Advices, recommendations for G Darius, platform PSX
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* G.Darius FAQ Version 1.01 *
* By: Zach Keene (zjkeene@bellsouth.net) *
* Last Updated: 30 May 1999 *
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Table of Contents . . . . . . 7
1) Introduction . . . . . . . 49
2) What's New? . . . . . . . 85
3) Credits . . . . . . . 96
4) Legal Crap . . . . . . . 115
5) History of Darius, Part VI . . . . . 130
Part I - G.Darius 101 . . . . . 149
5) Introduction to G.Darius 101 . . . . . 151
6) Weapons . . . . . . . 169
7) Powerups . . . . . . . 328
8) Scoring . . . . . . . 365
9) Technical Ranking . . . . . . 447
10) Miscellaneous Info . . . . . . 510
11) Audio Info . . . . . . . 542
12) Video Info . . . . . . . 619
Part II - Zone Guides . . . . . 648
13) Introduction to the Zone Guides . . . . 650
14) Zone Alpha . . . . . . . 706
15) Zone Beta . . . . . . . 757
16) Zone Gamma . . . . . . . 855
17) Zone Delta . . . . . . . 988
18) Zone Epsilon . . . . . . 1079
19) Zone Zeta . . . . . . . 1167
20) Zone Eta . . . . . . . 1228
21) Zone Theta . . . . . . . 1361
22) Zone Iota . . . . . . . 1433
23) Zone Kappa . . . . . . . 1507
24) Zone Lambda . . . . . . . 1586
25) Zone Mu . . . . . . . 1672
26) Zone Nu . . . . . . . 1761
27) Zone Xi . . . . . . . 1861
28) Zone Omicron . . . . . . 1930
29) The G.Darius One-Page Travelogue . . . . 2015
Part III - G.Darius Merchandise . . . . 2065
30) Guide Book Info . . . . . . 2067
31) Soundtrack Info . . . . . . 2090
32) The End . . . . . . . 2128
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::: Introduction ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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Just when you thought I had played CSOTN far too many times, here's
another Zach Keene production loaded to the gills (no pun intended) with
more useless information and statistics than anyone ever needed to know
about a game.
My introduction to the Darius series was, unfortunately, the mediocre
SNES title Darius Twin. I could ramble on about that, but I'll save it for
a future FAQ. (WARNING! A huge number of Darius FAQs are approaching fast!)
Needless to say, it was missing a few things that made (most) of the Darius
games great. Like, for instance, something resembling a challenge. :)
Anyhow, based on a stream of E-mails from someone (and he knows who he
is) telling me how cool G. Darius is, I decided to give it a try. Before I
got my hands on it, I managed to play the TG-16 version of the original,
and found it to be the game Darius Twin should have been. Based on that, I
was sold on G. Darius, and was not disappointed. Vic's Disposable Shooter
Syndrome[tm] notwithstanding, that is.
Enough rambling from me. Onward with the FAQ!
This FAQ was written using the world's most powerful typewriter, that
blue-screened wonder, the MS-DOS Edit. For best results view with a
monospace font (like Courier New), 75 characters a line, 8 characters a
tab. Send any comments, corrections, additions, subtractions, suggestions,
bribes, etc. to zjkeene@bellsouth.net
Where to get the latest version of this FAQ
-------------------------------------------
ftp://members.aol.com/fnlfanatic/arcanelore/gdarius.txt
[This version is always current]
GameFaqs - http://www.gamefaqs.com/
Playstation Haven - http://www.geocities.com/timessquare/chasm/7380/
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::: What's New ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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Version 1.0 - (30 May 1999)
- First public release version of the G.Darius FAQ
Version 1.01 - (31 May 1999)
- A few corrections and clarifications made.
- Note about playing the movies with a Gameshark added.
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::: Credits :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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Dave Connoy
- Lots of various things, from pointing out mistakes and giving a
few strategies.
Japanese Manual and Official Guide Book
- For giving Alan Kwan info to give to me.
Kurt Kalata
- Information about (not) playing the movies on a Gameshark.
