After Burner

After Burner (アフターバーナー) is a 1987 shooter game by Sega AM2 that debuted in the arcades. The player assumes control of an American F-14 Tomcat fighter jet, and must clear each of the game's eighteen unique stages by destroying incoming enemies, using both a machine gun and a limited supply of heat-seeking missiles. It uses a third-person perspective, previously utilized by Sega's earlier games Out Run and Space Harrier, and runs on the Sega X arcade system which allowed for the easy scaling and rotation of in-game sprites, producing three-dimensional graphics.

After Burner was intended as being Sega's first "true blockbuster" video game. Development began shortly after the completion of Out Run, and was kept as a closely guarded secret within the company. Designed by Sega veteran Yu Suzuki and the Sega AM2 division, the game was released in three variations: a standard upright cabinet, and two cockpit versions, one that tilts left and right, and one a rotating cockpit version. Its analog flight-stick controls moved in all directions and measured the degree of push, a precursor to the analog thumbsticks of the N64 and later consoles. After Burner's gameplay also featured a lock-on system, which was adopted by later rail shooters such as Sega's Panzer Dragoon and Rez.

After Burner was acclaimed by critics for its impressive visuals, gameplay and overall presentation, and is seen as being important and influential. It was followed by a series of sequels and ports for many platforms, including the Sega Master System, ZX Spectrum and NES (which was an unlicensed release by Tengen). Sega also produced several successors to the game to capitalize on its success, such as G-LOC: Air Battle. After Burner has also been referenced in many other Sega video games, such as Fighters Megamix, Shenmue and Bayonetta.