X is a Japan-only game notable for two things. One is its impressive tech, rendering 3D vector-like graphics on the underpowered Game Boy. While there is still frequent slowdown, showing that it’s pushing the hardware almost past its limit, I still found it surprising… for the Game Boy. The primitive visuals do look very dated now, but that’s no reason to turn your nose up at the game.

Anyway the second thing is that this is Dylan Cuthbert and Argonaut’s first collaboration with Nintendo, which would evolve into the seminal Star Fox series. I was watching out for points of contact within the game, but beyond a few minor details, there’s not much in common. I’ll just headcanon it into the Metroid series somehow. (Adam Malkovich’s ship in Other M has the same name as the player’s tank in this game… there’s something there.)

X is like nothing I’ve played before. I think maybe that it takes many cues from Battlezone, the 1980 arcade game that pioneered 3D vector graphics with an open-world tank battling style. However much they were inspired by it, X evolves the concept with many fun gameplay innovations and level concepts. There’s different loadable weapons for different situations, the ability to launch your tank and become a low-altitude aerial fighter, warp tunnels with a flying minigame (the closest thing to Star Fox here), and many different enemy types.

In the space tank VIXIV, a big floating head briefs you before each mission. Being only in Japanese, a separate walkthrough helped, but the neat animations give you the gist. Your tank is then dumped in a huge world. The playing area is the same for each mission but they get a lot of mileage out of it by varying the objectives. You generally have to roam around, getting hints by docking with radar stations, trying to locate whatever it is you need to blow up or rescue. Your display has a number of dials and navigational tools to keep track of; fuel, ammo, and health, as well as a radar and minimap. The game is about keeping track of all these, managing your resources and time, and not getting distracted too much.

There’s a lot to take in, but once I got the hang of it I found it quite compelling. Escorting the truck convoy, or hunting alien cocoons before they hatch into evil butterflies, the final climactic showdown with the mothership. It’s amazing what they managed to wring out of the concept, although it helped to have savestates and a turbo button for the searching around phase. I did buy a copy of this in Japan, and was playing it that way until I nudged the cartridge during play and lost my progress. That is a fine way to play though; there’s a pretty fair continue system that rewards you for doing better in missions and there’s no Super Game Boy palettes.

It’s a shame they never localised this game, and there are no translation patches either, but it’s pretty playable anyway if you use a resource like this to help (the hardest part is fulfilling the specific requirements during the tutorial). It’s got that recognisable Nintendo touch from a time when that really meant something. Thumps up from me. Space tanks.