galaga
Latest
Pint-sized 'Pac-Man' and 'PAW Patrol' arcade machines for kids are on the way
The Arcade1Up Jr. machines each feature a trio of games.
Scientists name ancient shark species after arcade classic 'Galaga'
Paleontologists took a cue from retro games when naming a prehistoric shark -- they dubbed it Galagadon nordquistae after '80s arcade shooter Galaga. They bestowed the unusual name upon the newly discovered species because its teeth look a bit like the classic game's spaceships.
Play 'Space Invaders' for charity while waiting in Swedish airports
Take a mind journey with us: You step off of an international flight and walk to the baggage claim areas in Sweden's Stockholm Arlanda Airport or Göteborg Landvetter Airport. You're tired, you're waiting for your luggage, and you have a pocketful of foreign coins. Usually, you'd drop them off in the Red Cross donation box, which takes any type of currency, and you'd continue standing, waiting. Now, the Swedish Red Cross and Swedavia Swedish Airports have turned those donation boxes into classic arcade cabinets -- drop in any currency from any country and start playing Pac-Man, Galaga or Space Invaders before grabbing your bags. It's better than letting those coins collect dust, and classic video games have been scientifically proven* to help travelers shake off that "I've been sitting for 18 hours" look.
Galaga star makes Super Smash Bros. cameo
For his latest Miiverse Super Smash Bros. tease, director Masahiro Sakurai has put his roster of Nintendo characters on the shelf in favor of a Bandai Namco arcade icon, the Boss Galaga. "If you get caught in the Boss Galaga item's tractor beam, it will carry you away to the top of the screen," Sakurai wrote. "You can shoot it down, but it won't join you in battle for double the firepower." For those too young to recall the early arcades, the Boss Galaga made its debut in the 1981 hit Galaga. Unlike other Galaga critters which sought only to destroy the player's ship, the Boss Galaga attempted to draw the ship in via tractor beam. If the Boss Galaga stole a player's ship and was then killed, the ship it swiped would be combined with the player's existing ship, doubling its effective firepower. As Sakurai mentioned, none of this takes place in Super Smash Bros., but at least now you know why the pixelated bug is attempting to abduct Donkey Kong. [Image: Nintendo]
New Nintendo eShop releases: Yoshi's New Island, Super Mario Bros - The Lost Levels
There are plenty of new releases to dig into on the eShop this week, including the return of everyone's favorite sneaker-wearing dino-thing in 3DS platformer Yoshi's New Island. All but one of the games out this week are for the Nintendo handheld; the only new release on Wii U is a retro release, and that's Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels. The Lost Levels is the true sequel to the original Super Mario Bros. - SMB2 is awesome, we know, but facts are facts. The game famously didn't make it out of Japan until it was re-released in the SNES compilation Super Mario All-Stars, and finally Western players got to grips with some really challenging Mario. Not that the first SMB isn't tricky because it is, especially if you don't use warp pipes, but The Lost Levels is, er, another level. Anyway, the Virtual Console version is the NES game rather than the SNES re-release, and it's priced at $5. Finally, look out for discounts on Steamworld Dig on 3DS, which should be going down from $9 to $4.50 - that sale ends 9AM PT/12PM ET on March 16 - and on Zen's collection of 3DS pinball games, which will all be half-off between March 17-31.
New Nintendo eShop releases: Splinter Cell Blacklist, Galaga, Donkey Kong
Sam Fisher infiltrates the Wii U's eShop next week in Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Blacklist, joining a Virtual Console release of Namco's arcade classic Galaga. The NES version of Donkey Kong arrives today on the 3DS's Virtual Console, meanwhile, and players can look forward to snuggling canines and equines alike in the one-two pet-sim punch that is Barbie Groom and Glam Pups and My Western Horse 3D.
Namco Bandai iOS games on sale through Monday
For those looking to save a few bucks but want some new mobile games to play while waiting in check-out lines on Black Friday, Namco Bandai has you covered. The publisher recently put 20 of its apps on sale on the App Store, giving iPhone and iPad users through Monday, November 19 to cash in on games such as Pac-Man Championship Edition and SoulCalibur.A full list of the games included in the sale can be found after the break.
Pac-Man and Galaga 3DS save data can be erased after all
It turns out there is a (previously undocumented) way to erase save data in Pac-Man and Galaga Dimensions on the 3DS, despite reports to the contrary last week. It's a bit more complicated than simply diving into the options menu. Upon start-up, players can input the command "ABXYLR," which will wipe the save data from the cartridge. "There has been a miscommunication at our level," a Namco Bandai representative told Eurogamer today. "Thanks for your understanding." The rep then shouted "Aye bee ex why el arrr" and vanished in a cloud of smoke.
Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions packs in Championship Edition, Legions
Though still not announced for release in North America, Namco Bandai's first (of what will likely be many) iterations of Pac-Man and Galaga on 3DS has already gotten more attractive. The latest issue of Famitsu reports that, in addition to newfangled gyroscope-controlled versions of the two classics, Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions will include Pac-Man Championship Edition and Galaga Legions, plus the original arcade versions of Pac-Man and Galaga. The arcade ports will make use of the 3DS's autostereoscopic effect to create the illusion of looking down on the original coin-op machines -- though purists can always turn down the 3D slider, we assume. Players will also be able to choose between multiple cabinet variants. Of course, this will all seem quaint when we're writing about the seventh repackaging of Pac-Man and Galaga for 3DS four years from now.
Namco remakes arcade classics again in Wii's Namco Museum Megamix
The last time Namco Bandai released a Museum collection on Wii with updated versions of its classics ... it didn't really work out. Namco is trying again with Namco Museum Megamix -- sort of. In fact, many of the remixed games in this collection are the same as in the previous collection, judging from the materials released. The Galaga Remix seen in the screenshots is the same "defend Pac-Man" rail shooter seen in the 2007 game, and Pac-Motos and Pac-n-Roll Remix, described in the press release, was also present. That's right, Namco has now taken to re-releasing its remakes. The Megamix adds at least one new rearrangement: Grobda Remix, based on a shmup you're forgiven for now knowing about. It'll also feature original (read: good) versions of Pac-Man, Mappy, Rally-X, Galaga, and more. Megamix will be out in November.%Gallery-101314%
Namco's iPhone division considering... Tekken?
Actually, I'd play that. Namco recently announced that they were forming an Apple Games division to head up game development for Apple platforms like the iPhone, and in this interview, a producer for them who used to work for Apple says that they're excited to work on bringing great games to the handheld device. Like, for example, Pac-man, Galaga, and... Soulcaliber and Tekken. You heard that right -- fighting games haven't exactly made a splash on the iPhone, as they're primarily a button-based genre, and the iPhone, of course, has no buttons.But that won't stop Namco's guy from putting the old head gears into motion: "It's just the controls that are a challenge. We are thinking about that." Think away, crazy man -- I'd love to pull out Yoshimitsu for a few rounds while waiting at a bus stop. Obviously, the easiest way to try and port these would be to put overlaid buttons on the screen, but that doesn't leave a lot of room for the fighting (and not having the tactile feedback would probably be a problem as well). Maybe some gesture-based accelerometer movement? Sky's the limit, right?. Your call, Namco -- can't wait to see what you come up with.[via Joystiq]
Namco Museum Essentials coming to PlayStation Home in July
Japan's Namco Museum Essentials is crossing the pond to America's PlayStation Network this July. The downloadable app will serve as a hub for various Namco arcade games, such as Pac-man, Galaga, Dig Dug, Dragon Spirit, Xevious, and a new 1080p "re-envisioned" Xevious: Resurrection. In addition to the standard gamut of features (trophies, leaderboards), players will be able to unlock PlayStation Home rewards to proudly display in their virtual apartments.Namco Bandai will also be launching a new destination within PlayStation Home simultaneously with the release of Museum Essentials. It will serve as the hub for all of Namco Bandai's upcoming downloadable games and will include a virtual arcade featuring a trial version of Museum Essentials. In addition to the free demo, PlayStation Home items can be unlocked for those who visit the space. All in all, it looks as though Home fans (casual and hardcore) will have a lot to look forward to.%Gallery-66211%
iPhone fires energy beam, captures Galaga Remix
A relatively obscure version of Namco's classic shooter Galaga is coming to iPhone, along with the least obscure version of Galaga! The newly announced Galaga Remix contains both the original 1981 game and a widescreen presentation of 1995's Galaga Arrangement, which features updated graphics, bosses, and various gameplay tweaks. The trailer after the break features footage from Arrangement.Both games will be playable in one of three control schemes: virtual directional buttons, a sliding-based method, and tilting. According to Touch Arcade, the game "will arrive in the App Store any day now and will be priced at $5.99." This is what we want out of high technology: the ability to buy and play super-old games whenever we feel like it. [Via AppGamer]
World of Warcraft iGoogle theme
More and more people (myself included) are starting to use iGoogle as their homepage, because it's incredibly useful. There's all sorts of widgets you can use to customize your homepage, from useful things like the weather and a feed of the top news stories, to goofy things like games and videos. I started using it awhile ago, so I was excited to hear about the addition of World of Warcraft iGoogle theme.The theme is pretty basic as far as its appearance goes: A little art on top, a little art on the bottom, and text colored to match. No absurd bells and whistles or major distractions. The cool thing this theme does, like a few other iGoogle themes, is it changes depending on the time of day in your region. When I first put this theme on my homepage earlier today it had a somewhat orange tinge to it all, the art being what I believe is Durotar. Orcs, all of that sort of thing. As of my writing this, it's only 2 PM Central and it's already switched over to the dark blue of the Lich King. It seems a bit early to be swapping to what appears to be the nighttime version of the theme, and it's somewhat depressing in an odd sort of way.
