Namco's 1986 three-dimensional shooter arcade game Thunder Ceptor (which usurped Libble Rabble and Toy Pop as their most powerful 8-bit game) is divided into four commands; as with Namco's own Pole Position, and Pole Position II, this game will start immediately as soon as you have inserted your coin. By using the analogue joystick (the controls of which are "reversed"), the two buttons and the acceleration pedal, you must make it from the start of each command to the end before running out of power - if that should happen, your game will immediately be over and your play time, score and ranking will be displayed in the centre of the screen. However, after you have made it to the end of each command, the text "CONGRATULATIONS! COMMAND X FINISHED" (X being the number of that command); the game will then report how many enemies you shot down for each class, and for every star that appears below the texts "SHOT DOWN FRIGATES", "SHOT DOWN DESTROYERS", "SHOT DOWN CRUISERS", and "SHOT DOWN BATTLESHIPS", you will receive 1000 bonus points. The Thunder Ceptor's power meter and napalm bombs will then be replenished, before going to the next command...