KEYWORDS =
Yoshi's Story (c) 1998 Nintendo [Japan]

Baby Bowser has taken the Super Happy Tree and cast a spell on Yoshi's world, turning it into the pages of a picture book. The only Yoshis not affected by the spell were six hatchlings that were still protected by their shells. It's up to them to reclaim the Super Happy Tree and restore Happiness to the world. That is the only thing that can break Baby Bowser's spell!

Yoshi's Story features innovative graphics that give the look and feel of handmade materials in 24 fully textured and rendered courses. Yoshi comes alive, filled with a personality made possible by the animations and sound of the system with fantastic play control featuring all the familiar Yoshi moves and Rumble Pak compatible.

- TRIVIA -

Released December 21, 1997 in Japan, March 10, 1998 in North America, and May 10, 1998 in the PAL region.

Re-released on the Wii's Virtual Console service on September 17, 2007 in North America, October 26, 2007 in Europe, and October 30, 2007 in Japan.

The game was deemed too easy and little rewarding, thus Nintendo of America demanded that the difficulty of the game increased. The game's international release was delayed, and the designers decided to polish the game, cleaning up the graphics, adding white fences on cardboard courses, Egg Blocks with colors matching the Yoshi character in use, new locations for items, a slightly different ending when the player finishes levels with only melons and additional secrets, including a save feature for Story Mode.

- TIPS & TRICKS -

If you get stuck in a level, hit the L Button, Z Button, A and B simultaneously during gameplay to cause instant death.

To select Yoshi's color in Practice mode, pick the Yoshi color you want in the Trial mode and hit Start and Z at the same time. Press B to go back and head to Practice mode. You will have the Yoshi color you chose.

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.

KEYWORDS =
Super Mario 64 [Model NUS-NSMJ] (c) 1996 Nintendo [Japan]

Mario is super in a whole new way! Combining the finest 3-D graphics ever developed for a video game and an explosive sound track, Super Mario 64 becomes a new standard for video games, packed with bruising battles, daunting obstacle courses and underwater adventures, Mario must retrieve the Power Stars from their hidden locations and confront his arch nemesis - Bowser: King of the Koopas!

Run freely in a grassy meadow, tip-toe through a gloomy dungeon, climb to the top of a mountain or take a swim in the moat with on-the-fly 3-D rendered game play that delivers the action of ruthless enemy attacks from every angle! Leap head first into a watery painting and soon you'll be searching for the surface in an underwater realm! Find the Caps that give Mario super powers, ponder the mysteries for the pyramid and even race Koopas for fabulous prices! The Nintendo 64 Controller, with its analog Control Stick, allows Mario to crawl, kick down obstacles, swim, do reverse flips and even stick the landing on his backwards somersault! Saved information is stored for up to four players in memory.

- TRIVIA -

One of the launch titles for the Nintendo 64 along with Pilotwings 64.

It was released on June 23, 1996 in Japan.

Super Mario 64 has sold over eleven million copies.

It was remade for the Nintendo DS titled Super Mario 64 DS.

Development of the game took less that two years, but Shigeru Miyamoto had conceived of a 3D Mario game concept over five years before while working on Star Fox. Miyamoto developed the concepts during the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) era and considered using the Super FX chip to make it an SNES game, but decided to develop it for the Nintendo 64 due to system limitations. Super Mario FX was the internal code name of the FX chip.

Development began with the creation of characters and camera system, with the designers initially unsure of which direction the game should take, spending months selecting a camera view that would be appropriate. The original concept involved a fixed path much like an isometric type game before the choice was made to settle for free-roaming 3D design.

The first test scenario for Mario's animations involved him an a golden rabbit named MIPS by the developers, who would end up in the game for two side missions. MIPS was named after the MIPS-type CPU used by the Nintendo 64.

The developers initially tried to make the game split screen co-op using both Mario and Luigi but were unable to make the gameplay work.

It was developed simultaneously with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Some puzzles were taken from that game for Super Mario 64 due to it being released more than two years later.

32 courses were created for the game. Miyamoto wanted to create more, up to 40 and not including bonus levels, but only 15 courses could fit for the final game.

Placed 6th on Official Nintendo Magazine's 100 greatest Nintendo games of all time. Game Informer, in 2009, placed it 13th on their Top 200 Games of All Time list.

- TIPS & TRICKS -

Once you collect all 120 stars, the cannon outside the castle will open. Jump into it, and shoot yourself onto the roof. You will find Yoshi, who gives you 100 lives an an improved triple jump.

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.

KEYWORDS =
Mario Kart 64 [Model NUS-NKTJ] (c) 1996 Nintendo [Japan]

Three... Two... One... GO! The signal light changes and you drop the pedal to the metal. Take on up to three friends in the split-screen VS games, or race solo in the Mario GP. Tell your friends to bring it on in the highly competitive Battle mode. Advanced features allows you to race with your "Ghost". The driving data for your best run appears as a transparent character on the screen. No longer must you simply race against the clock - you can actually race against yourself.

Everyone's favorite characters are back and gorgeously rendered, including two new additions: Donkey Kong and Wario. Save your hottest Ghost data to a portable N64 Controller Pack and collect multiple power-up items! Twenty different courses include 4 Cups with 4 Courses each and 4 special Battle Mode courses!

- TRIVIA -

Successor of Super Mario Kart for the Super Famicom. Second in the Mario Kart series.

Released on December 14, 1996. Was released in 1997 for North America and Europe.

Released for the Wii Virtual Console in January 2007.

Changes from Super Mario Kart include the move to 3D computer graphics and four-player support. 3D graphics allowed for track features not possible before such as changes in elevation, bridges, walls, and pits.

One of the first games in the series to feature Charles Martinet as the voice of both Luigi and Wario.

The game was originally called Super Mario Kart R when it began development in 1995. It was intended to be a launch game for the Nintendo 64. A prototype version featured the Feather item from Super Mario Kart and a Magikoopa as a playable character which was replaced with Donkey Kong in the final game.

Driving controls were designed to be similar to operating a radio-controlled car.

According to game director Hideki Konno, rendering the characters in 3D was not impossible, but the limited processing power of the console would not have allowed all eight characters to appear on the screen at the same time.

Rare Ltd., who developed the Donkey Kong Country games, provided the character model for Donkey Kong.

Placed 17th in Official Nintendo Magazine's 100 greatest Nintendo games of all time.

Mario Kart 64 sold 2.24 million copies in Japan and approximately 5.5 million copies in the United States. It was reported in 2009 that the game had sold over nine million copies worldwide.

- TIPS & TRICKS -

Get the gold trophy in the 150cc Special Cup to see the credits and alter the title screen image. This also access the Extra courses.

To race against these ghosts, you must beat the times listed here:

Luigi Raceway: 1'52''00
Mario Raceway: 1'30''00
Royal Raceway: 2'40''00

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.

- TECHNICAL -- DESCRIPTION -

Pac-Mania (c) 1987 Atari Games Corp.

Atari version. For more information about the game itself, please see the original Namco version entry.

- TRIVIA -

Pac-Mania was released in December 1987 in the USA by Atari Games under license from Namco.

1412 units were produced by Atari. The selling price was $1995.

- UPDATES -

In the Atari version :
- The first Block Town only has one level, instead of two.
- The first Pac-Man's Park, Sandbox Land, and Jungly Steps Worlds only have two levels each, instead of three.
- Common has been renamed 'Funky'.
- Grey Common has been renamed 'Spunky'.
- The Top Ten Score List has been added and will let you write initials, before continuing.
- The "Pac-Mania" Logo has Pac-Man, Pinky, and Blinky circling around the logo in the Atari version, whereas the Namco version does not.
- A 'Stage Select' feature has been added.
- Items are placed differently from the original Namco version.
- Courage Bonus would activate once you got past Block Town.
- There is a total of 19 levels in the game, instead of the Namco version's 23 levels.

- SERIES -

- SERIES -

1. Pac-Man (1980)
2. Ms. Pac-Man (1981)
3. Super Pac-Man (1982)
4. Pac-Man Plus (1982)
5. Jr. Pac-Man (1983)
7. Pac-Land (1984)
8. Pac-Mania (1987)
9. Pac-Man 2 - The New Adventures (1994, Nintendo SNES, Sega Genesis)
10. Pac-In-Time (1994, Nintendo SNES, PC CD-ROM; 1995 Nintendo Game Boy)
11. Pac-Man Arrangement (1996) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.2"
12. Pac-Man VR (1996)
13. Pac-Man World (1999, Sony PlayStation; 2004, Nintendo Game Boy Advance)
14. Pac-Man - Adventures in Time (2000, PC CD-ROM)
15. Ms. Pac-Man - Maze Madness (2000, Nintendo 64, Sega Dreamcast, Sony PlayStation; 2004, Nintendo Game Boy Advance)
16. Ms. Pac-Man - Quest for the Golden Maze (2001, PC CD-ROM)
17. Pac-Man All-Stars (2002, PC CD-ROM)
18. Pac-Man Fever (2002, Sony PS2)
19. Pac-Man World 2 (2002, Sony PS2, Nintendo GameCube, Microsoft XBOX; 2004, PC CD-ROM; 2005, Nintendo Game Boy Advance)
20. Pac-Man vs. (2003, Nintendo GameCube)
21. Pac-Man Pinball Advance (2005, Nintendo Game Boy Advance)
22. Pac-Man Arrangement (2005, Sony PSP) : part of "Namco Museum Battle Collection"
23. Pac-Man World 3 (2005, Sony PSP, Sony PS2, Nintendo GameCube, Microsoft XBOX, PC CD-ROM, Nintendo DS)
24. Pac'n Roll (2005, Nintendo DS)
25. Pac-Pix (2005, Nintendo DS)
26. Pac-Man World Rally (2006, Nintendo GameCube, Sony PS2, Sony PSP, PC CD-ROM)
26. Pac-Man Championship Edition (2007, XBLA)
27. Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (2010, XBLA, PSN)
29. Pac-Man Party (2010, Nintendo Wii; 2011, Nintendo 3DS)
28. Pac-Man Battle Royale (2011)
30. Pac-Man Tilt (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions"

- PORTS -

NOTE: Only ports released in the USA are lited here. For ports released in other regions, please see the original Namco entry.

