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- Aquales is a side-scrolling action role-playing run-and-gun shooter video game developed and published by Exact exclusively for the Sharp X68000 in Japan on September 12, 1991. The second title to be created and released by Exact for the X68000 platform, the game takes place in the dystopian future of 2069 where the British Elias-Rits Investigative Unit ship went missing during a reconnaissance operation at the Kermadec Islands, as players assume the role of American pilot Fredric von Nyuya from the elite World-Ocean Development League squad taking control of a mecha in an attempt to unveil the truth behind the mysterious disappearance of the Elias-Rits embarkation during their operation. Its gameplay mainly consists of action and shooting mixed with mission-based exploration, as well as role-playing elements, using a main two-button configuration. Created by most of the same staff who previously worked on Naious, Aquales and its plotline were initially envisioned as a manga series of 600 pages spanning over 13 volumes, however, the storyline for the seventh volume was condensed into the game project. Though it was initially launched by Exact on retail stores, the game would later be distributed through the Takeru software vending machines, which allowed users to write games on blank floppy disks. Aquales became another popular title among the X68000 userbase from Exact and received praise for the graphics, music and gameplay that would eventually lead it to being nominated for a "Game of the Year" award by Japanese magazine Oh!X under its genre. However, it did not sell well when it was initially released. Despite being exclusive to Japan, it has been retrospectively referred by publications such as Retro Gamer to be one of the best titles for the system. After its initial release, Exact would go on to develop their third title for the X68000; Étoile Princesse, which was released two years later to a similarly positive critical and audience response. (en)
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