Gyruss/Gameplay

The gameplay is very similar to that of Galaga but with an added twist: the game is presented in a forced 3D perspective, with the player's ship facing "into" the screen and able to move around the perimeter of an implicit circle - essentially, Gyruss was Galaga mapped onto a Tempest-like cylinder. This gameplay style is called a "tube shooter," and Gyruss is one of the very few examples that exist. The familiar scrolling starfield of earlier space shooter games was arranged to fit the 3D perspective, with the stars coming into view at the centre of the screen and flying outward, giving the impression of the player's ship moving very fast through space.

The player begins the game "2 WARPS TO NEPTUNE." After completing each level, the player is one warp closer to a planet. Each time a planet is reached, the player's ship is seen flying towards it and then a short bonus round is played, where the player can shoot enemy ships for bonus points without worrying about being destroyed by them. After reaching Neptune, the player is then three warps from Uranus, and progresses through Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, and finally Earth, taking three warps to reach each planet.

After completing Earth's bonus stage, the player must travel through the very fast "3 WARPS TO NEPTUNE" level before returning to the start of the game.

Enemies
The majority of enemies are other spaceships, all of which must be destroyed before a level is completed. They appear either from the centre of the screen or from one of the edges, and move in swirling patterns. They can shoot the player's ship or destroy it by contact. They hover near the centre of the screen after completing their deployment pattern, and occasionally fly outwards and shoot at the player. If they are not destroyed by the player, the enemy ships gradually fly away one by one.

There are also several other types of enemies: satellites, asteroids, and laser beam generators. These appear intermittently and soon disappear of their own accord if not destroyed by the player.

Fighters
Fighters are the common enemy. At the start of the stage, they will normally arrive in four groups of ten. They are worth 100 points each (unless they are in holding, where they are worth 50). If you kill an entire wave during deployment, you receive 1,000 points, plus 500 points per each wave killed in that stage.

Satellites
Satellites materialise in a group of three just in front of the player after the ordinary enemy ships have finished deployment. They gyrate in small circles and shoot at the player. If the player has the basic weapon, when the satellites appear the middle one will be a sun-like object - if destroyed, the player's ship gets a better weapon. There is only one upgrade possible and if the better weapon has already been gained then all satellites are identical. This is not always easy, as the satellites' shots do not need to travel far to hit the player's ship, and the player only has a few seconds to destroy them before they fly away.

After deployment is finished, three satellites will appear if a sufficient number of enemies are destroyed. When you hit the center one, you will receive a powerup that gives you the double shot. They are worth 1,000 + 500 for each satellite destroyed (except for the powerup, which is always 500 points).

Asteroids
Appearing on stage 2, Asteroids fly straight outwards from the centre of the screen at regular intervals. They always fly just to the left or right of the player's ship, so unless the ship moves it will be never be hit by an asteroid. They cannot be destroyed, but a small point bonus is given for shooting at them.

Laser beam generators
Laser beam generators occasionally fly straight outwards from the centre of the screen. They consist of two generator segments with a laser beam between them; destroying either generator deactivates the beam. The player's ship is destroyed by contact with either the generators or the beam. They are worth 200 points.

Waves
Within each stage, there are two phases. In the first phase, the enemy deploys according to their deployment pattern, before entering the holding pattern in the center. There are 10 fighters within the four guaranteed waves. If you destroy enough enemies within a deployment, an extra wave will appear; its approach pattern and direction is random. While enemies can ram you during this phase, they don't damage the craft when they enter.

In the second phase, enemies will leave the holding pattern individually to make an attack on the player. They will fly about the area and eventually leave behind the player, before returning to the center. However, enemies will not remain in play forever; they will withdraw after a few attack passes on the player.

Satellites will also appear if you destroyed the right number of enemies. They will remain for about 15 seconds before leaving.

Chance stage
When you reach a planet, you are presented with a chance stage. This is a bonus stage where you need to shoot enemies as they fly past. In addition to the normal value of the enemies and clearing waves, you get bonus at the end of the stage equal to 100 points for each enemy killed. However, if you killed all enemies in that stage, you gain 10,000 points instead.