Controls[edit]
- Joystick: Use the joystick to control the R-9a and guide it through space. You can direct the R-9a in any one of eight directions.
- Fire: Press the fire button to shoot your weapons. Hold the fire button down to charge up the R-9a's wave beam attack. Release the fire button after charging to fire the wave beam.
- Force: When a Force is attached to the R-9a, press the Force button to separate the Force from your ship. Upon separation, it will fly off to the right if attached to the front of the R-9a, or to the left if attached to the back. When separated, press the Force button to summon the Force back to your ship for reconnection.
- Start: Press the start button to begin a one or two player game. On home consoles, the start button typically pauses the action mid-game.
R-9a "Arrowhead"[edit]
The R-9a is the craft that has been designated as the assault weapon to pit against the entire Bydo army. Highly maneuverable, it has tremendous flight capability through space. However, it's key design is it's upgradeable weapons system. When delivered into battle, it starts out in its weakest state. Throughout combat, the R-9a can utilize special energy signatures left behind by defeated enemies and convert them into powerful weapons. There are a number of enhancements that the R-9a can employ, including increased speed, a missile system, and "Bits" which hover above and below the ship. But the most powerful weapon available to the R-9a is the Force, which is explained below.
In addition to the various enhancements, the R-9a comes equipped with a special Wave Beam attack which is performed by charging up fire power and releasing it at once in a large burst of energy. While charging, the R-9a cannot fire bullets. A single blast of the Wave Beam is capable of wiping out an entire fleet of basic enemies. Larger enemies take a lot of damage when struck by the full power of the Wave Beam, but it may not be enough to destroy them. The R-9a will not survive contact with any enemy or projectile. However the Force, as well as each Bit, is invulnerable and can absorb damage from all attacks or collisions. Use them to shield the R-9a as often as possible.
Force[edit]
The Force is a manifestation of energy that coalesces into a sphere of glowing light with additional metal components that harness the energy and convert it into firepower. When separated from the R-9a, this firepower is in the form of regular bullets. But if the Force is connected to the R-9a, and at a high enough level of power, the combination of the two objects can create one of three different powerful attacks. The player must collect weapon upgrades to increase the Force's power level, as shown below.
| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 |
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| This is the force which will appear upon collecting a weapon upgrade for the first time. At the first level, the Force will not display any properties of the weapon upgrade that you collected, even when attached. It fires a single bullet straight ahead. | After collecting a second weapon upgrade, the Force will evolve. It will fire two guns at a slight upward and downward angle. When attached to your ship, it will fire a weakened version of the weapon upgrade that you collected. | Collecting three weapon upgrades will promote the Force to its final level of power. At this level, it fires the full effect of your current weapon upgrade while attached to the ship. When detached, it fires bullets above and below, as well as two bullets at an outward angle ahead. |
While the Force is present on the screen, it can be manipulated through the use of the Force button. When connected to the R-9a, the force button will rocket the Force apart from the ship. If connected to the front, the Force will fly to the right. If connected to the back, it will fly left. In this manner, the Force can be used as a weapon and fired ahead or behind the ship. When the Force is disconnected from the R-9a, it seeks to fly at the same height on the screen as the ship. However, it will occupy the right half of the screen while the player is on the left half. If the player advances to the right half, the Force will slide back to the left side. When separated from the R-9a, the Force button can be used to summon the Force to the ship's proximity for reattachment. The Force can be connected to the front or the rear of the R-9a, providing extra firepower in whichever direction it is facing.
Weapon upgrades[edit]
There are three different weapon upgrades available to the R-9a throughout its battle with the Bydo empire.
| Anti-air Laser | Reflection Laser | Counter Ground Laser |
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| The Anti-air Laser fires destructive beams of red and blue light straight ahead of the Force. At full power, these beams curve and cross one another in a transverse wave. This is the only weapon upgrade that cause the Bits to fire as well. | When fired, the Reflection Lasers shoot three beams ahead of the Force: one straight ahead, and two at 45 degree angles. When they touch the terrain, they reflect off of the surface and continue on. At full power the beams reach their maximum length. | The Counter Ground Laser fires two plumes of flame directly above and below the Force, which continue to travel through space until they hit terrain. Once they touch down, they hug the surface and burn anything in their path. |
Additional upgrades[edit]
Besides weapons, there are three other types of upgrades that the R-9a can collect and utilize during battle.
| Bit | Speed Up | Missiles |
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| A Bit is a small essence of Force energy that can occupy the spaces above and below the R-9a. The first Bit collected will hover above the ship, while the second Bit will hover below. Ordinarily, they act only as shields and do not fire, but if the Anti-air Laser is activated, the Bits will fire additional beams of energy. | A Speed Up module can be collected to boost the speed of the R-9a as it moves through space. The more modules collected, the faster the R-9a will move as you guide it around the screen. Don't collect too many Speed Ups however, or you may find that the ship becomes too difficult to precisely control. | The Missile component is an especially helpful upgrade that will provide the R-9a with the ability to launch two missiles. They are homing missiles that lock on to the location of various enemy threats and pursue them until they collide. Although your guns won't fire while charging the Wave Beam, missiles will continue to launch from the R-9a. |
Recommended Upgrades[edit]
Air laser is the most powerful weapon to use when combined with bits and is the recommended weapon, with just a couple of changes on certain levels.
You can complete the game with only one speed up. It's recommended to only collect one particularly if you can complete loop 1 because the game runs faster on loop 2.