* Consoles :
Nintendo NES [US] (1991)
Sega Genesis [US] (1991)
Sony PlayStation [US] (1997; "Namco Museum Vol.5 [Model SLUS-00417]")
Nintendo Game Boy Advance [US] (July 12, 2001; "Pac-Man Collection [Model AGB-APCE-USA]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (December 4, 2001, "Namco Museum [Model SLUS-20273]")
Microsoft XBOX [US] (October 9, 2002, "Namco Museum")
Nintendo GameCube [US] (October 9, 2002, "Namco Museum [Model DOL-GNME-USA]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLUS-21164]")
Microsoft XBOX [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model NMO-2201A]")
Nintendo GameCube [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NE-USA]")
Nintendo Wii [US] (October 23, 2007; "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-R2NE-USA]")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [US] (November 4, 2008; "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade [Model 21022]")
Nintendo Wii [US] (November 16, 2010, "Namco Museum Megamix")

* Computers :
Tandy Color Computer 3 [US] (1992, "PacDude Monster Maze")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [US] (October 25, 2005, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

NOTE: On all PS2, XBOX, GameCube, and PC "Namco Museum" packs, the game is initially locked. To unlock the game on the 2001-2002 "Namco Museum" releases, just score 20000 points in "Ms. Pac-Man". To unlock the game on "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary", just score 15000 points in "Pac-Man" and 20000 points in "Ms. Pac-Man".

* Others :
Mobile Phones [US] (May 27, 2005, "Pac-Mania 3D")
Arcade [US] (2010, "Pac-Man's Arcade Party")
Apple iPhone/iPod [US] (November 25, 2010) [Model 395670726]

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.

KEYWORDS =
Pac-Mania (c) 1987 Namco, Ltd.

Pac-Mania is a 1- or 2-player game in which the player maneuvers Pac-Man through a world of 3-D mazes. He's back in action... but with a new twist, BOUNCE power! Ready for a new generation of Pac-Man players, he can't wait for the chance to show off his new aerial maneuvers to the crowd! The "boss" ghost Blinky has recruited the talents of two new ghosts, Common and Grey Common. Sue from "Ms. Pac-Man" also returns to the scene. Pac-Man must use his speed and cunning to outwit these annoying pests.

Pac-Man now faces new challenges as he enters the worlds of Block Town, Pac-Man's Park, Sandbox Land, and Jungly Steps. Fortunately for Pac-Man, he has the help of two 'special items' - a green and red power pill. The green pill adds temporary speed, and the red awards double points for eating ghosts. It's a whole new ball game for Pac-Maniacs!

Gameplay begins with the opportunity for players to level select among one of three playfield worlds : Block Town, Pac-Man's Park or Sandbox Land. With Block Town being the easiest and Sandbox Land being the hardest, players are accordingly rewarded for selecting and completing the challenges in this mode.

The player's main objective is to eat all dots and power pills in the mazes while avoiding persistent ghosts. Using the new BOUNCE button, players can bounce their way over the ghosts to avoid being caught. But two new ghosts have been added to insure that Pac-Man doesn't have it too easy. In fact, Common and Grey Common can also bounce in the air like Pac-Man. Fortunately, these rivals of Pac-Man are only found in the later levels, and can only jump in the Sandbox Land and Jungly Steps mazes.

During play, the appearance of fruit and green/red power pills will trigger the bell. This alerts players immersed in the game who might otherwise miss these valuable items. A green power pill awards extra speed; it is good until a yellow or red power pill is eaten and expires or a game life is lost. Red power pills award double points for eating ghosts, and continue to do so until a game life is lost.

An optional continue feature is offered to allow players to continue their progress without having to start back at the beginning. It's a great way for Pac-Maniacs to learn and practice strategies without having to restart games from the beginning. Bonus thresholds are offered at various score values, and are adjustable.

- TRIVIA -

Pac-Mania was released in November 1987 in Japan.

After the superb platform action of the series' previous game, "Pac-Land", Namco chose to return the series to its roots with the re-introduction of the 'eat all of the pills in the maze' gameplay of the earlier classics. Pac-Mania feels somewhat different to its illustrious predecessors, however, due to Pac-Man's newly-acquired 'jump' ability. The mazes are now rendered with an isometric, pseudo 3-D viewpoint, allowing the player to jump over the chasing ghosts and make an escape.

The 'Pac-Man's Park' maze is basically the original "Pac-Man" maze in an isometric 3-D perspective.

Another new feature in this game is the appearance of several 'special items' (in addition to the traditional fruit bonuses - cherries, strawberries, oranges, apples, bananas, apricots, bells, and keys). These items include candy, hamburgers, ice cream cones, coffee, and two special kinds of power pills. The pills, which appear in addition to the traditional power pills, give Pac-Man more points for eating ghosts and also give him extra speed, both of which come in very handy during gameplay.

After Pac-Mania, Pac-Man's next two arcade outings would both come in 1996 with "Pac-Man Arrangement" (part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.2") and the extrmemely rare "Pac-Man VR". After that, he would have one more arcade outing in 2010 with "Pac-Man Battle Royale".

Donn Nauert holds the official record for this game with 385570 points.

Victor Entertainment released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (Namco Video Game Graffiti Vol.4 - VDR-5282) on March 8, 1989.

- UPDATES -

In the Japanese version :
- The first Block Town has two levels. And every other world after that has three levels.
- There is no Stage Select. However, if one Japanese Machine has Stage Select, you cannot continue.
- No Top Ten Score List.
- The 'Pac-Mania' Logo doesn't have Pac-Man, Pinky, and Blinky circling around the logo.
- There are a total of 23 levels in the game.

- SERIES -

1. Puckman (1980)
2. Super Pac-Man (1982)
3. Pac & Pal (1983)
4. Pac-Land (1984)
5. Pac-Mania (1987)
6. Hello! Pac-Man (1994, Nintendo Super Famicom, Sega Mega Drive)
7. Pac-In-Time (1994, Nintendo Super Famicom; 1995, Nintendo Game Boy)
8. Pac-Man World (1999, Sony PlayStation)
9. Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness (2000, Sony PlayStation)
10. Pac-Man World 2 (2002, Sony PS2, PC CD-ROM)
11. Pac'n Roll (2005, Nintendo DS)
12. Pac-Pix (2005, Nintendo DS)
13. Pac-Man Championship Edition (2007, XBLA)
14. Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (2010, XBLA, PSN)
15. Pac-Man Battle Royale (2011)
16. Pac-Man Tilt (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions"

- PORTS -

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

* Consoles :
Sega Master System [EU] (1991) [Model 25010]
Sega Mega Drive [EU] (1991)
Sony PlayStation [JP] (February 28, 1997; "Namco Museum Vol.5 [Model SLPS-00705]")
Sony PlayStation [AU] (1998, "Namco Museum Vol.5")
Sony PlayStation [EU] (February 1998; "Namco Museum Vol.5 [Model SCES-00702]")
Nintendo Game Boy Advance [EU] (December 7, 2001; "Pac-Man Collection [Model AGB-P-APCP]")
Nintendo Game Boy Advance [JP] (January 11, 2002; "Pac-Man Collection [Model AGB-P-APCJ]") : re-released as Value Selection edition (February 2, 2006)
Sony PlayStation 2 [JP] (January 26, 2006; "Namco Museum Arcade Hits! [Model SLPS-25590]")
Microsoft XBOX [EU] (March 24, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")
Sony PlayStation 2 [EU] (March 31, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLES-53957]")
Nintendo GameCube [EU] (May 5, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL P G5NP]")
Nintendo Wii [JP] (December 6, 2007; "Minna de Asobou! Namco Carnival" [Model RVL-P-RNWJ]") : Translated as "Everybody plays! Namco Carnival".
Nintendo Wii [EU] (April 18, 2008; "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-RN2P]")
Nintendo Wii [KO] (April 26, 2008, "Namco Museum Remix")
Nintendo Wii [AU] (May 1, 2008; "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-2N2P]")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [EU] (May 15, 2009, "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [AU] (June 3, 2009, "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade")
Zeebo [BR] (June 16, 2009)
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console Arcade] [JP] (August 4, 2009)
Microsoft XBOX 360 [JP] (November 5, 2009; "Namco Museum: Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]")
Zeebo [MX] (November 4, 2010)
Nintendo Wii [US] (November 16, 2010, "Namco Museum Megamix")

* Computers :
Sinclair ZX Spectrum [EU] (1988 - Grandslam) : in both Cassette and Disk formats
Atari ST [EU] (1988 - Grandslam)
Amstrad CPC [EU] (1988 - Grandslam)
Commodore C64 [EU] (1988 - Grandslam)
MSX [JP] (1989)
Sharp X68000 [JP] (March 18, 1989)
Acorn Archimedes [EU] (1991)
Commodore Amiga [EU] (1992)
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [AU] (March 27, 2006, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [EU] (May 19, 2006, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

NOTE: On all PlayStation 2, XBOX, GameCube, and PC "Namco Museum" packs, the game is initially locked. To unlock the game on the 2001-2002 "Namco Museum" releases, just score 20000 points in "Ms. Pac-Man". To unlock the game on "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary", just score 15000 in "Pac-Man" and 20000 in "Ms. Pac-Man".

