Phoenix by Kimberly Keyes Stark
1980 was a pretty good year for me. I was looking forward to graduating from high school (which I basically despised so much that my happiest high school memory was Graduation Day because I knew that I wouldn't be forced into going back ever again) in June and making preparations to enter college the following fall. A month after I began the fall semester in college I entered into a serious relationship for the first time. (It broke up the following spring when my boyfriend claimed that the psychiatrist that he was seeing on a weekly basis advised him to dump me but that's not relevant here.) I also voted for the first time in the presidential elections that y ear. The only real downer came when John Lennon was murdered by a crazed fan a couple of months after he released his first album in five years but, all in all, 1980 was a pretty good year.
Another reason why 1980 was a good year was that was the year that the game Phoenix was released. Of all the Space Invaders clones that were released, I've always considered Phoenix to be the best of the bunch (with Galaga coming in at a close second).
Like Space Invaders, Galaxian, and Galaga, you control a spaceship that shoots down agressive creatures that are attacking you. Like Galaxian and Galaga, these creatures are also capable of breaking formation so they can divebomb towards you. In this case, you are attacking Phoenix birds in outer space as they drop bombs and swoop towards your ship. (Never mind the fact that in real life birds can't fly too well--much less exist--in space due to the lack of oxygen.)
What sets Phoenix apart from Space Invaders and its clones is its delicate and soothing classical soundtrack (which includes "Moonlight Sonata" and "Fur Elise") that provides a jarring contrast to the kinetic action of the game.
Phoenix also had interesting levels. The first couple of screens are basically a variation on the Space Invaders/Galax ian/Galaga theme. But then you reach a level where giant blue phoenix birds are attacking you. There are fewer of these massive birds than the numerous small birds in the previous levels but they make their smaller brethern seem benign by comparison.
Then there is the boss level. At this point you see a giant spaceship with a giant phoenix bird inside. You have to shoot through the bottom of the giant spaceship and shoot the giant phoenix bird. However, that task is eaier said than done. The giant spaceship is dropping bombs as it slowly descends towards your ship. If that wasn't enough, there are a battalion of small phoenix birds who are determined to prevent you from your goal by making frequent divebombing attacks.
Once you've managed to destroy the mothership and the giant phoenix bird, the game starts at the first screen again, except that there are more small phoenix birds that are dropping more bombs and swooping down at you at a faster rate than before.
I remember the many quarters I spent during the early 1980's trying to shoot down as many birds as possible. While I would continue to play Space Invaders, Galaxian, and Galaga, I always ended up spending more and more time playing Phoenix until other games like Pac-Man and Frogger began to demand my attention.
Sadly, Phoenix has basically disappeared from most video arcades after the 1980's. The home version of Phoenix has only been released twice--on the Atari 2600 in 1982 and on the Commodore C64 under the title "Eagle Empire" in 1984. There haven't been any home releases since then.
What's worse is that Phoenix seems to have descended into obscurity, which is unjust considering that Phoenix is such a fun game to play. I rarely see Phoenix listed in books on classic video games and there aren't too many classic gaming sites that even mentions this game. I hope that one day one of the current big video game manufacturers will get the rights to release a home version of Phoenix for the Game Boy Advance or Playstation 2. However, I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for this to happen.
DISCLAIMER: This blog is based on one person's biased opinions of which videogames should be considered to be classics and why. It is not meant to provide a complete history of the videogame industry, the latest videogame news, technical support, or hints on how to play a certain videogame. None of the videogame manufacturers or programmers mentioned here have endorsed or supported this blog in any way, shape, or form.
NOTE: If there are any errors or updates to what I have written about Phoenix, please send an e-mail to [link=mailto:kstarkREMOVE-ALL-CAPS-IF-NOT-SPAM@erols.com]kstarkREMOVE-ALL-CAPS-IF-NOT-SPAM@erols.com[/link] (remember to remove the capital letters from my mailing address before sending or else it will get rejected) and I'll edit this piece when time permits.
PHOENIX LINKS
The Amstar Schmamstar-I Like Centuri Page--A page that's dedicated to Phoenix.
AtariProtos.com's Phoenix Page--Complete information on the Atari 2600 version of Phoenix.
The Atari Times--A review of the Atari 2600 version of Phoenix.
Bob McPherson Download--You can download a Phoenix clone as well as clones of Pac-Man and Space Invaders to play on your Hewlett-Packard 48G series calculator.
Coinop.org's Description of Phoenix
CYBERYOGI=CO=Windler's Historical Videogames Page--Scroll down the page a bit and you'll see a brief section on Phoenix, including free downloads of WAV files of the game's music and links to where you can download free ROM's of the game.
The HP49G--You can download a Phoenix clone as well as Hapaman (a Pac-Man clone) to play on your Hewlett-Packard 49G series calculator.
The Internet Movie Database's Information on Phoenix
The Killer List of Video Games' Phoenix Exhibit
MAME.DK's Phoenix ROM Emulator
Phoenix--A short story about how someone had bought a broken vintage Phoenix arcade game and restored it as a working game once again.
Phoenix--Contains a brief history of the game and how to play it.
[link=http://www.ggdb.com/GGDB/Details.asp?VID =2054%26Cat=TechRoot.WandM.NP]Phoenix (Coin-Op) by Centuri: Sponsored by QuarterArcade.com[/link]--Gives both the historical and technical details about Phoenix.
Programmers Heaven's Phoenix Game--Here is a Phoenix clone that you can download to your PC.
Risen From the Ashes--Another short story about how someone had restored a vintage Phoenix arcade game..
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