How do you play the game Xevious

You use your controller to pilot a combat aircraft, which is armed with a forward-firing "shooter" for aerial targets and a "bomber" which fires an unlimited supply of air-to-surface bombs for ground targets.

There are various aerial enemy aircraft which shoot relatively slow bullets, as well as (presumably unpiloted) fast-moving projectiles and exploding black spheres. Ground enemies are a combination of stationary bases and moving vehicles, most of which also fire slow bullets. Giant floating motherships appear in certain areas; these are killed by knocking out their cores. These are considered one of the first level-bosses to be incorporated into a video game.

The game has 1 level, but places change as you cross rivers. The player controlled aircraft continually advances over varying terrain and the boundaries between levels are marked only by dense forests being overflown. If the player dies, play normally resumes from the start of the level. If the player has completed at least 70% of the level before dying, play will begin at the start of the next level instead. As the player controlled aircraft constantly flies forward, it is possible to advance without killing any enemies.