This awesome 1981 fixed shooter arcade game made by Namco still remains one of my all-time favorites, and serves as the official sequel to Galaxian which happened to be the first Namco arcade to be a smash hit. It uses a new arcade board named after it which was later used in other games like Bosconian and Pole Position. While this game does have some differences, it's still your favorite typical starship game, baby! The world record for its high score was held by Jordan Dorrington with a score of 20,980,450 points.
Of course the graphics are still colorful and could be a step up to Galaxian. And of course shooting is much more improved compared to the same predecessor. Why don't you compare the shooting behavior of the ships from both Galaxian and Galaga and you will notice the difference. I know I did myself, and I have a clever memory. The game is much more addicting compared to that same predecessor thanks to the improvements present.
Just like its predecessor, the gameplay is still pretty much the same whereas you just need to defeat the aliens just like usual. The controls are easy to pick up. All you need to do is move your ship and shoot. That is just about it for now.
Speaking of, them aliens come in a variety of different types with each of them being much more determined than the ones from Galaxian. Yes, you have those that divebomb right in your face, but you have the Boss Galaga aliens that come and steal your ship via the tractor beam, only don't worry about your ship being stolen by the aliens because if you have enough lives, you can take down the alien that has the ship. You can now turn your current ship into a dual fighter just to get an additional shot. I am clever at doing this and I love this part so much! I do better than that David Lightman dude from my favorite movie WarGames, by the way, if you're thinking about it. Oh, and if you were to fail to get the ship that was stolen by an alien, don't worry as it will reappear at a later level as part of the formation. This is all because how the ship can't be shot when the Boss Galaga is at its formation.
As expected with an arcade game, the enemies become tougher as the game progresses thus increasing the number of projectiles and diving down at a faster rate. What's also notable is that some enemies can transform into new enemy types with different attack patterns. Beginning at stage 4, A Bee or a Butterfly alien will transform into either a Sasori/Lobster, a Midori from Bosconian, and a Galaxian Flagship. The arcade version, like Pac-Man, does have a kill screen if you were to reach stage 256.
Every time you start a new level, the aliens will fly in a formation instead of just simply appearing on the screen. This can give players a chance to shoot the aliens before they appear at the top of the screen so you won't have to worry about facing that many aliens.
Bonus stages are new to the series. This occurs in the third stage and every fourth thereafter. In the bonus round, the aliens fly in a formation without shooting your ship so you get to see how many aliens can you shoot. There are three new aliens to attack that are only available on bonus rounds: the Tonbo/Dragonfly, Momiji/Satellite, and the Enterprise.
At the very start of the game, there is a small yet memorable jingle that plays which is quite a listen. Even when you complete the bonus stage, you will hear a different version of the iconic jingle. There is also another jingle that plays when your ship gets stolen.
Because of all its SMASHING success, it was a popular game during the golden age of arcade video games, and Galaga has featured in various media. For example, it made cameo appearances in films including the aforementioned WarGames, The Karate Kid (1984), Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987), and The Avengers (2012). Additionally, a submarine named after the game appeared throughout the ABC television series Lost. Also, an animated television adaptation, Galaga Chronicles, is confirmed to be in development, and I can't wait to see it when it premiers on Cartoon Network (presumably). In the world of interactive media, the PlayStation version of Tekken even has a Galaga loading screen minigame, and there is also a crossover game called Galaga: Tekken Edition which replaced the enemies with characters from Tekken.
Shortly after the game's release, Namco produced miniature Galaga cabinets for buses and airplanes, housed in small 17-inch CRT monitors. Yes, really. I am very happy that they produced such things. Hallmark Cards even released a Galaga arcade cabinet ornament around 2009 which plays sound effects from the game. I used to have one of them, but then it got crushed two or three years later.
Now let's go out there, play this together, and prove that we're interstellar!