Xargon

An archaeologist named Malvineous Havershim was studying strange ruins in Madagascar, remnants of buildings constructed during the age of a long-forgotten civilization of the mysterious Blue Builders. One day Malvineous spotted glyphs on one of the structures. As he attempted to translate them, Malvineous was hit by a wave of gas and fainted. In his dream, a talking eagle named Silvertongue tried to warn him of upcoming dangers. The archaeologist awoke in a strange and hostile world, unable to understand anything. With Silvertongue's guidance, Malvineous will have to overcome all dangers and eventually confront Xargon, the tyrannical ruler of that world.

Xargon is a 2D side-scrolling action platformer. Malvineous is initially equipped with a basic laser gun, which can be upgraded by collecting power-ups or buying upgrades in a store. These include extra laser bullets, rapid-fire mode, limited-ammo fireballs, and others. The gun can be controlled by pressing up or down arrow keys, making it slightly advance upwards or downwards. The store can be accessed at any time, provided the player has collected a sufficient amount of emeralds, which act as currency. Health units, invincibility power-ups, and weapon upgrades can be purchased.

This game entry refers to the registered version of the game with its three episodes:

Xargon: The Mystery of the Blue Builders - Beyond Reality

Xargon: The Mystery of the Blue Builders - The Secret Chamber

Xargon: The Mystery of the Blue Builders - Xargon's Fury

The first episode was available as shareware with the option to register for the other two, but in the US all three were also released separately and commercially by B&N Companies, Inc. In 2008 the entire game was made available as freeware.