Space Firebird (1980)

Space Firebird is a very early Nintendo title. A classic shmup (shoot-em-up) where your ship is on a fixed horizontal axis, though to the extreme left and right enable your ship to move into the playfield a little more, which works really nicely to enable you to dodge the sometimes erratic attacks from the enemy. Faster paced than the likes of Space Invaders, Space Firebird has great replay value and becomes a very challenging game. Don’t forget that once per level you can escape the attacks by using the warp mode, enabling a protective shield as your ship moves vertically through the screen without concern of being hit.  In 1981 a remake of Space Firebird, called Space Demon, was released by Fortrek.

TIP – When the Firebirds drop the big yellow bomb, avoid the shrapnel by staying directly underneath it when you shoot!