Pac-Mania (c) 1987 Atari Games Corp.

Atari version. For more information about the game itself, please see the original Namco version entry.

- TRIVIA -

Pac-Mania was released in December 1987 in the USA by Atari Games under license from Namco.

1412 units were produced by Atari. The selling price was $1995.

- UPDATES -

In the Atari version :
- The first Block Town only has one level, instead of two.
- The first Pac-Man's Park, Sandbox Land, and Jungly Steps Worlds only have two levels each, instead of three.
- Common has been renamed 'Funky'.
- Grey Common has been renamed 'Spunky'.
- The Top Ten Score List has been added and will let you write initials, before continuing.
- The "Pac-Mania" Logo has Pac-Man, Pinky, and Blinky circling around the logo in the Atari version, whereas the Namco version does not.
- A 'Stage Select' feature has been added.
- Items are placed differently from the original Namco version.
- Courage Bonus would activate once you got past Block Town.
- There is a total of 19 levels in the game, instead of the Namco version's 23 levels.

- PORTS -

NOTE: Only ports released in the USA are lited here. For ports released in other regions, please see the original Namco entry.

* Consoles :
Nintendo NES [US] (1991)
Sega Genesis [US] (1991)
Sony PlayStation [US] (1997; "Namco Museum Vol.5 [Model SLUS-00417]")
Nintendo Game Boy Advance [US] (July 12, 2001; "Pac-Man Collection [Model AGB-APCE-USA]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (December 4, 2001, "Namco Museum [Model SLUS-20273]")
Microsoft XBOX [US] (October 9, 2002, "Namco Museum")
Nintendo GameCube [US] (October 9, 2002, "Namco Museum [Model DOL-GNME-USA]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLUS-21164]")
Microsoft XBOX [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model NMO-2201A]")
Nintendo GameCube [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NE-USA]")
Nintendo Wii [US] (October 23, 2007; "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-R2NE-USA]")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [US] (November 4, 2008; "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade [Model 21022]")
Nintendo Wii [US] (November 16, 2010, "Namco Museum Megamix")

* Computers :
Tandy Color Computer 3 [US] (1992, "PacDude Monster Maze")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [US] (October 25, 2005, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

NOTE: On all PS2, XBOX, GameCube, and PC "Namco Museum" packs, the game is initially locked. To unlock the game on the 2001-2002 "Namco Museum" releases, just score 20000 points in "Ms. Pac-Man". To unlock the game on "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary", just score 15000 points in "Pac-Man" and 20000 points in "Ms. Pac-Man".

* Others :
Mobile Phones [US] (May 27, 2005, "Pac-Mania 3D")
Arcade [US] (2010, "Pac-Man's Arcade Party")
Apple iPhone/iPod [US] (November 25, 2010) [Model 395670726]

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.

Dragon Spirit (c) 1987 Atari Games Corp.

Atari version. For more information on the game itself, please see the original Namco version entry.

- TRIVIA -

Dragon Spirit was released in August 1987 in the USA by Atari under license from Namco.

600 units were produced by Atari. The selling price was $1995.

- UPDATES -

The 'Level Select Code', as described in the original Namco version entry, Tips and Tricks section, also works on this version.

- SERIES -

1. Dragon Spirit (1987)
2. Dragon Saber (1990)

- PORTS -

NOTE: Only ports released in the USA are listed here. For ports released in other regions, please see the original Namco version entry.

* Consoles :
NEC TurboGrafx-16 [US] (1989) [Model TGX020016]
Nintendo NES [US] (June 1990; "Dragon Spirit: The New Legend [Model NES-P4]")
Sony PlayStation [US] (1997, "Namco Museum Vol.5 [Model SLUS-00417]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLUS-21164]")
Microsoft XBOX [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model NMO-2201A-NM]")
Nintendo GameCube [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NE-USA]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary (Greatest Hits) [Model SLUS-20273GH]")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [US] (November 4, 2008; "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade [Model 21022]")
Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] [US] (July 16, 2009; "Namco Museum Essentials [Model NPUB-30086]")
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [US] (July 2, 2007) [Model PBAE] : TurboGrafx-16 version

* Computers :
Commodore C64 [US] (1989)
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [US] (October 25, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.

KEYWORDS =
Dragon Spirit (c) 1987 Namco.

- TRIVIA -

Dragon Spirit was released in June 1987 in Japan.

If you complete the game, the credits appear followed by a list of Namco games up to this point along with their release dates.

Dow Luk See holds the official record for this game with 400630 points on April 30, 1988.

Victor Entertainment released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (Namco Video Game Graffiti Vol.2 - VDR-5222) on October 21, 1987.

- SERIES -

1. Dragon Spirit (1987)
2. Dragon Saber - After Story of Dragon Spirit (1990)

- PORTS -

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

* Consoles :
NEC PC-Engine [JP] (December 26, 1988) [Model NC63003]
Nintendo Famicom [JP] (April 14, 1989; "Dragon Spirit: Aratanaru Densetsu")
Sony PlayStation [JP] (February 28, 1997; "Namco Museum Vol.5 [Model SLPS-00705]")
Sony PlayStation [AU] (1998, "Namco Museum Vol.5 [Model SCES-00702]")
Sony PlayStation [EU] (February 1998; "Namco Museum Vol.5 [Model SCES-00702]")
Sony PlayStation [JP] (October 28, 1999; "Namco Museum Vol.5 (PlayStation the Best) [Model SLPS-91162]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [JP] (January 26, 2006; "Namco Museum Arcade Hits! [Model SLPS-25590]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [EU] (March 31, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLES-53957]")
Microsoft XBOX [EU] (March 24, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")
Nintendo GameCube [EU] (May 5, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NP-EUR]")
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [EU] (July 6, 2007) [Model PBAP] : TurboGrafx version
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [AU] (August 10, 2007) : TurboGrafx version
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [JP] (November 13, 2007) [Model PBAJ] : PC-Engine version
Microsoft XBOX 360 [EU] (May 15, 2009; "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [AU] (June 4, 2009; "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [JP] (November 5, 2009; "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]")
Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] [JP] (January 29, 2009; "Namco Museum.comm")
Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] [EU] [AU] (April 1, 2010; "Namco Museum Essentials")
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console Arcade] [JP] (September 8, 2009)

* Computers :
Sharp X68000 [JP] (September 23, 1988)
Amstrad CPC [EU] (1989)
Atari ST [EU] (1989)
Sinclair ZX Spectrum [EU] (1990 - Domark) : also released as Budget editions by both Hit Squad and Erbe Software in 1991
Commodore C64 [EU] (1989)
Commodore Amiga [EU] (1989)
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [AU] (March 27, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [EU] (May 19, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

KEYWORDS =
Zero Hour (c) 1997 Virtuality.

KEYWORDS =
- STAFF -

Game Designers: Tarique Naseem, Graham Patten
Programmer: Tarique Naseem
Graphics/Animation: Graham Patten
Sound/Music: Mike Adams

KEYWORDS =
- STAFF -

Game Designers: Tarique Naseem, Graham Patten
Programmer: Tarique Naseem
Graphics/Animation: Graham Patten
Sound/Music: Mike Adams

KEYWORDS =
- STAFF -

Game Designers: Tarique Naseem, Mark Hardisty, Jason Woodward, Andy Smith
Programmers: Jason Woodward, Tarique Naseem
Graphics/Animation: Mark Hardisty
Sound/Music: Mike Adams

KEYWORDS = trivia and staff addition.
This port of Lethal Enforcers is bundled with the Konami Justifier light gun which bears resemblance to the Konami issued revolvers seen in the original arcade game.

Like its Sega Genesis counterpart, this port does not feature the enviromental interactivity elements (save for the tires of the cars in the car chase acts in The Bank Robbery and the Drug Dealer stages) that the Arcade version has.

This game is rated MA-17 (Mature Audiences Only) by Sega's Videogame Ratings Council.

