Galaga '88/Stages 27-29

Dimensions 2 & 3

Dimensions 4 & 5

These are the final three stages in the game. Much like stages 8 through 10, they feature a vertically scrolling challenge in which enemies and other obstacles appear. After you travel far enough into the stage, the entire formation appears all at once. Since these are the last stages, there are no opportunities to obtain warp capsules. The 27th stage will culminate in a fight with a boss. Which boss you fight is determined by the dimension you encounter them in.

Upon completing the bonus stage in Stage 26 and prior to arriving in Stage 27, you are presented with the image of a particular woman. You are shown one woman with green hair if you arrive in Dimensions 2 or 3, and you are shown a different woman with purple hair if you arrive in Dimensions 4 or 5. Each woman offers you some encouragement before they disappear and the next stage begins. Who these women are, and why they appear now is not entirely clear. It is assumed that they are some sort of assistant or liaison to your central command back home, and are congratulating you just before the final leg of the battle begins.

Dimension 2

Stage 27

Enemies encountered

1. Four zako will fly down together in a row. As they do, the first of many asteroids will come into view.
2. Three goei will appear from the upper right corner. Shortly after that, four more goei will appear from the upper left corner, and fly among the asteroids.
3. The red asteroids which take eight shots will now fill the left and right sides of the screen, leaving only a narrow path down the middle. At this time, a series of brown asteroids (which only need four shots) will descend down the middle. Between sets of brown asteroids, a lone brown Don will weave back and forth down the screen.
4. After the asteroids begin to clear out near the top, two Nins will attack simultaneously.

After the two Nins disappear, the screen comes to a stop. The background will rumble as the entire stage formation appears instantly. Rely on the same strategies that got you through stages 8 through 10. If you have double or triple shots, it shouldn't be too hard to thin out the formation before they start to descend. Keep moving to avoid attacks, and don't let your Fighter get pinned into a corner where it's vulnerable to enemy fire.

Stage 28

Enemies encountered

1. This stage starts off with a single combine Goei descending down the screen as it winds back and forth.
2. As the first asteroid appears, you will be attacked by six pairs of Nins that appear one pair at a time. More asteroids will show up and likely get in the way of your shots as you attempt to shoot each Nin three times to destroy them. Destroy what you can, and dodge the rest.
3. After the sixth pair appears, a single crystal will fall down near the left side of the screen. This is followed by a group of baby Dons who are arranged in the shape of a zako. It is incredibly hard to defeat all of them, even if you have a Triple Fighter and are well prepared for them, but if you manage it, you will earn 4600 bonus points.

After the baby Dons pass, the screen will stop scrolling and the formation will come into view. All of the same strategies for the previous stage apply. Fire up at the formation as rapidly as possible while moving back and forth to draw the enemy's fire. As with all of Dimension 2, the trickiest enemies to deal with will be the Nins, so try to eliminate them as quickly as possible.

Stage 29

Enemies encountered

1. This stage starts immediately with four goei flying in a line down the left side, and an Amoeba moving back and forth along the right.
2. Four zako will appear on the screen together in a row along with a second Amoeba.
3. The next enemies to appear will be all four Nins together in a single row. Two extra Nin will also appear right above them.
4. Lastly, two combined goei will criss-cross down the screen.

At this time, the boss of Dimension 2 will appear. An oversized version of one type of Nin creature will appear at the top of the screen. It attacks much like the mini-boss you encountered in stage 10, by shooting bullets at you, as well as spawning several enemies such as zakos, goeis, Dons, Boss Galagas, and combined goeis. It takes 20 shots to defeat the boss, and you will earn 100,000 points for doing so. You will also earn 10,000 points for every remaining life you have before flying up through the top of the screen. You will then be presented with Ending Message No. 1.

Dimension 3

Stage 27

Enemies encountered

1. Two pairs of goei will appear from both top corners, and fly around the middle of the screen. Around the same time, an Amoeba will appear and fly back and forth along the right side of the screen
2. Three zako will appear, lined up in a row. They dive down towards the bottom, and are quickly followed up by a second trio of zako.
3. Four zakos fly down in a single file, as a second Amoeba appears along the left side of the screen.
4. Three Boss Galagas will appear as a third Amoeba appears on the right side of the screen. They are followed up by another trio of zako flying together in a row.
5. A cluster of brown asteroids fall as a single combined goei weaves back and forth, dropping to the bottom of the screen.

