Xenon 2: Megablast

As soon as you launch Xenon 2: Megablast, the bassline of the covered track Megablast by the group Bomb the Bass rings out and you know this is going to be a different kind of shooter. This vertically scrolling cosmic shoot 'em up sends you deep into organic-looking worlds full of alien giants, where every level pulses with life and music.

The game was created in 1989 by the studio The Assembly Line in collaboration with The Bitmap Brothers, who supplied their typical sense of style. They followed up on the original Xenon from 1988 and pushed the visuals and atmosphere to a new level. The Atari ST version, together with the Amiga one, was among the best and showed how impressively 16-bit hardware could combine detailed graphics with a resonant soundtrack.

The gameplay is classically demanding: you fly through five extensive levels, shoot swarms of enemies and spend the cash you collect in the shop of the eccentric merchant Crispin between rounds. Here you buy weapon upgrades, additional drones, missiles and shields. An interesting and unconventional element is the ability to reverse backwards, so the game does not only push you forward but lets you fly back through places you have already passed. The battles with gigantic bosses are among the highlights.

Visually, Xenon 2 stands out with a darkly organic, at times almost repulsively biological design of the environments. Together with the iconic music it creates an atmosphere that differs markedly from the colourful Japanese shooters of that era. It is a European shoot 'em up with its own identity and a distinctive aesthetic signature.

The game met with a very positive reception and became one of the defining titles of the genre on home computers. It saw ports to a range of platforms including consoles, and it remains in players' memory mainly thanks to that opening music, which is indelibly written into the history of game sound.

Why play: For the unmistakable atmosphere, the iconic soundtrack and the honestly tough old school of the vertical shooter.