Galaxy Force (video game)

Galaxy Force (ギャラクシーフォース) is a sprite-scaling rail shooter arcade game, released by Sega in 1988 and built upon the Sega Y Board. The game is in the tradition of Sega's Space Harrier series. Galaxy Force was replaced almost immediately in arcades with a sequel, Galaxy Force II, which added two stages, fixed bugs, and changed some gameplay elements.

The game was ported to numerous home computers and consoles including the Mega Drive, the Atari ST, and the Sega Saturn. All home ports of the game are based on Galaxy Force II and are titled as such, except for the Sega Master System version. Much later, ports were released for the Virtual Console and the Nintendo 3DS.

Plot
The evil Fourth Empire, ruled by Halcyon, begins a campaign of galactic conquest having lain waste to almost all of the star systems in the galaxy. An interstellar organization, known as the Space Federation, launches Galaxy Force, an elite starfighter corps specializing in space combat to free the galaxy from the oppressive rule of Halcyon and the Fourth Empire. A lone fighter wages a one-man war against Halcyon and his forces.

Gameplay
The player takes control of the TRY-Z spaceship, navigating through several missions on different planets, shooting lasers and missiles at enemies and obstacles. The ship's protective shield decreases with each collision. The ship has a limited quantity of energy; when this energy is fully depleted, the game is over. The game has only a single type of power-up, which increases the number of missiles a player may shoot in a single volley.

At the start of the game, the player may select any one of five planets:


 * Megaleon (Man-Made world): This is default start level. The first half consists of combat in open space, slowly approaching a fortress inside the planet. Enemies include fighter ships, with the only obstacle being an orbital construction site.
 * Ashutar (Volcanic world): Here, the player must traverse through two fortresses.
 * Malkland (Plant world): Obstacles here include a fast growing plant which entangles your ship. Like Ashutar, two fortresses must be traversed.
 * Sara (Desert world): The player here must avoid tornadoes and surface-to-air fire.
 * Orthea (Cloud world): This stage contains large formations of enemy fighters. Two fortresses must be traversed.

A sixth and final planet may be accessed only once the other five have been overcome:


 * Hyperspace (Final): This is the stronghold of the enemy forces.

Reception
Reviewing the Nintendo 3DS version, NintendoLife commented that even though Galaxy Force II doesn't contain a single polygon, the impression of rushing through space, avoiding collisions with asteroids and dodging incoming enemy fire is so intense that it puts many modern 3D titles to shame. They deemed the game as "arguably the culmination of M2's 3D Classics range".