After the asteroids pass, the screen comes to a stop. The background will rumble as the entire stage formation appears instantly. Rely on the same strategies that got you through stages 8 through 10. If you have double or triple shots, it shouldn't be too hard to thin out the formation before they start to descend. Keep moving to avoid attacks, and don't let your Fighter get pinned into a corner where it's vulnerable to enemy fire.

Stage 28

Enemies encountered

1. This stage starts off with two combine Goei descending down the screen as they criss-cross winding back and forth.
2. As the first asteroid appears, you will be attacked by four pairs of Pans that appear one pair at a time. More asteroids will show up and likely get in the way of your shots as you attempt to shoot each Pan four times to destroy them. Destroy what you can, and dodge the rest.
3. Before the fourth pair of Pans appears, brown asteroids will drop through the left path created by the red asteroids. Then the fourth pair will follow behind.
4. Finally, a group of baby Dons will appear arranged in the shape of a butterfly. It is incredibly hard to defeat all of them, even if you have a Triple Fighter and are well prepared for them, but if you manage it, you will earn 5200 bonus points.

After the baby Dons pass, the screen will stop scrolling and the formation will come into view. All of the same strategies for the previous stage apply. Fire up at the formation as rapidly as possible while moving back and forth to draw the enemy's fire. As with all of Dimension 3, the trickiest enemies to deal with will be the Pans, so try to eliminate them as quickly as possible. Don't remain beneath them as they fly down unless you are very close to popping them.

Stage 29

Enemies encountered

1. This stage starts immediately with four goei flying in a line down the left side. A field of red asteroids appears quickly after.
2. As the asteroids fill in, a combine goei will glide down the screen, followed shortly by a second combined goei.
3. A trio of a type of Kan will fly down the screen at this point. Unlike their Dimension 4 counterparts, these Kan are always exposed, and never flip over to their armored side. You earn 2200 points for each one you destroy.
4. All four differently colored Pans will appear at the top of the screen and criss-cross with one another as they descend. This attack formation repeats a second time shortly after.

At this time, the boss of Dimension 3 will appear. An oversized version of the Dimension 1 zako will appear at the top of the screen. It attacks much like the mini-boss you encountered in stage 10, by shooting bullets at you, as well as spawning several enemies such as zakos, goeis, Dons, Boss Galagas, and combined goeis. It takes 20 shots to defeat the boss, and you will earn 200,000 points for doing so. You will also earn 10,000 points for every remaining life you have before flying up through the top of the screen. You will then be presented with Ending Message No. 2.

Dimension 4

Stage 27

Enemies encountered

1. Four goei will appear single file, and fly around the middle of the screen. Around the same time, a cluster of red asteroids will appear along the right half of the screen.
2. Four zako will appear, and follow nearly the same path as the goei before them. Afterward, a series of brown asteroids will drop down along the left half of the screen.
3. Four more goei will appear and follow the same path as the first set. More red asteroids will follow, clustered more around the middle.
4. A set of crystals will drop down the left side of the screen, and a combined goei will follow behind them.
5. Four exposed Kans will descend from the top. These Kans will remain exposed the whole time, and will not shield themselves from your attacks. Each one is worth 2200 points when destroyed.
6. Finally, a set of baby Dons will descend down the right side of the screen, roughly arranged in the shape of a Galaxian flagship. It is fairly difficult to destroy all of them, but if you manage to do it, you will earn 5800 bonus points.

After the baby Dons disappear, the screen comes to a stop. The background will rumble as the entire stage formation appears instantly. Rely on the same strategies that got you through stages 8 through 10. If you have double or triple shots, it shouldn't be too hard to thin out the formation before they start to descend. Keep moving to avoid attacks, and don't let your Fighter get pinned into a corner where it's vulnerable to enemy fire.

Stage 28

Enemies encountered

1. This stage starts off with four exposed Kan enemies flying down the screen in single file. Red asteroids will also begin to appear around the middle.
2. A different set of four exposed Kan enemies will fly down the screen as well. A red asteroids will be flying around off to the right side of the screen.
3. Yet another set of four exposed Kan enemies will fly down.
4. An Amoeba will appear at the top of the screen. At the same time, two pairs of zakos will swoop down to attack, criss-crossing in the middle.
5. One pair of combined goei will fly down the screen, on opposites sides, followed quickly by another pair.