Alan Kwan
- Sent me a ton of info from the official Japanese G.Darius guide
book and stuff from the Japanese manual that didn't make it into
the Western manuals. Not to mention pointing out a few million
of my numerous typos and adding some comments here and there.
(I've left most of his contributions verbatim, rather than trying
to rewrite everything.)
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::: Legal Crap ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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This G. Darius FAQ is (C) 1999 Zach Keene. As Grand Poo-bah of
Copyrightedness, I grant upon thee the following rights:
1) Thou mayst give this FAQ to whomever you so choose. The key word here is
"give". If anybody gets paid for this, it darn well better be me. :)
2) Thou mayst put this FAQ up on thine website, so long as it remains
completely intact. And I do mean completely.
G. Darius is TM and (C) 1998 Taito Corporation.
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::: History of Darius, Part VI ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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G. Darius is, for the moment, the most recent game in the long-running
Darius series. The only versions I am aware of are the Arcade and PSX
versions. I'm not sure whether the arcade version made it outside of Japan.
That's mostly because all arcades near me suck royally, containing only
the latest fighting/racing clones. Not that fighting and racing are
necessarily bad, mind you, just that a little variety wouldn't hurt. Also,
I refuse on general principle to pay money to an arcade that doesn't have
at least one Galaga machine.
Distinguishing G. Darius from the rest are the updated graphics. G.
sports more polygonal sprites (isn't that an oxymoron?) than the straight
2D of previous games. This is especially apparent in the boss fights. If
you've not played G. Darius, you don't know jack about boss fights.
(Radiant Silvergun _might_ be a possible exception to that, but that's
another story. :)
---------------------------Part I - G.Darius 101---------------------------
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::: Introduction to G. Darius 101 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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One of my FAQs wouldn't be complete without a section that contains info
that any moron could find in the instruction manual or figure out on their
own. With that in mind, here is a rundown of the basic operations of the
Silver Hawk fighter.
Your fighter comes standard with missile, bomb, and shield-generation
capabilites. On top of that, the Capture Ball system that was sort of
half-assed into Darius Gaiden has been given a complete overhaul and is
now actually useful. Instead of only being able to capture mini-bosses
if you killed them in the correct way, you can now capture almost any
enemy at any time and use them for your own fiendish purposes.
The next few sections of the FAQ will take a closer look at the Silver
Hawk's offensive and defensive capabilites, and some other basic G. Darius
facts.
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::: Weapons :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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* Missiles *
Same as with any shooter, you start the game with nothing but a pea
shooter. Your main cannon has three main levels, each with seven sublevels.
As you pick up Red Orbs (usually obtained by destroying red-coloured
enemies), your cannon will go up one sublevel. Picking up a seventh Red
Orb transforms your cannon into a Laser. Seven more Red Orbs will transform
your Laser into a Wave cannon.
Assuming, of course, that you survive long enough to pick up that many
Red Orbs. When you die, your cannon remains at the level it was before you
died, but all sublevels are lost. Example, if you die with a level 5 Laser,
your next ship begins with a level 0 Laser.
[Alan:] In the "Beginner" and "Boss" modes in the PS version, there
is no power down until you continue. Also, in those modes, a new ship
starts equipped with the maximum armor.
Also note that when your cannon levels up, you actually lose a little bit
of power. For example, a level 6 Missile is more powerful than a level 0
Laser.
The Missile cannon is your standard pea shooter, and as it gains
sublevels it fires more shots at once. It cannot penetrate either enemies
or terrain. The Laser increases in length and power with each sublevel. It
can penetrate most enemies, but is absorbed by the terrain. The Wave cannon
grows in size and power with each sublevel. It can penetrate through both
enemies and terrain, making it the weapon of choice for finding hidden
power-ups.
* Bombs *
Your ship also has the capability to drop bombs (a la the Missiles in
Gradius). The Bomb has 3 levels, each with 4 sublevels. They increase in
size and power as their sublevels increase.
The standard Bomb drops diagonally forward and down. Collecting 4 Green
Orbs transforms it into a Twin Bomb, which launches missiles both
forward/up and forward/down. Four more Green Orbs gets you a Multi-Bomb,
which launches in all four diagonal directions.
Again, when your ship is destroyed, the current level of your Bombs is
retained, but all sublevels are lost.
