Shoot down the alien formation as they dive! Diving enemies score double in this retro space shooter.

The arcade legend Galaga is back in your browser. Drag the screen or use the arrow keys to steer your starfighter left and right — bullets fire automatically. The alien squadron holds formation at the top of the screen, then breaks off in elegant arcing dives to attack you while firing back. Diving enemies are worth double points: bees 50, butterflies 80, bosses 150. Wipe out the entire wave to advance to the next stage. You have 3 lives, and each new stage brings faster enemies and denser bullet patterns.

The secret to a high score is dive-hunting. Rather than picking off enemies that sit idle in formation, target the ones swooping down on a curved trajectory to double your point haul. Boss Galagas require two hits to destroy. If a boss snags your ship with its blue tractor beam and you later destroy that boss while it carries your captured fighter, you'll get it back as a dual-fighter — twin ships side by side that double your firepower. A risky but iconic move worth pulling off.

Galaga was released in 1981 by Japan's Namco as the successor to its earlier hit Galaxian. Its curving flight paths and the tractor-beam mechanic were innovations that swept the global arcade scene, and the game has been ported to countless home consoles, handhelds, and mobile platforms over four decades. Often called the textbook of the shoot-'em-up genre, Galaga consistently ranks among the all-time greatest arcade games — IGN placed it on its top arcade list in 2008.

FAQ — Q. Does it work on mobile? A. Yes, drag-controls work natively on touchscreens. Q. How do I get the dual fighter? A. Let a boss capture your ship with its blue beam, then destroy that boss in a later wave to reunite. Q. How long is a typical game? A. A good run gets 1-2 minutes per stage; average sessions last 5-10 minutes.