Developer: Capcom Publisher: Capcom Released: 1987 Genre: ShooterAs I revisit the games of my childhood I am often surprised how well certain games have held up. Obviously the Legend of Zelda still holds up today but lesser known titles like the are just as great today as back then. Then there are the ones that in hindsight had a myriad number of flaws that make them a chore today.

Section Z is a side-view shoot-'em-up by Capcom originally released as a coin-operated video game in 1985. A home version was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987. The original coin-op game is included in Capcom Classics Collection Vol. 1 for PlayStation 2 and Xbox.

Simon’s Quest is the most infamous example but Section Z also falls in that category. This was a game that my family and I spent months playing, for all the wrong reasons. Due to a few cuts made in localization the game is far more frustrating to play than it should be and one that I honestly can’t recommend today.Section Z was originally released in arcades in 1985. You play the role of an astronaut sent to destroy a space station near Earth’s orbit. The structure of the game was different from other games of the time. Section Z comprised five stages broken down into twenty six individual sections, hence the name. Aside from that the most notable aspect of the game was its cumbersome controls.

One button fired while the other controlled your direction. It was workable but a bit confusing in a pinch. While it sounds like the game was long in reality it was quite short and fairly unremarkable.Like Bionic Commando and Legendary Wings Capcom tried something different and ultimately better. For its home debut Capcom created an entirely new game using only the skeleton of the arcade.

This version of Section Z is a free roaming adventure in the spirit of Metroid. Levels only scroll left or right, making navigation easier. You have a small variety of weapons unlike the arcade. These are the flash buster, megasmasher, and barrier shield. Weapons can be stockpiled for later use and are supplemented by three special items that take some health to use but are incredibly strong. It seems light for a shooter but this isn’t your average shmup.Section Z is a shooter but not in the traditional sense. Technically there are only three areas with nineteen sections each.

Each section is unique; some are slow scrolling levels with a constant stream of enemies. Others are fast moving and may not have any enemies at all! At the end of each section you usually have a choice of two tunnels that will send you to another section. Firefall you are the woman.

It isn’t linear, lending the game its Metroid style feel. Generally your progress within an area is in short bursts. You will only be able to access seven or eight sections until you destroy a generator, unlocking a new segment of the current area and so on until you reach the area boss. It sounds simple but is anything but.One of the biggest oddities has to deal with character death. You have a life bar that steadily increases as the game progresses.

However it only protects you from projectiles. Physical contact with enemies or being caught in the environment equals instant death. Death itself only sends you back to the start of the current section minus some health; as long as it doesn’t hit zero you can continue endlessly.

But if you do “die” you restart the current area but your progress remains. Make no mistake, this is a difficult game and these limits make it worse. But it’s also crushing due to another factor; there is no means of saving progress.Like Metroid and Section Z is a massive game that is not conducive to one session. In fact the Japanese version, which came out on the Famicom Disk System allowed you to save progress. This is a massive game and its maze of teleporters is a god damn nightmare to try and map. Don’t believe me, take a look. The game gives no guidance and it isn’t unheard of to revisit the same sections only to realize you must backtrack to an earlier point to progress.

It’s a lot to ask of anyone to tackle this beast all at once, especially back then. Nintendo realized this which is why password saves and battery backup were created for the US. Without either of those Section Z is a maddening slog to progress in. In ClosingThere are many aspects of Section Z to like. But it is very much a product of its time. Like Simon’s Quest there is a good game under its clumsy execution. But it isn’t worth it to find the fun.

You are better off going with something like Blaster Master.

NES gamepad:Gamepad control:Player 1:Player 2:↑↑-↓↓-←←-→→-AZ-BX-SELECTShift-STARTEnter-Emulator selection:The following emulators are a­vai­lab­le for this game: (Ja­va­Script), (Flash), (JS) and (Java).Other platforms:Unfortunately, this game is cur­rent­ly available only in this ver­si­on. Be patient:-)Game info:box coverGame title:Section-ZConsole:Author (released):Capcom (1985)Genre:Action, ShooterMode:Single-playerDesign:Takashi NishiyamaMusic:Kumi Yamaga, Tamayo KawamotoGame manual:File size:1173 kBDownload:not available (stream only)Game size:55 kBRecommended emulator:From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:Section Z is a side-view shoot-'em-up by Capcom originally released as a coin-operated video game in 1985. A home version was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987. The original coin-op game is included in Capcom Classics Collection Vol. 1 for PlayStation 2 and Xbox.Set in an unspecified year during the third millennium, the player takes the role of an astronaut sent to infiltrate and destroy a space station orbiting near the Earth that is actually the secret base of an alien empire known as the 'Balangool'.The player maneuvers the space ranger throughout the enemy space station, which consists of 26 alphabetically ordered corridors known as 'sections', starting from Section A and ending at the titular Section Z. The game is divided into five stages, each consisting of five sections (with the final stage having six sections to accommodate the spare letter).

