Space Cyclone

Space Cyclone is a fixed-screen shoot 'em up developed and published by Taito for arcades in 1980. Designed by Tomohiro Nishikado, who created the original Space Invaders, the game runs on the same hardware and follows a similar formula. Rather than defending earth from descending rows of aliens in space, the player controls a ship stationed on a planetary surface and must stop insect cyborgs called BEMs that arrive on meteors. Letting a BEM land safely contributes to the construction of a rocket on the left side of the screen; once completed, the rocket launches and attacks with powerful Cyclone Shots. Space Cyclone was later included in compilations such as the Space Invaders Invincible Collection for Nintendo Switch and Taito Memories Gekan, but remained one of the less-reissued titles in Taito's early arcade library.