or stand opposite one another in order to play head to head. Vs. Pinball was released in the arcades in November 1984. Due to extra memory allocation, Vs. Pinball contains a few features that Famicom Pinball does not have, many of which increase the difficulty of the game.

Cameo in WarioWare - Twisted! (2005, Nintendo GBA) : One of 9-volt&#39;s games is based on the Arcade Pinball&#39;s bonus game.

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
Nintendo Famicom [JP] (Feb.1984)
Nintendo NES [US] (Oct.1985)
Nintendo NES [EU] (Sep.1986)
Nintendo Famicom Disk [JP] (May.1989)
Nintendo GameCube (2001) "Animal Crossing" : Unlockable bonus game
Nintendo Game Boy Advance [e-READER Series] (2002)
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [US] (Nov.2006)
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [JP] [EU] (Dec.2006)

* OTHERS:
LCD Handheld game "Game & Watch - Multi Screen: Pinball" (1983) released by Nintendo.

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.

Virtua Striker 2002 (c) 2002 Sega.

- TECHNICAL -

Runs on the Sega&#39;s "Triforce" hardware.

- TRIVIA -

Virtua Striker 2002 was released on October 29, 2002.

- SERIES -

1. Virtua Striker (1995)
2. Virtua Striker 2 (1997)
3. Virtua Striker 2 version &#39;98 (1998)
4. Virtua Striker 2 version &#39;99 (1998)
5. Virtua Striker 2 ver. 2000 (1999)
6. Virtua Striker 3 (2001)
7. Virtua Striker 2002 (2002)
8. Virtua Striker 4 (2004)
9. Virtua Striker 4 ver. 2006 (2006)

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
Nintendo GameCube (Feb.2002) [Model DOL-GVSJ-JPN]

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s manual.
Game&#39;s ROMs.

Vindicators (c) 1988 Atari Games Corp.

As team commander of the SR-88 Strategic Battle tanks, you must face the evil invading forces of the Tangent Empire. They&#39;re invading the galaxy with 14 space stations designed to defeat your team. Turrets and highly mobile armoured tanks are constantly on patrol to protect the fortifications that Tangents have built.

With limited supplies and weapons, you must make a last stand and attempt to defeat the invaders. The most powerful weapon in your arsenal is the SR-88 Battle Tank, but their fuel supply is very volatile. You must constantly replenish its fuel by picking up fuel canisters throughout the stations&#39; many levels.

Battle stars can be found along the way. These are vital to enhancing your tank and adding weapons. Process generators can convert the battle stars into powers and weapons while in transit between levels and stations. Only with these customized tanks can the evil Tangent Empire be conquered.

As you defeat each station, demolish its control room and take the supplies the fleeing Tangents have left behind. Proceed in their mothership to the next station for another battle.

- TECHNICAL -

Game ID : 136059

Main CPU : Motorola 68010 (@ 7.15909 Mhz), MOS Technology 6502 (@ 1.7895 Mhz)
Sound Chips : Yamaha YM2151 (@ 3.579 Mhz), POKEY (Pot Keyboard Integrated Circuit) (@ 1.7895 Mhz)

Players : 2
Control : Double 2-way joystick (vertical)
Buttons : 4

- TRIVIA -

Vindicators was released in April 1988. This was quite a year for Atari and tank games, since they also released "Assault" in 1988.

1,605 dedicated units were produced in the USA only. The selling price was $2,395. The dedicated cabinet is a real favorite among some arcade game collectors. This is probably due to its unique shape, it is shaped a lot like a tank, with tank treads holding up the bottom section of the cabinet. The top half is decorated with sticker sideart that shows scenes from the game, and these same graphics generally carry over to the control panel and the front of the machine. The control panel features four tank handle controllers.

A Vindicators dedicated cabinet can be seen in the Nickelodeon show All That (from 1997 to 2000). However, it used a fictional marquee which was made for the show.

Also, 114 conversion kits were produced in the USA only (released in February 1989). The selling price was $795.

- UPDATES -

REVISION 1 :
* Build date : OS : 08APR1988 11 :50 :08 / PG : 11APR1988 16 :34 :40

REVISION 2 :
* Build date : OS : 08APR1988 11 :50 :08 / PG : 12APR1988 14 :53 :35

REVISION 3 :
* Build date : OS : 08APR1988 11 :50 :08 / PG : 20APR1988 11 :21 :49

REVISION 4 :
* Build date : OS : 08APR1988 11 :50 :08 / PG : 26APR1988 10 :49 :46

- STAFF -

Designed & programmed by : Kelly Turner (KFT), Norm Avellar (NLA), Russel Dawe (Rusty) (RBD)
Art & animation by : Kris Moser (KEM), Susan G. McBride (SGM)
Audio by : Brad Fuller (BAF), Hal Canon (HAL)

From hiscore table: (TNK), Dave Webienson (DEW), Pat McCarthy (PMC), (REM), (MEA)

- PORTS -

* CONSOLES:
[US] Nintendo NES (1988)
[US] Sony PS2 (nov.18, 2003) "Midway Arcade Treasures [Model SLUS-20801]"
[US] Microsoft XBOX (nov.24, 2003) "Midway Arcade Treasures"
Nintendo GameCube [US] (dec.18, 2003) "Midway Arcade Treasures [Model DOL-GAKE-USA]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (feb.6, 2004) "Midway Arcade Treasures"
[EU] Sony PS2 (feb.6, 2004) "Midway Arcade Treasures [Model SLES-51927]"

* HANDHELDS:
Atari Lynx [US] : Unreleased prototype

* COMPUTERS:
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1988)
[US] Commodore C64 [EU] (1988)
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum (1989)
[EU] Atari ST (1989)
Commodore Amiga [US] (1989)
[US] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (jan.1, 1999) "Arcade&#39;s Greatest Hits - The Atari Collection 2"
[US] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (aug.27, 2004) "Midway Arcade Treasures"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (nov.23, 2004) "Midway Arcade Treasures"

* Others:
Tiger LCD Handheld Game [US] (1989)

- SOURCES -

Game&#39;s ROM.
Game&#39;s picture.