Phelios/Gameplay

Controls

 * Joystick: Use the 8-way joystick to direct Apollo and Pegasus around the screen; they're always moving forward, but you can direct them anywhere.
 * Firing Button: Use this button to make Apollo fire shots from his sword at the enemies; pressing it lightly will make the sword fire a small fireball, but holding it down charges the sword, and upon releasing the button the sword shoots a bigger fireball. Even the smallest enemies take multiple hits, so that standard shot is of little use - and holding it down after Apollo has collected that "B" powerup for that first stage will also make it fire continuously.
 * 1 or 2 Player Buttons: Push these buttons to begin a 1 or 2 player game.

Apollo (アポロー)
The protagonist of the game; mounted upon the back of his legendary winged horse Pegasus, he is on a mission to save his lover and twin sister Artemis from the clutches of Typhon. He can take up to four hits before dying depending on what the arcade owner has set the "Life" setting in the game's options menu to, and can have up to four shots on the screen simultaneously depending on how many "O" powerups he has collected - but if he is crushed against any wall, or flies into one, the impact will kill him instantly. He will also receive an extra life at 50,000, 100,000, and 200,000 points, but this setting can be modified; the four Katakana characters making his name also read as: Aporō.

Item Flies (アイテムフライズ)
When one of these bird-like enemies is killed, he will leave a powerup behind, and announce its name in Japanese from the C140; each of the seven different types of powerups you will encounter in the game has a different letter on it, and here is a list of them and what they do:


 * [[File:Phelios Powerup S.gif]] S: Speed up (スピードアップ, literally Supīdo appu); this powerup will increase the flying speed of Apollo and Pegasus for a short period of time.
 * [[File:Phelios Powerup O.gif]] O: Option (オプション, lit. Opushon); this one will cause a beam to appear adjacent to the right side of Apollo's sword, which allows him to have two shots on the screen simultaneously. Up to three of these beams can be adjacent to Apollo's sword, at any given time - which means that he can have a maximum of four shots on the screen simultaneously. However, if he should die, he will lose any Option beams he may have had at the time.
 * [[File:Phelios Powerup B.gif]] B: Beam (ビーム, lit. Bīmu); this one is upon the first stage, and allows Apollo to fire enormous beams from his sword for a short period of time.
 * [[File:Phelios Powerup A.gif]] A: Across (アクロス, lit. Akurosu); this is upon the second stage, and allows Apollo to fire boomerangs from his sword for a short period of time.
 * [[File:Phelios Powerup H.gif]] H: Homing (ホーミング, lit. Hōmingu); this one is on the fourth stage, and will allow Apollo to fire homing shots from his sword for a short period.
 * [[File:Phelios Powerup L.gif]] L: Life (ライフ, lit. Raifu); this one will restore one of Apollo's lost "life-hearts" in that bottom-right corner of the screen, or give him an extra one.
 * [[File:Phelios Powerup P.gif]] [[File:Phelios Powerup H (S7).gif]] [[File:Phelios Powerup E.gif]] [[File:Phelios Powerup L (S7).gif]] [[File:Phelios Powerup I.gif]] [[File:Phelios Powerup O (S7).gif]] [[File:Phelios Powerup S (S7).gif]] P-H-E-L-I-O-S: These ones are only present on that seventh stage; when an item capsule (which looks like an orange bubble) gets destroyed it will leave either one of these or a bonus powerup (the values of which range from 50 to 5000 points) behind. All seven of them must be collected in order to upgrade Apollo's charged shot, which is vital for the final battling with Typhon, as he can only be injured by these upgraded charged shots - and if you miss any of them, you will be forced to crush yourself against a wall, so you can start the section over.

It's also worth noting that all Item Flies and powerups, with an exception of the bonus powerups that appear on the seventh stage, are worth 100 points.

Babito (ばびっと)
These bats appear on the first and second stages, and attack by flying down towards Apollo from the top of the screen; they are worth 50 points.

Gauru (ガウル)
These birds appear in the first and second stages and attack by zigzagging down towards Apollo from the top of the screen; they are 100 points.

Dokuro-Hei (ドクロ兵)
These skeletal soldiers appear upon the first and fourth stages and attack by running into view from the left and right sides of the screen and throwing their axes up at Apollo (which can get blocked for 80 extra points apiece); they are worth 200 points, and come in white and turquoise varieties.

