PS5 drops surprise port of beloved PS1 title, 29 years on from its original launch

A classic game from the original PlayStation era has now landed on PS5, 29 years after its original release.

The original Sony PlayStation is home to a lot of great games that simply can’t be played on modern hardware, but modern platforms are slowly getting more of them as time goes on.

The latest retro game to hit modern consoles is the 1997 shooter originally published by Namco called Xevious 3D/G, which is releasing on Arcade Archives 2 (via ComicBook).

If you haven’t heard of Xevious 3D/G before, it was originally released as an arcade shooter in 1996 before receiving a port for the PlayStation a year later. Although it’s the eighth one in the series, Xevious 3D/G was also the first one to be made in 3D following a boom in shoot ‘em ups during the 1990s.

As for what it’s actually like to play, it’s a vertically scrolling shooter where you control a starship on a mission to destroy the rogue supercomputer GAMP in order to save the world.

Xevious 3D/G is set to arrive on PS5, along with a Nintendo Switch 2 version, later today (September 24). Like with past titles that are part of Arcade Archives released by Hamster Corporation, this edition will cost $16.99 across both platforms.

This new version will have VRR support, which is huge for fans of the original arcade game as it means that the frame rate can reflect how it was originally presented in 1996.

Some of the other new features included with this release are a brand new Time Attack mode where players must try to complete the entire game as fast as possible. Hamster Corporation has also added new gameplay modifiers to change the experience as well, like rapid fire, save slots, and a rewind option as is typical of retro re-releases.

See the trailer below for more information on this release.

Read More: PlayStation Plus October line-up confirms first free game, and it's a day one release

Xevious 3D/G is one for fans of 1990s arcades

“The classic masterpiece Xevious 3D/G is reborn in polygons!” reads the press release for the game. “Everything is rendered in 3D with diverse screen angles and camera work, plus new weapons and enemy characters have been added. Conquer all seven areas, including the desert with the geoglyph and the space fortress!”

The original arcade release of Xevious 3D/G was made to capitalise on the 3D boom of the 1990s, as well as the fact that shoot ‘em ups were popular again in arcades.

Up until that point, the Xevious series had seen seven previous entries of varying reception, releasing across a variety of different platforms. A PlayStation port was produced in 1997 alongside Time Crisis, marking the first time both arcade series would release on a Sony console.

You can pick up Xevious 3D/G from today for $16.99 across PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2 via Arcade Archives 2.

Read More: PlayStation 2 nostalgia is strong in this RPG freebie that's just landed on PS5