Halley Wars

Halley Wars

Overview & History

Released by Taito in 1991 exclusively for the Sega Game Gear, Halley Wars serves as a thematic sequel to Taito's 1984 arcade classic Halley's Comet. The game drops players into a sci-fi crisis in the year 2086, where humanity's survival is threatened not just by an oncoming comet, but by an aggressive alien armada nesting within its core. Designed to showcase the portable console's backlit color capabilities, this vertical and pseudo-3D scrolling shooter injects frantic arcade action into the palm of your hand.

Gameplay Features & Mechanics

Halley Wars is uniquely structured, alternating between traditional top-down vertical shooting stages and tense, behind-the-ship pseudo-3D perspective levels where players must aim directly into the oncoming debris field and alien defenses. Across six varied sectors, your primary objective is to blast swarms of robotic insectoids and turret-laden capital ships while managing a vital shield meter. As you progress, collecting power-ups scattered throughout the cosmos upgrades your ship's firepower from a basic forward laser to wide-spread plasma cannons and devastating homing missiles. Each stage culminates in a chaotic boss encounter requiring precise positioning and swift reflexes to exploit glowing weak points before time runs out.

Keyboard Controls

• Arrow Keys / D-Pad: Move
• Action Keys: Attack / Jump
• Enter: Start / Pause