Speculative Release Date of the MZ-2500 Port of Galaga[]
One thing I noticed while rewriting this page is that the Sharp MZ-2500 port of Galaga is surprisingly obscure, to the point where it isn't even mentioned in Galaga's Japanese Wikipedia article. Naturally, this makes it quite difficult to pinpoint an exact release date. I've seen some websites and videos (most notably MobyGames) give a release year of 1985, but I have yet to find any sources to corroborate this claim. So, for now, I have to settle for the next best option and speculate a date range.
First, let's establish a baseline. The Sharp MZ-2500, also known as the Super MZ, was first released in October 1985, so MZ-2500 Galaga could not have come out before then.
To extrapolate the upper limit, I ended up referencing Mycom BASIC. For those unaware, Mycom BASIC was a Japanese magazine dedicated to home computers. In addition to publishing guides on how to code games using the BASIC programming language, the magazine would also host advertisements for home computers and the software that was released for them. As it turns out, Dempa Shimbunsha, the developers of the port in question, ran a catalog in the magazine showcasing the games they had developed for Namco. I'll use these catalogs to narrow down the date range.
The first time that the catalog was updated following the MZ-2500's debut was in the December 1985 issue, but there is no mention of MZ-2500 Galaga. However, it would not take long for the port to appear in the magazine. In the February 1986 issue, Dempa published an ad for the MZ-2500 port of Xevious. The astute will notice that the ad also mentions ports of Pac-Man and Galaga. MZ-2500 Galaga would be added to the catalog one month later, in the March 1986 issue. Note that both listings include a price, suggesting that the game was close to being, or already had been, released.
With all of this mind, it's safe to assume that the MZ-2500 port of Galaga released sometime between October 1985 and March 1986. Personally, I'm leaning more towards an early 1986 release since it would better coincide with the Xevious advertisement, but a late 1985 release isn't completely out of the picture. I'll keep this entry, and the main article, updated if I find new information.
UPDATE (01/18/2025): It's been a while, hasn't it? Although I have yet to find conclusive evidence, I have found this document that I feel is worth bringing up. It's a pamphlet containing a list of software for the MZ-2500. According to its description on the Internet Archive, it was meant to be distributed at a business meeting held between August and September 1985, predating the MZ-2500's release by 1-2 months. You can look through the entire thing if you want to, but, in my opinion, the most important thing about this pamphlet is not what is on the list, but rather what isn't.
Although many games are listed in the pamphlet, Galaga isn't one of them. In fact, the game list is nearly devoid of Dempa-developed titles; the only I could find is Pac-Man. Personally, I believe the pamphlet lends some credence to the idea that MZ-2500 Galaga did not release around the computer's launch. I find it odd that Dempa wouldn't advertise the port if they were planning an October release. But the description also says that the document lists software that was meant to release after the MZ-2500's launch, so who knows? Perhaps I should try sifting through more magazines. For now, though, the search continues...
UPDATE (02/05/2025): Yesterday, I decided to have another look at the aforementioned Xevious ad. I copied the text pertaining to Galaga, translated it, and came across another important clue. Since I'm writing this late at night, I'll keep it brief. The piece of info we're interested in comes from the passage's third sentence, which reads:
| “ | ギャラガが早くもSuper MZ対応て登場しました。 | „ |
and which translates to:
"Galaga, compatible with the Super MZ*, has already arrived."
*Note: "Super MZ" is just another name for the MZ-2500.
This one sentence helps narrow down the possible release date range that was established in the original post. As previously stated, the Xevious ad did not appear in Mycom BASIC, or any other magazines as far as I can tell, until February 1986. And since Mycom BASIC published new issues on the first of every month, we can conclude MZ-2500 Galaga could not have released on or after February 1, 1986. Hence, the new date range is between October 1, 1985 and January 31, 1986. The chances of the port releasing in late '85 just got a bit better.
0rangeAppl33 (talk) 03:04, 1 January 2025 (UTC)