Darius II (arcade game)
Encyclopedia
Darius II, released outside of Japan
as Sagaia, is a 1989
arcade video game by Taito
. It is the direct sequel to Darius, first released in arcades in 1989. The arcade version kept the same three-screen format as the first game. The power-up system changed slightly: to obtain power-ups, the player had to destroy complete waves of a particular enemy.
signal coming from the Earth
where the first colonists of Darius originated before colonizing Darius; the signal included the description of alien ships similar to that of the Belser Army. Suspecting that these might be their remaining Earthling ancestors, the people of Darius sends both Proco Jr. and Tiat Young to help them.
This game has the following 2 downsides in comparison with the rest of the Darius games: The first one is that there are not power up bars. This implies that when a Silver Hawk is destroyed, they go back to the very first level for the shots and bombs. The second one is that the shots don't pierce through the enemies, which implies that the player cannot destroy an enemy unless they first destroys the enemies in front of it.
Two new power-ups were added: a golden item containing a new weapon power-up which gives the player green, vertical lasers that do pierce through enemies, and a rainbow-colored item that powers up all the players weapons. The game is set in the inner half of the Solar system
, and has the same branching level structure as Darius.
Another great difference between the power ups on Darius II and the rest of the Darius series (except Super Darius II and Darius Twin
) is that on Darius II, the player must destroy a complete formation of 8 certain unarmed ship types in order to get a power up.
Another new feature in Darius II is the appearance of minibosses named captains- large enemies that appear near the middle of a level, with similar abilities to the game's normal bosses (such as extravagant weapons, or the inability to be damaged without first exposing a vulnerable area). The captains in Darius II are in fact smaller versions of the bosses from Darius.
to the Mega Drive/Genesis
in 1990 and Sega Master System
in 1992, under the names "Darius II" (Japanese Mega Drive) and "Sagaia" (European Master System, US Genesis; not to be confused with the Game Boy game related to the original Darius). It has 2 main differences with respect to Darius II. The first one is that Steel Spine and Killer Hijia are not present (the player(s) only has to defeat Alloy Lantern in order to advance to the Venus Stage). The second difference is an exclusive new boss called Nehonojia (a mackerel
skeleton) on the X area. In 1993, the PC Engine CD received an enhanced port titled Super Darius II, featuring all-new exclusive bosses and an arranged soundtrack. The arcade version was later ported to the Sega Saturn
in 1996, complete with two-player mode and stretchable wide screen modes.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
as Sagaia, is a 1989
1989 in video gaming
-Notable releases:* October 3, Brøderbund releases the Prince of Persia game, the first in a series of games, noted for its advancements in animation....
arcade video game by Taito
Taito
Taito may mean:*Taito Corporation, a Japanese developer of video game software and arcade hardware*Taito, Tokyo, a special ward located in Tokyo, Japan*Taito, also known as matai, paramount chiefs according to Fa'a Samoa...
. It is the direct sequel to Darius, first released in arcades in 1989. The arcade version kept the same three-screen format as the first game. The power-up system changed slightly: to obtain power-ups, the player had to destroy complete waves of a particular enemy.
Story
Darius II takes place sometime after the first Darius game; the colonized planet Darius is recuperating from its invasion from the alien Belser Army thanks to that game's heroes Proco and Tiat. The Darius inhabitants have since situated themselves on the planet Olga while Darius' societies, architecture and attacked areas were being repaired. The space flight Head Quarters established on Olga picks up an SOSSOS
SOS is the commonly used description for the international Morse code distress signal...
signal coming from the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
where the first colonists of Darius originated before colonizing Darius; the signal included the description of alien ships similar to that of the Belser Army. Suspecting that these might be their remaining Earthling ancestors, the people of Darius sends both Proco Jr. and Tiat Young to help them.
Description
This game contains the red, green and blue items, as in almost all Darius series and they do the same functions (the red powers up the shots, the green powers up the bombs and the blue regenerates and powers up the arm shield).This game has the following 2 downsides in comparison with the rest of the Darius games: The first one is that there are not power up bars. This implies that when a Silver Hawk is destroyed, they go back to the very first level for the shots and bombs. The second one is that the shots don't pierce through the enemies, which implies that the player cannot destroy an enemy unless they first destroys the enemies in front of it.
Two new power-ups were added: a golden item containing a new weapon power-up which gives the player green, vertical lasers that do pierce through enemies, and a rainbow-colored item that powers up all the players weapons. The game is set in the inner half of the Solar system
Solar System
The Solar System consists of the Sun and the astronomical objects gravitationally bound in orbit around it, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The vast majority of the system's mass is in the Sun...
, and has the same branching level structure as Darius.
Another great difference between the power ups on Darius II and the rest of the Darius series (except Super Darius II and Darius Twin
Darius Twin
Darius Twin is a horizontal scrolling shooter for the Super Nintendo, released in 1991 and is part of the Darius series. It was re-released on the Wii Virtual Console in Japan on April 13, 2010 and in North America on December 13, 2010.-Story:...
) is that on Darius II, the player must destroy a complete formation of 8 certain unarmed ship types in order to get a power up.
Another new feature in Darius II is the appearance of minibosses named captains- large enemies that appear near the middle of a level, with similar abilities to the game's normal bosses (such as extravagant weapons, or the inability to be damaged without first exposing a vulnerable area). The captains in Darius II are in fact smaller versions of the bosses from Darius.
Ports
Darius II was portedPorting
In computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created for a computing environment that is different from the one for which it was originally designed...
to the Mega Drive/Genesis
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
in 1990 and Sega Master System
Sega Master System
The is a third-generation video game console that was manufactured and released by Sega in 1985 in Japan , 1986 in North America and 1987 in Europe....
in 1992, under the names "Darius II" (Japanese Mega Drive) and "Sagaia" (European Master System, US Genesis; not to be confused with the Game Boy game related to the original Darius). It has 2 main differences with respect to Darius II. The first one is that Steel Spine and Killer Hijia are not present (the player(s) only has to defeat Alloy Lantern in order to advance to the Venus Stage). The second difference is an exclusive new boss called Nehonojia (a mackerel
Mackerel
Mackerel is a common name applied to a number of different species of fish, mostly, but not exclusively, from the family Scombridae. They may be found in all tropical and temperate seas. Most live offshore in the oceanic environment but a few, like the Spanish mackerel , enter bays and can be...
skeleton) on the X area. In 1993, the PC Engine CD received an enhanced port titled Super Darius II, featuring all-new exclusive bosses and an arranged soundtrack. The arcade version was later ported to the Sega Saturn
Sega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
in 1996, complete with two-player mode and stretchable wide screen modes.