* Armour *
The Silver Hawk can also generate a force field that protects it from
enemy fire and collisions, to some extent. It has 3 levels, each with
6 sublevels. The current sublevel of the Armour has no bearing on the
strength of the shield, other than collecting a Blue Orb will restore
the shield to its full power.
Alan Kwan provides some info from the Japanese manual and guide book:
"Picking up a blue orb when your ship has no armor will
give you 3 points of armor. Picking up a blue orb when your ship
already has armor will add 1, 2, or 3 points (respectively for
Arm, Super, Hyper) to your armor strength, up to the maximum
possible for the armor type (Arm = 3, Super = 4, Hyper = 5).
Crashing into terrain is immediately fatal unless you have
Hyper armor."
The manual seems to imply that the standard Armor can withstand 3 hits,
the Super armour (level 2) can take 4, and the Hyper armour (level 3) can
eat 5. I've yet to test this myself. I'm also not sure the exact effect
enemy lasers, Beta beams, and other various collsions have, other than
sitting in front of a laser is generally a pretty stupid thing to do.
[Alan:] Generally, contact with strong enemy attacks (such as long
lasers and Beta beams) will cause damage to your armor in rapid
succession.
* Capture *
The Silver Hawk is also equipped with a finite number of Capture Balls.
Collecting Purple Orbs will add to your stock of Capture Balls remaining.
When fired (X is the default button for firing a Capture Ball), it will
fire straight ahead and capture almost any enemy it hits. Enemies protected
by Solidnite, some enemy projectiles, gun emplacements, asteroids, and
bosses (duh) cannot be captured. (Firing a capture ball at an uncapturable
enemy seems to do damage, but probably not enough to make it worth your
while.)
Once captured, the enemy will follow your ship and execute various
attacks, depending on which enemy you captured.
[Alan:] When you fire a Capture Ball and it misses, this does not cost
you a Capture Ball from your stock. You can stock up to 6 Capture Balls.
When you die, your next ship begins with the starting number of Capture
Balls (in all game modes).
While captured, you can also do one of two things with an enemy:
1) Press X again to detonate it. The blast it creates will damage (or
destroy) all enemies and absorb all projectiles within its range.
From the Japanese manual:
This is called the Capture Bomb. The size of the explosion,
as well as the duration of invulnerablity of your ship, depends
on the size of the captured enemy detonated:
small enemy (except some) - small explosion, 2 sec invulnerable
big enemy (and some small ones, especially "explosive" types)
- medium explosion, 3 sec invulnerable
mid-boss - large explosion, 4 sec invulnerable
2) Hold O for a while to charge up the Alpha Beam. This is an
ultra-powerful attack that can absorb all projectiles and generally
cause mass mayhem. If your Alpha Beam encounters a boss's Beta Beam,
your Alpha Beam will absorb the Beta Beam and become more powerful
(and larger, too.) The result of this is an Alpha Counter that Ryu,
Ken et al can only dream of performing. :) As powerful as it is, the
Alpha Beam is blocked by Solidnite. Some bosses
*cough*The Embryon*cough* will often use this to their advantage, by
throwing several Beta Beams your way for you to absorb... then
flooding the screen with Solidnite Bullets that make you waste your
beam. Bloody annoying, that...
From the guide book:
The initial size of the alpha beam depends on the size of
the captured enemy consumed:
Small enemy - normal alpha beam
Big enemy - normal x1.5 alpha beam
Mini-boss - counter beam
The duration of the alpha beam is 5 seconds (regardless of size), but
you can extend it by up to 2 more seconds by pressing the "square"
button. Absorbing a beta beam resets the duration timer to a new 5
seconds.
* What exactly happens when you counter? *
[Quoted verbatim from Alan Kwan.]
Once your alpha beam meets the boss's beta beam, pressing the
"square" button (or rapid-fire the "circle" button) puts more
power into your alpha beam, until eventually you've put in enough
power to effect a counter. This upgrades your alpha beam, resets
the duration timer for your counter beam, and causes the beta
beam to wither.
If you do not press the "square" button, the beta beam will
eventually accumulate enough power to counter your alpha beam,
and cause your alpha beam to wither while the beta beam is
upgraded.
