Galaga '88 (Japan)

Arcade Video game published 37 years ago:

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.

- TECHNICAL -

This title was usually sold as a conversion kit (most games were back in 1988). It used the standard JAMMA harness. The marquee showed a gold 'Galaga '88' logo on a field of red teardrops. The side-art had the same picture as the marquee, but without the background. The control panel featured a single 2-way joystick and a 'FIRE' button on either side (along with Start buttons and game instructions). Many of these machines will have 8-way joysticks instead of the original 2-way ones, they are interchangeable as far as this game is concerned.

Namco System 1 hardware
Game ID : G8

Main CPU : 6809 (@ 1.536 Mhz)
Sub CPU : 6809 (@ 1.536 Mhz)
Sound CPU : 6809 (@ 1.536 Mhz)
MCU: HD63701 (@ 1.536 Mhz)
Sound Chips : Yamaha YM2151 (3.57958 Mhz), Namco advanced 8-channel stereo WSG, stereo DAC

Players : 2
Control : 2-way joystick
Buttons : 1 (FIRE)

- 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 1,575,490 points.

- TIPS AND TRICKS -

* Perfect Bonus : Shoot all 40 enemies in the 'That's Galactic Dancin' bonus stages to receive a 'Perfect' bonus just like in the Challenging Stages in the original "Galaga". Initially this bonus is 10,000 points but it increases on later 'That's Galactic Dancin' stages.

* Secret Bonus : during the 'That's Galactic Dancin' bonus stages, don't touch anything : don't shoot and don't move (simply don't touch the joystick); at the end of the dance and after getting ZERO hits and ZERO points, you'll receive a 10,000 points 'Secret Bonus'.

* Pick up two blue items to get a bonus and go to the next harder dimension after completing a 'That's Galactic Dancin' stage. This bonus is also initially 10,000 points but increases each time you achieve it.

* Pick up a purple item which appears on later stages to immediately get a triple-firepower ship.

- SERIES -

1. Galaxian (1979)
2. Galaga (1981)
3. Gaplus (1984) : also known in the USA 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 Arrangement (2005, PSP) : part of "Namco Museum Battle Collection"
10. Galaga Remix (2007, Wii) : part of "Namco Museum Remix"
11. Galaga Legions (2008, XBLA)
12. Galaga Legions DX (2010, PSN, XBLA)
13. Galaga 3D Impact (2011, Nintendo 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions"

- STAFF -

Sound composed by : Hiroyuki Kawada

- PORTS -

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

* CONSOLES:
[JP] NEC PC-Engine (jul.15, 1988) "Galaga '88 [Model NC63002]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (jan.26, 2006) "Namco Museum Arcade Hits! [Model SLPS-25590]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (mar.24, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[EU] Sony PS2 (mar.31, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model SLES-53957]"
[EU] Nintendo GameCube (may.5, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NP-EUR]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (may.15, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[AU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (june.4, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[JP] Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console Arcade] (june.23, 2009)
[JP] Microsoft XBOX 360 (nov.5, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]"

* HANDHELDS:
[EU] Sega Game Gear (1991) "Galaga 2"
[JP] Sega Game Gear (oct.25, 1991) "Galaga '91 [Model T-14057]"

* COMPUTERS:
[JP] Sharp X68000 (june.30, 1990) : by Dempa Shimbunsha
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (mar.27, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"