Shoot and destroy alien spaceships that are attacking you in this arcade classic!

Galaga is the super smash hit sequel to Galaxian. Galaga made it to the big time as soon as it hit the arcades. People instantly fell in love. Galaga was ported very well from the old arcade machines to the Nintendo console. Galaga is one of the biggest classic arcade games of all time. When you ask people which arcade games were the biggest in the 80's, they will probably say, Centipede, Space Invaders, Donkey Kong, Pac Man, or Galaga. They even had a machine that had Galaga and Ms. Pac Man together. If you are a fan of arcade classics or space shooters, you'll love this game!

Before we go into action, let's talk about Galaxian battle tactics. The Galaxian fleet always flys in formation. As one ship descends from the extreme right or extreme left it drops deadly bombs and then returns to original position. The Galaxian leaders, Flagships, are usually flanked by protective Escorts. The best way to get them is to first destroy the Escorts, then go after the Flagship.
--From the Atari 2600 Galaxian instruction manual.

Galaxian is a very fun game. It reminds me of Space Invaders without the shields and the invaders moving down so fast. A lot of people don't realize that this was the predecessor to Galaga. Galaxian didn't get as big as Galaga, but it still did pretty well. Galaga is a lot of fun so give it a try if you like games like Space Invaders and Galaga.

The initial attack is thwarted, but the battle isn't over. They'll be back, stronger than ever. Next time, you'll be manning the command ship, again waiting courageously to defend the planet and defeat the Galaxian fleet. Use your accurate aim and quick reflexes, as well as strategy and forethought. A foolish move could cost you the battle and the planet.
--From the Coleco Galaxian instruction manual.

Similar to Galaga, Galaxian was another of those arcade shooters where you're being attacked by aliens who keep their ships in these tight formations that are easy for you to shoot at. Sounds silly. Still, it is pretty challenging for all its simplicity. When those little buggers get moving, they're difficult to stamp out.

Galaxian is a bright and colorful game. The red ones (Hornets) are a bit difficult to distinguish from the purple ones (Emissaries), who look more pink than purple to me. The yellow Flagships make a different noise when you explode them, and it is a very rewarding sound indeed. The sound effects are quirky and silly sounding to me, but there is a nice explosion whenever you or your enemies blow up. Your laser cannons sound a bit pathetic, but it's very similar to MIB's "Noisy Cricket," I guess, since one hit and BOOM! the whole enemy ship blows up. Of course, one hit will blow up your whole ship too. While they appear to be advanced enough in this game scenario to have come up with 'laser cannons', they never bothered to come up with a shield. Oh well.

This game is very hard to put down. Killing Galaxians may very well become one of your new favorite pastimes.