Galaga '88

If you blew your allowance on Galaga as a kid, Galaga '88 was like running into an old friend who came back from a long trip a little different. The swooping bug formations were still there, and so was the trick of letting your ship get captured so you could rescue it, but everything was bigger, brighter, and full of surprises.

It was a game worth watching: enemies morphed, backgrounds shifted, and then out of nowhere the whole screen started dancing to the music.

History

Namco released Galaga '88 in 1987 as the follow-up to Galaxian and Galaga, its two signature shooters. It kept the core of blasting formations that dive-bomb you, but added detailed scrolling backdrops, enemies that grow and split, and a branching route system.

Those branches lead to different dimensions and different endings, which gave everyone at the arcade something to argue about. There was always that one kid who swore he'd seen an ending nobody else had.

How to play

Slide your ship left and right and fire upward. Just like in Galaga, a boss enemy can snag your ship with its tractor beam; shoot it down later and you get your ship back as a dual fighter with double the firepower, though it's also a bigger target.

Grab the capsules that show up to warp to another dimension and change your route. Between stages come the bonus rounds, where enemies move in time with the music: take out every one of them without letting any escape for a big payoff.

Fun facts

• It's the follow-up to Namco's Galaxian and Galaga.
• There are multiple routes through different dimensions and more than one ending.
• In the bonus stages, enemies move in time with the music.

In the arcade

Galaga '88 isn't in the arcade yet. It's on the wish list, and you can hit “I Want to Play It” on this page to help move it up. Coming soon to UsuArcade if the votes are there.

In the meantime, you can play the original Galaxian, Phoenix, or Astro Fighter in the arcade, three old-school shooters that'll get your trigger finger warmed up.

FAQ