Xevious

• Release Date: 1987
• Genre: Shooter
• Style: Vertical Scrolling Shooter
• Similar Games: Raiden (Atari Jaguar), 1942 (Arcade), 1943: The Battle of Midway (Nintendo Entertainment System), Tiger-Heli (Nintendo Entertainment System), 1942 (Commodore 64/128), 1943 (Commodore 64/128), Raiden (Arcade), Tiger-Heli (Arcade), 1942 (Nintendo Entertainment System), 1943 (TurboGrafx-16), Tiger-Heli (TurboGrafx-16), Raiden (TurboGrafx-16), Raiden (Atari Lynx), 1942 (Game Boy Color), 1942 (Macintosh)

Game Description

One of the few ports of the era that is actually harder than its coin-op cousin, Xevious for the Atari 7800 is extra challenging because the targets sight for bombs is closer to the ship, meaning it is harder to dodge enemy fire while trying to destroy ground targets. Another difference in the home version is the lack of blinking lights on any of the ground targets. Otherwise, this is a largely faithful adaptation of the classic arcade shooter.

Roots & Influences

Xevious for the Atari 7800 is based on the Namco Arcade game of the same name.

Review: Overall

When Namco's Xevious hit the arcades in 1983, it stunned and pleased gamers

with its originality. It was the first shooter to feature dual-level attacks against airborne

enemies and land-based targets. When the game came out for the Atari 7800 in 1987,

dual-level attacks were commonplace, but shooter fans were pleased, because Xevious

is a fun and timeless game that never made it to the 2600 or 5200. (Prototype

copies of Xevious exist for the 2600 and 5200, but the game was never available

in stores.)

While not graphically gorgeous, Xevious does have an unusual and elegant look. The

terrain is a bit simplistic at times, but the silvery gray enemy ships and land bases are pretty

neat. Adding to the elegance and uniqueness of this game are the sound effects and music.

They're a little redundant, but they mimic the arcade game fairly well.

Xevious is one those games that is very challenging, yet you rarely feel cheated after

you die. You almost always feel as though you could have avoided destruction if you had

just been a little quicker, timed your positioning a little better, or fired your weapons when

you should have.

One thing I've always liked about this game is the Solvalou weaponry. The Zapper, which

is used for shooting airborne enemies, can shoot very far, while the Blaster, which is used

for destroying earthbound targets, has a short range. This variance in shooting distance

makes for some interesting battles. Much of your time will be spent getting close to and

dropping bombs on earthbound targets, then quickly backing out of harm's way while

zapping everything in sight.

When compared to the NES version of Xevious, the 7800 rendition holds up

reasonably well. The 7800 game looks and plays about the same, with but a few

exceptions. There are no blinking red lights on or in the ground targets, the playfield is

unnecessarily surrounded by a large black border, and the weapon controls aren't divided

into two buttons. Pushing either fire button activates both the Zapper and the Blaster. One

advantage the 7800 over the NES game is four different skill levels as opposed to

one.

Xevious is a solid adaptation of a groundbreaking arcade game. Any Atari junky

who also happens to love shooters will want this game in his or her collection.

Review: Enjoyment

This is a fun game, but for some reason the designers opted not to take advantage of the fact that the 7800 does have two fire buttons.

Review: Graphics

This version of Xevious lacks some of the detail found in the arcade game, but it's not a bad looking shooter.

Review: Sound

The music and sound effects are good but redundant.

Review: Replay Value

It will take you a long time to get tired of playing {*Xevious}.

Review: Documentation

The manual is brief but informative.