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| image= [[File:Zaxxon flyer.jpg|256px]]
| image= [[File:Zaxxon flyer.jpg|256px]]
| caption= North American arcade flyer
| caption= North American arcade flyer
| developer= [[Sega]] but see main article
| developer= [[Sega]]
| publisher= [[Sega]]
| publisher= [[Sega]]
| released= '''Arcade'''{{vgrelease|JP=January, 1982}}<ref>{{cite web|title=Zaxxon|url=http://www.arcade-history.com/?n=zaxxon&page=detail&id=3239|work=Arcade History|accessdate=26 September 2011|date=October 17, 2010}}</ref>
| released= '''Arcade'''{{vgrelease|JP=January, 1982}}<ref>{{cite web|title=Zaxxon|url=http://www.arcade-history.com/?n=zaxxon&page=detail&id=3239|work=Arcade History|accessdate=26 September 2011|date=October 17, 2010}}</ref>
| modes= Up to 2 players, alternating turns
| modes= Up to 2 players, alternating turns
| platforms= [[Arcade game|Arcade]], [[Virtual Console]]
| platforms= [[Arcade game|Arcade]], [[Virtual Console]], {{nowrap|and others}}
| genre= [[Isometric shooter]]
| ratings = {{vgratings|OFLC=G|ESRB=E|PEGI=7}}
| ratings = {{vgratings|OFLC=G|ESRB=E|PEGI=7}}
| input= 8-way [[joystick]], 1 [[Button (control)|button]]
| input= 8-way [[joystick]], 1 [[Button (control)|button]]
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}}
}}
[[Image:Zaxxon.png|220px|thumb|right|Screenshot of Zaxxon (Arcade)]]
[[Image:Zaxxon.png|220px|thumb|right|Screenshot of Zaxxon (Arcade)]]
'''''Zaxxon''''' is a 1982 [[arcade game]] developed and released by [[Sega]]. Some sources<ref>[http://gdri.smspower.org/wiki/index.php/Company:Ikegami_Tsushinki Company:Ikegami Tsushinki - Game Developer Research Institute<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://d.hatena.ne.jp/bn2islander/20080817/1218980061 ドンキーコング裁判についてちょこっと考えてみる] Thinking a bit about Donkey Kong, accessed 2009-02-01</ref><ref>{{Nihongo|It started from Pong|それは『ポン』から始まった : アーケードTVゲームの成り立ち|sore wa pon kara hajimatta: ākēdo terebi gēmu no naritachi}}, {{Nihongo|Masumi Akagi|赤木真澄|Akagi Masumi}}, {{Nihongo|Amusement Tsūshinsha|アミューズメント通信社|Amyūzumento Tsūshinsha}}, 2005, ISBN 4-9902512-0-2.</ref> claim that Japanese electronics company [[Ikegami Tsushinki]] also worked on the development of Zaxxon. The game gives the player the experience of flying a fighter craft through a fortress while shooting at enemy entities ([[missile]]s, enemy gunfire, etc.) The object of the game is to hit as many targets as possible without being shot down or running out of fuel—which can be replenished, paradoxically, by blowing up fuel drums.<ref>[http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=12757 ''Zaxxon''] from the [[Killer List of Videogames]] (KLOV)</ref>
'''''Zaxxon''''' is a 1982 [[isometric shooter]] [[arcade game]] developed and released by [[Sega]]. Some sources<ref>[http://gdri.smspower.org/wiki/index.php/Company:Ikegami_Tsushinki Company:Ikegami Tsushinki - Game Developer Research Institute<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://d.hatena.ne.jp/bn2islander/20080817/1218980061 ドンキーコング裁判についてちょこっと考えてみる] Thinking a bit about Donkey Kong, accessed 2009-02-01</ref><ref>{{Nihongo|It started from Pong|それは『ポン』から始まった : アーケードTVゲームの成り立ち|sore wa pon kara hajimatta: ākēdo terebi gēmu no naritachi}}, {{Nihongo|Masumi Akagi|赤木真澄|Akagi Masumi}}, {{Nihongo|Amusement Tsūshinsha|アミューズメント通信社|Amyūzumento Tsūshinsha}}, 2005, ISBN 4-9902512-0-2.</ref> claim that Japanese electronics company [[Ikegami Tsushinki]] also worked on the development of Zaxxon. The game gives the player the experience of flying a fighter craft through a fortress while shooting at enemy entities ([[missile]]s, enemy gunfire, etc.) The object of the game is to hit as many targets as possible without being shot down or running out of fuel—which can be replenished, paradoxically, by blowing up fuel drums.<ref>[http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=12757 ''Zaxxon''] from the [[Killer List of Videogames]] (KLOV)</ref>


