Arcade galaxians game

All of the aliens need to be destroyed before the player can progress to the next wave. Galaxian : These attacking aliens come in 3 varieties, blue, purple, and red. They begin in formation at the top of the screen and will occasionally swoop down to attack you before returning to their position in the formation. Flagship : At least two of these appear at the top of the formation at the start of each stage.

They will swoop down to attack with one or two red Galaxians if any are nearby. If a flagship is one of the last enemies left of the screen, it will run away and appear as a third Flagship at the start of the next stage.

Game description from www. Super Mario Bros. With Google. Galaxian - Arcade Publisher:. Play your favorite classic games and more with the GameEx front end. They will also engage in more aggressive and complicated maneuvers at this point. I like to refer to this phase as the 'melee'. An entire formation of 46 Galaxians 30 blue, 8 purple, 6 red and 2 flagships can theoretically net you points. This assumes you manage to get the full bonuses for both flagships and attack all enemies as they charge, without hitting any ships in the convoy.

In practice, a score between and per wave is more likely, with the score typically increasing in later waves because you'll have more enemies charging you. I've divided this tactics section up into different skill levels. The reason for this is that a game like this in fact, this goes for most games is a laerning process. Tactics that work for experts are simply not viable for a new player to pursue.

You need to have gotten your feet wet and get used to certain approaches before you are ready try something more advanced, even if that's contrary to what you learned before. My suggestion is to start with the basic tactics and stick with those until you can comfortably reach points.

At that point, move on to the advanced tactics. The expert tactics - which aren't as step by step, but consist mostly of loose advice - will be of interest to you when you can score around or somewhat consistently. The tactics described in these sections worked for me. If through playing you discover different approaches that work for you - or, especially, more clearly defined expert tactics - I would be very interested in hearing about them and happy to add them to the guide.

The safest way to do this is to destroy as many Galaxians as you can while they are still in formation, and to avoid attackers when possible. After all, the convoy doesn't fire at you, nor attempts to ram with you; only the chargers can possibly kill you. This doesn't mean, however, that it's always safest to dodge the chargers. The one thing that you absolutely have to watch for is being driven into a corner.

If this happens, sooner or later some Galaxian is going to come at you at an unavoidable angle, or land shots that you cannot dodge.

As long as you are in the center of the screen, there is almost always a gap to escape through even if several Galaxians attack. When possible, always stay near the center. That's the single best thing you can do to prolong your life. For cleaning up the convoy, there are four basic approaches. This has two advantages: - You won't have to pass under the formation as it turns around which leaves you temporarily vulnerable as often; - The formation has less opportunities to adapt its speed, so you don't have to keep adjusting.

The risk of column cleaning is that it tends to get you stuck in a corner if you keep it up for too long; the thing to do is to switch to the other side of the formation as you get closed to the edge of the screen. Apart from that little thing to watch for, column cleaning is a simple matter of positioning yourself just a little to the left or the right of the formation, in such a way that the formation is moving toward you, firing at the right time to get the lowest alien in the outer column, then moving along with the formation a little bit to line up for the next shot.

Repeat until the column is clear or it's time to get back to the other edge of the screen. If Galaxians swoop down to attack, stop clearing the formation and pay attention to the new threat.

Either shoot them down or avoid them. If they're on the other side of the screen and they are blue Galaxians, you can safely ignore them, but watch for purple galaxians and flagship trios which tend to come at you at much wider angles.

The absolute deathtrap while following the column clearing method is to get stuck in the corner and attacked there by either a purple Galaxian or a flagship with escorts.

Another advantage is that you are focusing on the blue Galaxians, which aren't worth many points anyway, and you can leave the purple and red Galaxians until they actally charge you. However, row cleaning can be potentially dangerous because you are often stationary while doing so, and it's easy to forget to start moving when enemies swoop down to attack.

For row cleaning, stick somewhat close to the middle of the screen about halfway to the edge is good, at the edge is not , shoot down the Galaxian directly above you, wait, and time your next shot to get the next enemy. You will need some practice to get the timing right, and a lot of practice to be able to readjust your timing when the formation turns around and changes its speed. An experienced player will get a feel for the formation's speed and will be able to adapt in a split second when it changes.

Remember, the closer you stay to the middle with this approach, the safer you are; just make sure you move to take out the Galaxians on the far ends when all the ones in the middle are gone. If you do not, you risk being boxed in if they decide to attack simultaneously, and that risk increases in later waves. The advantage is that you'll be able to clean enemies more quickly - you shoot at whatever is in your sights - and you can stay in the middle where it's safe and actively avoid the edges.

