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List of Galaxian video games

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Galaxian
Genre(s)Shoot'em up
Developer(s)Namco
Bandai Namco Studios
Publisher(s)Namco
Bandai Namco Entertainment
Creator(s)Kazunori Sawano
Platform(s)
First releaseGalaxian
November 1979
Latest releaseGalaga Revenge
January 2019

Galaxian[a] is a shoot'em up video game franchise developed and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Namco. Some entries were outsourced to other developers, such as Hasbro Interactive, Bandai and Paladin Studios. The series first began in 1979 with the arcade game Galaxian, which was Namco's first major hit in the video game industry, seeing ports for multiple home consoles, handheld systems and mobile phones. Most games in the series have been fixed shooters, although some have delved into other genres such as rail shooters and twin-stick shooters. Entries in the franchise have been ported to several home consoles and included in many Namco video game compilations for multiple platforms. Galaxian is one of the most successful arcade games of its time, selling over 50,000 arcade cabinets in North America alone.

Galaxian and its sequel Galaga are cited as some of the most influential games of the genre, the latter being called one of the greatest video games ever made by many publications. Later entries in the series have been met with a more mixed reception — some, such as Galaga Legions and its DX update, have been praised for expanding upon the gameplay in earlier titles, while others, such as Galaga: Destination Earth, were criticized for being poor updates of the original. The success of the series has lend itself to other forms of media, including soundtrack CDs, apparel, garage kits and literature. Including re-releases, the Galaxian franchise has sold over 12 million copies, making it one of Bandai Namco's best-selling franchises of all time.[g 1]

Arcade games

[edit]
Title Details

Original release date(s):[4][5]
  • JP: November 1979
  • NA: April 5, 1980
Release years by system:
1979 – Arcade (Namco Galaxian)
1982 – Atari 8-bit, tabletop LCD game[6]
1983 – Atari 2600,[7] Atari 5200,[8] VIC-20[9]
1984 – Family Computer,[10] MSX[11]
1990 – Famicom Disk System[10]
1995 – Game Boy (Galaga & Galaxian)[12]
1997 – LCD pocket game
2001 – Mobile phone[13]
2009 – Wii Virtual Console[14]
Notes:
  • Designed by Kazunori Sawano[15]
  • Distributed in North America by Midway Games[16]
  • Cited as one of the first video games to use RGB, through its colorful enemy designs and explosions[17][16]
  • One of the most successful video games of its time[16]
  • Sold 50,000 arcade cabinets in North America by 1982[18]
  • The tabletop unit was produced by Coleco, selling over one million units[6]
  • The LCD game was produced by Bandai as part of their MameGame series

Original release date(s):[19][20]
  • JP: September 1981
  • NA: October 1981
Release years by system:
1981 – Arcade (Namco Galaga)
1984 – Family Computer,[10] MSX[11]
1987 – Nintendo Entertainment System,[21] Atari 7800[22]
1990 – Famicom Disk System[10]
1995 – Game Boy (Galaga & Galaxian)[12]
2007 – Xbox 360[23]
2009 – Wii Virtual Console[24]
2011 – Roku[25]
2013 – 3DS Virtual Console, Wii U Virtual Console[26]
2016 – PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC[27]
Notes:

Original release date(s):[36]
  • JP: April 1984
  • NA: October 1984
Release years by system:
1984 – Arcade (Namco Phozon)
1987 – Commodore 64[37]
2007 – Mobile phone[38]
2009 – Wii Virtual Console[39]
2020 – Nintendo Entertainment System
Notes:

Original release date(s):[36]
  • JP: December 1987
  • NA: 1988
Release years by system:
1987 – Arcade (Namco System 1)
1988 – PC-Engine[37]
1990 – TurboGrafx-16, Sharp X68000[37]
1991 – Game Gear[37]
2008 – Mobile phone[40]
2009 – Wii Virtual Console[41]
2011 – PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita
Notes:
  • Distributed in North America by Atari Games
  • The TurboGrafx-16 version is named Galaga '90 in North America[37]
  • The Game Gear handheld port is named Galaga '91 in Japan and North America, and Galaga 2 in Europe[37]

Original release date(s):
  • JP: April 1, 1990
  • WW: 1992
Release years by system:
1990 – Attraction
1992 – Arcade (Namco Theater 6)
1996 – PlayStation
2013 – PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita
Notes:
  • Originally built as a theme park attraction for Expo '90, later moved to Namco's Wonder Eggs park in 1992[42]
  • 3D rail shooter that supported up to 28 players[42]
  • A port for the Panasonic 3DO was announced in 1994 but never released[43]

Original release date(s):[44]
  • WW: 1994
Release years by system:
1994 – Arcade (Namco Theater 6)
Notes:
  • Sequel to Galaxian3: Project Dragoon[37]
  • Released as a conversion kit for the arcade version

Original release date(s):[36]
  • JP: November 1995
  • NA: 1995
Release years by system:
1995 – Arcade (Namco ND-1)
Notes:

Original release date(s):[46]
  • JP: July 14, 2000
Release years by system:
2000 – Arcade
Notes:
  • Medal game released in Japan[46]
  • Part of Namco's Shooting Medal series[46]
  • Players used an attached gun to shoot coins at on-screen targets[46]
Mass Destruction VR Shooting: Galaga Fever

Original release date(s):[47]
  • JP: March 6, 2018
Release years by system:
2018 – Arcade
Notes:
  • Virtual-reality adaptation of Galaga[47]
  • Released for Bandai Namco's "VR Zone" arcade centers[47]

Home console and handheld games

[edit]
Title Details
Galaga & Galaxian

Original release date(s):[48][12]
  • JP: July 14, 1995
  • NA: June 26, 1996
Release years by system:
1995 – Game Boy
Notes:
The Rising of Gourb

