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Xevious

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It's a nightmare, but it's true! Research shows that we are the actual aliens on Earth, and the ruthless Xevions are the original inhabitants. Now the Xevions want Earth back -- minus humans! Their invasion forces are fierce -- the land is crawling with deadly Domogram Rovers; the sky is black...

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Developer
Namco

Released on
1982

Size
1–2 Players

Version
Arcade

Requirements
Arcade

Downloads
Shooter

ESRB Rating
Not Rated

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Description

It’s a nightmare, but it’s true! Research shows that we are the actual aliens on Earth, and the ruthless Xevions are the original inhabitants.

Now the Xevions want Earth back — minus humans! Their invasion forces are fierce — the land is crawling with deadly Domogram Rovers; the sky is black with Toroid Patrol Fleets and Zoshi Death Squads.

Our puny weapons offer no defense. Earth’s only hope is our powerful new Solvalou Fighter Plane. Its pilot will have a single mission: Penetrate the enemy ranks and destroy the Xevious Mother Ship.

The mission is dangerous. We can’t guarantee success. But at this point, it’s do or die!

One small problem. We still need a pilot. Any volunteers?

Xevious

Overview & History

Released by Namco in 1983 and designed by Masanobu Endo, Xevious is a seminal vertical-scrolling shoot-'em-up that pioneered the use of pre-rendered, textured sprite graphics and a continuous, story-driven sci-fi world. Set in a distant prehistoric era on Earth, humanity discovers that the planet is actually the ancestral domain of an ancient, hyper-advanced supercomputer called Gamp, controlled by the malevolent alien race known as the Xevious. Piloting the Solvalou fighter craft, the player must infiltrate enemy territory to dismantle Gamp's mechanized forces, including the colossal floating fortress, the Andor Genesis. Unlike contemporary space shooters that relied on abstract cosmic backgrounds, Xevious offered a cohesive, organic landscape featuring forests, rivers, and mysterious Nazca-like geometric ground structures.

Gameplay Features & Mechanics

Xevious innovated the genre by splitting the player's offensive capabilities into two distinct attacks operated via a dual-button control scheme: a forward-firing zapper to destroy airborne foes (such as the pulsing Brag Zac squadrons and shifting Garu Zak ships) and a ground-targeting bomb sight to obliterate surface installations, radar towers, and concealed underground bases. This dual-layer combat required players to simultaneously process aerial threats and ground hazards. A defining gameplay feature is the hidden Sol Citadel, revealed only by dropping a bomb onto specific, seemingly blank terrain coordinates, rewarding observant players with massive score bonuses and temporary firepower upgrades. The game also introduced dynamic difficulty adjustment, subtly altering enemy formations based on the player's current performance.