Kuro Kishi (黒騎士)
Three of these black knights appear on the first stage, and attack by firing shots from their swords at Apollo; they are worth 300 points, and once you have killed the last one of them, the three-script text ''Dirosu no oka ni ha Radōn ga sumitsuite iru wa. Radōn no kyūsho ha atama yo. Ganbatte, Aporō!'' (ディロスの丘にはラドーンが住み着いているわ. ラドーンの急所は頭よ. がんばって、 アポロー!), will appear at the bottom of the screen, as Apollo descends several thousand feet to the second section of the stage beneath him and the song changes as a result.

Radon (ラドーン)
Nine of these red serpents appear upon that first stage, and they will attack by flying down towards Apollo on the left and right sides of the screen while spitting fireballs at him (which can be blocked for 30 extra points apiece); their heads are their only vulnerable point, and they are worth 320 points. The "B" powerup that one of the Item Flies at the start of the second section leaves behind will also kill them quicker.

Papiyon (パピヨン)
These butterflies appear on the first stage, and attack by flying down towards Apollo on the left and right sides of the screen; they are 60 points.

Death Skulls (デス・スケルズ)
These skeletal heads appear on the first stage; as Apollo descends several thousand feet towards them, they will begin firing their eyeballs up at him, which can get destroyed for 60 extra points apiece. Once you have fired enough shots down at their core on the ground to destroy them for 1000 points, the three-script text Medyūsa no shinden (メデューサの神殿) will appear at the bottom of the screen as Apollo descends down to and enters the temple of Medusa, which forms the basis for the fourth and final area of the stage, and the music fades out as a result.

Yahei (矢兵)
These arrow soldiers appear upon the first and second stages; they will attack by walking onto bridges from the left and right sides of the screen then fire an arrow at Apollo and walk back off those left and right sides of the screen again, and are worth 220 points when knocked off a bridge.

Medusa Shugo-Hei (メデューサ守護兵)
Eight of these guardian soldiers stand around the slumbering Medusa, at the end of the first stage; they will not move, and are worth 100 points.

Medusa (メデューサ)
Once you have fired a charged shot from your sword and all beams adjacent to it at that last of Medusa's Shugo-Hei to kill him, the "boss" theme will start to be heard from the Yamaha YM-2151 as Medusa wakes up, her head flies into the air and she begins firing laser beams out of her eyes at Apollo; once you have fired enough charged shots from your sword (and all beams adjacent to it) at the head, to defeat her, it will explode and the three-script text Aporō ha, Medyūsa wo taoshita. (アポローは、メデューサを倒した.) will appear at the bottom of the screen as her body crumbles. Apollo will now proceed to the enchanted mirror at the back of Medusa's temple as Artemis's theme starts to be heard from the Yamaha YM-2151 - and once it has faded in, Apollo's twin sister will speak the three-script text ''Aporō, watashi ha Dyupon no shinden ni iru wa. Hayaku tasuke ni kite!'' (アポロー、 私はデュポンの神殿にいるわ. 早く助けに来て!) from the C140, as it appears at the bottom of the screen. Once the mirror fades back out again, the game will segue into the second stage; if you can go all the way without dying, the game will give the impression that it is comprised of one long stage as opposed to seven normal ones, as after the start, it will only display the current stage's number if you are unfortunate enough to get killed. This boss is worth 20000 points - and those five Katakana characters making her name read as Medyūsa (Dyupon also means "Typhon").

Taiho (大砲)
These wall-mounted gargoyle-style cannons appear on the second stage, and attack by firing green crystals at Apollo; they are worth 60 points.

Magicians (マジシャンズ)
These cloaked sorcerers appear on the second stage and attack by appearing in front of Apollo and summoning knives to fly at him; 120 points.

Doragon-Hei (ドラゴン兵)
These soldiers appear on the second stage, and attack by running down from the top of the screen while firing orange balls at Apollo; 70 points.

Vases (壷)
Once Apollo has reached the end of the second stage's initial area, ten of these jars will appear around him, as the screen starts to revolve in an anticlockwise direction and an infinite amount of creatures named "Utsubotto" (, written in Katakana as "ウツボット") come flying out of them towards him; they can be killed with a charged shot for 200 extra points apiece, and the actual Vases are worth 280. The Kanji character reads as tsubo.

Isogin Chaku (いそぎんちゃく)
These sea anemones appear upon that second stage, and attack by spitting green balls at Apollo from their positions; they are worth 130 points.

Yoka (妖花)
These flowers appear on the second stage and attack by spitting pink balls at Apollo from their positions on the rocks; they are worth 260 points.

Enormous Mukade (巨大ムカデ)
These giant blue centipedes appear on the second stage and attack by crawling down the rocks towards Apollo; they are worth 700 points, and a regular-sized version was also created for the game, as well as a palette-swapped version called a "Mimizu" written in Katakana as ミミズ and eight other enemies, but it never made it into the final program). This was also not the first Namco game to feature "unused" enemy characters.

