Sagaia

Under the name Sagaia, Taito released the sequel to its successful shoot 'em up Darius for Western markets in 1989, this time adapted for standard single-screen arcade cabinets instead of the original three-monitor format, which was not as widespread outside Japan. The player once again takes the controls of the Silver Hawk fighter and battles through giant mechanical sea creatures that serve as the bosses of each level and take up most of the screen with their size.

The game retained the series' key feature – a branching level structure, where after completing each level the player chooses whether to advance upward to a harder route or downward to an easier one, creating an extensive network of possible paths through the game. This system gave even less experienced players a chance to finish the game at their own pace, while experienced players could seek out the most demanding and interesting routes to the final battle and discover bosses that an average player would never reach.

Sagaia expanded the circle of players familiar with the Darius universe outside Japan as well, where the original three-screen cabinet had not been as widespread due to its size and cost, so arcade operators preferred to bet on more compact single-screen cabinets instead. It is still regarded today as the more accessible, export version of one of the most distinctive shoot 'em ups of the 1980s, one that opened the series up to a much wider audience without having to sacrifice its characteristic level structure and branching path choices.

Why play it: It offers the Darius series' branching level choices even to owners of ordinary single-screen arcade cabinets.