Senjyo
 | |
| Developer(s) | Tehkan |
|---|---|
| Publisher(s) | Tehkan |
| Platform(s) | Arcade, MSX, Xbox |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Senjyo (センジョー, 'Battlefield', stylized in all capital letters as "SENJYO") is an arcade shooter game developed and released in 1983 by Tehkan (now known as Tecmo). The title, the Japanese word for "battlefield", is written in the kunrei-shiki romanization style. In the Hepburn style, it would be written as "Senjō".
Gameplay
The gameplay involves the player controlling a fixed turret on a tank shooting oncoming alien enemies through a cross-hair target. A certain number of enemies must be destroyed to progress to the next stage. The original arcade cabinet was a cocktail table.
The game employs the use of pseudo-3D graphical effects to give the illusion of a three-dimensional landscape. However, the player's tank is fixed in a single location, whereas the enemies can move across the landscape.[1]
Release
The arcade game was released in Japan in 1983.[2] In North America, it was demonstrated at AMOA 1984.[1]
The game was ported and published by Sony Corporation in 1984 for MSX computers.
In 2005, Senjyo was re-released exclusively on the Xbox, as part of the Tecmo Classic Arcade collection.
Reception
In Japan, Game Machine listed Senjyo on their January 1, 1984 issue as being the second most-successful new table arcade unit of the month.[3]
Zelmo of Video Games magazine reviewed the arcade game following its AMOA 1984 demonstration, comparing the gameplay favorably with the 1983 Atari 2600 games Battlezone and Robot Tank while praising the "very nice" graphics, effects and "three-dimensional" landscape. However, the reviewer said the player's "restricted movement" compared to "the maneuverability of the various enemies" made it "frustrating" and could limit the game's arcade audience, concluding that, for "the home this effort would have some promise, but as an arcade game it might be just a little off base."[1]
References
- ^ a b c Zelmo (February 1984). "Design Trends On View for '84". Video Games. Vol. 2, no. 5. United States: Pumpkin Press. pp. 48–51.
- ^ "Video Game Flyers: Senjyo, Tehkan (Japan)". The Arcade Flyer Archive. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - テーブル型新製品 (New Videos-Table Type)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 227. Amusement Press, Inc. 1 January 1984. p. 37.