At the time of its release, ''Zaxxon'' was unique as it was the first [[Isometric graphics in video games|game to employ axonometric projection]], which lent its name to the game (''AXXON'' from ''AXON''ometric projection). The type of [[axonometric projection]] is [[isometric projection]]: this effect simulated [[Dimensional analysis|three dimensions]] from a third-person viewpoint. It was also one of the first video games to display shadows,<ref name=Perron>Bernard Perron & Mark J. P. Wolf (2008), ''Video game theory reader two'', [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=oe0zNalKkTgC&pg=PA158 p. 158], [[Taylor & Francis]], ISBN 0-415-96282-X</ref> and it was also the first arcade game to be advertised on television.<ref>Mark J. P. Wolf (2008), [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XiM0ntMybNwC ''The video game explosion: a history from PONG to Playstation and beyond''], p. xviii, [[ABC-CLIO]], ISBN 0-313-33868-X</ref>
At the time of its release, ''Zaxxon'' was unique as it was the first [[Isometric graphics in video games|game to employ axonometric projection]], which lent its name to the game (''AXXON'' from ''AXON''ometric projection). The type of [[axonometric projection]] is [[isometric projection]]: this effect simulated [[Dimensional analysis|three dimensions]] from a third-person viewpoint. It was also one of the first video games to display shadows,<ref name=Perron>Bernard Perron & Mark J. P. Wolf (2008), ''Video game theory reader two'', [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=oe0zNalKkTgC&pg=PA158 p. 158], [[Taylor & Francis]], ISBN 0-415-96282-X</ref> and it was also the first arcade game to be advertised on television.<ref>Mark J. P. Wolf (2008), [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XiM0ntMybNwC ''The video game explosion: a history from PONG to Playstation and beyond''], p. xviii, [[ABC-CLIO]], ISBN 0-313-33868-X</ref>
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A popular game, ''Zaxxon'' was [[Porting|ported]] to almost all [[home computer]] and [[video game console]] systems between 1982 and 1985. Among them were [[MS-DOS|DOS]] (as a [[PC booter|booter]]), [[Amiga 1000]], [[Apple II]], [[Atari 8-bit family|Atari 400/800]], [[Atari 2600]], [[Atari 5200]], [[Atari XL]], [[MSX]], [[ZX Spectrum]], [[Commodore 64]], [[Dragon 32]], [[ColecoVision]], [[Intellivision]], [[SG-1000|Sega SG-1000]] and [[TRS-80 Color Computer]].<ref>{{moby game|id=/zaxxon}}</ref> Unauthorized adaptations of the game were published for the [[TI 99/4A]] (as ''Arcturus''), [[Amstrad CPC]] (as ''Zaxx''), [[BBC Micro]] (as ''Fortress''), and the [[TRS-80 Color Computer]] (as ''Zakssund'').
A popular game, ''Zaxxon'' was [[Porting|ported]] to almost all [[home computer]] and [[video game console]] systems between 1982 and 1985. Among them were [[MS-DOS|DOS]] (as a [[PC booter|booter]]), [[Amiga 1000]], [[Apple II]], [[Atari 8-bit family|Atari 400/800]], [[Atari 2600]], [[Atari 5200]], [[Atari XL]], [[MSX]], [[ZX Spectrum]], [[Commodore 64]], [[Dragon 32]], [[ColecoVision]], [[Intellivision]], [[SG-1000|Sega SG-1000]] and [[TRS-80 Color Computer]].<ref>{{moby game|id=/zaxxon}}</ref> Unauthorized adaptations of the game were published for the [[TI 99/4A]] (as ''Arcturus''), [[Amstrad CPC]] (as ''Zaxx''), [[BBC Micro]] (as ''Fortress''), and the [[TRS-80 Color Computer]] (as ''Zakssund'').


The Atari 2600 and Intellivision ports were noticeably different because they used a 3rd person, behind the ship 3D perspective instead of the [[Isometric projection|isometric]] graphics of the other versions. This is probably due to technical limitations of these consoles. The [[ColecoVision]] version, designed by Coleco staffer [[Lawrence Schick]], was the first home version to use the isometric graphics.
The Atari 2600 and Intellivision ports were noticeably different because they used a 3rd person, behind the ship 3D perspective instead of the [[Isometric projection|isometric]] graphics of the other versions. This is probably due to technical limitations of these consoles. The [[ColecoVision]] version, designed by [[Coleco]] staffer [[Lawrence Schick]], was the first home version to use the isometric graphics.


