Zaxxon is a 1981 scrolling shooter video game created by Sega with help from Ikegami Tsushinki. It was released in Japanese and European arcades by Sega and distributed in North America by Sega/Gremlin. In the game, the player controls a spaceship as it travels through two heavily guarded space fortresses and the space between them to face the Zaxxon robot at the end of the second fortress.

Zaxxon was among the first games to use axonometric projection, a technique that gives the game its name. This method, called isometric projection, creates the illusion of three dimensions from a side view. It was also the first arcade game to be advertised on television, with a commercial made by Paramount Pictures for $150,000. The game was successful when it was released, ranking among the top five highest-earning arcade games in the United States in 1982.

Sega released a revised version called Super Zaxxon in the same year and another similar game, Future Spy, in 1984.

Gameplay

The goal of the game is to hit as many targets as possible without being destroyed or running out of fuel. Fuel can be refilled by destroying fuel tanks, which are worth 300 points. Players must fly through two fortresses, with a space section between them. After passing through the second fortress, players face a boss enemy in the form of the Zaxxon robot.

The player’s ship casts a shadow that shows its height. A device called an altimeter also displays the ship’s height. In space, there is no surface for the shadow to appear on. The walls at the entrances and exits of each fortress have gaps. The ship must be at the correct height to pass through these gaps. Inside each fortress, there are more walls. The shadow and altimeter help players navigate these walls successfully.

The game is controlled using a four-directional joystick. On arcade machines, this joystick is shaped like an airplane’s control stick and has a hand grip. Pushing the joystick forward lowers the ship’s altitude, while pulling it back raises the altitude. The ship moves forward at a constant speed and cannot move backward. Because this type of control was unusual in video games, arcade cabinets include pictures near the joystick to show how each position affects the ship’s movement.

Ports

Between 1982 and 1985, the game Zaxxon was made available for many computer systems, including the Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, MSX, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Dragon 32, ColecoVision, Intellivision, IBM PC compatibles, SG-1000, TRS-80 Color Computer, and TRS-80. The versions for the Atari 2600 and Intellivision show the player from behind the spaceship, while other versions use isometric graphics, which look like a 3D view from above.

In 1984, a copy of the game was released for the Acorn BBC Micro series and was called Fortress.

Reception

The arcade game was very successful worldwide. In Japan, Game Machine magazine ranked it as the 18th highest-earning arcade game of 1981, even though it was only available for a short time near the end of the year. It did not appear on the magazine’s top 20 list for 1982. Later, the magazine listed it as the eighth highest-earning table arcade cabinet in May 1983.

The game was even more successful in North America. It reached the top of the US RePlay arcade charts in June 1982. The Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA) later listed it among the top six highest-earning arcade games in the United States for 1982.

The ColecoVision version of the game was also successful. It became Coleco’s most popular cartridge sold separately until 1983. In June 1983, Electronic Games magazine ranked the ColecoVision version of Zaxxon as the #3 “Most Popular Videogame Cartridge” in a monthly reader poll.

The home computer versions of the game were successful in North America and Europe. II Computing listed Zaxxon as the fourth best-selling Apple II game by late 1985, based on sales data. In the United States, Zaxxon earned a “Gold Award” from the Software Publishers Association (SPA) in December 1987 for selling more than 100,000 copies. U.S. Gold’s home computer version of Zaxxon was ranked number two on the UK software sales chart in early 1985.

The arcade game was well received when it was released. David Cohen, in his book Video Games, praised the game’s “incredible three-dimensional realism” in its graphics, calling it the best in a video game at the time. He described the gameplay as a mix of driving and shooting. Computer and Video Games magazine said the game was “at the frontier of a third dimension in arcade games” and praised its “realistic” altitude-based gameplay for its time.

In 1983, Video Games called the ColecoVision version of Zaxxon a “coup for this new system.” Video magazine also praised the ColecoVision version, calling it “one of the most thrilling games available.” The magazine noted that some players felt they needed flying lessons to play the arcade version well. K-Power gave the Color Computer version 8 points out of 10, praising its “excellent three-dimensional graphics” and saying “Zaxxon is a game that can’t be praised enough.”

Softline in 1983 called the Atari 8-bit version “a superb three-dimensional computer game… Not since Choplifter has a game looked so impressive.” The magazine also liked the graphics of the Apple II and TRS-80 versions, despite their limited hardware, and predicted Zaxxon would be a “long-lived bestseller.” In 1984, readers of Softline named Zaxxon the fifth most-popular Apple program, the worst Apple program, and the third-worst Atari program of 1983. InfoWorld’s Essential Guide to Atari Computers cited Zaxxon as a good Atari arcade game, noting its “distinctive three-dimensional graphics.”

At the 1982 Arkie Awards, the arcade game received a Certificate of Merit as runner-up for Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Coin-Op Game. At the 1983 Arcade Awards, the console cartridge version received a Certificate of Merit as runner-up for Videogame of the Year. At the 1984 Arkie Awards, the dedicated console version won Stand-Alone Game of the Year, while the home computer version received a Certificate of Merit as runner-up for Computer Game of the Year. In January 1985, Electronic Games magazine included Zaxxon in its Hall of Fame. In 1995, Flux magazine ranked the arcade version 51st on its list of the “Top 100 Video Games.”

Legacy

Zaxxon is a bonus game included in the Sega Genesis Collection for the PlayStation 2. It is also available as an unlockable arcade game in Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The arcade version of Zaxxon was released on the Wii Virtual Console in Japan on December 15, 2009, in the PAL region on March 5, 2010, and in North America on April 12, 2010. In 2022, the original arcade version was added to the Sega Astro City Mini V, a version of the Sega Astro City mini console that is taller than it is wide.

An arcade sequel called Super Zaxxon was released in November 1982. This version has a different color scheme, a faster-moving player ship (which makes the game harder), a tunnel instead of a space segment, and a dragon as the enemy in the second fortress. Super Zaxxon was not as successful as the original game. However, it reached the top of the US RePlay arcade chart for software conversion kits in July 1983. In 1984, Sega released a game called Future Spy with a similar style.

In 1987, Zaxxon 3-D was released for the Master System. This version uses 3-D glasses to create a three-dimensional effect. Like the versions for the Atari 2600 and Intellivision, it moves forward rather than showing a side view.

Zaxxon's Motherbase 2000 was released for the 32X in 1995. It is the first Zaxxon game to use polygonal graphics, which are shapes made of lines and points. The game was called Zaxxon only in the United States. In Japan, it was named Parasquad, and in Europe, it was called Motherbase. US critics said the game did not look or play enough like the original Zaxxon to justify using the same name.

Zaxxon Escape was released on October 4, 2012, for iOS and Android devices. It was criticized for looking very different from the original game.

In 1982, Milton Bradley released a Zaxxon board game.

In 2012, Zaxxon was displayed at "The Art of Video Games" exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution.