(ARCADE) Starblade スターブレード - Namco 1991.

Starblade (スターブレード Sutāburēdo) is a 3D space-based rail shooter arcade game that was released by Namco in 1991. It was notable for its early use of real-time 3D graphics, produced using the Namco System 21 “Polygonizer“ arcade system board, and it is believed to have had a strong influence on the 1993 Super NES Nintendo game Star Fox. The appearance of a “pod“ in which the “gunner“ controlled a double barrel laser cannon, was not a totally new concept in the arcades, but what was new was the method of how the image was projected. The arcade version of Starblade used a concave mirror (molded of black, reflective, and flexible plexi) to reflect the image from a 26“ standard resolution monitor at the top of the simulator housing. This gave the player an experience of a deeper space environment which, with its lens-like effect, had never been seen in any video game at the time. The player had a large and heavy 2-axis/4-button flight yoke controller which had a built-in red multi-LED lamp that flashed as enemies