Homegrown right in Phoenix, Arizona, this game was a popular shoot 'em adventure with a space theme. At the time, it was one of the few color games out there, so naturally arcade players flocked to the novelty. Other than the glorious technicolor in Phoenix, the game also introduced the concept of a 'level boss,' a separate challenge or obstacle that had to be overcome to secure a win.

Players--one or two, alternating turns--went through five rounds in each level, fighting hostile birds primarily, which guarded a mothership (the level boss). In Rounds 1 and 2, the alien birds flew at the player's spaceship in formation and occasionally dove at it in suicide runs.

Rounds 3 and 4 featured the next generation: flying eggs scrolled across the screen and hatched before your very eyes, letting loose larger, more menacing birds. These birds had the ability to regenerate their wings, so you had to shoot them in the belly to destroy them.

In Round 5, the player went up against the mothership which was guarded by birds and controlled by an alien sitting in the middle of it. You had to destroy the hull of the mothership and the force field surrounding it before aiming for the alien pilot. Other than the bird guardians, the player also had to dodge missiles fired from the mothership. Destroying all enemies in the near vicinity ushered a player to the next level where the rounds got progressively harder.

Phoenix was popular in the early 80s, just like the similarly-themed Galaxian, roaring space adventures with plenty of laser fire exchanged between combatants. And don't forget the killer eggs.