Moon Cresta/Walkthrough

Once you insert your coin into the cabinet of Nichibutsu's 1980 fixed shooter arcade game Moon Cresta (and press the Start Button), Moon Cresta itself will fly up into view from the bottom of the screen; Stage I will then separate from the other two as they fly back down off the bottom of the screen again, and lower itself down into position as four Cold Eyes appear above it and start flying around. Once you have fired a shot at one of the Cold Eyes, it shall split into two - and once you have fired another shot at both of its "halves" (which are now separate entities), it will kill them. After clearing the first wave, four more differently-coloured Cold Eyes shall appear above the current stage of Moon Cresta; even if Stage I is destroyed early on in the game it is still possible to do well with Stage II by itself (but not Stage III, as its cannons are spaced further apart and it is very easy for aliens to destroy by flying into).

After clearing the second wave eight Super Flies will appear above the current stage of Moon Cresta and start flying around; once you have fired a shot at one of them, it'll kill it immediately (this also applies to the three subsequent alien types). After clearing the third wave, eight more differently-coloured Super Flies shall appear above the current stage of Moon Cresta - and after clearing the fourth wave (unless the current stage is Stage III) the text "MISSION AIM DOCKING OF ROCKETS USING LEVER AND BUTTON" will appear on the screen, as the current stage (I or II) flies up to the centre of the screen, and the next one (II or III) comes up into view from the bottom of it. You shall then have thirty seconds to direct the current stage onto the next one, using the joystick to slow its descent; if you succeed, the text "RIGHT ON!" will appear on the screen and you will receive 100 points for every second you have remaining. However, if you run out of time or crash, only the stage that was attempting to dock will be lost and the game will continue.

Eight Four-Ds will then appear above the current stage(s) of Moon Cresta and start flying around; these aliens can also become invisible and continue to move when you cannot see them. Stages I and II have a total of three cannons when docked but Stages II and III have a total of four - and if either of the docked stages is hit by an alien, only that stage will be destroyed, leaving the remaining one to continue by itself. After clearing the fifth wave, eight more differently-coloured Four-Ds will appear above the current stage(s) of Moon Cresta, and start flying around; after clearing the sixth wave, you will have to move all the way to the right side of the screen, because that is the only safe spot from the eight Meteors that have appeared above the current stage(s) of Moon Cresta and are flying down towards it/them. You shall then have to move back to the left and fire a well-aimed shot at each Meteor to destroy it, before retreating back to the right again - and after clearing the seventh wave, more of the same shall ensue, as eight more differently-coloured Meteors appear above the current stage(s) of Moon Cresta and fly down towards it/them. After clearing the eighth wave (again, unless the current stage is Stage III by itself), another docking sequence will ensue; if you succeed again and didn't lose any, all three stages of Moon Cresta have a total of five cannons.

Eight Atomic Piles will then appear above the current stage(s) of Moon Cresta, and start flying around; these aliens start out resembling skulls, but once they have seen Moon Cresta, they will transform into arrows and fly down towards it. Again, if any of the three docked stages is hit by an alien, only that stage will be destroyed (which results in an amusing sight if Stage II is destroyed leaving Stages I and III to continue by themselves) - and after clearing the ninth wave eight more differently-coloured Atomic Piles will appear above the current stage(s) of Moon Cresta and start flying around. After clearing the tenth wave, the text "FAR OUT!" will appear on the screen as the remaining stages of Moon Cresta fly off the top of it; the game will then start again at a higher level of difficulty (the Cold Eyes shall immediately split into two for this cycle, and the Atomic Piles shall immediately transform into arrows!).

If you manage to reach 60000 points, the text "ENJOY ANOTHER GAME" shall appear on the screen, once the last remaining stage of Moon Cresta is destroyed (and you get to continue from that point with another Moon Cresta rocket); once all three stages of this one are destroyed, the text "PLAYER 1/2 OVER. GAME OVER", based on whether you were player 1 or 2, shall appear on the screen (if you did not manage to reach 60000 points, this text shall appear once the last remaining stage of the only one you had is destroyed). The game will then, if you had managed to reach 5000 points, go into "high-score" mode - and once you have entered your initials (three characters) at the top of the table with pride the game will go back into attract mode.