The original QIX first hit arcades and pizza parlors way back in 1981. A fun and engaging action-puzzler, it never really attained the critical mass of its back-in-the-day brethren like Asteroids or Centipede, but still managed to attain a cult following over the decades and even scored a pretty sweet Game Boy port back in the early 90s. Now, Taito is returning to the cult classic with an Xbox LIVE Arcade version, titled QIX++.
The game is an updated HD port of the original arcade title, offering up the tried-and-true gameplay of it's older brother while utilizing the retro-futuristic look and pulsing techno soundtrack that has become commonplace with Xbox LIVE Arcade ports of decades old games.
The Legends Arcade family just got a lot larger with 47 Taito arcade classics out now in a free firmware update. The classics include Bubble Bobble, Cadash, Space Invaders, Qix, Operation Wolf, Zoo Keeper, and more.
A look back at what might be the most misunderstood early 80s classic: Qix
Pop Arma writes, "Qix is bizarre. Qix is unusual. Qix is probably an arcade game that you haven’t heard of. It doesn’t have the pedigree of Pac Man or Galaga. It’s a humble little video game, just doing what it does, filling that space in the arcade where the busted Pong machine used to sit. Of course, this was before home consoles made it possible to play these games at home without the devouring of quarters. And so Qix became one of dozens of arcade ports, and eventually made its way to the Game Boy back in 1990."
