Xevious is a franchise of shoot 'em up video games published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Namco. Xevious, the first title in the franchise, was released for arcades in January 1983 in Japan and a month later in North America by Atari, Inc. It was created by Masanobu Endō, who also designed The Tower of Druaga.[1] The game has received many sequels, spin-offs, and re-imaginings, the most recent being Xevious Resurrection in 2009. Xevious games have been ported to many platforms and compiled into several Namco compilations. The franchise contains twelve games—seven mainline entries and five spin-offs—soundtrack albums, pachinko machines, and an animated feature film produced by Groove Corporation.
Gameplay in the series consists of controlling a spaceship named the Solvalou throughout a series of levels, shooting at enemies and avoiding their projectiles.[1][2] The Solvalou has two weapons, an air zapper that destroys air-based enemies and a blaster bomb that destroys ground-based enemies. Later games introduce mechanics such as additional playable ships, power-ups, protective shields, and two-player co-operative play. Critics have labeled Xevious as one of the most important games of its kind.[1][2] It is one of the first vertically scrolling shooters and among the first video games to implement bosses,[2] pre-rendered visuals,[3] and a cohesive world and storyline.[2]Xevious inspired games such as Gradius,[4]TwinBee,[2]Zanac,[5] and RayForce.[6] It has had an influence on game designers such as Satoshi Tajiri and musicians like Haruomi Hosono.[7][8]
^ abcdefghijkSavorelli, Carlo (May 6, 2015). "Xevious". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on September 22, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
^ abcdefghiSavorelli, Carlo (December 10, 2011). "Xevious - Other". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on September 26, 2019. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
^ abcdeAkagi, Masumi (October 13, 2006). アーケードTVゲームリスト国内•海外編(1971-2005) [Arcade TV Game List Domestic/Overseas (1971-2005)] (in Japanese) (First ed.). Japan: Amusement News Agency. p. 53. ISBN978-4990251215. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
^Sasaki, Jun (March 19, 2018). "あの名作シューティングがついにPC-88シリーズにも移植された!「ゼビウス」" [That masterpiece shooting has finally been ported to the PC-88 series!]. PC Watch (in Japanese). Impress Group. Archived from the original on April 23, 2020. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
^"ゼビウス" [Xevious]. Gemani (in Japanese). MediaKite. Archived from the original on October 16, 2002. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
^Tsuda, Hirume (August 9, 2002). "iアプリゲームサイト「アプリキャロット」に「ゼビウス」登場" ["Xevious" appears on i-Appli game site "Appli Carrot"]. Keitai Watch (in Japanese). Impress Group. Archived from the original on February 17, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
^"iモードに『ゼビウス』アレンジ版が新登場!" [Arranged version of "Xevious" is now available for i-Mode!]. Inside-Games (in Japanese). January 7, 2010. Archived from the original on February 17, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
^"「バーチャルコンソール」「バーチャルコンソールアーケード」11月10日配信作品" ["Virtual Console" "Virtual Console Arcade" November 10 delivery work]. Inside-Games (in Japanese). September 11, 2009. Archived from the original on December 7, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
^ abSavorelli, Carlo (December 10, 2014). "Grobda". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on July 14, 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2020.
^ abSavorelli, Carlo (December 10, 2013). "Xevious: Fardraut Saga". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on April 13, 2019. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
^ abDerboo, Sam (December 10, 2013). "XVM". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on October 27, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
^Saeki, Kenji (April 6, 2009). "バンダイナムコ、Wii「バーチャルコンソールアーケード」 プロモーション映像を公開" [Bandai Namco releases Wii Virtual Console Arcade promotion video]. GAME Watch (in Japanese). Impress Group. Archived from the original on April 20, 2019. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
^ abSavorelli, Carlo (December 10, 2013). "Xevious Arrangement". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on August 31, 2019. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
^"ポリゴンで復活 - ナムコ "ゼビウス3D/G" 基板" [Revival with Polygons - Namco "Zebius 3D/G" board] (PDF) (in Japanese). No. 518. Japan: Amusement Press. Game Machine. May 15, 1996. p. 16. Archived from the original(PDF) on March 16, 2020. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
^ ab"3D 待受アプリ ゼビウス" [3D Standby App Xevius] (PDF) (in Japanese). No. 38. Namco Ltd. Archived(PDF) from the original on February 28, 2016. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
^Kitamura, Takakazu (August 8, 2002). "ナムコ、iモード「アプリキャロット」で 「ゼビウス」、「3D待受アプリ ゼビウス」、「リバーシ」の配信を開始" [Namco launches distribution of "Xevious", "3D Standby App Xevious", and "Reversi" with i-Mode "Appli Carrot"]. Game Watch (in Japanese). Impress Group. Archived from the original on August 7, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
^ abcMotomiya, Shusuke (June 15, 2006). "往年の名作がXAVIXで復刻 バンダイ「Let's TVプレイ CLASSIC」" [The classic of yesteryear reprinted on XAVIX Bandai "Let's TV Play CLASSIC"]. Game Watch (in Japanese). Impress Group. Archived from the original on November 4, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
^ ab"6つのゲームを収録した『ナムコミュージアム.comm』明日リリース" ["Namco Museum.com" containing 6 games will be released tomorrow]. Dengeki Online (in Japanese). January 28, 2009. Archived from the original on July 15, 2019. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
^Okawada, Akira (June 25, 2019). "なぜ「ゲーム研究」が必要なのか? 書籍「ゲーム学の新時代」から読み解く,ゲーム研究からの人文社会科学" [Why is "game research" needed? Humanities and social sciences from game research, deciphered from the book "A new era of game science"]. 4gamer.net (in Japanese). Aetas, Inc. Archived from the original on June 27, 2019. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
^Kitamura, Takakazu (May 12, 2003). "ナムコ、高尾の最新CR機「CRゼビウス」に 映像システムを販売" [Namco sells video system to Takao's latest CR machine "CR Xevious"]. Game Watch (in Japanese). Impress Group. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
^ abcKatsuka, Tetsuya (January 11, 2013). "「ゼビウス」の自機「ソルバルウ」プラモを4月に発売" ["Xevious" own "Solvalou" plastic model released in April]. Game Watch (in Japanese). Impress Group. Archived from the original on October 2, 2016. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
^"祝 細野晴臣・監修による魅惑の円盤 VIDEO GAME MUSIC 所謂音響記念碑的作品、堂々完成" [Celebration Haruomi Hosono, a fascinating disk supervised by VIDEO GAME MUSIC, a so-called acoustic monumental work, completed magnificently] (in Japanese). Vol. 3, no. 5. ASCII Corporation. Monthly Login. May 1984. p. 67.