Most games in the series have been fixed shooters, although some have delved into other genres such as rail shooters and twin-stick shooters.
The series first began in 1979 with the arcade game Galaxian, which was Namco's first major hit in the video game industry, seeing ports for multiple home consoles, handheld systems and mobile phones.
Some entries were outsourced to other developers, such as Hasbro Interactive, Bandai and Paladin Studios. Galaxian is a shoot'em up video game franchise developed and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Namco.