Galaxy Force II
From Sega Retro
Galaxy Force II | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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System(s): Sega Y Board, Sega Mega Drive, Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, FM Towns, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Virtual Console, Steam | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Publisher: Sega Sega (US/EU) CRI (JP) Activision (UK) MCM Software (ES) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Developer: Sega R&D 1 CRI Software Studios Probe Software Mak Computer Grafix | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Peripherals supported: XE-1 AP | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Genre: Shoot-'em-Up | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Number of players: 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Galaxy Force II (ギャラクシーフォースII) is a 1988 arcade game developed by Sega. It is an update to Galaxy Force, similarly to After Burner II. It is a third person on-the-rails shoot 'em up, where the player controls a spaceship traveling across various planets destroying enemies. Like all Sega Y Board games, it is heavily reliant on sprite scaling and rotations to produce three-dimensional graphics.
Contents
Gameplay
Galaxy Force II adds two extra "Scenes", allows you choose the first five Scenes in any order, and addresses a number of bugs.
Levels
Scene A/Level 1: Junos | |
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Scene B/Level 2: Velteor | |
Scene C/Level 3: Malkland | |
Scene D/Level 4: Orthea | |
Scene E/Level 5: Ashutar | |
Scene F/Level 6: Hyperspace | |
Hyperspace can only be accessed once the previous five levels are complete. In the arcade version of Galaxy Force II, if you die on this level, the game is over — on previous levels you have the option to continue (except in the Japanese version), but this one will send you back to the title screen regardless of how many credits you have. |
History
Legacy
Galaxy Force II was ported to the Sega Mega Drive in 1991, and a selection of computers including the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. Due to the inferior hardware of these systems, large cutbacks were made regarding detail and the reception has hence been mixed. There was a more respectable port to the FM Towns Marty in Japan however, which kept the sprite scaling, and there was a re-release for the Sega Saturn under the Sega Ages label. Many of the computer releases mis-label the packaging as "Galaxy Force" rather than "Galaxy Force II", but the in-game title screens retain the numbering. A port to NEC's SuperGrafx was also in development and shown in magazines, but never completed.
Sequels and re-releases
The arcade game has since been re-released in Japan as part of the PlayStation 2's Sega Ages 2500 series. More recently, the Mega Drive version of the game was brought to the Wii's Virtual Console service.
Updated versions of the game have been released, including Sega Ages 2500 Series Vol. 30: Galaxy Force II: Special Extended Edition for the PlayStation 2 in 2007 and 3D Galaxy Force II for the Nintendo 3DS in 2013.
Versions
In its original form, Galaxy Force II was designed to make maximum use of the Sega Y Board hardware, capable of rending vast amounts of sprites at 60FPS, all scaled and rotated natively by the hardware. At the time of release, no home consoles or computers could match this raw processing power, leading to significant downgrades in graphical quality.
A 1990 port to the FM Towns computer, then a relatively high-end Japanese-only machine was for many years the closest home conversion, retaining the majority of the arcade game's features but running at a lower resolution and frame rate. Fewer sprites are rendered on-screen (and rotations/scaling are estimated) causing noticable "pop-in" in places, however the release came with a remixed CD audio soundtrack exclusive to this version of the game.
The Sega Mega Drive version is the most widespread, having landed on the system in September 1991 before being included in several Mega Drive compilations and the Wii's Virtual Console service. On the Mega Drive, Galaxy Force II's frame rate is cut even more (leading to an artifically longer play time) and sprite rotation is entirely eliminated. Scaling, like many X and Y Board arcade conversions, relies on pre-rendered sprites of differing sizes being swapped in and out at runtime, leading to a "jerky" look. The slower pace of play compared to OutRun or After Burner and the more 3D-esque playfield exacerbates these concerns.
Interiors and textured surfaces (such as the lava in level 2) are simplified, becoming flat colours attempting to simulate movement in a similar manner to OutRun's road. Transitions between outside and inside portions of levels are removed, usually in favour of fade-ins/outs and black screens.
In the West, home computer ports were published by Activision, and all both drop the rotation effects and simplify the scaling in a similar manner to the Mega Drive. The Amiga and Atari ST versions are similar in nature to the Mega Drive, but run in a smaller window and are generally less responsive. Unlike their console counterpart, however, interior walls are textured (though floors and ceilings are still not). ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC ports take further cuts to resolution, colour counts and frame rates, resulting in ports more akin to the earlier Space Harrier than Galaxy Force.
The Commodore 64 resembles the arcade version the least, with very choppy scaling and busy graphics, making it difficult to judge what is going on.
