Galaga Legacy Champs Gear Up for Score Wars

The Galaga World Championship is rapidly approaching. At the end of March, the best players from around the world will be competing at Meow Wolf in Santa Fe for an all out throw-down of gaming skills and stamina. Each player will be attempting to smash the world record and take home the title of Galaga World Champion.

It's all happening March 29 through April 1.

The epic four-day throw down is the first-annual Score Wars event. For Amateur Level players there is still time to register for your chance at the $1,500 prize. The event will have day-of registration on the 29th and 30th, but keep in mind there are a limited number of spots available so the sooner you sign up the better. The Amateur Level event is an even chance to win, all player skill-levels are encouraged to compete!

Talking A Legacy Game: Some Words from the Champs

In anticipation of the event we've talked with a few of our Legacy Champs. Legacy Champs are pro players in the world of Galaga. As you might expect, with this being a world wide championship, our Legacy players are from all over the globe. Here's what a few of them had to say:

Phil Day: Austrailia

Phil Day is one of the best Galaga players in the world. He frequently writes about the game and its players. When we chatted about competitions like this, he said he has never played in a tournament before! So Day is very excited for the opportunity.

“My highest Galaga score was the result of me at home playing many games over the course of about six to eight months,” Phil said.  “Score Wars will be the first time I will be competing with others gamers in front of crowd, which is exactly what I think arcade gaming needs.”

I asked Phil how he first got into playing arcade games and how he realized he was on the road to being one of the top Galaga players in the world.

“Like most kids in the early 80s, I was going to video game arcades. I liked the shoot ‘em up games. Those games had a simple premise: dodge and shoot. Games like Space-Scramble, Defender, Xevious, Gyrus, 1942, Robotron, and of course Galaga. And of the many shoot ‘em ups, Galaga was by far the most popular in Australia. So, as I got older, I would come across a Galaga machine in a café, or a bar, and, for fun, I’d have a game.”

“In 2008, I put a score of 700,000 plus on Galaga machine in a café. The owner was impressed and wrote the score on the wall of his café challenging others to beat it. Out of curiosity I looked up the world record: a score 2.7 million by Andrew Laidlaw. In early 2009 I decided to buy a Galaga Machine, and before the end of the year I set a new world record of 3.2 million.”

Andrew Barrow: New Zealand

“This tournament definitely stands out from any other Classic Arcade Game tournament in terms of its prize money, sponsorship and overall wow-factor,” Barrow said during our interview, mentioning that the only other tournament he had participated in was the Netherworld Australian Kong-Off last November.

With the progression and development of video games, how has Galaga kept Barrow so dedicated to play?

“The nostalgia, the memories of playing it with my Father 20 years ago,” Andrew explained. “Galaga is a great game and very challenging, however the biggest reason is the overall CAG community. I have many great friends because of this hobby and they are what keep me coming back.”

Andrew pointed out that he has been playing for about 14 years and it has always been a goal of his to beat the long-standing Galaga MAME record of 5,405,930, which had stood since 1998  and with a lot of work he was finally able to achieve his goal in mid 2014.

A Convergence of Greatness

All of the players are thrilled to be heading to New Mexico to compete in this one of a kind tournament. The whole event will be streamed live on Twitch for your viewing pleasure if you're unable to be there in person.

Are you as excited as these Legacy Champs are!? Get ready for four days of non-stop play!