Hyudora (ヒュドラ)
These green snakes appear on the second stage, and attack by spitting red balls at Apollo from their positions on the rocks; they are 240 points.

Topo (トポ)
These purple gargoyle-like creatures appear on the second stage and attack by flying down towards Apollo from the top of the screen; they are worth 400 points, and once you kill the final one, the three-script Japanese text Guraiai no shinden (グライアイの神殿) will appear at the bottom of the screen as Apollo descends down to and enters the temple of the Graeae, the basis for the third and final section of the stage.

Ropers (ローパーズ)
These many-tentacled creatures are on the second and third stages, and attack by emerging from the ground in front of Apollo and firing yellow shots at him from their eyes; they are worth 90 points, and are also based upon an enemy from The Tower of Druaga and The Return of Ishtar.

Graeae (グライアイ)
Once you have fired a charged shot from your sword and any beams adjacent to it at the last remaining Roper to kill him, the three-script text of ''Rōba no kubi ni kiwotsukete! Guraiai no kyūsho ha aoi suishō yo.'' (老婆の首に気をつけて! グライアイの急所は青い水晶よ.) will appear at the bottom of the screen; that "boss" theme will then start to be heard from the Yamaha YM-2151 for a second time as you come to the three Graeae, who will attack by firing green and red shots from their hands at you. Once you have fired a charged shot from your sword and all beams adjacent to it at each of their hands to destroy them for 260 points apiece, their heads will fly off and start spitting white crystals at you - and even though you can fire a charged shot from your sword and all beams adjacent to it at them to destroy them for 150 points apiece they will instantly regenerate from the blue crystal which should be your primary target. Once you have fired enough charged shots from your sword and any beams adjacent to it at the crystal to destroy it, it will explode and the three-script Japanese text Aporō ha, Guraiai wo taoshita. (アポローは、 グライアイを倒した.) will appear at the bottom of the screen, as the bodies of the Graeae crumble; Apollo will then proceed onto the enchanted mirror at the back of the temple, as Typhon's theme starts to be heard from the Yamaha YM-2151. Once it fades in, Typhon will speak that three-script text Aporō-me, watashi ni hamukaeba dō naru ka, misete yaru! (アポローめ、 私に刃向かえばどうなるか、 見せてやる!), to his arch-nemesis from that C140 as it appears at the bottom of the screen, then breathe a flame onto his side of the glass - and the shot will then cut to Artemis, who is still chained to the wall of Typhon's temple but is now screaming from the C140 (but the Hiragana text for the scream, Yāā! やああああ!, will not appear). Once it has faded out again, the game will segue into the third stage; the crystal is worth 20000 points, and the five Katakana characters in the name also read as Guraiai.

Graia (グライア)
These pterodactyl-like creatures appear on the third stage, and attack by zigzagging down towards Apollo from the top of the screen; 150 points.

Doragon (ドラゴン)
These dragon-like creatures appear upon the third stage, and attack by flying down towards Apollo from the top of the screen while spitting flames at him; they are worth 400 points, but while you are trying to fire out charged shots from your sword (and all beams adjacent to it) at them to kill them, you will also have to deal with twenty-five Blue Will-O-The-Wisps (see that next section for more information about them).

Will-O-The-Wisps (ウィル・オー・ザ・ウィスプス)
These flames appear on the third, fourth, and seventh stages, and attack by flying towards Apollo from the left side, right side, and top of the screen, are worth 100 points, and come in blue and orange varieties; they are also again based upon an (admittedly indestructible) enemy from Druaga.

Griffons (グリフォンズ)
These palette-swapped versions of the game's main character appear on the third stage, and attack by flying towards Apollo from behind; the black ones are worth 120 points, but the green ones are worth 180. Once you have killed the last one, the three-script Japanese text Seiren no shinden (セイレンの神殿) will appear at the bottom of the screen as Apollo descends down to the temple of Siren, the basis of the third and final area.

