This Week in Defunct Games - April 13, 2010

What Is It? Forget horizontal and vertical 2D shooters, that's so 1980. Zaxxon attempts to redefine shooters with a strange, sideways 3/4 isometric camera angle. It's sort of like a traditional 2D shooter, only it gives off the illusion that you're flying into the screen. This creative design decision leaves an incredible first impression. I wouldn't be surprised if there are a lot of gamers who grew up seeing it in the arcades but never put a name to it. For the first level you're flying all around a faux-3D world where you can blow up tankers on the ground and avoid huge walls. It's a lot like the end of Star Wars, only you're in control and there's no sign of an obnoxious John Williams score. Yeah, Zaxxon's first level is pretty sweet.

Unfortunately, the rest of Zaxxon doesn't live up to the first level. This is one of those games that is occasionally brilliant. When the game is great, you really feel like the developers were on to something. However, when the game is bad, it's practically unplayable. Things get shaky when you realize that not every level is as interesting as the first level. Much of the game takes place out in the middle of space, where it's hard to gauge where your enemies are. It's easy to be slightly too high or too low, to the point where hitting an enemy feels more like luck. Now you can rediscover the frustration when you buy Zaxxon for the Virtual Console Arcade.

Does It Still Hold Up? In the arcades all of your actions were controlled by a large flight stick, further cementing the idea that you're the one in control of this spaceship. This flight stick had the triggers and buttons in all the right places, something that added to the illusion. On the Virtual Console the game doesn't feel right. Controlling the ship can be confusing at times and it just feels like another gimmicky shooter. Couple that with the gameplay problems created by the faux-3D and you have a game that doesn't hold up especially well.

Is It Worth The Money? Zaxxon is a likeable enough arcade game that will likely do well on the Virtual Console, but I say don't buy it. If you're a Sega fan, chances are good that you already own this game in one form or another. Zaxxon was released on both the Sega Genesis Collection for the PlayStation 2 (though not the PSP version, which only had Super Zaxxon) and Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Even if you don't own those compilations, I still say Zaxxon isn't worth the money. If you're going to spend that much money on a classic shooter, pick up the obscure (but infinitely better) Ironclad for the Neo Geo CD.