What Darius Cozmic Collection Arcade contains
This is a collection of four arcade titles from the Darius series, seven versions in total, all side-scrolling shoot 'em ups. The original Darius arrived in 1986 in a custom three-screen cabinet with in-seat bass speakers, and this Steam release reproduces that multi-screen setup. You get Darius in three arcade versions from 1986 and 1987, each with different difficulty balancing and enemy placement; Darius II from 1989 in its dual-screen form; two versions of Sagaia, the international redesign of Darius II with shorter stages, fewer bosses and higher overall difficulty; and Darius Gaiden from 1994, the first entry built for a single screen, with semi-transparent effects, parallax scrolling and boss entrance scenes. Across all of them you fight giant robotic fish and other aquatic-lifeform bosses, use a power-up system, and follow branching stage maps that lead to multiple endings. The soundtrack is composed by Zuntata.
Playing it with friends
The Steam version supports Remote Play Together, so friends can join your session over a network connection. The games also carry Co-op and Multiplayer tags, and Darius II adds the ability to switch directions during boss battles. Score Attack is a natural group activity here: each of you can chase a run on the same version and compare results, since the collection is built around score and repeat attempts rather than a shared campaign. With quick save and load, one player can park a run at a tough spot while others work through the same section on their own timing.
Before you start
Decide which of the seven versions you want first, because they differ meaningfully. The three Darius builds range from the original 1986 release through two progressively rebalanced 1987 versions, and Sagaia ver.2 is a variant whose history is unclear. Darius Gaiden introduces mechanics the earlier games lack: you can capture mid-bosses and use the black hole bomb.
Set up the display before a long session. Multi-monitor support lets you spread the game across two or three monitors, and a sub-woofer can simulate the arcade seat speaker output. Options cover scaling, scanlines, smoothing, difficulty, number of lives, and information-displaying gadgets for the view. Training Mode lets you set power-up levels and pick a specific zone to practice, which pairs well with quick save and load for drilling a boss you keep losing to. A controller is supported.