Xevious (1982 Namco) - Most Secrets 1-All // 2-16, 710k (Scoring 1CC)

Arcade version, no autofire.

0:00 First loop: 16 stages, 45 Sol towers, 4 hidden flags/extends (stages 1, 3, 5 & 7)
21:28 Second loop: 10 stages (7th-16th), 35 Sol towers, 1 flag
34:51 Last Solvalou & Game Over

The game consists of 16 areas/stages delimited by thick forests, and then it starts looping from the 7th area. If you die past 70% of a stage you'll respawn on the next one, otherwise you'll have to repeat it. (This was my only run with a full 1-16 area and a smooth transition into the 2nd loop. In every other run I died in the last 30% of that stage and respawned in the 2-7, which I found less satisfying).

Ground enemies and structures are fixed but air enemies are random-ish, which makes strats interesting and every run different.

Your reticle will flash when it's on top of Sol towers, so you can find them by exploring. But it will not flash on top of hidden flags, you'll have to use your bombs to reveal them (thankfully their position is not too random, they are always on the same horizontal).

The game was a great surprise for me, really fun. Not only was it hugely influential for the genre, but it still holds up pretty well (and this is not nostalgia talking, I never played it back then). It's much more engaging than it looks thanks to its 2 shot types and level design when you try to destroy most enemies and reveal most secrets (particularly without spamming bombs! There's something really satisfying about landing a bomb right where and when you need it).

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Sol Towers & Extra Lives
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Area 1: 2 --- 0:49 - 1:15 - [1:00]*
Area 2: 2 --- 1:59 - 2:08
Area 3: 2 --- 2:50 - 3:28 - [2:56]*
Area 4: 1 --- 3:51
Area 5: 2 --- 6:13 - 6:30 - [6:09]*
Area 6: 1 --- 7:51
Area 7: 2 --- 9:02 - 9:29 - [9:06]*
Area 8: 1 --- 10:10
Area 9: 4 --- 11:06 (x4)
Area 10: 8 --- 12:57 (x8)
Area 11: 6 --- 14:56 (x2) - 29:11 (x4) (only got 3/4, there's one more to the right)
Area 12: 4 --- 15:53 (x4)
Area 13: 2 --- 17:21 (x2)
Area 14: 0
Area 15: 4 --- 19:17 - 19:35 - 19:38 - 19:57 (over there on the right, I forgot about it)
Area 16: 4 --- 20:25 - 21:05 (x2) - 21:14 (right in the middle where it flashes, I forgot it as well)

*hidden flags: They're worth an extra life by default (or points, depending on the DIP switches).

And here's a picture of the map with every secret (thanks to Mark McDougall):
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FeQKdzQXE...

If you play Super Xevious instead, it has different hidden locations and harder difficulty.

Another key difference between OG and Super are the homing shots released by Garu Zakatos (12:34). They're worth more tick points (2k Vs 500) and are more aggressive in Super, which can be exploited to reach the counterstop faster:    • 1984 [60fps] Super Xevious 9999990pts Loop...  

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I recommend watching these as well:

STG Weekly's episode of Xevious
   • STG Weekly #83: Xevious Series  

The History of Xevious
   • The History of Xevious - arcade console do...  

1982's promotional video
   • XEVIOUS ATARI promotion movie 1982  

Developer Interview
https://shmuplations.com/xevious/

MSX's game kit with a detailed Xevious map https://www.msxgamesworld.com/images/...
(I used this one to find some Sol towers. It's really close to the arcade version linked below, but the way it's arranged and the slightly different locations made it more interesting, like an adventure):

Full arcade map with every secret: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FeQLTLqXE...