If either beam expires naturally, no counter is effected.
* Invulnerability *
[Info from the Japanese manual.]
Your ship is invulnerable for a second or two in the following
situations:
1) When ship enters play: 4 sec
2) Get item: 0.5 sec
3) Sucessful Capture: 0.5 sec
4) Fire Alpha Beam: 1 sec
5) Use Capture Bomb: see section on "Capture" above
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::: Power-ups :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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* Standard Powerups *
As I briefly mentioned in the Weapon section above, your ship increases
in power by collecting Orbs of various colours. Usually, these Orbs can
be obtained by destroying coloured enemies. Red enemies will drop Red Orbs,
green ones drop Green Orbs, etc.
Red Orbs: Increase your Missile Cannon one sublevel.
Green Orbs: Increase your Bombs by one sublevel.
Blue Orbs: Increase your Armour by one sublevel.
Purple Orbs: Increase your Capture Ball Stock by one.
* Hidden Powerups *
These powerups are not found by destroying enemies, but rather by
shooting at the terrain throughout the level. If you happen to hit a place
where one of these is hidden, it will appear briefly. Keep blasting at
that point to make the powerup come out to collect it.
Silver: Gives you a random amount of bonus points from 50 to 51200.
Alan says (from the guide book): The possible point values
depend on the direction in which your ship is moving when
getting the item. Avoid moving forward since you'll always
get only 100 points. [I've gotten the max of 51200 a few
times by backing into the Silver powerup. - Zach]
Gold: Destroys all on-screen enemies. Has no effect on larger
enemies, however.
1-Up: Looks like a small Silver Hawk in a bubble. Gives you one
more life.
Tricolour: Increases your Missile, Bombs, and Armour each one
sublevel. These will appear onscreen after you use a
continue.
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::: Scoring :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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Obviously, to score points one must shoot stuff. That said, this section
lists a few things that will help you get more bonus points for shooting
stuff.
* Formation Bonus *
Some enemies come in formations, and shooting down every enemy in the
formation will give you some amount of bonus points depending on the
type of enemy. The formation bonus is generally 10 times the score value
of a single enemy.
* Multipliers *
[Info from the Japanese manual.]
Destroying enemies in certain ways will multiply the points you receive
for destroying them. These multipliers will also apply to formation bonuses
(see above), and to bosses.
1) Use a captured enemy somehow to destroy an enemy. This can be either
by ramming into the enemy, the captured enemy's normal attack, or
the special attack of a captured Mini-boss. This is worth a x2
multiplier.
2) Detonate a captured enemy. Anything destroyed by this blast will
award a x3 multiplier.
3) Destroy an enemy with either a normal or x1.5 Alpha Beam. This is
worth a x4 multiplier.
4) Destroy an enemy with a counter Alpha Beam, obtained either by
consuming a Mini-boss or absorbing one Beta Beam. This is worth
a x6 multipler.
5) Destroy an enemy with a double counter beam. This is worth a x8
multiplier.
6) Destroy an enemy with a triple counter beam. This is worth a x10
multiplier.
7) Destroy an enemy with a quadruple counter beam. This is worth a x12
multiplier.
* Powerup Bonus *
If you collect a powerup for a weapon that is already at full strength
(or collect a Purple when you have a full stock of Capture Balls), you'll
get a 5000 point bonus.
[Alan:] Power up itmes are worth 1000 points apiece otherwise.
* Captured Enemy Bonus *
If you still have an enemy captured when you beat the final boss of a
level, it will self destruct and you will receive a bonus. The amount of
the bonus depends on the enemy you had captured; the Mini-Boss recieves
around 100000 points, while your standard peon ships will only get a
few thousand. However, as Alan pointed out, it is much better for your
score to blast the boss with any sort of Alpha Beam than to get a few
bonus points for leaving a captured enemy alive.
Small enemies: 1000 points per "unit"
Large enemies: 10000 points
Mini-bosses: 1000000 points
* Final Bonuses *
When you finish the game in Arcade mode, you will be awarded bonus points
based on your performance through the game:
Remaining ships: 1,000,000 points each
Captain (Mini-boss) capture: 300,000 for each Mini-boss captured
Beam finish: 200,000 for each normal Alpha Beam finish
Counter: 400,000 for each single counter boss finish
Double counter: 600,000 for each double counter boss finish
Triple counter: 800,000 for each triple counter boss finish
Quad counter: 1,000,000 for each quadruple counter finish
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::: Technical Ranking :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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[Most, if not all, of the info in this section comes via Alan Kwan from
the Japanese manual and offical guide book.]
At the end of every game, you will receive a "technical rating" based on
your performance. Your final score does not affect this rating (though
doing well in each of the factors may very well increase your score.) Each
of the factors, listed below, is worth somewhere between 10-20% out of a
total of 105%. To achieve a Gold Hawk rating (the highest), one must have
a score of 101% or higher.
* The Factors *
1) Enemy kill ratio
Simple enough. Shoot everything that moves. The higher this ratio, the
better your rating.
2) Enemy formation kill ratio
Don't let any enemy attacking in a formation to escape! The higher this
ratio, the better your rating.
3) Boss fight hit accuracy ratio
During boss battles, cease fire when there is nothing to hit/damage.
This factor is worth 1% of your rating per every 10% of your accuracy.
[NOTE: The English manual mentions some "number of lives vs. number of
shots" factor. According to Alan, that is a definately a
mistranslation.]
4) Best final hit on boss
Try to destroy the boss using as souped-up an Alpha Beam as you can
manage. A Quad-Counter is worth the most points; letting the enemy
self-destruct is worth the least.
5) Captured enemy use efficiency
Use those buggers for something; don't let them get killed.
6) Mileage
The further you get in the game, the better your rating.
7) Use of continues
You get no points for not using continues, but for every one you use, you
lose one percentage point.
8) Final power-up level
The more powered up your ship is when you hit Game Over, the higher your
rating.
9) Number of lost ships
The less ships you lose, the higher your rating.
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::: Miscellaneous Info ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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* Codes *
[Again, these are from the offical guide book.]
1) Free Play in Arcade Mode:
After continuing a total of 100 times (in any game mode), you can
choose "Free Play" in Arcade Option.
2) View Ending Movies
Place cursor at Option -> Movie. Enter left, right, left, right
on the +-key, then hold all of R1, R2, L1, L2 and press "circle"
or "start" button to enter Movie mode. Now you can view all
ending movies.
* Analog Control? *
The packaging for G.Darius (at least the NA release) is incorrect
regarding the game's support for analog control. While there is Dual Shock
support, no analog control is supported.
* View High Scores *
The only way to see the high score tables (other than getting a high
score, of course), is to simply do nothing at the title screen. The high
score screens will be shown periodically between the gameplay demos and
movies.
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::: Audio Info ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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Welcome to yet another installment of my infamous "Audio Info" sections.
Like many other PSX games, G. Darius does not contain Redbook Audio. So,
if you want to listen to Zuntata's excellent soundtrack, you've got two
options: 1) Import the soundtrack CD from Japan (that would be Zuntata
Records ZTTL-0014, if I recall correctly) or 2) Follow the instructions
below. Be warned that extracting the entire soundtrack will eat up a
large chunk of hard drive space, though.
1) Go to www.zophar.net and head for the PSX Utilites section. Download
copies of XAEX and XAPlay. If Zophar's is spazzing for whatever reason,
go to the Castlevania Dungeon
[http://www.classicgaming.com/castlevania/dungeon.htm] and look for the
Miscellaneous section. The utilites should be there as well. They're not
very large, so the download won't take long.
2) Once you have them set up (no big deal, just unzip them somewhere and
they're as set up as they're going to get :), insert your G. Darius CD
in your CD-ROM drive. For demonstration purposes, let's say the CD-ROM
is drive G.
3) There are 2 files that on the G. Darius CD that contain the music.
They are the bgm1.xa and bgm2.xa files in the G:bgm directory.