Unlike the Super Nintendo port, the Sega CD port of Lethal Enforcers retains the violence elements (i.e. the blood splatter with the "Innocent Victim" text above a civilian following his or her accidental shooting), as well as maintaining the original stage titles.

Like its Sega Genesis counterpart, This port is known for penalizing players for either poor accuracy or by shooting innocent bystanders by forcing them to redo the stage that they either did not meet the required accuracy quota (i.e. setting the game on Easy difficulty requires 60% or more in accuracy) or shot a civilian.

Like the Genesis port, the Sega CD port of Lethal Enforcers features 2 modes which the player can select in the Options Screen. Arcade mode which has the player go through the main 5 stages in order, while Practice mode permits the game to be the Training Range.

-- Staff --
Programmers: Y. Matsuhana, Moai Sasaki, M. Ueno, K. Hashimoto
Graphics: N. Takemoto, N. Sasaki
Sound Effects: Kazuki Muraoka, A. Fujio, K. Imai
Music Arrangement: Tappy Iwase
Guitar Player: Motoaki Furukawa (Konami Kukeiha Club)
Justifier Designers: M. Okada, T. Ohishi
Package Designers: Yoshihashi
Directors: Sasaki, Ueno
Producer: Tomikazu Hirita

KEYWORDS = trivia addition
This port of Lethal Enforcers is bundled with the Konami Justifier light gun which bears resemblance to the Konami issued revolvers seen in the original arcade game.

This game does not feature the enviromental interactivity elements (save for the tires of the cars in the car chase acts in The Bank Robbery and the Drug Dealer stages) that the Arcade version has.

This game is rated MA-17 (Mature Audiences Only) by Sega's Videogame Ratings Council.

Unlike the Super Nintendo port, the Genesis port of Lethal Enforcers retains the violence elements (i.e. the blood splatter with the "Innocent Victim" text above a civilian following his or her accidental shooting), as well as maintaining the original stage titles.

This port is known for penalizing players for either poor accuracy or by shooting innocent bystanders by forcing them to redo the stage that they either did not meet the required accuracy quota (i.e. setting the game on Easy difficulty requires 60% or more in accuracy) or shot a civilian.

Unlike the SNES port, The Genesis port of Lethal Enforcers features 2 modes which the player can select in the Options Screen. Arcade mode which has the player go through the main 5 stages in order, while Practice mode permits the game to be the Training Range.

KEYWORDS = trivia addition
-- Trivia --
The Super Nintendo port of Lethal Enforcers is bundled with the Konami Justifier light gun which bears resemblance to the Konami-issued revolvers of the arcade game.

This port was known for maintaining the enviromental interactivity (i.e. shooting out glass windows) from the Arcade version which the Sega Genesis and Sega CD ports did not have.

Despite the box warned that the game was for mature audiences only, the SNES port of Lethal Enforcers was heavily censored.

Things that were censored
*Instead of showing a blood splatter with the "Innocent Victim" text whenever a civilian is shot, a neon green "caution!" sign pops up above the civilian's head. Interestingly enough, the shot civilian continues moving instead of being killed like in the Arcade version as well as the Sega Genesis, Sega CD, and eventually, the Playstation port (which was one half of Lethal Enforcers 1 and 2).

*Chinatown Assault was renamed Downtown Assault out of concern of stereotyping the chinese in a bad light.

*The Drug Dealer was renamed The Gunrunner as a result of Nintendo of America's strict policy on the mentioning or depiction of controlled substances in their games.

This port seems to be based on the japanese version of the Arcade version since the game features the "Street Mode" stage select, and that you're able to complete the game by completing the primary 5 stages (Bank Robbery, Downtown Assault, The Hijacking, The Gunrunners, Chemical Plant).

KEYWORDS =
Galaga 3 (c) 1984 Namco.

- TRIVIA -

Galaga 3 was released in October 1984 in USA.

This game is also known as "Gaplus" (July 1984).

James Struckle holds the official record for this game with 137000 points.

- SERIES -

1. Galaxian (1979)
2. Galaga (1981)
3. Gaplus (1984) : also known as "Galaga 3"
4. Galaga '88 (1987)
5. Galaxian 3 Theatre 6 - Project Dragoon (1990)
6. Galaxian 3 Theatre 6 J2 - Attack Of The Zolgear (1994)
7. Galaga Arrangement (1995) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.1"
8. Galaga - Destination Earth (2000, GBA, PC CD-ROM and PlayStation)
9. Galaga Legions (2008, XBLA)
10. Galaga Legions DX (2010, PSN, XBLA)
11. Galaga 3D Impact (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions"

KEYWORDS = #Shoot Them Up#;
Gaplus (c) 1984 Bally Midway Mfg. Co.

- TECHNICAL -

[No. 0A87]

- TRIVIA -

Gaplus was released in July 1984 in the USA by Midway, under license from Namco. For more information about the game itself, please see the original Namco entry.

This game is also known as "Galaga 3" (October 1984).

- SERIES -

1. Galaxian (1979)
2. Galaga (1981)
3. Gaplus (1984) : also known as "Galaga 3"
4. Galaga '88 (1987)
5. Galaxian 3 Theatre 6 - Project Dragoon (1990)
6. Galaxian 3 Theatre 6 J2 - Attack Of The Zolgear (1994)
7. Galaga Arrangement (1995) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.1"
8. Galaga - Destination Earth (2000, GBA, PC CD-ROM and PlayStation)
9. Galaga Legions (2008, XBLA)
10. Galaga Legions DX (2010, PSN, XBLA)
11. Galaga 3D Impact (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions"

- PORTS -

NOTES : Only ports released in the USA are listed here. For a list of ports released in other regions, please see the original Namco "Gaplus" entry.

* Consoles :
Sony PlayStation [US] (September 30, 1996; "Namcom Museum Vol.2 [Model SLUS-00216]")
Nintendo Wii [US] (October 23, 2007; "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-R2NE-USA]")
Nintendo Wii [US] (March 25, 2009, "Virtual Console Arcade")
Nintendo Wii [US] (November 16, 2010, "Namco Museum Megamix")

* Computers :
Commodore C64 [US] (1989)

* Others :
Apple iPhone/iPod [US] (June 9, 2011, "Galaga 30th Collection") [Model 413616338]

- SOURCES -

Game's rom

KEYWORDS =
Galaga '88 (c) 1988 Atari Games Corp.

- TRIVIA -

Galaga '88 was released in April 1988 in the USA by Atari under license from Namco.

136 dedicated units were produced by Atari. The selling price was $1995.
850 conversion kits were produced by Atari. The selling price was $495.

- SERIES -

1. Galaxian (1979)
2. Galaga (1981)
3. Gaplus (1984) : also known as "Galaga 3"
4. Galaga '88 (1987)
5. Galaxian 3 Theatre 6 - Project Dragoon (1990)
6. Galaxian 3 Theatre 6 J2 - Attack Of The Zolgear (1994)
7. Galaga Arrangement (1995) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.1"
8. Galaga - Destination Earth (2000, GBA, PC CD-ROM and PlayStation)
9. Galaga Legions (2008, XBLA)
10. Galaga Legions DX (2010, PSN, XBLA)
11. Galaga 3D Impact (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions"

- PORTS -

* Consoles :
NEC TurboGrafx-16 [US] (1989, "Galaga '90 [Model TCX002218]")
Sony PlayStation [US] (September 30, 1996; "Ridge Racer Revolution [Model SLUS-00214]") : you can play the game while the main game loads. Only the 'That's Galactic Dancin' stages are included.
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLUS-21164]")
Microsoft XBOX [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model NMO-2201A]")
Nintendo GameCube [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NE-USA]")
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [US] (August 6, 2007) [Model PAWE] : TurboGrafx-16 version
Microsoft XBOX 360 [US] (November 4, 2008; "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade [Model 21022]")

* Computers :
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [US] (October 25, 2005, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

NOTE: On "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary" (all platforms), the game is initially locked. To unlock it, just score 40000 points in the original "Galaga".

* Others :
Arcade [US] (2010, "Pac-Man's Arcade Party")
Apple iPad/iPhone [US] (June 9, 2011, "Galaga 30th Collection [Model 413616338]")

KEYWORDS =
Galaga '88 (c) 1987 Namco.

Galaga '88 is an updated version of the old favorite, "Galaga", with more invaders and more player firepower. Galaga '88 gives players a chance to once again repel the invaders from the Galagan Kingdom. One or two players can try their hand at fighting the invaders. This time the Galagans have four more allies, each with unique weapons and defenses that a player must overcome.

By destroying special enemies or obstacles the player can get 'items'. When a player has two items, they can warp to another dimension to confront more Galagan ships with new strategies. In the Challenging Stages (labelled in this game as 'That's Galactic Dancin'), the player shoots down as many invaders as possible as the Galagans dance to a waltz, tango, march or jazz tune.

The player selects single or dual ship power. The objective is to destroy all the Galagan foes in each of the 29 sectors of the galaxy, with each sector more difficult than the last.

