Ludography
Vulgus cover

1984 · Capcom · Shooter · Arcade

Vulgus

Nintendo console exclusive

This was Capcom's first arcade game. The player controls a spaceship with a single objective: destroy incoming enemies. The vessel has two different weapons: a primary weapon with infinite ammunition and a limited supply of bombs. By picking up the "Pow" icons, which sporadically appear throughout the levels, the player can replenish supplies. [wikipedia]

Released
1 May 1984
Platforms
ArcadeNESWindowsWindows Mobile
Genres
ShooterArcade
Developers
Capcom
Publishers
CapcomSNK
Modes
MultiplayerSingle-player
Perspective
Bird view / Isometric
Themes
ActionScience fiction

About

Vulgus is a 1984 vertically scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Capcom for arcades. Future rival SNK released the game outside Japan. The game was Capcom's first arcade video game. The game is included in Capcom Classics Collection and was released as freeware in 2002.

A Nintendo Entertainment System sequel was developed, but never released. A playable ROM has surfaced online.

Keywords

  • shoot 'em up
  • spaceship
  • vertical scrolling
  • infinite ammo

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

The player controls a spaceship with a single objective: destroy incoming enemies. The vessel has two different weapons: a primary weapon with infinite ammunition and a limited supply of bombs. By picking up the "Pow" icons, which sporadically appear throughout the levels, the player can replenish supplies. Similar to Xevious, the game does not have distinct levels; the background alternates between the surface of a planet and a space field. The game repeats with increased difficulty until the player loses all of their lives.

Reception

According to Game Machine, Vulgus was among the most popular arcade games in Japan during June 1984.

In Play Meter magazine, Roger C. Sharpe gave it a generally favorable review and rated it three hashes.

Legacy

A follow-up game, Titan Warriors, originally known as Neo Vulgus, was in development for the Nintendo Entertainment System, but was not released. In 2001, Capcom released Vulgus as freeware for IBM PCs and PDAs. Vulgus is available in the compilation title Capcom Generation 3 for the PlayStation and Saturn. The game is included in the 2005 Capcom Classics Collection for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in Capcom Classics Collection Reloaded for the PlayStation Portable and as a bonus game at Capcom Arcade Cabinet.

The Pow icon is re-used in many other Capcom games, like 1941: Counter Attack, Bionic Commando, and Savage Bees. Likewise, the Yashichi enemy has made later appearances in many Capcom games, usually in a more benign role as a power-up. Valgas, a boss character from the Power Stone series, has his name based on this game.

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
Arcade1 May 1984Japan · North America 1 July 1984
Windows31 March 2002Worldwide
Windows Mobile31 March 2002Worldwide

Editions and related releases

Included in
Capcom GenerationsCapcom Coin-Op Collection Volume 1Capcom Generations 3: The First GenerationCapcom Classics Collection ReloadedCapcom Classics CollectionThe Capcom CollectionCapcom Arcade Cabinet

Games like this

Collections2 collections

Platform libraries

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