In 2006, ''Zaxxon'' games were included as bonus game on the ''[[Sega Genesis Collection]]'' for Sony's [[PlayStation 2]] and [[PlayStation Portable|PSP]] consoles. The original ''Zaxxon'' is the game included on the [[PlayStation 2|PS2]], and ''Super Zaxxon'' is the one available on the [[PlayStation Portable|PSP]]. ''Zaxxon'' was also included as an unlockable arcade game in ''[[Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection]]'' for the [[Xbox 360]] and [[PlayStation 3]].
In 2006, ''Zaxxon'' games were included as bonus game on the ''[[Sega Genesis Collection]]'' for Sony's [[PlayStation 2]] and [[PlayStation Portable|PSP]] consoles. The original ''Zaxxon'' is the game included on the [[PlayStation 2|PS2]], and ''Super Zaxxon'' is the one available on the [[PlayStation Portable|PSP]]. ''Zaxxon'' was also included as an unlockable arcade game in ''[[Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection]]'' for the [[Xbox 360]] and [[PlayStation 3]].
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In 1982, [[Milton Bradley]] made a ''Zaxxon'' board game.<ref>[http://www.ggdb.com/GameByName.aspx?c=Memorabilia&s=Boardgame&vid=5522 ''Zaxxon''] from the Great Game Database (GGDb)</ref><ref>{{bgg title|2482|Zaxxon}}</ref>
In 1982, [[Milton Bradley]] made a ''Zaxxon'' board game.<ref>[http://www.ggdb.com/GameByName.aspx?c=Memorabilia&s=Boardgame&vid=5522 ''Zaxxon''] from the Great Game Database (GGDb)</ref><ref>{{bgg title|2482|Zaxxon}}</ref>

{{VG Reviews
|Allgame = {{rating|4.5|5}}<ref>{{allgame|16050|Zaxxon}}</ref>
|rev1 = ''Home Computing Weekly''
|rev1Score = {{rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite journal|title=Spectrum Software Reviews|journal=Home Computing Weekly|date=6 March 1984|year=1984|month=March|issue=52|url=http://www.worldofspectrum.org/showmag.cgi?mag=HomeComputingWeekly/Issue052/Pages/HomeComputingWeekly05200008.jpg|accessdate=11 February 2012|page=8}}</ref>
|award1Pub = [[Electronic Games|Arcade Awards]] (1982)
|award1 = Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Coin-Op Game ({{nowrap|Certificate of Merit}})<ref>{{cite journal|title=Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Coin-Op Game|journal=[[Electronic Games]]|year=1983|month=January|volume=1|issue=11|page=35|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/electronic-games-magazine-1983-01/Electronic_Games_Issue_11_Vol_01_11_1983_Jan#page/n35/mode/2up/search/zaxxon|accessdate=11 February 2012}}</ref>
|award2Pub = [[Electronic Games|Arcade Awards]] (1983)
|award2 = [[Game of the Year|Videogame of the Year]] ({{nowrap|Certificate of Merit}})<ref>{{cite journal|title=Videogame of the Year|journal=[[Electronic Games]]|year=1984|month=January|volume=2|issue=23|page=67|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/electronic-games-magazine-1984-01/Electronic_Games_Issue_23_Vol_02_11_1984_Jan#page/n65/mode/2up|accessdate=11 February 2012}}</ref>
|award3Pub = [[Electronic Games|Arkie Awards]] (1984)
|award3 = [[Game of the Year|Stand-Alone Game of the Year]], {{nowrap|Computer Game of the Year}} ({{nowrap|Certificate of Merit}})<ref>{{cite journal|title=1985 Arkie Awards|journal=[[Electronic Games]]|year=1985|month=January|volume=3|issue=35|pages=28-9|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/electronic-games-magazine-1985-01/Electronic_Games_Issue_35_Vol_03_11_1985_Jan#page/n25/mode/2up|accessdate=11 February 2012}}</ref>
|award4Pub = ''[[Electronic Games]]''
|award4 = Hall of Fame<ref>{{cite journal|title=Hall of Fame Winners|journal=[[Electronic Games]]|year=1985|month=January|volume=3|issue=35|pages=58-59 [58]|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/electronic-games-magazine-1985-01/Electronic_Games_Issue_35_Vol_03_11_1985_Jan#page/n57/mode/2up|accessdate=11 February 2012}}</ref>
}}