Unique Features :
* More opponents. In addition to Boss, Goei and Zako, the original Galagan crew, Don, Nin, Ban, and Gan have been added. Each of the Galagans has a unique way of challenging the players.
* Different types of ships. Players can choose single or dual ships (if the game option is set for dual and single). When the player retrieves a dual ship from the Boss's tractor beam, it turns into a triple ship with ten times the power of a single ship.
* Challenging Stages. In the 'That's Galactic Dancin' stages, the Galagan invaders dance to a waltz, tango, Sousa march or jazz tune, while the player shoots down Galagans to earn bonus points.
* Warping to a new dimension. By destroying particular enemies or obstacles and capturing two of their items, the player can warp to the next dimension.
* Player challenge. Each dimension has different mix of Galagans with different strategies to be overcome.
* Win back captured ships. The player can win back ships captured in the Boss Galaga's tractor beam. When the player destroys the Boss, the ships are released. If the player retrieves them, the ships become dual ships if they were single and triple if they were dual.
* High Score Mode. Upon completing a game, a player can enter his initials if they are among the top eight scorers on the game.

- TRIVIA -

Galaga '88 was released in December 1987 in Japan.

An homage to "Bosconian" is paid in stages 15-17 (Dimension 4) with the green hexagonal space stations in the background, as well as the mines which are used as scenery objects.

Challenging Stage 2 from Dimension 1 is used as a loading game in "Ridge Racer Revolution" for the original Sony PlayStation.

Stephen Krogman holds the official record for this game with 1575490 points.

- SERIES -

1. Galaxian (1979)
2. Galaga (1981)
3. Gaplus (1984)
4. Galaga '88 (1987)
5. Galaga Arrangement (1995) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.1"
6. Galaga Legions (2008, XBLA)
7. Galaga Legions DX (2010, PSN, XBLA)
8. Galaga 3D Impact (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions"

- PORTS -

* Consoles :
NEC PC-Engine [JP] (July 15, 1988) [Model NC63002]
Sega Game Gear [EU] (1991, "Galaga 2")
Sega Game Gear [JP] (October 25, 1991; "Galaga '91 [Model T-14057]")
Sony PlayStation [JP] (December 3, 1995, "Ridge Racer Revolution") : you can play the game while the main game loads. Only the 'That's Galactic Dancin' stages are included.
Sony PlayStation [EU] (May 1996; "Ridge Racer Revolution") : you can play the game while the main game loads. Only the 'That's Galactic Dancin' stages are included.
Sony PlayStation 2 [JP] (January 26, 2006; "Namco Museum Arcade Hits! [Model SLPS-25590]")
Microsoft XBOX [EU] (March 24, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")
Sony PlayStation 2 [EU] (March 31, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLES-53957]")
Nintendo GameCube [EU] (May 5, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL P G5NP]")
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [JP] (March 20, 2007) [Model PAWJ] : PC Engine version
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [EU] (August 10, 2007) [Model PAWP] : TurboGrafx-16 version
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console] [AU] (August 17, 2007) : TurboGrafx-16 version
Microsoft XBOX 360 [EU] (May 15, 2009, "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [AU] (June 3, 2009, "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [JP] (November 5, 2009; "Namco Museum: Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]")

* Computers :
Sharp X68000 [JP] (June 30, 1990, Dempa Shinbunsha)
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [AU] (March 27, 2006, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [EU] (May 19, 2006, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

NOTE: On "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary" (all platforms), the game is initially locked. To unlock it, just score 40000 points in the original "Galaga".

KEYWORDS =
Galaxian (c) 1979 Midway Mfg. Co.

- TRIVIA -

Galaxian was released in December 1979 by Midway in the USA, under license from Namco. For more information about the game itself, please see the original Namco entry.

A Galaxian unit appears in the 1983 movie 'Joysticks' and the sitcom 'Two and a Half Men'; Season 5, Episode 2 (People Who Love Peepholes). It is also heard (but not seen) in the 1987 James Bond movie 'The Living Daylights'.

- SERIES -

1. Galaxian (1979)
2. Galaga (1981)
3. Gaplus (1984) : also known as "Galaga 3"
4. Galaga '88 (1987)
5. Galaxian 3 Theatre 6 - Project Dragoon (1990)
6. Galaxian 3 Theatre 6 J2 - Attack Of The Zolgear (1994)
7. Galaga Arrangement (1995) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.1"
8. Galaga - Destination Earth (2000, GBA, PC CD-ROM and PlayStation)
9. Galaga Legions (2008, XBLA)
10. Galaga Legions DX (2010, PSN, XBLA)
11. Galaga 3D Impact (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions".

- PORTS -

* Consoles :
Bally Astrocade [US] (1977, "Galactic Invasion" - Activision [Model 2011])
Atari XEGS
Atari 5200 [US] (1982) [Model CX5206]
Colecovision [US] (1983) [Model 70006]
Atari 2600 [US] (1983) [Model CX2684]
Emerson Arcadia 2001 [US] (1982, "Galactica" clone, as "Space Attack [Model 1013]")
Sony PlayStation [US] (September 9, 1994; "Ridge Racer [Model SCUS-94300]") : you can play the game while the main game loads.
Nintendo Game Boy [US] (September 1995; "Arcade Classic No. 3 - Galaga / Galaxian [Model DMG-AGCE-USA]")
Sony PlayStation [US] (January 31, 1997; "Namco Museum Vol.3 [Model SLUS-0398]")
Nintendo 64 [US] (October 31, 1999; "Namco Museum 64 [Model NUS-NNME]")
Sega Dreamcast [US] (June 25, 2000; "Namco Museum [Model T-1403N]")
Nintendo Game Boy Advance [US] (June 10, 2001; "Namco Museum [Model AGB-ANME-USA]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (December 4, 2001, "Namco Museum [Model SLUS-20273]")
Microsoft XBOX [US] (October 9, 2002, "Namco Museum")
Nintendo GameCube [US] (October 9, 2002, "Namco Museum [Model DOL-GNME-USA]")
Sony PSP [US] (August 23, 2005; "Namco Museum Battle Collection [Model ULUS-10035]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLUS-21164]")
Microsoft XBOX [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model NMO-2201A]")
Nintendo GameCube [US] (August 30, 2005; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NE-USA]")
Nintendo DS [US] (September 18, 2007; "Namco Museum DS [Model NTR-YNME-USA]")
Nintendo Wii [US] (October 23, 2007; "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-R2NE-USA]")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [US] (November 4, 2008; "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade [Model 21022]")
Nintendo Wii [US] (November 16, 2010, "Namco Museum Megamix")

* Computers :
Commodore Vic 20 [US] (1981, "Star Battle" - Hal Laboratory)
Atari 800 [US] (1982) [Model CXL4024]
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1982, "Galax Attax")
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1982, "Space Ambush")
Commodore C64 [US] (1983, "Galaxions" - Solar Software)
Commodore C64 [US] (1983) [Model RX8542]
Commodore VIC-20 [US] (1983, Atarisoft)
PC [Booter] [US] (1983, Thunder Mountain)
PC [Booter] [US] (1983, Atarisoft)
Apple II [US] (1983, Atarisoft)
PC [MS Windows, 3.5"] [US] (March 31, 1996, "Microsoft Return of Arcade")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [US] (2000, "Microsoft Return of Arcade Anniversary Edition")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [US] (October 25, 2005, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

* Others :
VFD tabletop game [US] (1981) by Coleco.
Namco Classics TV Game [US] (2003 - Jakk's Pacific)
Mobile Phones [US] (June 13, 2003, "Galaxian Mini")
Arcade Gold featuring Pac-Man [US] (2007 - Jakks Pacific)
Retro Arcade featuring Pac-Man [US] (2008 - Jakks Pacific)
Apple iPhone/iPod [US] (May 16, 2009, "Galaxians") by Istvan David [Model 316869163]
Arcade [US] (2010, "Pac-Man's Arcade Party")
Apple iPhone/iPod [US] (June 9, 2011, "Galaga 30th Collection [Model 413616338]")
Apple iPhone/iPod [US] (March 23, 2012) by Iconosys [Model 511322882]
Pac-Man Connect and Play [US] (2012 - Bandai)

KEYWORDS =
Galaxian (c) 1979 Namco.

- TRIVIA -

Galaxian was released in October 1979 in Japan and was the first video game to be released with 100 percent of its graphics displayed in true R.G.B. color.

Space battles of all kinds played a major role during the golden age of video games. With the introduction of Galaxian, players were transported to the most colorful and challenging space battle yet.

* A place in video game history : "Galaxian captivated the minds of quite a few arcade enthusiasts," said Chris Lindsey, director of the National Video Game and Coin-Op Museum in St. Louis. "It was a relatively early entry in the golden age of video games, and it capitalized on the enthusiasm created by the earlier video game classic, "Space Invaders", while providing a more colorful, enjoyable, and demanding gaming experience.
Galaxian had smarter bad guys than "Space Invaders", and it demanded that the player really pay attention to what was going on. And there were no shields, like many games have today. You really had to stay on the ball. Galaxian also had great sound and used elements that have since become standard -- such as flags and other symbols to mark the player's progression through different levels of game play.".

