Galaga is a vertical arcade shooter from Namco. You control a space fighter at the bottom of the screen, scrolling left and right in order to avoid oncoming bombs and kamikaze attacks from alien invaders and to fire your own missiles to fight back! There are an infinite number of stages to progress through.

Every third level is a "challenge stage" in which you have a free chance to shoot as many aliens as possible and rack up bonus points.

Certain aliens have tractor beams they can use to capture one of your ships. If that wasn't your last "life," you can try to shoot that alien down and recapture your ship, giving you two ships at once and doubling your firepower.

A summary screen appears when the game is over, giving you both your final score and you final "hit ratio" - the number of missiles fired, enemies destroyed, and the percentage of targets hit.

Worth buying 'Galaga' on the Virtual Console?

The NES version of Galaga is a almost perfect port of the timeless arcade classic. Like space invaders you control a ship at the bottom of the screen and blast away at oncoming enemies. The enemies in Galaga first fly in and line up in formation and then dive-bomb at you while firing sometimes in predictable patterns and sometimes not.

Levels get progressively more difficult as you would expect. However you can allow certain enemies to capture your ship. Once captured, your ship is held hostage until you destroy the enemy holding it. The ship is then returned to you and joins up with your existing ship to double your firepower! This adds to the depth of the game, it is not without risk as you can inadvertently destroy your own ship trying to do this! This is a fun little game, especially with the rose tinted spectacles of nostalgia firmly in place over the eyes. XBOX 360 owners can already download the arcade version with online scoreboard however. I know which I would prefer!