Xardion is a 1992 side-scrolling action-platformer for the Super Nintendo, developed by Jorudan and published by Asmik. An artificial planet called NGC-1611, built by a rogue scientist to invade three worlds, forces the Alpha 1 Federation to send out three robot champions to destroy its power source and track down the legendary weapon the game is named after. It blends straightforward platform-shooter action with light RPG mechanics: each robot keeps its own separate health, ammo, and experience total, and defeating enemies earns points that raise those stats independently for whichever robot is active.
How to Play
You control one robot at a time and can switch between them from the robot-select menu at any point, and each one plays differently: Triton is a balanced humanoid who carries a rifle and can aim it upward, Alcedes is a slower beast/mage form that fires a laser from its staff and antenna, and Panthera is a fast, low-profile quadruped that can squeeze into tight spaces the other two can’t reach. Late in the game a fourth, more powerful form — Xardion itself — joins the roster, combining all three robots’ abilities but starting back at level one.
On the original SNES pad, the D-pad moves and aims, B jumps, Y fires your robot’s standard weapon, and A/R fire special sub-weapons once you’ve assigned them from the menu; Select opens that menu, and holding Start with Select brings up the map screen. In the browser here that’s the arrow keys to move and aim, Z to jump, X to fire your standard shot, Enter for Start, and Shift for Select.
Tips
- Each robot only gains experience while it’s the one on screen, so rotate who you fight with deliberately — otherwise you’ll hit a section that demands Panthera’s small frame or Alcedes’s range with an underleveled robot.
- Special sub-weapons on A/R only fire once you’ve pre-selected them from the menu, so set one up before a boss room rather than walking in with just your standard shot.
- When a passage looks too cramped for Triton or Alcedes, swap to Panthera before forcing it — it’s built for exactly those gaps.
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