Thexder: Difference between revisions
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''Thexder'' is a 1985 video game, the first title ever released by [[Game Arts]] (better known nowadays for the [[Lunar]] and [[Grandia]] series). It is possibly one of the most fondly remembered shooters of the [[The Eighties|1980s]].
The game's premise is fairly simple: the player takes control of a "[[Transforming Mecha|hyper dual armor]]" and has to find his (or her) way through, depending on the version, either ten or sixteen levels of enemy-filled mazes, eventually reaching the facility's power core. Thexder's only weapon is an [[Frickin' Laser Beams|auto-targeting laser]] (at least, auto-targeting in mech form); its only defense is a short-lived [[Deflector Shields|defensive]] [[Some Kind of Force Field|barrier]]. Both the laser and the shield draw on Thexder's [[Life Meter|limited power supply]], which is drained even faster by [[Collision Damage|enemies running into you]] - and there are a [[Goddamned Bats|ton of them]].
Fortunately, there were ways to [[Heart Container|increase]] and [[Heal Thyself|replenish]] Thexder's energy reserves - primarily by killing the right enemies.
Originally released for the [[PC
Four years after the original release, Game Arts returned to their debut title with ''[[Oddly
Given ''Thexder'''s popularity, Sierra On-Line decided to make their own spin-off for Windows 95, informally called "Thexder 95," without Game Arts's involvement. With the rise of [[Retraux|retro remakes]], though, Square Enix shepherded the [[
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{{tropelist}}
* [[All There in the Manual]]
** The US release also included a complete walkthrough of the game's first level, with pictures/names of (almost) every enemy appearing in the game.
** ''Fire Hawk'''s manual also included brief descriptions of each mission area, including equally brief descriptions of each boss.
* [[Attack Its Weak Point]]
* [[Boss Battle]]
** Zereo also added precisely one boss (a final boss) to ''Thexder Neo''.
* [[Cast
** In ''Fire Hawk'', even ''moving'' required energy, though such a small amount that it was rarely noticeable.
** ''Thexder 95'' was the exception, the unfortunate side effect being that it was possible to run out of ammunition for any weapon including the default laser.
* [[Chest Monster]]
** Also note that even stationary, energy-restoring enemies are still ''enemies'', and will inflict [[Collision Damage]] if you land on top of them. There are even a few energy-restoring enemies that move around (rather quickly, too).
* [[Collision Damage]]
* [[Copy Protection]]
* [[Cut and Paste Environments]]: In the PC original, levels 9 and 11 were ''exactly the same'' save for which enemy sprites were used. The second set of cavern levels (13 through 15) had similar layouts to the first set (5 through 7), but with some retooling to increase their difficulty.
* [[Deflector Shields]]
▲* [[Copy Protection]] - The US release of ''Fire Hawk'' required players to input a specific word from the manual when starting a game.
* [[Difficulty Spike]]
* [[Downer Ending]]
▲* [[Deflector Shields]] - Thexder's (and Fire Hawk's) only defense if anything gets close enough to cause damage. Its [[Some Kind of Force Field|exact nature]] is never explained.
* [[Endless Game]]
▲* [[Difficulty Spike]] - Level 1 was populated with swarms of [[One Hit Point Wonder]] Red Tribars, and other enemies fought in small groups at a time. Level 2 ambushed the player with a swarm of ''two dozen'' enemies in a wide open space.
* [[Frickin' Laser Beams]]
▲* [[Downer Ending]] - {{spoiler|According to ''Fire Hawk'', both Thexder and its pilot were destroyed.}}
* [[Heart Container]]
▲* [[Endless Game]] - The U.S. release of the first game wrapped back to level 2 after finishing the final level, continuing until the player either gave up or died.
* [[Kill It
▲* [[Frickin Laser Beams]] - Thexder's only weapon, and Fire Hawk's main one. One of very few games to give the ''player'' the laser (and an ''instantaneous'' laser, as opposed to a [[Painfully Slow Projectile]]).
* [[Nintendo Hard]]
▲* [[Heart Container]] - In ''Thexder,'' destroying certain enemies and finishing a level would raise your maximum energy reserves. ''Fire Hawk'' played this more literally, requiring you to find "Energy Generators" which did the same thing.
* [[Public Domain Soundtrack]]
▲* [[Kill It With Fire]] - ''Fire Hawk'''s napalm bombs were the strongest special weapon, able to eradicate almost any ground-based enemy in a single blast.
* [[Reactor Boss]]
▲* [[Mecha Mooks]] - Virtually all enemies were mechanical in some form.
* [[
▲* [[Nintendo Hard]] - [[Nostalgia Filter|Oddly enough]], it's remembered ''fondly'' for this, despite that the original featured no save points, extra lives or continues.
* [[Transforming Mecha]]
▲* [[Nostalgia Level]] - The opening of mission 2 in ''Fire Hawk''.
* [[Trial and Error Gameplay]]
▲* [[Public Domain Soundtrack]] - ''Thexder'' is famous for its inclusion of Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata". ''Thexder Neo'' pays homage to this, if you know where to look.
* [[Video Game Flight]]
▲* [[Reactor Boss]] - ''Thexder'' may have been the first of these; ''Thexder Neo'' made it [[Load Bearing Boss|explicit]], twenty-four years later. ''Fire Hawk'' gave you a couple (every mission related to either crippling Nediam's systems or clearing the way ahead).
▲* [[R Emake]] - ''Thexder Neo'', a 2.5D recreation of the original with polygon graphics and a completely redesigned Thexder ... and a few subtle changes to the difficulty curve.
▲* [[Tragic Monster]] - {{spoiler|Nediam}}
▲* [[Transforming Mecha]] - The original (and remade) Thexder and Fire Hawk could change between mech (humanoid) and cruiser (flying) modes at will. (Thexder 95 didn't let you transform until later in the game, although it added a land-cruiser mode.)
▲* [[Trial and Error Gameplay]] - The original ''Thexder'' had no continues, so you were on your own to remember which enemies would restore energy, where to find them, and how to gun down enemies without taking too much harm in the process. ''Fire Hawk'' and ''Thexder Neo'''s easy mode were more forgiving.
▲* [[Video Game Flight]] - With no restrictions. This is balanced by some claustrophobic level designs, wide open areas filled with ''swarms'' of enemies, and the auto-aiming function restricted to humanoid form. (Hint: ''Don't fly into wide open areas''. '''''EVER!''''')
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[[Category:IBM Personal Computer]]
[[Category:Action Game]]
[[Category:Thexder]]▼
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