Galaxian^3: Project Dragoon (Arcade, PS) (1992, 1995)
Developer: Namco

Review by Faididi and Co.

More like "Star Blade 2"

Story: Average

When the evil alien invaders known as the Uims attack the human colonies, all our hopes rest on the United Galactic Space Force (UGSF) and its mighty Dragoon starfighter. The brave UGSF gunners who are manning its laser blasters must aim fast and true if they are to destroy the bad guys' super deathray weapon.

Gameplay: Above Average

Namco's Galaxian^3: Project Dragoon is a genre-switching remake of the original Galaxian, because it plays nothing like the space shooter classic released two decades earlier. Instead, it's a rail shooter that closely resembles Star Blade. The heroes only need to focus on gunning down enemies as their ship automatically flies through a single massive stage. If the bad guys bang up the Dragoon too much and its shields drop to zero, it goes KABOOM.

The action may be faulted for being as simple as that of Star Blade, and there are still no power-ups to nab, but the big difference here is that Galaxian^3 supports a whopping total of 6 Players simultaneously, ensuring a hectic experience for a large group of friends. Furthermore, unlike the lone pilot in Star Blade, the heroes in this game can't continue if they get wasted, so everyone really needs to work together in order to succeed. At the same time, the difficulty level is better balanced, and surviving no longer demands insanely quick reflexes.

Controls: Excellent

The controls are responsive, and aiming with the targeting reticle and firing are all easy to do. The fancy design of the gunners' seats makes multiplayer sessions even more awesome.

Graphics: Excellent

Galaxian^3 uses prerendered video instead of real-time polygons for the scenery, allowing for a significant jump in visual detail. From the energy bolts blazing across space to the fiery shrapnel of destroyed fighters, everything looks impressive.

Audio: Above Average

The audio effects continue to be strong. The laserfire and the explosions blast out with increased force. While the more pop-like tunes don't share the same dramatic edge as the music of Star Blade, the tunes come in a greater amount, and the radio chatter sounds less repetitive, too.

Overall: Above Average

Galaxian^3: Project Dragoon is an eye-catching remake that literally brings the series to a whole new dimension. It may differ little at heart from Star Blade, but its crazy 6-Player action delivers one hell of an arcade experience. If you have several friends who enjoy rail shooters, this is definitely the game to play together.

Port: Above Average (PS)

The PS version is a faithful port, though supporting up to only 4 Players at once (using a multitap). The wide-screen proportion of the graphics is preserved, but more important are the exclusive features, which help compensate for the game's brevity.

The most prominent addition is the bonus stage, the events of which occur shortly after those of the arcade stage. This new stage plays like the first one, except the scenery is different and the enemy patterns are slightly more challenging. It also comes with its own tunes, which are comparable in quality to the original music.

A second exclusive feature is the option to use variants of the standard blasters. It's not the same as finding and using actual power-ups, but it offers a little customization for individual Players, by allowing each hero's weapon to be changed in terms of hitting power, firing speed, and other factors.

Last but not least, Players who don't have enough friends to fill out every seat can recruit computer-controlled UGSF gunners. These computer allies are actually competent, and they should ease solo Players' worries about the ship becoming overwhelmed.

OST: Average

Published by Victor Musical Industries, the Game Sound Express 6: Star Blade and Galaxian^3: Project Dragoon soundtrack combines the music of the two rail shooters in a single package, and it also includes a pair of bonus tracks.

Unfortunately, the in-game vocal effects are interspersed throughout several of the Star Blade tracks, so the music there can't be enjoyed in its pure form. (This is similar to the sound effect problem found in the Game Sound Express 2: Burning Force soundtrack.)

On the bright side, the two bonus tracks should please hardcore fans of Namco's Galaxian universe. The first is a collection of the radio chatter heard in Project Dragoon, while the second is a humorous drama track that reveals the more dysfunctional side of the UGSF.