is a
vertically scrolling shooter
A vertically scrolling video game or vertical scroller is a video game in which the player views the field of play principally from a top-down perspective, while the background scrolls from the top of the screen to the bottom (or, less often, from ...
released in by
Taito
is a Japanese company that specializes in video games, toys, arcade cabinets and game centers, based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The company was founded by Michael Kogan in 1953 as the importing vodka, vending machines and jukeboxes into Japan. I ...
in
Japanese arcades in 1986. It was published by Romstar in
North America as ''Tokio''.
Gameplay
In the game, the player controls a red propeller-driven airplane, flying over the city of Tokyo. They are able to shoot and capture other red, smaller planes, which then will follow the player in formation. The player can choose between 3 formations: the first is able to shoot both air-to-air and air-to-ground projectiles, the second only air-to-air (but on a larger area), the third only air-to-ground (but on a larger area as well). During gameplay, the player should react accordingly to the threats and quickly decide which one of the 3 formation types is more adequate at one given moment.
The game is divided in areas, depicting key places in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
, such as
Shinjuku,
Akasaka, and
Ginza. There are no clearly defined "levels", but at some points the player is faced by a giant mothership, which can be shot down by hitting its engines.
Ports
A port was released for the
MSX2
MSX is a standardized home computer architecture, announced by Microsoft and ASCII Corporation on June 16, 1983. It was initially conceived by Microsoft as a product for the Eastern sector, and jointly marketed by Kazuhiko Nishi, then vice- ...
home computer in 1987.
Reception
In Japan, ''Game Machine'' listed ''Tokio'' on their May 15, 1986 issue as being the most-successful table arcade unit of the month.
References
1986 video games
Arcade video games
MSX2 games
Vertically scrolling shooters
Romstar games
Taito arcade games
Video games developed in Japan
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