The disadvantage is that you expose yourself to the same risk that shows up if you are row cleaning and not taking enough care of the enemies on the outside. When you are doing opportunistic cleaning, you tend to make a big hole in the center of the formation, but the flanks remains intact and if the enemy decides to attack from both sides at once, you need to respond very quickly in order not to get boxed in. Best approach is usually to pick one of the attacking enemies and shoot him down quickly, thus creating a hole for you to escape through.

With this method, you specifically avoid cleaning up the convoy at all; you hold your fire and wait for Galaxians to charge, at which point you move in and shoot them down, ideally without accidentally hitting anything in the convoy. There are two advantages to this approach: first, you get more points since every or nearly every enemy you destroy is charging and thus worth more, and it's an excellent way to get used to the patterns that the aliens follow and learn how to shoot them down properly during a charge.

This is a skill you will have to develop, and following the no cleaning approach from time to time as a sort of experiment will help you do just that. However, for longer games, the no cleaning approach is a dangerous one to take. Enemies can come from anywhere in the formation, and you'll soon learn that certain combinations usually involving one attack from each side, or purple Galaxians combined with a flagship and escorts are very deadly.

By refusing to clean the formation at all, you are basically inviting the Galaxians to attack in the way they prefer, and they will be sure to take you up on that in the later waves. No matter which convoy cleaning method you use, you will want to give priority to any attacking enemies.

Pay particular attention to the purple Galaxians and their wide movement angles, and to flagship trios with their awesome firepower.

Don't take too much risk yet trying to destroy escorts before the flagship for the bonus; you can start doing that when you're more experienced. For now, your purpose is to survive. Avoid confrontations that you're not sure you can win; any enemies you let slip past you appear at the top again anyway, with the exception of lone flagships and those return in the next wave.

When destroying charging enemies, it pays to take them out as soon as possible. They'll obviously stop shooting when you've destroyed them, which makes things that much safer for you, and they also tend to move slowly when they just left the formation. The longer you wait, the harder they will be to gun down. If you're having a hard time nailing an elusive Galaxian, evade him and try again on his next run.

When the melee begins - usually when there are about five Galaxians left - be aware that they will no longer follow their normal patterns. All four kinds of Galaxians will be performing more aggressive maneuvers and attempt to ram you, at crazy angles sometimes. Focus on whichever enemy is closest, be ready to evade, and stay away from the corners at all costs. Whenever possible, dodge toward the center of the screen, not to the side. With these tactics, you should be able to clear several waves of Galaxians and score up to about points.

Start learning the exact patterns of your enemies so you can respond properly to every charge, and start choosing convoy cleaning methods that suit the situation. You will frequently change approaches in midwave depending on how things develop.

First, let's have a closer look at the exact behavior of each type of Galaxian. Note that most of this doesn't apply to the melee at the end of a wave we'll get to that in a bit. Flagships: - only attack on their own if no touching Red Galaxians remain; - will take two escorts along when possible, one if no second is available; - return to the formation only if they had at least one escort when they started their charge, otherwise flee the battle and join the next wave instead; - will often, with help of two escorts, fire 7 or 8 shots; - are worth more points if you destroy the two escorts first no point difference if there are no escorts or only one ; - act like Red Galaxians if attacking alone; - cause a temporary drop in morale if they are destroyed during a charge, resulting in ALL Galaxians holding their fire for a few seconds when a flagship is lost but not if it was destroyed while in the convoy.

To live through more than just the few waves, you'll need to learn exactly how to position yourself to destroy various Galaxians during their charge. My suggestions would be: Blue Galaxians: anticipate if they'll be moving left or right based on your position when they're done leaving the convoy , position your ship just a little to their side, and fire a shot that they'll fly into.

Move out of the way after you fired so you can be sure to avoid their return fire. If they are too far away, don't bother; if they're close but you can't seem to hit them, position your ship right under them for a last second shot make sure your last shot has left the screen or you can't fire at all. This is generally safe as they hold their fire during their last second or so on the screen, but it does take guts.

Purple Galaxians: try to catch them either just as they leave the formation fire a shot to the side of them, farther out than with a Blue Galaxian , or at their turning point. You'll learn with experience when that turning point is, so be there right under them, fire, and move out of the way not in the direction they'll turn in now!

If you fail at both shots, let them go. Don't take the risk. The one thing you really have to watch for with purple Galaxians is that you don't let them drive you into a corner. They'll nail you with a shot or ram you from the side without ever getting just above you where you can hit them. If you're near the side of the screen and a purple Galaxian leaves the convoy to swoop down on you, get out of that corner immediately. Treat them much like Blue Galaxians, aiming just to their side, but with two differences: aim a little but only a little farther out to compensate for their wider maneuver, and don't try for the last minute snap shot that you might do on a Blue Galaxian.

