Phoenix/Walkthrough

Stage 1
The Birds move more slowly and they are less aggressive on this screen then they will be on future screens. They don't abruptly change direction too often. There will be time to pick off an occasional reborn flying Bird. After it's shot, it bursts to reveal points received.

Shoot the Birds. As fast as possible. Make sure to keep moving. Use the shield when necessary. The movement is fairly slow. Don't concern yourself with points here. Points will come later. Think speed. The longer you take to kill the Birds, the more aggressive they become--and the harder they are to kill.

Stage 2
The action is faster here. However, you should be able to kill most of the Birds at the onset--before they peel off and attack. Move to either the far left or far right when Birds fly offscreen. They'll be like sitting ducks once they reappear.

Shoot, shoot, shoot the Birds. This should be one of your fastest screens. You can shoot twice as fast. The pace quickens. Use the shield as necessary. Again, don't worry about point value. Your prime consideration should be clearing the screen.

Bonus: Shooting three of the birds as they fly away (with wings spread open) will get you 200,000 bonus points. However, be careful not to perform this trick more than once per game, as doing so will bring your points back down to around 200,000.

Stage 3
Keep your target shooting skills sharp by picking off the lowest egg as it spirals across the center of the screen. Then, quickly move to the far right of the screen. The Birds will gather above you. You will have time to kill one before the first three bombs fall. Slip to the left just enough to avoid the bombs. Some Birds will drift left with you. Pick one off. Then swing back to the far right to pick off another Bird or two. When more bombs fall, slide left again--just enough to avoid the bombs. Continue this side-to-side shifting movement until all the Birds are destroyed. Remember: these Birds are easiest to hit when they are at the side of the screen--but so is your space ship.

Stage 4
The Birds are more aggressive and they descend more quickly on this screen. Use the same strategy as on Stage 3. Keep alert. Strategic use of the shield will destroy approaching Birds on contact. But the shield needs time to regenerate; don't get caught with your shield down. The Birds, from this screen on, seem to regularly volunteer for kamikaze missions when your protective Force-Field is unavailable. At these times, you must avoid the Birds and their bombs, but don't let them trap you at the sides of the screen!

Stage 5
Two things to keep in mind: Don't kill all the Birds; save at least one. If you kill them all, a new flock will come. Secondly, wait for the mothership to get as close to you as possible. The closer the encounter with the Alien, the more points when it's killed.
 * 1) Concentrate first on poking holes in the Orange Underbelly.  Kill attacking Birds as necessary.  Once you're poked some major holes in the Underbelly, concentrate on the Purple Band.  The Purple Band is most susceptible from the far left or the far right of the mothership.
 * 2) Once you've cleared a lot of Underbelly at the bottom, forge a clear path through the center of the Underbelly to the Alien.  Stay in one place, dodging or killing Birds as necessary.  Note: From the second level on, there will be a group of Birds protecting the Purple Band.  Keep your reflexes sharp.  Those Birds are close and can attack instantly.
 * 3) Once you've cleared a path, wait for the mothership to drop as close to you as possible.  Dodge bombs dropped by the Alien.  Once the mothership is low enough, time a shot that will go through your path and through a hole in the Purple Band.  Kill the Alien for megapoints.

Alternate Strategy: The mothership moves down, but it will stop moving just before it destroys your ship. At it's lowest point, the cannon of your ship overlaps the orange belly by just one pixel as long as you have not shot the center. This will allow you to shoot right through the belly. The strategy is to destroy the purple ribbon by shooting at it from the sides of the mothership but do not shoot the middle of the belly. Once the mothership has stopped moving, move to the center and destroy the boss with one hit. This will score 9000 points.