The player will fight an enemy boss at the end of each stage, concluding with the final battle against the 'L Brain' at Section Z. The game's stages alternates between horizontal-scrolling stage (left or right) and upwards vertical-scrolling stages.

The player will lose a life every time they get hit by enemy fire. Additional lives can be obtained if the player achieves a high enough score. The game will be over if the player loses all of their lives, although a chance to continue will be provided.The controls consists of an eight-way joystick and two buttons, one for shooting and the other for changing the character's aim to the left or right. This allows the player to shoot at one direction while moving away towards the opposite. The player will shoot their rifle towards the left or the right with the fire button, while dropping bombs at the same time to the ground. By destroying certain dome-shaped containers, the player can obtain one of three power-up items represented by letters: S, P, and B.

S increases the player's mobility speed, while P increases their firing power; each can improved for up to three increments. However, these power-ups will be lost whenever the player loses a life. The B item will simply give the player bonus points.A console version of Section Z was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America and Europe in 1987. The gameplay was altered for the NES port, particularly in its level design and game controls.The NES version features three stages, each comprising 20 sections (for a total of 60 sections), which are full-fledged levels in this version, although not all sections need to be visited to complete the game. In contrast to the alphabetical sections in the arcade version, the sections in the NES version are numbered instead. The first stage begins at Section 00, which is the outer perimeter of the space station and then proceeds to enter Section 01, the first actual corridor of the base.

At the end of most sections, the player will choose to enter one of two transporters, each taking player to a different section of the base. Some transporters will take the player to a previous section while others cannot be opened until the player has fulfilled a certain condition and will kill the player if they try to enter. The objective of each stage is to destroy the two power generators located at different sections of each stage in order to open the path to the final section of each stage (Sections 19, 39, and 59 in that order) and face the boss.Instead of using one button to fire and the other to turn around, the player now uses one button to fire at one direction and the other to fire at the opposite.

The player starts with a standard-issue laser rifle and can upgrade their weapon into a Flash Buster (which fires medium-range bullets at three directions) or a Megasmasher (which fires wider v-shaped laser beams). Either weapon can be upgraded into the Mega Buster, which provides both, wider-long range shots at three directions. The player can also obtain a Barrier Shield that will protect the player character for 32 shots.The player also has a numeral indicator which represents their remaining energy, which will gradually be depleted when the player takes damage from enemy bullets or when the player loses a life by touching an enemy. However the player can still continue at the beginning of their current section, even if they lose all of their lives, as long as they still have energy left. When all energy is lost, the player is sent the start of the stage with full energy to start all over. The maximum energy can be increased by destroying the power generators in each stage.

The player can also summon as a special transmission shell by pressing both button simultaneously. These includes a Mega Missile, a Flash Bomb, and a Crush Ball. Picking these shells and using them will cost the player four energy points.The Famicom version in Japan was released in Disk Card format for the Family Computer Disk System add-on. In contrast to its NES counterpart, which the make player complete the game in one sitting, the Disk System allowed player to save their progress in one of three save files. After a game over, the player can quit the game and resume where they left off by loading the save file.

The English localization of the game's manual identifies the main character as 'Captain Commando', a fictional spokesman for Capcom USA who later starred in his own video game.More details about this game can be found on.For fans and collectors:Find this game on video server or.Buy original game or NES console at, or.The newest version of this game can be purchased on,or.Videogame Console:This ver­sion of Section-Z was de­sig­ned for the Nin­ten­do En­ter­tai­nment Sys­tem (NES), which was an eight-bit vi­deo ga­me con­so­le ma­nu­fac­tu­redby Nin­ten­do in the years 1983 - 2003. In that time, it was the best-sel­ling vi­deo ga­me con­so­le for which mo­re than 700 li­cen­sed ga­mes and a num­ber of non-li­cen­sedga­mes we­re cre­a­ted. World­wi­de, ap­pro­xi­ma­te­ly 62 mil­lion units of this con­so­le we­re sold at ap­pro­xi­ma­te­ly pri­ce $ 100 per unit. Mo­re in­for­ma­ti­on about theNES con­so­le can be found.Recommended Game Controllers:You can control this game easily by using the keyboard of your PC (see the table next to the game). However, for maximum gaming enjoyment, we strongly recommend using a USB gamepad that you simply plug into the USB port of your computer. If you do not have a gamepad, you can buy one of these NES controllers.

Available online emulators:5 different online emulators are available for Section-Z. These emulators differ not only in the technology they use to emulate old games, but also in support of various game controllers, multiplayer mode, mobile phone touchscreen, emulation speed, absence or presence of embedded ads and in many other parameters.

Formaximum gaming enjoyment, it's important to choose the right emulator, because on each PC and in different Internet browsers, the individual emulators behave differently. The basicfeatures of each emulator available for this game Section-Z are summarized in the following table:EmulatorTechnologyMultiplayerUSB gamepadTouchscreenWithout adsJavaScriptYESYESNONOFlashNOYESNOYESJavaScriptYESYESYESNOJavaScriptYESYESYESNOJava appletYESNONOYESSimilar games:Comments.