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A Game Changer

Every time I play Xevious on one of Namco’s "museum" compilations, I can’t help but reminisce about the time when I first discovered the game in 1992 on the Atari 7800 (a system which also familiarized me with other Namco classics outside of Pac-Man). Back then, our family couldn’t afford the Super NES or Sega Genesis. So, in a move of what I think was out of pity, a friend of ours gave us her 7800 with a huge bag full of games. While rummaging through the cartridges, I came across the little oddity known as Xevious. It was probably the first game I had heard of that started with an “X”, and the name intrigued me. I quickly fell in love with the unique enemy designs and mysterious land structures peppered throughout the game.

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Namco should've left this series back in the '90s.

Back in 1988, Namco both developed and produced the sidescrolling beat ‘em up horror title, Splatterhouse. The game was considered so violent at the time that a special parental advisory warning was slapped on the packaging, even though the game had been drastically toned down for Western audiences. Recently Namco Bandai has resurrected the series, reimagining the once controversial title for modern gamers. Unfortunately, the end result is nothing more than a bland, mindless beat ‘em up riddled with issues that no amount of gore or nostalgia could compensate for.

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