Stage types[edit]
Make no mistake, Hector '87 is an incredibly difficult game to play. It is considered one of the few shooters where having a turbo-fire enabled controller is practically required. In order to survive, you must anticipate the arrival of difficult enemies, and eliminate them before they fill the screen with bullets or simply congest the screen themselves. Arming yourself with the knowledge of what to look for, and how to refuel your shields is one half of the battle; having good reflexes is the other half.
Vertical stages[edit]
Vertical stages take place during the odd levels (1, 3, and 5). In these levels your two weapons, the photon cannon and the cluster bombs, work independently of one another to attack air and ground targets respectively. Ground targets must be bombed, and they must typically be hit with several cluster bombs in order to fully destroy them. On occassion, you may find that a target on the ground will explode where there was no visible target. If you hit this target a second time, all other visible ground targets will blow up. Keep an eye out for these secret bomb targets. Another target may look like a simple mound of dirt. After bombing it a few times, it will turn into an open book. Bomb it a few more times to reveal a letter inside, H and E in stage 1, C and T in stage 3, and O and R in stage 5. Each letter occurs twice. You earn 10,000 points for revealing each letter, and you earn a special million point bonus if you find all 6 of them.
Horizontal stages[edit]
Horizontal stages take place during the even levels (2, 4, and 6). They have fewer features to hunt for than vertical stages. In addition, the object which provides capsules of energy to restore your shield looks the same in all three stages. These stages are divided into two parts, an outdoor section and an indoor section. Each stage starts with the outdoor section, followed by a much longer indoor section. The game transitions between them as soon as you approach the opening that leads inside. Horizontal stages tend to be a bit harder than vertical stages since enemies appear to move through the screen much faster. Despite the fact that both weapons will work on any target, ground or airborne, they are slightly less effective due to the nature of the perspective.
History 1: Inca Empire[edit]
The first history you explore is the Inca Empire, found in the region known today as Peru. Look for the H and E tiles, and bomb the demon heads that you find in the ground to release energy capsules. Destroy the black orbs that rise from the ground before they detonate.
Boss: Iotakyanon[edit]
The boss of this history contains eight stationary cannons, four on either side, as well as two oscillating cannons that release a quadruple of energy orbs. The middle cannons fire directly downward so focus on the outside cannons first. When they are eliminated, begin your attack on the middle cannons. In order to destroy them, you must fire on the source of the four energy orbs before they leave the cannon. If you hit them with a bomb, they will shut down. Once the cannons fire, you must wait for them to begin to recharge before you can hope to damage them again. Once all four chutes are disabled, the oscillating cannon will be destroyed. When both oscillating cannons are destroyed, along with the eight outside cannons, the boss is defeated.
History 2: Maya Empire[edit]
It's a short hop from your first historical destination to your second, the empire of the Mayans in southern North America. This is the first horizontal stage, so you'll need to learn to identify the energy capsule producing machines that you must bomb to restore your shields. The inside section looks strangely alive, but don't let it distract you from all the enemies that will appear to attack you. Watch out for the giant columns of flame that rip through the screen.
Boss: Maya Face[edit]
It may have taken a lot of effort to reach the end of this location, but the battle won't be nearly as difficult. Simply concentrate your focus on the face of the large segmented boss, and quickly move out of the way when it begins to fire back at you. This is no other relevant strategy to this fight.
History 3: Atlantis Continent[edit]
Back to another vertically scrolling section, the third history is the mysterious lost continent of Atlantis, which appears to be underwater. There won't be too many surprises if you are familiar with the tactics of the enemies from the first history. The horse heads become your target for regaining energy. Watch out for the large enemies that swoop down from the top of the screen before doubling back. Look for hidden bombs that take out all of the other ground targets.
Boss: Atlan Commander[edit]
This giant head is surrounded by turrets that pop in and out of sea. Don't focus your attention on them, simply be aware of them and be prepared to move out of the way when they fire in your direction. Concentrate your attack on the face of the giant, specifically each eye. Occasionally, the mouth will open, and it will spray projectiles in your direction. Your photo cannons can not penetrate through the red projectiles, so you will be forced to move completely out of the way while they fan out towards you. Anticipate their arrival and continue to shoot out each eye, one at a time. After completely shutting one eye down, focus on the other. When both eyes are destroyed the boss will be defeated.
History 4: Egypt[edit]
The fourth history, and second horizontal section, takes place in ancient Egypt. The fighting outside will barely prepare you for what's to come on the inside. Passing through the inner chambers of a pyramid, you will have to make up your mind when approaching certain dividing paths. Chose the paths that have more room for you to maneuver in. Keep your eye open for enemies that appear behind you as well as in front.
Boss: Eejee Golem[edit]
This giant golem lies in wait in the back chamber of the pyramid. It stomps back and forth, shaking the ceiling, and causing loose bricks to drop to the ground. Naturally, you must dodge these bricks as they fall, as well as the small projectiles that the golem fires at you. While you may be tempted to fire at the golem's face, it's true point of vulnerability is actually the large gem on his chest. You must fire continuously at that gem until the golem is destroyed. Stay on your toes to knock the golem off his.
History 5: Mu Continent[edit]
The fifth history and final vertically scrolling stage in the game takes place over another fabled lost continent known simply as Mu. This one appears to reside in an area populated by volcanoes. You won't have to worry about any lava, but you will have to dodge the abundance of enemies that come out to attack you here. Enemies will continue to fly out from ground hatches unless you completely bomb the hatches. Small statues standing on square bases will provide you with energy if you bomb them.
Boss: Mu Medaru[edit]
Once again, this is a boss that is surrounded by a set of turrets, but you should not focus on them, only on the boss itself. The boss will lift off from the mountain peak and surround itself with a collection of eight rotating orbs. Your one and only goal will be to continuously fire at these orbs until all eight have been destroyed. It will take a lot of work to wear them down, especially since they rotate around quite fast. Continue to monitor the turrets for projectiles being fired at you and dodge them accordingly while concentrating your fire ahead. Once the last orb is destroyed, focus a little more firepower on the boss itself until it is destroyed.
History 6: Yamataikoku[edit]
The final history takes place along a lost Japanese civilization. Enemy activity will be at an all time high here with enemies appearing in both directions quite frequently. Although staying very high or very low will keep you safe for short durations through the stage, you should not rely on staying at those altitudes for very long, and should continue moving to stay alive. The inner portion of the level has a number of columns that jut from the ceiling and the floor, so you must continue to move in order to avoid crashing into the walls.
Boss: Hector[edit]
At the end of this level, you will find the creature responsible for causing all the havoc throughout these lost civilizations in history. This brain like creature has encased itself in a sac to prevent it from getting hurt by pilots such as yourself who would try to defeat it. It further defends itself by throwing out packs of projectiles that dip down a bit before rising back up to the ceiling. You must be very careful when dodging these projectiles. In order to defeat the boss, you must first fire abundantly upon the sac, and then once the sac is been destroyed and removed, continue to fire on the brain itself until it is destroyed. Because of the way the projectiles tend to follow you, the best strategy is to alternate between the lower left hand corner of the screen, and the upper right hand corner, above the brain itself. Alternate between these two positions when the projectiles begin to fire. Remember that the projectile tend to come in two sets so time your moves accordingly. If you safely alternate between these two positions, you should have no problem wearing down the bosses defenses with your weapons.