A case of split vision...
By moving towards the left or the right of the screen your spacecraft will decrease or increase its speed which gives you the opportunity to blast through the easier sections at top speed while slowing down to deal with the trickier opponents. To add a sense of urgency a bonus timer is included that starts counting dowo to zero until you reach the next landing zone. Points are awarded for beating the clock and each level is followed by a special bonus level where you can score even more bonus points by performing various tasks, such as shooting targets, picking up items or dodging walls.
Sanxion is far from an easy game. Because of the split screens the playing field is quite small and you need to navigate through the enemy formations very carefully. Even more dangerous are the obstacle paths that appear from time to time. Suddenly the game speeds up and you have to try to remember a pattern of openings in a number of walls as you race straight towards them. This is a very frustrating experience as their is no time to react once a wall comes onto the screen, these sequences need to be learnt by heart. Even though the production values are top notch I still cannot recommend this game to anyone but hardcore old-schoolers with slight masochistic tendencies.