== Tabletop and handheld games ==
== Tabletop and handheld games ==


In 1983 Coleco released a table top version of Zaxxon with a double panel VFD screen.<ref>[http://www.handheldmuseum.com/BooksMagazines/Mag-EG_0783/index.html Announcement of Handheld ''Zaxxon''] Electronic Games Magazine July 1983</ref> [[Bandai]]<ref>[http://handheldmuseum.com/Bandai/index.html Bandai ''Zaxxon''] from handheldmuseum.com</ref> released 2 Zaxxon handhelds: one VFD table top for the European and Japanese market, and an LCD card game sold worldwide.
In 1983, [[Coleco]] released a table top version of Zaxxon with a double panel VFD screen.<ref>[http://www.handheldmuseum.com/BooksMagazines/Mag-EG_0783/index.html Announcement of Handheld ''Zaxxon''] Electronic Games Magazine July 1983</ref> [[Bandai]]<ref>[http://handheldmuseum.com/Bandai/index.html Bandai ''Zaxxon''] from handheldmuseum.com</ref> released 2 Zaxxon handhelds: one VFD table top for the European and Japanese market, and an LCD card game sold worldwide.


== Remakes and clones ==
== Remakes and clones ==

Revision as of 05:59, 11 February 2012

Zaxxon
North American arcade flyer
Developer(s)Sega
Publisher(s)Sega
Platform(s)Arcade, Virtual Console, and others
ReleaseArcade[1]
Genre(s)Isometric shooter
Mode(s)Up to 2 players, alternating turns
Arcade systemSega Zaxxon hardware
File:Zaxxon.png
Screenshot of Zaxxon (Arcade)

Zaxxon is a 1982 isometric shooter arcade game developed and released by Sega. Some sources[2][3][4] claim that Japanese electronics company Ikegami Tsushinki also worked on the development of Zaxxon. The game gives the player the experience of flying a fighter craft through a fortress while shooting at enemy entities (missiles, enemy gunfire, etc.) The object of the game is to hit as many targets as possible without being shot down or running out of fuel—which can be replenished, paradoxically, by blowing up fuel drums.[5]

At the time of its release, Zaxxon was unique as it was the first game to employ axonometric projection, which lent its name to the game (AXXON from AXONometric projection). The type of axonometric projection is isometric projection: this effect simulated three dimensions from a third-person viewpoint. It was also one of the first video games to display shadows,[6] and it was also the first arcade game to be advertised on television.[7]

The world record on Zaxxon is 4,680,740 points scored by Vernon Kalanikaus of Lā'ie, Hawai'i, on March 15, 1982, according to the Twin Galaxies Intergalactic Scoreboard.[8]

A bootleg of the game was released in the arcades in 1982 called Jackson.[9]

Ports

A popular game, Zaxxon was ported to almost all home computer and video game console systems between 1982 and 1985. Among them were DOS (as a booter), Amiga 1000, Apple II, Atari 400/800, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Atari XL, MSX, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Dragon 32, ColecoVision, Intellivision, Sega SG-1000 and TRS-80 Color Computer.[10] Unauthorized adaptations of the game were published for the TI 99/4A (as Arcturus), Amstrad CPC (as Zaxx), BBC Micro (as Fortress), and the TRS-80 Color Computer (as Zakssund).

The Atari 2600 and Intellivision ports were noticeably different because they used a 3rd person, behind the ship 3D perspective instead of the isometric graphics of the other versions. This is probably due to technical limitations of these consoles. The ColecoVision version, designed by Coleco staffer Lawrence Schick, was the first home version to use the isometric graphics.

In 2006, Zaxxon games were included as bonus game on the Sega Genesis Collection for Sony's PlayStation 2 and PSP consoles. The original Zaxxon is the game included on the PS2, and Super Zaxxon is the one available on the PSP. Zaxxon was also included as an unlockable arcade game in Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

The arcade version was released on the Wii Virtual Console in Japan on December 15, 2009,[11] the PAL region on March 5, 2010 and North America on April 12, 2010.

Legacy

Due to its success, Zaxxon spawned an arcade sequel, Super Zaxxon. It did not do as well as the original.