* The great 25-cent escape : "Galaxian definitely gets an enthusiastic response," Lindsey said. "In fact, I deliberately position the game near the entrance of the museum. Often it's the first game people go to." Lindsey often sees parents trying to convey to their child the excitement of these great games. "It is funny for me when I see a father trying to explain a game to his kid. Junior really just wants to get on the game and figure it out, and Dad wants to do a demo. Dad starts instructing Junior while Junior is sort of looking around, wondering how he can get away. But Dad continues, busily explaining the nuances of the game, which he knows Junior can't get on the first play. This all shows the enthusiasm that a certain generation still has for these terrific games."
With or without a parent's help, Lindsey sees a younger generation embracing the classic arcade games. "Kids by themselves will actually do quite well on these games," Lindsey said. "I'm somewhat surprised when I see how good kids are at picking up games. I sort of think that because I'm older, I should be able to play better, and that's not always the case with video games. That's a lesson an entire generation has had to learn.".

* Namco notes : Galaxian was one of Namco's first video games, and engineers throughout the company were gathered into a special team. As the game neared completion, the engineers suspected they had created a good game because other Namco employees were extremely "excited and crazy about the game." Once Galaxian was released, they knew they had a winner because, as one Namco engineer reported, "People [at the arcades] piled their coins onto the game cabinets to keep playing, and those who were waiting were very irritated because their turn never came. There were huge lines of people around each machine.".

The Galaxian Flagship became a trademark of Namco as it makes cameo appearances in other Namco classics :
Pac-Man (1980) : The flagship makes an appearance as a bonus fruit on rounds 9 and 10, and is worth 2000 points if Pac-Man eats it.
Galaga (1981) : The flagship makes an appearance as one of the "transform" ships. It splits into 2, then 3 clones of itself. If all 3 are killed, they are worth 3000 points.
Dig Dug (1982) : The flagship makes an appearance as a bonus vegetable on rounds 16 and 17, and is worth 7000 points if Dig Dug picks it up.
Super Pac-Man (1982) : All regular edible items on rounds 15, 31, 47, and 63 are flagships, and they are worth 150 points each. Starting from their second appearance, Round 31, they are 160 points instead.
Pac-Man Plus (1982) : The flagship's role is exactly the same as its role in Pac-Man.
Pac & Pal (1983) : The flagship makes an appearance as one of the "special items" that make Pac-Man turn blue when eaten, and allows him to stun the ghosts for a short while by shooting a Galaga-style tractor beam. It is worth 1000 points if Pac-Man eats it.
Pac-Land (1984) : The ghosts in airplanes sometimes drop flagships and they are worth 7650 points (765 being Namco's goroawase number in Japanese) if eaten.
Super Xevious (1984) : The flagship makes an appearance in a silver form and as an enemy, and sometimes several of them attack at once. They are worth 300 points each.
Quester (1987) : In Round 5, the bricks form a Galaxian Flagship.
Pac-Mania (1987) : The flagship makes a 3-D appearance as a special item and in 2 forms as well, the other one being the silver form from Super Xevious. The regular one and the silver one are worth 7650 points if eaten.
Pistol Daimyo no Bouken (1990) : The flagship makes an appearance as an enemy along with the other Galaxian characters, and they attempt to hit Pistol Daimyo with their fire.
Tinkle Pit (1993) : The flagship also makes an appearance with the other Galaxian characters, but this time they appear as bonus items. It is worth 800 points if collected.
Tekken (1994 - Arcade, 1995 - PlayStation) and Tekken 2 (1995 - Arcade, 1996 - PlayStation) : Winning at least seven rounds in Arcade Vs. mode will reveal the Galaxian flagship on the lower left (or right) hand corner of the screen. In order for this to work, "Number of Wins Shown By" must be set to Fruit.
Namco Classic Collection Vol. 1 (1995) : The flagship makes an appearance in Galaga Arrangement as a Challenging Stage enemy in Space-Plant Zone (Stage 20) and normally in Space-Flower Zone (Stage 26). If killed normally, they are worth 150 points. If killed in Challenging Stage, they are worth 300 points.
Namco Classic Collection Vol. 2 (1996) : The flagship appears in both Pac-Man Arrangement and Dig Dug Arrangement. In Pac-Man Arrangement, it makes its appearance in World 4-1 and 4-2 and is worth 5000 points if Pac-Man eats it. In Dig Dug Arrangement, it appears in Stages 17 and 18 and is worth 7000 points if Dig Dug picks it up.
Pac-Man World (1999) : The flagship appears again in a Pac-Man game. This time, the item must be collected in order to access the mazes.
Pac-Man World 2 (2002) : The flagship teleports Pac-Man to mazes. The point value will be the same as the points earned in the maze (if completed), plus 2000.
Pac-Man World 3 (2005) : The flagship has the exact functionality as it does in Pac-Man World 2.
Namco Museum Battle Collection (2005) : The arrangement versions of Pac-Man and Dig Dug, later called Pac-Man Remix and Dig Dug Remix in the iOS version, feature the flagship. Pac-Man Remix features both the flagship, worth 3200 points, and the red drone, worth 2800 points, as fruit items, while on Dig Dug Remix, the flagship is a vegetable item and is worth 7000.
Dig Dug - Digging Strike (2005) : Just like the first Dig Dug, the flagship appears as a vegetable on stage 13, except it's worth 6000 points.
Pac-Man Championship Edition (2007) : The flagship reappears, but is this time joined by the Galaga Boss, Queen Gaplus, and two drones, one each from Galaga and Galaxian.
Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (2010) : The flagship and Galaga/Galaxian drones, Queen Gaplus and the Galaga Boss serve the same purpose as the original Championship Edition.

Gary Whelan holds the official record for this game with 1114550 points, achieved August 24, 2006 at Dukinfield in the UK.

- SERIES -

1. Galaxian (1979)
2. Galaga (1981)
3. Gaplus (1984)
4. Galaga '88 (1987)
5. Galaga Arrangement (1995) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.1"
7. Galaga Legions (2008, XBLA)
8. Galaga Legions DX (2010, PSN, XBLA)
9. Galaga 3D Impact (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions"

- PORTS -

* Consoles :
Epoch Cassette Vision [JP] (August 10, 1981)
Atari 2600 [JP] (1983)
Nintendo Famicom [JP] (September 7, 1984; "Galaxian [Model NGX-4500]")
Nintendo Famicom Disk [JP] (July 20, 1990)
Sony PlayStation [JP] (December 3, 1994; "Ridge Racer [Model SLPS-00001]") : you can play the game while the main game loads.
Nintendo Game Boy [EU] (1995; "Arcade Classic No.3: Galaga / Galaxian [Model DMG-AGCP-NOE]")
Nintendo Game Boy [JP] (1995; "Galaga & Galaxian [Model DMG-AGCJ]")
Sony PlayStation [EU] (September 1995; "Ridge Racer [Model SCES-00001]") : you can play the game while the main game loads.
Philips CD-i [EU] (1996, "Arcade Classics")
Nintendo Game Boy [JP] (November 29, 1996, "Namco Gallery Vol.2 [Model DMG-ANJ2]")
Sony PlayStation [JP] (June 21, 1996; "Namco Museum Vol.3 [Model SLPS-00390]")
Sony PlayStation [AU] (1997, "Namco Museum Vol.3")
Sony PlayStation [EU] (February 1997; "Namco Museum Vol.3 [Model SLES-00268]")
Nintendo Game Boy Advance [JP] (December 7, 2001; "Namco Museum [Model AGB-ANMJ-JPN]")
Nintendo Game Boy Advance [EU] (December 7, 2001; "Namco Museum [Model AGB-ANMP]")
Sony PSP [JP] (February 24, 2005; "Namco Museum [Model ULJS-00012]")
Sony PSP [KO] (May 2, 2005; "Namco Museum [Model UCKS-45005]")
Sony PSP [EU] (December 9, 2005; "Namco Museum Battle Collection [Model UCES-00116]")
Sony PlayStation 2 [JP] (January 26, 2006; "Namco Museum Arcade Hits! [Model SLPS-25590]")
Sony PSP [JP] (February 23, 2006; "Namco Museum Volume 2 [Model ULJS-00047]")
Microsoft XBOX [EU] (March 24, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")
Sony PlayStation 2 [EU] (March 31, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model SLES-53957]")
Nintendo GameCube [EU] (May 5, 2006; "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary [Model DOL P G5NP]")
Nintendo DS [JP] (October 11, 2007; "Namco Museum DS [Model NTR-YNMJ-JPN]")
Sony PSP [KO] (November 8, 2007 "Namco Museum Volume 2" - as "Old Galaga") : Marks the only ever official connection between the Galaxian and Galaga series
Nintendo Wii [JP] (December 6, 2007; "Minna de Asobou! Namco Carnival" [Model RVL-P-RNWJ]") : Translated as "Everybody plays! Namco Carnival".
Nintendo DS [EU] (February 29, 2008; "Namco Museum DS [Model NTR-YNMP]")
Nintendo Wii [EU] (April 18, 2008; "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-RN2P]")
Nintendo Wii [KO] (April 26, 2008, "Namco Museum Remix")
Nintendo Wii [AU] (May 1, 2008; "Namco Museum Remix [Model RVL-2N2P]")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [EU] (May 15, 2009, "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade")
Microsoft XBOX 360 [AU] (June 3, 2009, "Namco Museum Virtual Arcade")
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console Arcade] [JP] (September 29, 2009)
Microsoft XBOX 360 [JP] (November 5, 2009; "Namco Museum: Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]")

