Pleiads (Tehkan)

Defend Earth City from an invading Martian force in Tehkan’s 1981 shooter, Pleiads. This cooperative two-player game challenges you to navigate a series of increasingly difficult stages, beginning with sixteen attacking Martians and culminating in a perilous return journey through a landing corridor. Players maneuver a spaceship across the screen, using standard controls for movement and firing while strategically employing a "hyperspace" button for rapid relocation. Each stage introduces new threats: flying and walking Martian forms that construct barriers, monstrous alien creatures requiring precise targeting, and a formidable Martian Battleship with hidden defenses. Destroying enemies awards points, but the scoring system is intricate; actions taken before an enemy's defeat influence your final tally, particularly during encounters with the Battleship where extinguishing rocket flames becomes key to maximizing your score. The fourth stage marks a tense escape sequence as players must skillfully guide their ship through obstacles and collect flags to earn bonus points – a successful landing concludes each round with a celebratory fireworks display, signaling the start of another attempt at planetary salvation.