Siren (セイレン)
Once Apollo has reappeared inside the temple of Siren, three Item Flies will come flying down towards him on the left side of the screen; once you have fired a charged shot from your sword and any beams adjacent to it at them, to kill them, they will leave two "S" and one "O" powerup behind, and announce their names in Japanese from the C140. Once you have collected these, five Type A Dokuro-Hei will come running into view on that right side of the screen and throw their axes up at you - and once you have fired a charged shot from your sword (and any beams adjacent to it) at them to kill them, five more Type A Dokuro-Hei will come running into view on that left side of the screen, and throw their axes up at you. Once you fire a charged shot from your sword and any beams adjacent to it at these ones to kill them, the three-script Japanese text Utsukushī sugata ni damasa rete wa dame... Seiren ha osoroshī majo yo! (美しい姿にだまされてはダメ...セイレンは恐ろしい魔女よ!) will appear at the bottom of the screen, as you come to the slumbering Siren in her human form; the game's "boss" theme will then start to be heard from the Yamaha YM-2151 once again as she wakes, transforms into a giant eagle, and starts launching feathers from her wings at you (which can be destroyed for 60 extra points apiece). She will also occasionally spit fireballs from her beak at you (which cannot be destroyed and must be avoided) - and once you've fired enough charged shots from your sword and all beams adjacent to it at her to defeat her, she will explode, and the three-script Japanese text of Aporō ha, Seiren wo taoshita. (アポローは、セイレンを倒した.) will appear at the bottom of the screen. Apollo will then proceed onto the enchanted mirror at the back of Siren's temple, as Artemis's theme again starts to be heard from the Yamaha YM-2151; once it has faded in, Apollo's twin lover will speak the three-script Japanese text of Aporō... Anata to sugoshita, Dirosu no oka ni kaeritai. (アポロー...あなたと過ごした、ディロスの丘に帰りたい.) from the C140 as it appears at the bottom of the screen. The image will then cut to a shot of a beach at sunset with a silhouette of the twins in the foreground and the Parthenon in the background - and once it has faded out again, the game will segue into the fourth stage. This boss is, once again, worth 20000 points; the four Katakana characters in her name also read as Seiren, and the fourth stage will also be the last one if you chose to start in "EASY" mode.

Phoenixes (フェニックシズ)
These flaming birds appear upon that fourth stage, and will attack by flying towards Apollo from the left and right sides of the screen; 170 points.

Himaira (ヒマイラ)
These lava-dwelling dragon-like creatures appear on that fourth stage, and will attack by spitting flames at Apollo from their mouths; as with the Radon on the first stage and the Hyudora on the second stage, you will notice that their heads are their only vulnerable points, but while you are trying to fire enough charged shots from your sword (and any beams adjacent to it) at their heads, to kill them, you will have to deal with the aforementioned Phoenixes flying towards you from the left and right sides of the screen, along with four groups of eight Dokubachi (see that next section) flying down into view from the top of the screen and circling round before they all fly directly towards you. 360 points.

Dokubachi (毒蜂)
These bees appear on that fourth stage, and attack by flying down into view and circling around before flying directly towards Apollo; 160 points.

Sekizo (石像)
These statues appear on the fourth stage, and attack by spitting fiery boomerangs (similar to the ones that Apollo fired from his sword after he collected the "A" powerup on the second stage) from their mouths, while their heads revolve in a clockwise direction; as with the Radon on the first stage, the Hyudora on the second stage and the Himaira on that stage, notice that their heads are their only vulnerable points. 460 points.

Antaeus (アンタイオス)
Once Apollo has reappeared inside the temple of Antaeus, three Item Flies will come flying down towards him, on that left side of the screen; once you have fired a charged shot from your sword (and any beams adjacent to it) at them to kill them, they will leave two "S" and an "O" powerup behind and announce their names in Japanese from the C140. Once you've collected these, Antaeus will shoot two large fireballs from his arms at you - and once you have fired a charged shot from your sword (and any beams adjacent to it) at both of them to destroy them for 100 points apiece, you will have to repeat this process four more times, until you come to Antaeus himself. The three-script Japanese texts ''Antaiosu no karada wo utsu no ha kiken yo! Atama wo neratte!'' (アンタイオスの身体を撃つのは危険よ! 頭を狙って!) will now appear at the bottom of the screen as Antaeus grows up to three times his original size and that "boss" theme starts to be heard from the Yamaha YM-2151 yet again - and he will then start spitting hundreds of smaller fireballs at you (which cannot be destroyed, and must be avoided). Once you've fired enough shots from your sword (and any beams adjacent to it) at his head to defeat him, he'll explode, and the three-script Japanese text of Aporō ha, Antaiosu wo taoshita. (アポローは、 アンタイオスを倒した.) will appear at the bottom of the screen; Apollo will then proceed to that enchanted mirror at the back of Antaeus's temple, as Typhon's theme again starts to be heard from that Yamaha YM-2151. Once it fades in, Artemis will again scream from that C140 - and Typhon will then speak the three-script Japanese texts ''Sā, motto nakiwameke! Aporō wo obikiyosero!'' (さぁ、 もっと泣きわめけ! アポローをおびき寄せろ!) from it (off-camera) as it appears at the bottom of the screen. Once it fades out again, the game will segue into the fifth stage; however, if the arcade owner had set the "RANK SELECT" setting in the options menu to "ON" and you chose to start in "EASY" mode, you will instead get the message that is normally associated with the end of the seventh stage (see the section about Typhon). 20000 points - and his six Katakana characters read as Antaiosu.