Oh, the '80s: Alec Baldwin's hard nights ended with ... Galaga
Before he was a thorn in Tina Fey's side as the Vice President of East Coast Television and Microwave Oven Programming at GE, Alec Baldwin was something of a sot, spending much of the '80s in a haze of "sex, drugs, booze." And when it came to sobering up, it wasn't coffee that was his drug of choice. It was Galaga, though we imagine blurred vision kept him from ever putting in his initials.Baldwin writes in the book "Moments of Clarity" that evenings of debauchery would often end in a warehouse with him playing the arcade classic into the morning. "This was the only way I could go 'beta' and go into that state I needed to be, where I could calm down and take my mind off everything," recalled the actor, who confessed that God got him sober. And while the 30 Rock star oddly describes the deity as a "65-year-old retired postal worker named Lenny," we still like to think that the Galagans played their part. See how classic arcade games, like Galaga, have been updated for the modern audience:
Galaga Legions team wants another shot
If you remix something once, you're edgy, willing to let two styles careen into each other and just ride the resulting wave to cash and fame. If you remix something twice? Well, that's just a bit too much for our conservative Baptist upbringing, unless you've got mad, Puff Daddy (P. Diddy?)-level skills ... or you work for Namco Bandai, apparently. The same team that crafted a bold, fresh take on Galaga this year with Galaga Legions says it's itching to take yet another bolder, fresher look at the franchise. As producer Nobutaka Nakajima told Gamasutra, "Because there are so many different ways of taking the Galaga franchise and many different aspects that could be created into the core fundamentals of the game, we do want to look at Galaga again." Sounds great, but could you maybe remix a few other classic franchises before you get into a rut with one? Hint, hint.
X3F TV -- XBLA in Brief: Galaga Legions
And the August Xbox Live Arcade onslaught continues. This week it's time for Galaga to make a comeback. We're talking about Galaga Legions of course. Created by the same team that transformed Pac-Man into Pac-Man Championship Edition, Galaga Legions takes the original Galaga formula and expands upon it, making an old game feel new again. The only question, especially given the quality we've seen this month, is whether or not it feels new enough. Check out the latest episode of XBLA in Brief to find out. [iTunes] Subscribe to X3F TV directly in iTunes. [Zune] Subscribe to the X3F TV directly (Zune Marketplace link coming soon). [RSS] Add the X3F TV feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically. [M4V] Download the M4V directly.
Now on XBLA: Galaga Legions
From the people who brought you Pac-Man: Championship Edition comes another arcade classic remake to the Xbox Live Arcade. Asking 800MS points from your digital wallet, Galaga Legions is now available on the Xbox Live Marketplace. Initial reactions to the game peg it as a mixture of Geometry Wars and Pac-Man: CE and if either of those comparisons are accurate then the Xbox Live Arcade could have itself another winner from Namco Bandai. %Gallery-27821%
This Wednesday: Galaga Legions invades XBLA
Caution: Do not look directly at the above screenshot. Doing so will result in your eyes melting. If you're still able to read this, it means that A) you don't just come to Joystiq to look at all the pretty pictures and B) you're also a good listener. Congratulations! It also means that you'll still be able to play the latest "Summer of Arcade" release, Galaga Legions, this Wednesday – provided you remember to wear welding goggles while doing so. This re-imagining of the classic coin-op shooter is the work of the same Namco-Bandai dev team responsible for Pac-Man Championship Edition, hence the hella-rad-neon-raver shader being employed. The full game will set you back 800 ($10). The requisite googles can be had for $11.99 from Amazon. %Gallery-29424%
Reminder: Galaga Legions swarms XBLA this week
Hey kids, just a quick reminder that this week's Xbox Live Arcade game is none other than Galaga Legions. Created by the same team that reinvented the Pac-Man formula for Pac-Man CE, Galaga Legions adds significant changes to the Galaga formula while still retaining the feel of the original. We had a chance to play it at E3 last month and we were definitely impressed. Priced at 800 Microsoft Points, Galaga Legions will hit XBLA this Wednesday.