In 1987, Zaxxon 3-D was released for the Sega Master System. This console variation made use of its 3-D glasses add-on for extra depth perception.

Zaxxon's Motherbase 2000 was released for the Sega 32X in 1995. It is the only Zaxxon game to use full 3D graphics. The game bore the Zaxxon brand only in the United States, as the Japanese version was named Parasquad and the European version was named Motherbase.

  1. Zaxxon (1982)
  2. Super Zaxxon (1982)
  3. Zaxxon 3-D (1987)
  4. Zaxxon's Motherbase 2000 (1995)

Zaxxon was the first game reviewed on the YouTube show Classic Game Room HD on February 20, 2008.

Board game

In 1982, Milton Bradley made a Zaxxon board game.[12][13]

Tabletop and handheld games

In 1983, Coleco released a table top version of Zaxxon with a double panel VFD screen.[20] Bandai[21] released 2 Zaxxon handhelds: one VFD table top for the European and Japanese market, and an LCD card game sold worldwide.

Remakes and clones

In 1987's Panther one had to rescue men and avoid enemy ships in a same isometric 3d-view game.[22]

The 2003 Retro Remakes competition produced clones for Linux and Windows.[23]

Similar games

  • Future Spy was created by Sega in 1984. This game uses the same hardware as Zaxxon and has very similar game play but with a more realistic military theme.[24]
  • Viewpoint was released by Sammy in 1992 for the Neo-Geo system. This game features the same 3/4 view perspective and similar gameplay as Zaxxon.[25]
  • Blue Max, a World War I flying game for the Commodore 64 and 8-bit Atari computers, had a similar isometric perspective and similar gameplay, and was described by one reviewer as "a souped-up version of Zaxxon." [26]

References

  1. ^ "Zaxxon". Arcade History. October 17, 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
  2. ^ Company:Ikegami Tsushinki - Game Developer Research Institute
  3. ^ ドンキーコング裁判についてちょこっと考えてみる Thinking a bit about Donkey Kong, accessed 2009-02-01
  4. ^ It started from Pong (それは『ポン』から始まった : アーケードTVゲームの成り立ち, sore wa pon kara hajimatta: ākēdo terebi gēmu no naritachi), Masumi Akagi (赤木真澄, Akagi Masumi), Amusement Tsūshinsha (アミューズメント通信社, Amyūzumento Tsūshinsha), 2005, ISBN 4-9902512-0-2.
  5. ^ Zaxxon from the Killer List of Videogames (KLOV)
  6. ^ Bernard Perron & Mark J. P. Wolf (2008), Video game theory reader two, p. 158, Taylor & Francis, ISBN 0-415-96282-X
  7. ^ Mark J. P. Wolf (2008), The video game explosion: a history from PONG to Playstation and beyond, p. xviii, ABC-CLIO, ISBN 0-313-33868-X
  8. ^ Zaxxon entry from TwinGalaxies.com
  9. ^ Jackson entry from CAESAR (Catalogue of Arcade Emulation Software - the Absolute Reference)
  10. ^ Zaxxon at MobyGames
  11. ^ December 2009 releases in Japan
  12. ^ Zaxxon from the Great Game Database (GGDb)
  13. ^ Zaxxon at BoardGameGeek
  14. ^ Template:Allgame
  15. ^ "Spectrum Software Reviews". Home Computing Weekly (52): 8. 6 March 1984. Retrieved 11 February 2012. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  16. ^ "Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Coin-Op Game". Electronic Games. 1 (11): 35. 1983. Retrieved 11 February 2012. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  17. ^ "Videogame of the Year". Electronic Games. 2 (23): 67. 1984. Retrieved 11 February 2012. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  18. ^ "1985 Arkie Awards". Electronic Games. 3 (35): 28–9. 1985. Retrieved 11 February 2012. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  19. ^ "Hall of Fame Winners". Electronic Games. 3 (35): 58-59 [58]. 1985. Retrieved 11 February 2012. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  20. ^ Announcement of Handheld Zaxxon Electronic Games Magazine July 1983
  21. ^ Bandai Zaxxon from handheldmuseum.com
  22. ^ Panther on AtariMania. Retrieved on 2009-04-28.
  23. ^ Gary Pankhurst. "Zaxxon RetroRemake - HomePage". Retrieved 2009-04-30.
  24. ^ Future Spy from the KLOV
  25. ^ Viewpoint from the KLOV
  26. ^ Analog Computing Magazine #19, June 1984
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