The very first shmup to set your heart on fire

[PlasmaDancer]

Xenon 2 on the Atari ST and NES Burai Fighter were the games that really started things off for me. Xenon was the first shmup that I constantly thought about between sessions (and as the game wasn't mine, the 'between' usually lasted quite a while...), while Burai Fighter was where I began to hone my shmupping instincts (no laughing at the back, now), replaying over and over rather than hurling in the towel when things got tricky. I never finished it though.

Distressingly, thinking about these games now has made me realise how little I can actually remember. Instead, I come up with some hazy random images, like the round bullets and trademark bitmap bros. colouring of Xenon, or the end-of-Axelay-level-one-esque crab boss in Burai Fighter. I can also remember the first stage music of Burai Fighter with no trouble at all, but have no idea what kind of powerups were to be found in the game. Isn't it weird what parts of a game stick in your memory for good?

Both games were the reason why I often cited 'shoot 'em ups' as my first or second favourite genre back in the olden days, despite the fact that I didn't actually play that many. They managed to keep the flame flickering until Super Aleste arrived (when I started playing 'properly' again), so hurrah for them.