* Computers :
Exidy Sorcerer [EU]
Apple II [JP] (1980, Star Craft Tokyo)
Apple II [JP] (1981, "Alien Typhoon" - Star Craft)
BBC B [EU] (1982, "Arcadians" - Acornsoft)
Acorn Electron [EU] (1982, "Arcadians" - Acornsoft)
Sinclair ZX81 [EU] (1982, "ZX Galaxians" - Artic)
Sinclair ZX Spectrum [EU] (1982, Artic)
Commodore C64 [EU] (1983, "Galaxions" - Solar Software)
Commodore C64 [EU] (1983)
Sinclair ZX Spectrum [EU] (1983, Atarisoft)
Sinclair ZX Spectrum [UK] (1983, "Galactians" - DK'Tronics)
MSX [JP] (1984)
MSX [EU] (1984, Bug-Byte)
Fujitsu FM-7 [EU] (1985)
Sharp X1 [EU] (Dempa)
NEC PC-88 [JP]
Atari ST (1993, "Galaxian" - PD / Shareware - Sinister Developments)
PC [MS-DOS] (1996, "Galaxi" - PD / Shareware - Kurt W. Dekker)
PC [MS-DOS] (1997, "ChampGalaxia" - CHAMProgramming)
Commodore Amiga (1998, "Galaxians v1.3" - PD / Shareware - Kev Gallagher)
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [JP] (December 24, 1998, "Namco History Vol.4")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [AU] (March 27, 2006, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [EU] (May 19, 2006, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary")

* Others :
VFD tabletop game (1980) by Bandai)
VFD tabletop game (19??, "Moon Alien", alt. name) by Bandai
VFD tabletop game [JP] (19??, "Beam Galaxian") by Bandai
VFD handheld game (1981, "Galaxian 2", called Galaxian 2 because it can be a two-player game) by Entex (or Futuretronics).
VFD handheld game [JP] (1981, "Astro Galaxy") by Entex.
VFD handheld game (1981, "Astro Invader", Hales release) by Entex.
LCD Keychains handheld game (1997) by Bandai.

KEYWORDS =
- TRIVIA -

A Space Invaders unit appears in the 1980 movie 'Midnight Madness', in the 1982 movie 'Jekyll & Hyde... Together Again', in the 1982 movie 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High', in the 1983 movie 'Joysticks', in the 1984 movie 'The Iceman', in the 1991 movie 'Terminator 2 - Judgment Day', and in the 1998 sitcom 'That 70's Show'; Season 4, Episode 8 (Donna's Story).

KEYWORDS =
-DESCRIPTION-

An Excellent platform Beat 'em up game.

We play with a beautiful teen actress named Momo, through various theater levels, she fighting all enemies with kicks and double kicks and his super suit that makes becomes Wonder Momo and lets throw his Wonder hoop and the powerfull Wonder Typhoon.

KEYWORDS =
- TRIVIA -

FV2 was released in March 1998 in Japan.

Character design is the work of Imai Toons, whose talent has produced a series of popular Japanese advertising characters.

KEYWORDS =
Megablast (c) 1989 Taito Corp.

At the end of the 21st century, war and hunger disappear on the earth, and humankind go on very well. On such occasion, it occurred to humankind that mysterious disappearances of women rise in waves in many places in the world. The cause is found by the investigation of a secretly organized 'Defending-the-earth-from-the-outside-organization'. That is, a strange contagious disease prevails throughout a planet 'Zancs' in a dark nebula, and women's generative power is lost, then, women on the earth were abducted as substitutes for having their descendants. Downson and Bogey, the choice out of the 'Defending-the-earth-from-the-outside-organization'. start on a journey to the space by using 'Megablast' which is a space fighter equipped with all available products of the earth's scientific power in order to rescue the earth women as well as lovable 'Sindy' who is also abducted together with the other earth women.

- TECHNICAL -

Taito F2 System hardware
Prom Stickers : C11

Main CPU : 68000
Sound CPU : Z80
Sound Chips : YM2610

Players : 2
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 1

- TRIVIA -

Megablast was released in October 1989.

As "Master of Weapon", Megablast was very unpopular. The main reason is the game was worse than other shoot'em ups of this period. So, most boards were withdraw.

Only one soundtrack include the game's sounds (composed by Zuntata): "Taito Retro collection 5" (KDSD-00553,00554) on May 30, 2012.

- STAFF -

* Sound composer : Yasuhisa Watanabe

- PORTS -

* Consoles :
Sony PlayStation 2 [JP] (March 29, 2007; "Taito Memories II Gekan [Model SLPM-66713 (TCPS-10183)]")

- SOURCES -
Yasuhisa Watanabe

KEYWORDS = trivia addition
-- Description --
After defeating Shredder in their previous exploit, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles decide to take a rest in the sunny beaches of Key West, Florida... That was until Shredder returned with a whole new plan - taking not only April O'Neil, but the entire Manhattan Island as well.

-- Trivia --
Even though the game's box artwork features a Triceraton (a recurring character from the Mirage Comic books), it does not appear in the actual game.

This game features Tokka and Rahzar who made their debuts in the 1991 film, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Secret of the Ooze.

Released in the US on February of 1992.

KEYWORDS = trivia addition
-- Trivia --
This was Konami's last game released for the Nintendo Entertainment System.

KEYWORDS = Trivia addition
-- Trivia --
This port of T2: The Arcade Game supports both the Nintendo Super Scope light gun accessory and the Super Nintendo Mouse peripheral which originally was bundled with Mario Paint.

Developed by Probe Software.

KEYWORDS = trivia addition.
-- Trivia --
This port of T2: The Arcade Game omits the stages which the player is in charge of protecting John Connor from Aerial Hunter Killers in 2029, and both him and his mother, Sarah from the T-1000 in the present day.

Developed by Beam Software.

KEYWORDS = trivia addition
-- Trivia --
The graphics for T2: The Arcade Game for the Genesis were redrawn from scratch which gave it an almost cartoon-like depiction.

T2: The Arcade Game for the Sega Genesis is one of the few Sega Genesis games which supported the Sega Menacer Light Gun and sometime in 1992, the game was bundled with the Menacer.

Developed by Probe Software.

KEYWORDS = trivia addition
-- Trivia --
While the PC-DOS version of T2 is the most faithful port which was close to the arcade, it also became infamous for being hard to run the game due to it using a high amount of conventional memory needed to run (580 Kilobytes out of 640 Kilobytes) and would usually need either a boot disk or memory alterations in order to load.

KEYWORDS =
Samurai Spirits (c) 1994 Takara Co., Ltd.

Lost in a forgotten era... You are a fierce Samurai warrior with only one goal: to seek out and defeat your enemies with all your strength and skills.

Samurai Spirits, the #1 arcade game, is here with 32 Megs of Arcade-Style action. Feel your senses come alive as you do battle in complete Dolby surround sound. Play as any of the 12 selectable characters with 13 full stages plus Bonus rounds and lots of surprises! Exciting new "Rage Gauge" feature gives you added attack power when you accumulate damage. There is also the "Courier Man" who runs past to throw you food, coins and surprise items during battle. Dozens of new sword swinging techniques to learn and master!

Armed with only your sword, you must rely on your keen instincts while you do battle with some of the strongest and craftiest Knights, Ninjas, and tough guys ever assembled.

- TECHNICAL -

[Model SHVC-A7SJ-JPN]

- TRIVIA -

Samurai Spirits for Super Famicom was released on September 22, 1994 in Japan.

- TIPS & TRICKS -

When the Takara logo appears, press A, Y, X, B. A sound by Amakusa will be heard. When you start the game in 1P VS 2P or Count Down mode, you can now select Amakusa by holding L and R, and pressing any button. If playing against another player, keep holding L and R until they select their character.

- SOURCES -

See Goodies section.
Game's ROM.

KEYWORDS =
Ryuuko no Ken (c) 1993 KAC [K.Amusement Lising Co.].

More than you can handle!

South Town is no place for the weak. Yet into this urban battlezone comes Ryo, braving the mean streets in order to rescue his kidnapped sister. With his friend Robert, the two must use all their strength and skills to battle and defeat the toughest fighters ever assembled.

Features blazing fast animation with huge graphics, unique cinematic zoom in, zoom out, and movie style animation, extended stereo sound effects, equipped with the world's first spirit gauge, taunt your opponent and decrease their power, choose from among 2 heroes and 6 others in VS MODE or from 2 heroes to battle 6 other fighters in STORY MODE, dozens of fighting modes and special skills to learn and use and many dangerous locations. Play against the computer or tackle another player in head to head combat for 1 or 2 players.

These fighters are big, powerful, strong - each possesses special skills that will be hard to counter. Ryo must master the Super Attacks if he is to be victorious.

Fight hard, fast and furious.

Only the strongest of fighters will survive the streets of South Town.

- TECHNICAL -

[Model SHVC-RW]

- TRIVIA -

Ryuuko no Ken for Super Famicom was released on October 29, 1993 in Japan.

