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Phelios
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About Phelios
Arcade Video game published 37 years ago:
Phelios (c) 1989 Namco.
A great vertical shoot'em up game based on Greek mythology.
The player controls the sun god Apollo who is riding of his winged horse Pegasus flying through ancient Greece on a mission to rescue his sister Artemis the goddess of the moon, from the clutches of the fiend Typhon. Shoot all enemies like harpies and skeletons along with goblins and colossal enemy bosses.
Pressing the fire button makes his sword fire a tiny shot, while holding it down charges the sword, firing a bigger fireball upon release. Even the smallest enemies take multiple hits, so the standard shot is of little use.
- TECHNICAL -
Namco System 2 hardware Game ID: PS
Main CPU: (2x) Motorola 68000 (@ 12.288 Mhz), M6809 (@ 3.072 Mhz), HD63705 (@ 2.048 Mhz) Sound Chips: C140 (@ 21.39 Khz), YM2151 (@ 3.57958 Mhz)
Players: 2 Control: 8-way joystick Buttons: 3
- TRIVIA -
Even if titlescreen says 1988 (development year), Phelios was released in February 1989 in Japan.
Victor Entertainment released a limited-edition soundtrack album for this game (Namco Video Game Graffiti Vol.6 - VDR-5301) on 04/10/1989.
- STAFF -
Music composed by: Yoshinori Kawamoto (Kawagen)
- PORTS -
* CONSOLES: Sega Megadrive (1990)
Player layout in our catalog: 2P alt.
If you are exploring by feel rather than by title, jump from the tags above into the matching genre rooms, or return to the Arcade hall for the full wall.
Open Play on this page to start Phelios. Keyboard, USB/Bluetooth pads, and the on-screen touch gamepad all work inside the emulator bar. Save states and fullscreen live on that same bar so you can pause mid-session and resume later.
Phelios — play guide
What Phelios wants from you
Phelios is vertical shoot: lane honesty, bomb peeks, and formation timing decide stages more than center spray. Your job is reading curtains before you dump bombs—wasting stock on thin packs empties the mid-boss. Continues buy bomb literacy, not free clears. Phelios rewards side-lane holds and planned bombs over panic sprays mid-curtain. Clear stages with bombs left; the chrome sells Namco myth flight, but the exam is formation peeks you learn cold.
First minutes in Phelios
On stage one, learn a calm survival line and sword-beam cadence before inventing full-width weaves for point greed. Bomb for true walls and boss phases—not for single popcorn. Collect power when the lane is honest; diving through lace for vanity is expensive. Early stages are route labs under Namco density. One clean stretch with bombs left beats three greed deaths that looked like a score run until the wall arrived.
Core systems in Phelios
Ship/hero movement, sword beam, bombs, power-ups, ground and air enemies, and mid/boss scripts define Phelios. Continues fund denser patterns as later stages tighten. Bombs are finite advantages—waste them on trash and you meet the boss dry. Bosses punish empty stocks after mid-stage vanity. Survival routing gates every myth fantasy the cabinet sells. Spray religions through lace are still empty lives with extra sparkle under Namco vertical density.
Score, continues, and resources in Phelios
Stage clears with lives and bombs left beat lace tourism that looks aggressive and still dies. Continues while survival lines become boring; cut them once greed routes and trash bombs stop ending credits. Score waits until survival composure holds under pressure. Extends follow score when present—clean clears beat farming stage one forever for vanity pickups you cannot keep after a panic bomb.
Mistakes that burn credits in Phelios
Lace greed, bombing singles, wide weaving, and entering bosses empty-handed are classic Phelios mistakes. Fly a survival line, bomb true walls, then collect. Myth art will not refill an empty bomb stock. Treating every popcorn pack as a bomb excuse is how Namco collects the next credit on this vertical board.
Next steps after Phelios
Gradius is Konami option literacy if Phelios’ shot honesty still feels soft—re-learn lane peeks there first under clearer myth gospel. R-Type keeps Irem force company warm on denser horizontal boards. Darius is Taito once Phelios survival honesty finally sticks and you want denser zone stress instead of Phelios boards. Options last longer once panic-spray freezes stop mid-curtain. Clear one careful stage before vanity sprays return on denser Namco cabinets.
Sources cited below under Further reading.
Cabinet dossier
Phelios is filed in our catalog as a 1988 release.
Player layout on this cabinet: 2P alt.
Genre tags on Classic Arcade Games: Shooter.
Credit line lists Namco as developer.
Screenshots
Next cabinets
Nearby cabinets you may also open from this hall (each on its own play page):Assault (Rev B), Bakutotsu Kijuutei, Blast Off (Japan), Blazer (Japan), Burning Force (Japan, new version (Rev C)), Dangerous Seed (Japan), Dragon Saber (World, DO2), Dragon Spirit (new version (DS3)), Galaga '88, Golly! Ghost!, Metal Hawk (Rev C), Ordyne (World)
Explore more on this site
How to play Phelios online
- Arcade stick feel: Arrow keys for the joystick, X/Z (and nearby keys) for buttons, Enter=Start.
- USB / Bluetooth pads map cleanly; six-button fighters use the face-button cluster.
- On phones, open the on-screen pad from the emulator bar; rotate sits next to fullscreen.
- Save states, load, volume, and fullscreen stay on the emulator bar between credits.
Studio notes — Namco
Namco appears on this cabinet’s credit line. Browse more titles from the same studio on the developer shelf, or stay on this page and try the next cabinets in the same hall.
Assault (Rev B) · Bakutotsu Kijuutei · Blast Off (Japan) · Blazer (Japan) · Burning Force (Japan, new version (Rev C)) · Dangerous Seed (Japan) · Dragon Saber (World, DO2) · Dragon Spirit (new version (DS3))
Questions about Phelios
Can I play Phelios free in a browser?
Yes. Classic Arcade Games hosts Phelios as a Arcade cabinet you can start on this page. The emulator loads in the browser; you do not need to install a separate app.
What controls does Phelios support?
Arcade stick feel: Arrow keys for the joystick, X/Z (and nearby keys) for buttons, Enter=Start. USB / Bluetooth pads map cleanly; six-button fighters use the face-button cluster.
What genre is Phelios on Classic Arcade Games?
Our catalog tags Phelios under Shooter. Open those genre rooms from the tags on this page to find more playable cabinets in the same feel.
Further reading
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