Happy Friday, everyone. Today I’m going to discuss a game on a home computer that’s become a classic among import gamers: the Microsoft MSX.
The MSX was a home computer that was released in Japan and Europe in 1983. Before the Famicom’s release, it was pretty much the video game system everyone played. Many classic games, including those released for the NES and Famicom, actually got their start on the MSX: Puyo Puyo, Bomberman, and most notably Metal Gear. Many of my favorite import games are actually on the MSX, and we’ll be looking at one today: Exerion.
Developed and published by Jaleco, Exerion was first released in the arcades in 1983 and would see many home releases in the following years, including the Famicom, the SG-1000, and the MSX. How does it fare?
The game is a vertical shooter. First, the basics: the graphics are fine for the MSX. There’s parallax scrolling involved. While it doesn’t look too impressive here, it was actually mighty impressive in the arcade, as it gave it a very three-dimensional level of depth. There is no music in this game, even on the title screen. However, there are sound effects, but they’re ripped straight from Galaga. Seriously, no sound effect in this game is original. And it’s not the only thing this game steals from Galaga.
Onto the gameplay. You control a jet and the object is to destroy aliens that are fleeting through the sky. They fly in a flock of 6, like the aliens in Galaga. While some of them are defenseless and can easily be killed in one shot, others are able to shoot at you. This means you have to try and shoot all the aliens while moving around to avoid getting shot yourself. If you get shot once, you’re dead.
There is a boss fight every so often, including a giant alien dragon. This one, of course, requires more shots to kill. After the dragon is killed, the game loops and you just have to keep going until you can get your highest score.
Yeah, it is pretty much like Galaga. But there is one thing that makes it a bit different. You have a rapid-fire weapon that can easily destroy one flock of aliens, but these shots can run out. They will refill over time, but you will need to use a slower, alternate shot in the meantime. Because the game encourages you to conserve your ammo, it makes it a bit more challenging. I don’t see that too often in old-school shooters, so I actually commend the game for including this feature.
Exerion doesn’t get many points for originality, but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t fun. If you want a slightly harder variation of Galaga, I suppose this should suffice.
Rating: 7/10