Reds have the nasty habit of continuing to fire even if they are very close, and there's no way you'll be able to dodge at that distance.

Simply put, they'll do to you what you're trying to do to them. Just let them go, better luck next pass. Flagship combos: you'll have learned by now that these are nasty, but also profitable. The best way to take out a flagship combo depends on what you want. If you wish to play it safe, try to snipe the flagship first.

The Reds, as well as all other charging Galaxians, will stop shooting instantly, shaken by the loss of their leader. This allows you to easily gun down at least one of the Reds, maybe the second; but let him go if you're not sure, now that he's on his own he'll be easy enough to kill on his next charge. I myself like to take the opportunity to take out any Purple Galaxians currently on the attack, as they are not nearly as scary if they're not firing back.

If on the other hand you want the points, you need to take out the flagship last. Easiest way to do that is to position yourself such that you can take out the outer Red Galaxian first so that only the one directly under the flagship remains , then fire two very quick shots to take out the remaining escort and the flagship in a split second. Be ready to dodge out of the way very quickly if your first shot misses the Red, because you won't be able to fire the second shot in this case.

The most important thing to keep in mind when attacking flagship combos is to pick your battles. Move out of the way and try it another time. Next, let's take a look at convoy cleaning methods. You know the four basic approaches by now; the question now is what order to apply them in. As I see it, the most dangerous enemies in the formation are the Purple Galaxians, and particularly the outer ones as they're most likely to pin you in a corner. I like to start with the column cleaning method to take out the outer Blue and Purple Galaxians, then switch to row cleaning for the lowest row of Blues which are uncomfortably close , and go for Opportunistic Cleaning after that.

When things clear up a bit - many Blues will fall in charges too - I prioritize Purples. The more Purples I can clear while they are harmlessly in the convoy, the better. They're not worth the extra 40 points to risk their attack; because their maneuvers are so different from all the other Galaxians, they are very deadly if they come down at the same time as the different colours. And they will, in the later waves. When you're comfortable with the movement patterns of all your enemies, and you have learned to pick your battles wisely, the tricky part of each wave will be the melee at the end.

Fortunately, there are patterns to what your enemies do here as well. There are a couple of things you can do to maximize your chances of surviving a melee: - Try to gun down the Galaxian with a long range shot when it's at the top of the screen. Chances aren't very good, but it's safe and it does work from time to time; - Keep moving your craft left and right to keep the Galaxian guessing where to go next; - Stay close to the Galaxian; if you try to flee to the other end of the screen, you are only inviting them to try a wide angle ram; - When the Galaxian has crossed to your half of the screen, hold your fire and try one more short range shot when he is almost upon you to maximize your chance of killing.

Move out of the way while you fire so that if you miss chances are you will , you won't crash into him; - If a Galaxian decides to loop, he's inviting you to kill him.

Position your craft under him and shoot him down; - If at all possible, take out all enemy flagships, or all Red Galaxians, before the melee starts. The one thing you really don't need is a flagship combo going melee on you. If this means forfeiting the bonus, so be it. If you master these tactics, you should be able to clear about 8 waves and score between and Enemies attack in such numbers that you will frequently get trapped, not just in the corners but in the middle of the screen as well.

You'll rarely have enough time to do any serious convoy cleaning, and find yourself forced to go for opportunistic cleaning or even no cleaning at all as you are constantly under attack.

The mark of an expert Galaxian player is that he can not just flawlessly shoot down any charger that threatens him, but he can also anticipate situations before they occur, and shoot down exactly those Galaxians he needs to have a hole to escape through. If they're almost upon you, you may well be too late to escape. But if you watch closely which Galaxians leave the formation at what time, and realize which one needs to die so that there'll be a spot where no shots or Galaxians come through, you'll always have a chance to escape.

It's hard to put in words exactly what you need to watch for, but the most important thing to keep in mind is to avoid tunnel vision. If you're only watching your ship and what happens directly above you, you're making a mistake that many rookie drivers make as well. Driving a car is extremely hard if you're not anticipating things before they happen. Same for high levels of Galaxian.

Keep your eyes on the formation; there you don't see what happens now, but what will happen in five seconds. Seconds that you need to decide what to do to survive, and to actually do it. That means, of course, that you must be one with your ship and the controls now, and no longer have to think about what you do. You must be able to gun down Galaxians without thinking, flawlessly choosing the right position for each colour depending on how they maneuver.

You must be intuitively aware of how close you are to the edges, because you won't have time to think about staying away from the corners.