Slap Fight

About Slap Fight

Slap Fight (1986), Alcon in North America, is Toaplan's vertically scrolling shooter with a Gradius-style power-up menu, whose weapon system lived on in Truxton and Grind Stormer.

Slap Fight in Depth

On the colonised planet of Theron, an alien race led by Gaudy has invaded, and the player, a pilot of the Allied League of Cosmic Nations (ALCON), counterattacks in the SW475 space fighter. Reminiscent of B-Wings, it seems standard at first, with constantly scrolling scenery that stops only for a boss, but apart from some stationary helicopters there are no flying enemies at all. Without power-ups the ship's shot reaches only half the height of the screen.

Its power-up system borrows from Gradius: some enemies drop star items that move a lit cursor along a menu of upgrades at the bottom of the screen. Every upgrade except the side shot also enlarges the ship's hitbox, making it an easier target and lives harder to keep, and a star lit when the ship is destroyed carries over to light the speed upgrade on the next life. Weapons affect enemies and terrain differently; some towers can only be destroyed by lasers or homing missiles, and other enemies fall faster to particular weapons. Hidden bonus secrets, revealed by shooting certain spots and scenery, are crucial for high scores and extra lives.

Making Slap Fight

Toaplan developed it and Taito published it for arcades in 1986, and it was later ported to home systems by third-party developers. Western magazines gave it, and especially the home conversions, a mixed reception, though Den of Geek later noted its weapon system and the many ways to kill enemies, and its ideas were inherited by Truxton and Grind Stormer.