[Sega] Slashout

2000
NAOMI arcade
1-4 players, depending on the dip switch settings, defaults on 1 player.

Characters:
Slash(average), Luna(speed), Axle(power), Kamui(ninja, somewhere between Slash and Luna)


^The enemies get worse

Controls:
Button 1 - weak attack
Button 2 - strong attack
Button 3 - jump
Charge 2, release - magic
3, 1/2 - jump attack
1 & 2 & 3 - special magic

Your best combo is most likely 3 weak attacks followed by 3 strong attacks. Charging magic, you should probably get as far away from enemies as possible, then close in when you go to release it, at least if you want to hit the slower 3rd level magic. There's a meter, with 3 bars, depending on how long you hold the button down, to determine the power of the magic attack. The special magic has limited use, there are icons to show how many you have left. There's a meter underneath the health bar that shows the progress toward leveling up. This is filled by gathering crystals, tiny red ones, medium sized blue one, and large yellow one. Usually obtained from knocking down, or defeating enemies, strong attacks have a higher chance of producing the larger crystals. There are also objects in the environment, barrels for example, that can be destroyed for extra crystals. Your character is locked in a small arena until the gate guards show up. Upon defeating them, you can then attack the gate, gaining more time, and move onto the next area. There seem to be other power-ups you can find along the way, including one that shows up under the special magic icons, that says "power," or "defense," or some that temporarily turn you into one of the tougher enemies in the game. Eventually you make your way to a boss battle, and unlike the gate keeper, they go on 1 on with you. A defeated boss will leave massive purple crystals.