Production credits
Y Board version
- Designer: 8940 Kon, Lovely Mas, Itten, Kajinomoto
- Planner: Takoyaki Tomo
- Programmer: Justice 10 Joe (Project Leader), Nanno Kawa, Radical Yoko, Bad Boy 3284
- Musician: Funky Q Chan, Nami-Nami
- Special Thanks: Sea Monkey Kawa, 100 Kg Miya, Stepan Hon, Pochi
- Special No Thanks: Ippo Ogapi
Mega Drive version
- Producer: Tomoyuki Shimizu
- Director: Masayoshi Iwai
- Programmer: Tohru Kujirai
- Enemy Algorithm and Map: Shuichi Ikegami
- Sound Data: Yoshitoku Sunahara
- Data and Tool: Yukihiro Ishida
- Map Construction - Stage 5 -: Hajime Ikebe
- S.E. Music: M.Hikichi (Cube)
- Color Coordinator: Jiro Kurematsu
- Sales Dept.: Norio Miyashita, Taizan Suzuki, Hideaki Sasaki, Taketoshi Endo, Mari Ogasawara
- Public Relations Dept.: Keisuke Chiwata, Noriaki Hirai
Amiga version
- Manufactured under license from Sega Enterprises Ltd. Japan
- Galaxy Force & Sega are trademarks of Sega Enterprises Ltd.
- Code by: Bill Allen.
- Graphics by: Kevin Bulmer.
- Music by: Uncle Art.
- A Software Studios Production.
Commodore 64 version
- Programming by: Neil Coxhead
- Additional Coding by: Probe Software Ltd.
- Graphics by: Mak Computer Grafix
- Music by: Martin Walker
- A Software Studio Production
ZX Spectrum version
- Code by: Keith Burkhill
- Graphics by: Focus C.E. Ltd
- Music by: Paul Hiley
- A Software Studios Production.
Digital manuals
Magazine articles
- Main article: Galaxy Force II/Magazine articles.
Promotional material
- Main article: Galaxy Force II/Promotional material.
Physical scans
Sega Y Board version
Y Board, US | ||||
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Y Board, JP | ||||
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Mega Drive version
49 | |
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Based on 33 reviews |
Mega Drive, AU |
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Amiga version
Sega Retro Average | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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55 | |
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Based on 8 reviews |
Amstrad CPC version
Sega Retro Average | ||||||||||||||
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62 | |
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Based on 2 reviews |
Amstrad CPC, UK (cassette) |
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Amstrad CPC, ES (cassette) |
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Amstrad CPC, ES (disk) |
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Atari ST version
Sega Retro Average | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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58 | |
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Based on 7 reviews |
Commodore 64 version
Sega Retro Average | ||||||||||||||
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43 | |
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Based on 2 reviews |
Commodore 64, UK |
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FM Towns version
ZX Spectrum version
Sega Retro Average | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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71 | |
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Based on 4 reviews |
Technical information
ROM dump status
System | Hash | Size | Build Date | Source | Comments | |||||||||
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✔ |
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1MB | 1991-10 | Cartridge | ||||||||||
✔ |
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1MB | 1991-06 | Cartridge |
External links
- Sega of Japan Virtual Console pages: Mega Drive
- Nintendo catalogue pages: US, AU
- Galaxy Force II on Steam
References
- ↑ Mega Drive Fan, "June 1992" (JP; 1992-05-08), page 75
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Computer & Video Games, "September 1989" (UK; 1989-08-16), page 111
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 ACE, "January 1990" (UK; 1989-12-xx), page 91
- ↑ GamePro, "February 1992" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 40
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Sega Force, "July 1992" (UK; 1992-06-xx), page 58
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Supergame, "Julho 1992" (BR; 1992-07-xx), page 37
- ↑ https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/vc/software/09.html (Wayback Machine: 2018-01-28 13:27)
- ↑ http://vc.sega.jp:80/vc_gf2 (Wayback Machine: 2009-02-03 13:17)
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 http://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/Epk7WeHf3l5FioNq7oRbaxJMBrya0VK_ (Wayback Machine: 2010-11-22 22:49)
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 http://www.nintendolife.com/games/megadrive/galaxy_force_ii (Wayback Machine: 2017-07-05 09:46)
- ↑ http://www.nintendo.com.au/index.php?action=catalogue&prodcat_id=41&prod_id=19744&pageID=4 (Wayback Machine: 2012-04-03 02:11)
