Internet Arcade: UniWar S

Uniwars is a space shoot ‘em up game published and distributed in 1980 by Irem Corporations. The field of play is portrayed in vertical screen orientation and the gameplay allows the maximum number of 2 players who can only play alternatively. Irem Corporations is a Japanese video game console developer that started out as an International Playing Machine in 1974. It released its first arcade game in 1978, which was titled IPM Invader, a clone of the famous arcade game titled Space invader. Later on, Irem produced more original games and it became popular outside Japan for developing three well-known arcade games in the late 1980s: Moon Patrol (1982), Kung Fu’ Master (1984), and R-Type (1987). Today, the company operates under a brand named Apies.

Fighting against waves of extra-terrestrials on behalf of the Galaxy Empire, you control an arrowhead spaceship designed to fire projectiles vertically and move in two directions (left and right). Basically, you engage in a series of space combat with 6 different types of deadly aliens, whose strategies and moves differ greatly. Your ship has a weapon system, so does the aliens you are waging war against. You are to fight fiercely in all four levels to survive and gain points which can be used to buy extra lives later in the game.

In the first level, your mission is to rid the battlefield of the first types of aliens called the Super Mosquitos. The Super Mosquitos appear in a unique formation. Some of the mosquitos in the formation periodically leave the horde and fly towards the bottom of the screen in an attempt to assault your vessel. You must fire and destroy them before they get to your side of the battlefield. As the mosquito aliens dive towards you, they fire at the same time and you must move your ship to avoid being hit by alien fire. Mosquito aliens who are not destroyed when they dive towards you will reappear and join the formation once again from the top of the screen.

If the first level is successfully cleared, the next level would be the “Warp” stage. In this level, the Hovering Attackers appear first from the centre of the battlefield and hover over your ship from side to side. You must try and kill them on sight or they will dive towards your ship and attempt to destroy it from the bottom part of the screen. After a few seconds at the bottom part of the screen, if the Hovering Attacker is still not destroyed, it will reappear in the formation once again.

The third level awaits after the “Warp” have been cleared and the aliens you are to battle against are the Demon Flies. The Demon Flies are more advanced than the previous aliens. They appear at the top of the screen and hover slowly for a while, before sending Spy aliens to dive in your direction. Also, you can trigger a Spy alien to dive towards you by shooting at the horde, whichever way prepare to get assaulted by a Spy alien. When the Spy aliens manage to perch at the bottom part of the screen, they begin to shoot electronic spears in your direction. These spears are potent enough to destroy your ship immediately it makes contact with it.

In the final level, the Rolling fires are the next aliens to challenge. You can only survive this level by shooting through the fire segment. A direct hit has to be made to the lower opening of the rolling fire to eliminate them. In all levels, a Killer King occasionally appears on the screen and if you are able to destroy it, all Spy aliens disappear with it.