Developer: Bandai Namco Games

Release Date: 4/2012

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Galaga is one of the original shmups and hasn’t really done much since its incarnation. I had fond memories of playing Galaga on my original GameBoy and remembering how hard it was. Now I’m back with Galaga: Special Edition and I’m quite disappointed. I wasn’t expecting HD graphics or tons of different modes. I just wanted an honest updated Galaga experience. What we have here is a messy and not quite up-to-par version that I would have any fan of the series or genre pass up.

For starters the game just isn’t fun to control, the animations are awful, and the game just doesn’t feel right. Your ship stays on one screen and you just move around the area trying to kill the enemies. It’s a stationary shooter ’em up, but one that used to be really fun. The special effects are awful, and honestly, even the menus feel old and not quite up to speed. I honestly feel like this was a crappy Flash game and was just ported to mobile devices.

If you really need a Galaga to fix on the go, this game will get you by, but it can’t hold a candle to the original game. I also felt the game just didn’t control very well and seemed to “skip” around on the screen. There’s really not much to say here other than keep playing and build up a high score. If you don’t like staying stationary or want a lot of on-screen action, this game isn’t for you.