Original release date(s):[48]
  • JP: April 4, 1996
  • EU: 1996
Release years by system:
1996 – PlayStation
Notes:
  • Second sequel to Galaxian3[37]
  • Released as a bonus game in the PlayStation conversion of Galaxian3[37]
SD Gundam: Over Galaxian

Original release date(s):[48]
  • JP: June 28, 1996
Release years by system:
1996 – PlayStation
Notes:
  • 3D remake of Galaxian using characters from the Gundam series[37]
  • Developed and published by Bandai[37]

Original release date(s):[49]
  • NA: September 2000
Release years by system:
2000 – PlayStation, PC, Game Boy Color
Notes:
  • Published by Hasbro Interactive[37]
  • Features third-person and side-scrolling stages alongside a typical top-down view[37]
  • The Game Boy Color version features the standard Galaga gameplay with scrolling backgrounds[37]

Original release date(s):[48]
  • JP: February 24, 2005
  • NA: August 23, 2005
  • EU: December 9, 2005
Release years by system:
2005 – PlayStation Portable
Notes:
  • Remake of Galaga with power-up items and boss fights[37]
  • Released as part of Namco Museum Battle Collection[50]
  • Included in Namco Museum Virtual Arcade for the Xbox 360[51]
  • Not to be confused with the Galaga Arrangement found in Namco Classic Collection Vol. 1[37]

Original release date(s):[52]
  • WW: August 20, 2008
Release years by system:
2008 – Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
Notes:

Original release date(s):
  • WW: June 29, 2011
Release years by system:
2011 – Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
2012 – Windows Phone[55]
Notes:

Mobile games

[edit]
Title Details
Galaxian Mini

Original release date(s):[37]
  • WW: 2002
Release years by system:
2000 – Mobile phone
Notes:
  • "Miniature" remake of Galaxian
  • Gameplay involves shooting down small formations of diving enemies[37]

Original release date(s):[58]
  • WW: March 31, 2009
Release years by system:
2009 – iOS
Notes:
  • Features ports of Galaga and the PSP Galaga Arrangement[59]
  • Delisted from the App Store on March 31, 2015[60]

Original release date(s):[61]
  • WW: July 3, 2011
Release years by system:
2011 – iOS
Notes:
  • Includes remakes of Galaxian, Galaga, Gaplus and Galaga '88[61]
  • Made to celebrate the franchise's 30th anniversary.[61]
Galaga Kai

Original release date(s):[62]
  • JP: November 1, 2011
Release years by system:
2011 – Mobile phone
Notes:
  • Mobile phone remake of Galaga exclusive to Japan[62]
  • Features stages based on other Namco properties, such as Pac-Man, Xevious and Mappy[62]
Galaga: Special Edition

Original release date(s):
Release years by system:
2012 – Android
Notes:
  • Modern remake of Galaga
  • Also known as Galaga X

Original release date(s):[63][64]
  • JP: April 29, 2014
  • NA: June 16, 2015
Release years by system:
2014 – iOS
Notes:
  • Based on the anime series Space Dandy[64]
  • The North American release is titled Space Galaga International Edition[64]
  • Later rebranded as Super Space Galaga[63]
Galaga Wars

Original release date(s):[65]
  • WW: November 1, 2016
Release years by system:
2016 – iOS
Notes:
  • Developed by Paladin Studios[66]
  • Features ships from other Namco video games, including Starblade and Xevious[65]
  • An updated version, Galaga Wars+ is coming exclusively to Apple Arcade[67]

Other titles

[edit]
Title Details

Original release date(s):[68]
  • NA: February 1981
  • EU: 1981
Release years by system:
1981 – Arcade (Bally Astrocade)
1982 – Atari 2600, VIC-20
1983 – Atari 5200[69]
Notes:
  • Developed and published by Midway Games
  • Features a stage based on Galaxian, which was removed from all home releases due to copyright issues[37]

Original release date(s):
Release years by system:
1981 – Handheld game
Notes:

Original release date(s):[36]
  • JP: March 1992
  • NA: 1992
Release years by system:
1992 – Arcade (Namco System 2), Super Famicom
2009 – Wii Virtual Console[41]
Notes:
  • Galaxian-inspired parody game[37]
  • Features characters from a 1990 redemption arcade game[37]
Galaxian Heroes

Original release date(s):
  • WW: Unreleased
Release years by system:
Notes:
  • Was being developed by Project Aces, known for creating the Ace Combat series[70]
  • First teased on March 11, 2015[71]
  • Development is being kept secret[71]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Japanese: ギャラクシアン, Hepburn: Gyarakushian

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Galaxian series:
    • Galaxian3 sales: 66,770 units (JP)[1]
    • SD Gundam: Over Galaxian sales: 27,905 (JP)[1]
    • Namco Museum Vol. 1 sales: 1.65 million units (US),[2] 167,786 units (JP)[1]
    • Namco Museum Vol. 3 sales: 2.24 million units (US),[2] 148,758 units (JP)[1]
    • Namco Museum 64 sales: 1.04 million units[2]
    • Namco Museum (GBA) sales: 2.96 million units[2]
    • Namco Museum (PS2) sales: ≈1.80 million units[2]
    • Namco Museum Battle Collection sales: 79,527 units (JP)[1]
    • Namco Museum Vol. 2 (PSP) sales: 24,934 units (JP)[1]
    • Namco Museum DS sales: 33,393 units (JP)[1]
    • Namco Museum Virtual Arcade sales: 5,912 units (JP)[1]
    • Namco Arcade downloads: 2 million[3]
    • Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions sales: 10,785 units (JP)[1]
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