Debiru (デビル)
These devil-like creatures appear upon that fifth stage, and will attack by zigzagging down towards Apollo from the top of the screen; 160 points.

Scylla's Henchmen (スキュラの子分)
These hooded soldiers appear on the fifth stage, and attack by walking onto bridges from the left and right sides of the screen and throwing their swords at you then jump down to the ground and fire orange balls at you; 400 points, and the three Hiragana/Kanji characters read as no kobun.

Tekyuu (鉄球)
These spiked balls appear on that fifth stage, and attack by rolling into view from the left side, right side, and top of the screen; the black ones are worth 530 points but the enormous red ones will self-destruct when they get hit by another one and explode into eight pieces of shrapnel.

Scylla (スキュラ)
Once Apollo has reappeared inside the temple of Scylla, two Item Flies will come flying down towards him on that left side of the screen; once you have fired a charged shot from your sword and any beams adjacent to it at these to kill them they will leave two "S" powerups behind and announce their names in Japanese from the C140. Once you've collected them, six Enormous Red Tekyuu will fall down towards you from the top of the screen - and once you have moved out of their way (remember that these cannot be destroyed), that three-script Japanese text ''Kōri no sekai wo ayatsuru no ha Sukyura. Suishō ni tojikome rarete iru wa.'' (氷の世界を操るのはスキュラ. 水晶に閉じ込められているわ.) will appear at the bottom of the screen as you come up to a barrier of twenty red crystals that are rotating in an anticlockwise direction. The "boss" theme will then start to be heard from that Yamaha YM-2151 for a fifth time, as Scylla (who looks somewhat like a Crystal Brain from Namco's own Bakutotsu Kijūtei) materializes in the centre of the barrier and causes four walls of spikes to come down on all the sides of the screen; one spike on each wall will loosen itself from the others, then fly towards Apollo in the direction that it is facing, and you can either move out of their way or fire a charged shot at them to destroy them for 100 extra points apiece. Scylla will then cause the four walls to go back up again for a short period of time - but each time she decides to bring them down again, a different spike on each wall will loosen itself then fly towards Apollo in the direction that it is facing, until he has either dodged or destroyed them all. Once you have fired enough charged shots from your sword (and any beams adjacent to it) at Scylla to defeat her, she will explode, and the four walls of remaining spikes on each side of the screen will disappear as the three-script Japanese text Aporō ha, Sukyura wo taoshita. (アポローは、スキュラを倒した.) appears at the bottom of the screen; Apollo will now proceed to the enchanted mirror at the back of Scylla's temple as Typhon's theme starts to be heard out from the Yamaha YM-2151 once again. Once it has faded in Typhon will speak the three-script Japanese text ''Kono watashi kara nige rareru to omotte iru no ka? Orokamono-me!'' (この私から逃げられると思っているのか? 愚か者め!) to Apollo from the C140 - and once it has faded back out again the game will segue into the sixth stage. 20000 points; her four Katakana characters also read as Sukyura.

Other enemies

 * [[File:Phelios Kagerou.gif]] Kagerou (かげろう) - 100 points
 * [[File:Phelios Rock Man.gif]] Rock Man (ロックマン) - 230 points
 * [[File:Phelios Kumo.gif]] Kumo (クモ) - 150 points
 * [[File:Phelios Leaf.gif]] Leaf (葉) - 150 points
 * [[File:Phelios Enormous Hand.gif]] Enormous Hand (巨大腕) - 100 points
 * [[File:Phelios Mini Hand.gif]] Mini Hand (ミニ腕) - 200 points
 * [[File:Phelios Uni.gif]] Uni (ウニ) - 100 points
 * [[File:Phelios Turning Eye.gif]] Turning Eye (ターニングアイ) - 600 points

Other bosses
STAGE 5: Scylla (スキュラ) - 100 points (crystals), 20000 points

STAGE 6: Cerberus (ケルベロス) - 3000 x 3 points (heads), 20000 points

STAGE 7: Typhon (デュポン) - 3000 x 7 points (Phase 1), 80000 points (Phase 2)