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 https://steamdb.info/app/34310/ (Wayback Machine: 2019-09-12 20:49)
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 http://steamdb.info/app/34310/ (Wayback Machine: 2013-05-22 20:09)
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 14.6 14.7 14.8 14.9 https://steamdb.info/app/34310/history/?changeid=5755294
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 15.6 15.7 15.8 15.9 http://steamdb.info/app/34310/ (Wayback Machine: 2019-09-12 20:49)
- ↑ Beep! MegaDrive, "October 1991" (JP; 1991-09-07), page 34 (36)
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Sega Saturn Magazine, "September 1995" (JP; 1995-08-08), page 87
- ↑ Consoles +, "Novembre 1991" (FR; 1991-11-07), page 86/87 (78)
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Computer & Video Games, "December 1991" (UK; 1991-11-15), page 63
- ↑ Hobby Consolas, "Julio 1992" (ES; 1992-0x-xx), page 104 (96)
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Joystick, "Novembre 1991" (FR; 1991-1x-xx), page 188
- ↑ Mean Machines, "December 1991" (UK; 1991-11-28), page 146/147 (148)
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Sega Pro, "November 1991" (UK; 1991-xx-xx), page 65
- ↑ Sega Force, "July 1992" (UK; 1992-06-xx), page 56 (58)
- ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 84
- ↑ Beep! MegaDrive, "October 1991" (JP; 1991-09-07), page 34
- ↑ Consoles +, "Novembre 1991" (FR; 1991-11-07), page 86
- ↑ Console XS, "June/July 1992" (UK; 1992-04-23), page 130
- ↑ Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide, "" (UK; 1993-11-18), page 49
- ↑ Famitsu, "1991-09-20" (JP; 1991-09-06), page 38
- ↑ Game Informer, "January/February 1992" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 7
- ↑ Hippon Super, "October 1991" (JP; 1991-09-04), page 90
- ↑ Hobby Consolas, "Julio 1992" (ES; 1992-0x-xx), page 104
- ↑ Joker, "Januar 1994" (SI; 1994-xx-xx), page 19
- ↑ Joypad, "Novembre 1991" (FR; 1991-10-1x), page 42
- ↑ Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "January 1993" (UK; 199x-xx-xx), page 92
- ↑ Mega Drive Fan, "December 1991" (JP; 1991-11-08), page 91
- ↑ Mega, "June 1993" (UK; 1993-05-20), page 20
- ↑ Mega Force, "Juin 1992" (FR; 1992-06-05), page 82
- ↑ Mean Machines, "December 1991" (UK; 1991-11-28), page 148
- ↑ Mean Machines Sega, "October 1992" (UK; 1992-09-xx), page 139
- ↑ Play Time, "(8/9)/92" (DE; 1992-07-08), page 94
- ↑ Sega Power, "August 1992" (UK; 1992-07-02), page 37
- ↑ Sega Pro, "Christmas 1991" (UK; 1991-12-12), page 19
- ↑ Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 65
- ↑ Super Gaming, "Winter 1991" (US; 1991-xx-xx), page 6
- ↑ Supersonic, "Juillet/Août 1992" (FR; 1992-xx-xx), page 12
- ↑ Tilt, "Décembre 1991" (FR; 1991-1x-xx), page 35
- ↑ Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 104
- ↑ VideoGames & Computer Entertainment, "February 1992" (US; 1992-xx-xx), page 45
- ↑ Video Games, "8/92" (DE; 1992-07-22), page 89
- ↑ Amiga Action, "February 1990" (UK; 1990-xx-xx), page 82
- ↑ Amiga Format, "February 1990" (UK; 1990-0x-xx), page 38
- ↑ Amiga Joker, "Januar '90" (DE; 1989-12-29), page 22
- ↑ 55.0 55.1 Aktueller Software Markt, "Januar 1990" (DE; 1989-1x-xx), page 43
- ↑ Commodore User, "January 1990" (UK; 1989-12-20), page 37
- ↑ 57.0 57.1 57.2 The Games Machine, "January 1990" (UK; 1989-12-11), page 28
- ↑ Micromanía (segunda época), "Marzo 1990" (ES; 1990-0x-xx), page 33
- ↑ Power Play, "2/90" (DE; 1990-01-25), page 49
- ↑ Aktueller Software Markt, "Februar 1990" (DE; 1990-xx-xx), page 68
- ↑ Joystick, "Janvier 1990" (FR; 19xx-xx-xx), page 112
- ↑ 62.0 62.1 Computer & Video Games, "January 1990" (UK; 1989-12-16), page 54
- ↑ The Games Machine, "January 1990" (UK; 1989-12-11), page 28/29 (28)
- ↑ ST Action, "January 1990" (UK; 19xx-xx-xx), page 32 (34)
- ↑ Génération 4, "Décembre 1989" (FR; 1989-1x-xx), page 50
- ↑ ST Action, "January 1990" (UK; 19xx-xx-xx), page 34
- ↑ ST Format, "January 1990" (UK; 1989-12-21), page 66
- ↑ The Games Machine, "September 1990" (UK; 1990-08-xx), page 57
- ↑ Zzap!64, "September 1991" (UK; 1991-08-08), page 72
- ↑ Crash, "January 1990" (UK; 1989-12-14), page 50
- ↑ Sinclair User, "January 1990" (UK; 1989-12-18), page 63
- ↑ Your Sinclair, "February 1990" (UK; 1990-01-18), page 18
Galaxy Force II | |
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Main page | Comparisons | Credits | Hidden content | Bugs | Magazine articles | Reception | Promotional material | Region coding
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Games in the Galaxy Force Series | |
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Galaxy Force (1988) | Galaxy Force II (1988) | Sega Ages Galaxy Force II (1998) | Sega Ages 2500 Series Vol. 30: Galaxy Force II: Special Extended Edition (2007) | 3D Galaxy Force II (2013) | |
Galaxy Force related media | |
Galaxy Force (1988) | Galaxy Force II & Thunder Blade Original Sound Track (2007) | Galaxy Force II & Thunder Blade (2017) | |
Galaxy Force (1988) |
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