After the combined goei pass, the screen will stop scrolling and the formation will come into view. All of the same strategies for the previous stage apply. Fire up at the formation as rapidly as possible while moving back and forth to draw the enemy's fire. As with all of Dimension 4, the trickiest enemies to deal with will be the Kans. Do your best to destroy everything thing that drops down below them, and pick them off whenever they leave the formation and make themselves vulnerable to attack.

Stage 29

Enemies encountered

1. Four zakos will fly down from the upper right corner, lined up in a row. A single red asteroid will also appear in the upper right corner.
2. A set of brown asteroids will appear down the middle of the screen. A trio of exposed Kans will fly down among them. More red asteroids will appear throughout the screen.
3. Three more exposed Kan will appear from the upper left corner. They will be followed by another quartet of zakos flying together in a row.
4. A mixture of all four types of Kans will fly down together, followed quickly by a single combined goei.

At this time, the boss of Dimension 4 will appear. An oversized version of one of the Kanso will appear at the top of the screen. It attacks much like the mini-boss you encountered in stage 10, by shooting bullets at you, as well as spawning several enemies such as zakos, goeis, Dons, Boss Galagas, and combined goeis. It takes 20 shots to defeat the boss, and you will earn 300,000 points for doing so. You will also earn 10,000 points for every remaining life you have before flying up through the top of the screen. You will then be presented with Ending Message No. 3.

Dimension 5

Stage 27

Enemies encountered

1. Four zako will appear, lined up in a row. Red asteroids will soon follow along the left-hand side of the screen.
2. Four goei will snake down the screen. They will be followed by two pairs of Dons criss-crossing along the right hand side.
3. After the Dons pass, a series of brown asteroids will fall down the right side. They are followed by a set of four zakos flying in a single file.
4. Four goei will follow the zakos, and then a single crystal will fly down the left side of the screen.
5. Finally, a set of baby Don will fly down the left side of the screen, in the shape of a Boss Galaga. It's very difficult to eliminate all of them, but if you succeed, you will be awarded 6400 bonus points.

After the baby Dons disappear, the screen comes to a stop. The background will rumble as the entire stage formation appears instantly. Rely on the same strategies that got you through stages 8 through 10. You'll have to deal with a few Kans in this stage, so be careful dealing with the enemies above them, and remove the Kans when they are exposed. Keep moving to avoid attacks, and don't let your Fighter get pinned into a corner where it's vulnerable to enemy fire.

Stage 28

Enemies encountered

1. The stage starts out immediately with two sets of all four colored Dons flying from both upper corners. They criss-cross back and forth down the middle.
2. Two pairs of Dons will fly after the first sets. Red asteroids will begin to appear along the left half of the screen.
3. Four pairs of Dons, one of each color fly down the screen among the asteroids. Afterwards, a set of crystals will fly down the right side of the screen.
4. Another two pairs of Dons will fly down the screen, followed by two combined goei crossing back and forth. As the goei drop, a set of brown asteroids will drop. Choose one side of the screen to clear a path through, and watch out for a third lone combine goei dropping down behind them.

After the combined goei pass, the screen will stop scrolling and the formation will come into view. All of the same strategies for the previous stage apply. Fire up at the formation as rapidly as possible while moving back and forth to draw the enemy's fire. As with most of Dimension 5, you must deal with a combination of Pans and Nins, both of which require multiple hits to destroy. Fire at them as rapidly as possible to remove them as a threat.

Stage 29

Enemies encountered

1. Four pairs of Dons, one of each color, will dive down from the top of the screen, and converge in the middle.
2. They are followed by four pairs of Nins who fly together in a row. Because it takes a lot of shot to destroy Nins, they will fire at you almost the whole way down.
3. Next come four pairs of Pans. Once again, they take a lot of shots to destroy, so you can expect a lot of bullets to rain down on you. It's pretty difficult to survive these assaults without getting hit.
4. And after that, you will face all four types of exposed Kans.
5. Finally, you will face one of every type of combined goei. You must weave around the bullets while trying to remove some of the goei that fly down.

At this time, the boss of Dimension 5 will appear. An oversized version of a Boss Galaga will appear at the top of the screen. It attacks much like the mini-boss you encountered in stage 10, by shooting bullets at you, as well as spawning several enemies such as zakos, goeis, Dons, Boss Galagas, and combined goeis. It takes 20 shots to defeat the boss, and you will earn 400,000 points for doing so. You will also earn 10,000 points for every remaining life you have before flying up through the top of the screen. You will then be presented with Ending Message No. 4.