This version of the game features an extended ending that ties to the sequel, Ryuuko no Ken 2, rather than ending the game on a cliffhanger like the original MVS and AES versions do.

- TIPS & TRICKS -

This version of the game gives Desperation Moves to all characters. When you clear the game in one of the eight difficulty levels, a Desperation Move is shown for a specific character. The characters will be listed by difficulty. Here is a simple legend for the commands:

A - Punch (Button X default)
B - Kick (Button Y default)
C - Strong Attack (Button R default)
U - Up
D - Down
B - Back
F - Forward

So DF is Down/Forward for example.

Mr. Karate
Ryuuko Ranbu - D, DF, F + C and A (press one after the other, same as Ryo and Robert)

Todo
Akira Oubu Ikazuchijin - B, DB, D, DF, F + AC (simultaneously)

Jack
Giant Press - B, DB, D, DF, F + C

Lee
Hishou Senpuugeki - F, B, DB, F + A

King
Bloody Dance - D, DB, B, F + C

Mickey
Burning Rush - F, D, DF, F + BC

John
Spinning Crush - DB, F + C

Mr. Big
Lightning Cross - F, B, DB, D, DF, F + A

Press Select to pause the game. Then enter any of the following codes:

Up, X, Left, Y, Down, B, Right, A, L, Y to skip to the ending.

Up, X, Left, Y, Down, B, Right, A, L, R to have the computer assume control of Player 1.

Up, X, Left, Y, Down, B, Right, A, L, X to have the computer take control of Player 2.

Up, X, Left, Y, Down, B, Right, A, L, L to perform special moves anytime even if your Spirit meter is low.

- SOURCES -

See Goodies section.
Game's ROM.

KEYWORDS =
Tube Panic (c) 1984 Nichibutsu [Nihon Bussan Co., Ltd.].

- TECHNICAL -

Main CPU : (2x) Z80 (@ 4 Mhz), NSC8105 (@ 1.5 Mhz)
Sound CPU : Z80 (@ 2.496 Mhz)
Sound Chips : (3x) AY8910 (@ 1.248 Mhz)

Players : 2
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 1

- TRIVIA -

Developed by Fujitek.

Tube Panic was released in January 1984. and very first 3-D video game devloped in japan!

- TIP AND TRICKS -

* In bouse stage, If you would dock with central in battleship, could get perpect point! (5000 point)

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.
Machine's picture.

KEYWORDS =
Gunpey (c) 2000 Banpresto.

- TECHNICAL -

Main CPU : V30 (@ 14.3106 Mhz)

- TRIVIA -

Gunpey was released on January 17, 2000.

This game title, gunpey means homage of famous video game designer in nintendo, gunpei yokoi. because, beforce he died in 1996, retired from nintendo and established company called by 'cott'. and, he adviced bandai's new console, wonderswan. so, bandai people thanks to him, make name from gunpei yokoi.

- SERIES -

1. Gunpey (2000)
2. Gunpey DS (2006, Nintendo DS)

- STAFF -

Original idea and designed by : Gunpei Yokoi

- PORTS -

Sony PlayStation (1999)
Bandai WonderSwan (1999)

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.
Game's picture.

KEYWORDS =
Cop 01 (c) 1985 Nichibutsu [Nihon Bussan Co., Ltd].

A shoot'em up / platform game where you are a futuristic cop trying to save your girlfriend.

- TECHNICAL -

Main CPU : Z80 (@ 4 Mhz)
Sound CPU : Z80 (@ 3 Mhz)
Sound Chips : (3x) AY8910 (@ 1.5 Mhz)

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

- TRIVIA -

Cop 01 was released in September 1985. and devlope/sound compose for PC-8801.

- STAFF -

* sound composer : Kenji yoshida

- SOURCES -

Game's rom.
Game's screenshot.

KEYWORDS =
-DESCRIPTION-

The space patrol aboard, can you survive the last invasion? you will need cross the entire galaxy and destroy the impending alien menace, should avoid losing one of the three modules of the ship and refuel your tank fuel to complete the mission.

KEYWORDS =
Turbo (c) 1981 Sega Enterprises, Ltd.

Sega's Turbo is a 3-D racing game from Sega in which the player must pass a set number of rival racers (usually 30) before the time limit expires. Success would see the player progress to the next stage. Turbo's gameplay was unique in that centered ENTIRELY on the passing of cars; while the tracks the player raced on had all of the usual bends and turns of the racing genre, they existed purely for effect and at no point did the player actually have to STEER through them.

Turbo was the world's first full-color, sprite scaling racing game and not, as many assume, Namco's "Pole Position". Turbo was released a full year before the Namco legend and is a further example of how Sega has dominated and innovated within the arcade racing genre.

Top scores were kept on a LED panel to the left of the screen (unfortunately these scores reset every-time you turn the game off).

- TIPS AND TRICKS -

* Official Instructions (printed on bezel) :
- Blue lamp indicator signals game start.
- To win EXTENDED PLAY, pass 30 cars before timer counts down to "0".
- Spare player car is awarded for each EXTENDED PLAY, up to 4 cars.
- In first round, player car is returned to starting line in case of a crash. In later rounds, However, a crash causes the player car to explode.
- Cars passed during EXTENDED PLAY add bonus points to the score.

* The Different Roads : As you drive along, you will notice that the roads and scenery change. If you go through a few extended plays, the cycle repeats itself.

Here are the roads in order of appearance:

Starting City--Open highway with hills(1)--Open highway--Seashore right side--Right curve--Oil tank right curve--Seashore left side(2)--Tunnel--Icy road--Tunnel--Open highway--Left curve--Oil tank left curve--Highway with street lights--Open highway with hills(1)--Open highway--Bridge--City at sunset--Open highway--Right curve--Left curve--Right curve--Highway with street lights going over water--Bridge (span)--Open highway--Open highway with hills(1)--Open highway--Right curve--Oil tank right curve--Open highway(2)--Tunnel--Icy road--Tunnel--Highway with street lights going over water--Narrow bridge--Open highway(2)--Left curve--Oil tank left curve--Open highway(2)--Open highway with hills(1)--Narrow highway--City on right at sunset--Open highway with hills--Open highway--Seashore right side--Right curve--Oil tank right curve--Seashore left side(2)--Tunnel--Icy road with city on right--Tunnel--Open highway--Left curve--Oil tank left curve--Open highway with street lights on left--Open highway with hills(1)--Narrow highway--Bridge--City at sunset--Open highway(2)--Narrow right curve--Narrow left curve--Narrow right curve--Open highway--Highway with street lights going over water--Bridge (span)--Open highway--Open highway with hills(1)--Narrow highway--Right curve--Oil tank right curve--Open highway(2)--Tunnel--Icy road--Tunnel--Highway with street lights going over water--Narrow bridge--Open highway--Left curve--Oil tank left curve--Starting City

(1) It's actually one hill. The computer cars disappear briefly from in front of your car to reappear rather close giving the illusion of a hill in front of you.

(2) Here, an ambulance appears on the road. See below for details.

* When you start the game, your car will be among other racers at the starting line. There will be both the graphic and sound for the countdown to start racing. Once the countdown is up, put it in gear and start driving. Get into high gear as quickly as possible. Not only will your score go up faster, you will pass the required number of cars quicker.

* A note about passing : You can pass all the cars you want, but, if a computer car passes you, your passed car counter goes down. The best thing to do is to maintain a steady speed since passing more cars then 40 doesn't add up more cars then can pass you.

* The steering wheel is very responsive on the game. Learn how to, in a controlled fashion, spin the wheel from side to side. It makes it a whole lot easier to maneuver your car around the other cars and you also have better control on the curves. On the icy roads, just maintain your direction and slow down if you have to. Remember, keep a light touch on the wheel and it will be easier to control your car then if you are clenching it.

* In order to drive effectively, you must know what you will be encountering next highway-wise. See "The Different Roads" above to see the sequence of highways you must drive on. Forewarned is forearmed.

* When you see the yellow flag waving right under the "Cars Passed" display, that means an ambulance is coming. You can use the ambulance to your advantage for a couple of seconds. The computer cars will clear a path so the ambulance can pass. Let the ambulance pass you and immediately get behind it. This should give you a couple of seconds of clear driving.

* Obviously, you can afford to be a little careless in the first part when your car just bounces off other cars and objects. You can still get the required cars for extended play. In extended play, however, you don't have this luxury any more. Any contact with any object makes your car go up in a big puff of smoke.

* Be prepared for hazards in the road such as ice and puddles. Both of these can quickly cause your car to spin out thereby causing you to lose complete control of your vehicle.

* Drive on the shoulder if you have to but quickly get back on the main road. Also, downshift and upshift quickly if you slow down too much. It takes much longer to get back to speed if you are in constant HI gear then if you downshifted briefly to LO and then upshifted again.

* Since you don't have brakes, per se, on your car, just take your foot off the accelerator or downshift to LO to achieve the same effect. This is especially useful when you are approaching a pack of computer cars or are going around a blind curve (such as the oil tank). You may get passed by a couple of cars but it's better then trying to ram your way through and losing a car.