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Exerion cover

1983 · Tose Co. · Arcade · Shoot 'em up

Exerion

Timed Sega exclusive

Exerion is a vertical shoot 'em up released by Jaleco in 1983 and licensed to Taito for distribution in the United States.

Released
4 October 1983
Platforms
ArcadeMSXNESNintendo SwitchSG-1000WiiWii U
Genres
ArcadeShoot 'em upShooter
Developers
Tose Co.Gotch Technology Corp.
Publishers
TaitoJalecoHamster Corporation
Modes
MultiplayerSingle-player
Perspective
Third person
Themes
ActionScience fiction
Country
Japan
Age ratings
CLASS_IND LCERO A
Languages
English

About

Exerion is a 1983 shoot 'em up video game developed by Kawa Denshi Giken and published by Jaleco for arcades. It was released in North America by Taito. The player controls a starship and must fire at enemies on the screen while avoiding projectiles. The game uses a pseudo-3D scrolling background, giving a sense of depth, and the player's ship has a sense of inertia while it is being controlled with the joystick.

Exerion was ported to the MSX, Family Computer, and SG-1000. Two sequels were released.

Keywords

  • shoot 'em up
  • digital distribution
  • virtual console
  • vertical scrolling
  • wii virtual console
  • wii u virtual console

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Exerion features parallax effects and inertia simulation. The player shoots formations of bizarre alien amoeba, egg-throwing birds and Pterosauric creatures, as well as UFOs while flying over the surface of a planet. The player has two types of guns: a slow double shot (unlimited) and a fast single shot (limited).

Reception

In Japan, Game Machine listed Exerion as the top-grossing new table arcade cabinet in November 1983, and then the top-grossing tablet cabinet in December 1983.

Legacy

The Family Computer version of the game is included in the compilation Jaleco Collection Vol. 1 for the PlayStation in 2003, as well as in the Game Boy Advance game JaJaMaru Jr. Denshoki Jaleco Memorial, along with five other Jaleco Family Computer games. The original arcade version was later released by Hamster Corporation as part of their Arcade Archives series for the PlayStation 4 on October 23, 2014 in Japan and on July 7, 2015 in North America and also on the Nintendo Switch in 2020.

Two sequels to the game were released. Exerion II: Zorni was released for the MSX in 1984 alongside a port of the original arcade game. The second, Exerizer, was released for arcades in 1987, which was released in North America by Nichibutsu under the title Sky Fox. The player's ship, the Fighter EX, is a playable character in Jaleco's Game Tengoku series.

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
Arcade1 November 1983North America
SG-100031 December 1983Japan
MSX31 December 1984Japan · Europe 31 December 1984
Wii1 May 2007Japan
Wii U16 September 2015Japan

Editions and related releases

Included in
Jaleco Collection: Vol.18bit-Collection Jaleco Vol. 01Polymega Collection Vol.17: Gunbird
Ported as
Exerion DXExerionArcade Archives: Exerion
Built on it
Exerion

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Publishers

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.