To extract the music from these files into something usable by XAPlay,
go to a DOS prompt, go to whatever directory you unzipped XAEX into,
and type:
xaex
For example, if you want to extract the music from bgm1.xa into a
file called music01.xa, you would type (again, this is assuming that G
is the CD-ROM drive):
xaex g:bgmbgm1.xa c:music01.xa
This will take a little while (it took about a minute on my machine,
but then again I've got a Pentium 300-something with a whole crapload of
RAM). When it's finished, the resulting music01.xa (or whatever you
named it) can be played using XAPlay.
If you've not used XAPlay before, know that many XA files are split
into at most 8 channels, numbered 0 through 7. Use the "Channel"
pulldown menu to select which channel you want to listen to.
Here is a list of the two bgm*.xa files and the songs they contain. This
list is horribly incomplete since I do not own the original soundtrack and
therefore do not know the titles of the songs. I do however own the
excellent G.Darius: Future Is Over CD (that's Zuntata Records ZTTL-0019),
so I do know the titles of a few of them, at least.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
BGM1.XA - 55,050,956 bytes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Channel: Song Title:
0 [Unknown Track 1]
1 G Zero
2 [Unknown Track 2]
3 [Unknown Track 3]
4 [Unknown Track 4]
5 Kimera II
6 [Unknown Track 5]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
BGM2.XA - 92,247,836 bytes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Channel: Song Title:
0 [Unknown Boss Track 1]
1 B.T.Dutch
2 H.G.Virus
3 [Unknown Boss Track 2]
4 Adam
5 [Unknown Track 6]
6 [Unknown Track 7]
7 [Unknown Track 8]
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::: Video Info ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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If you really must see the ending/opening movies without beating the
game, you're probably better off using the movie code in the Codes section.
But, if you really must see them on your computer, then go to
www.zophar.net, go to the PSX Utilites section, and grab a copy of
PSXVideo. The seven movie files are in the directory G:MOV*.str (again,
assuming the CD-ROM is drive G.)
[NOTE: The PSXVideo program is for Windows. I do not know if any PSX
movie players exist for other OSes.]
Another odd note: according to Kurt Kalata, the intro movies are playable
using a Gameshark version 2.4, but the ending movies are not.
+------------+------------------+
| Filename | Description |
+------------+------------------+
| Gdend1.str | Epilogue Lambda |
| Gdend2.str | Epilogue Mu |
| Gdend3.str | Epilogue Nu |
| Gdend4.str | Epilogue Xi |
| Gdend5.str | Epilogue Omicron |
| Gdop1.str | Prologue 1 |
| Gdop2.str | Prologue 2 |
+------------+------------------+
---------------------------Part II - Zone Guides---------------------------
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::: Introduction to the Zone Guides :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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Here's how the Zone Guides are set up:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Data:
Music: Name of track played during level.
Mini-Boss: Name of mini-boss. (Note: the English manuals list
the name of the mini-boss as the name of the
special attack they can perform when captured.
Apparently the Japanese manual was ambigous in this
matter, and the translators misinterpreted it.)
Mini-Boss Attack: Description of Mini-boss special attack, and the
controller motions needed to use it.
Boss: Name of Boss
Boss Music Track: Name of music track played during boss battle.
Exits: Which Zones you can get to from this zone.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powerup Data: Red Green Blue Purple Yellow Grey 1-Up
Main: Number of powerups in the section of the level before it
splits.
Area X: Number of powerups in one of the sublevels.
Total X: The total number of powerups you recieve from going through
both Main and Area X.
Area Y: Number of powerups in the other sublevel.
Total Y: The total number of powerups you recieve from going through
both Main and Area Y.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Red Routes: alA - beC - gaE (10R, 13G, 11B, 12P)
Best Blue Routes: deB - epC - gaE (12B, 13R, 12G, 11P)
Best Green Routes: etA - thD - gaF (11G, 10R, 12B, 13P)
These list the routes through this zone that give the most Red, Blue,
and Green powerups. The lowercase letters stand for the Zone (al = Alpha,
be = Beta, etc.), while the capitial letters stand for the Area. The
numbers in parenthesis give the total number of each kind of powerup that
can be collected from the route given.
In this example, the route Alpha A to Beta C to Gamma E would give 10
Reds, 13 Greens, 11 Blues, and 12 Purples.
Notice that this is just an example that I made up, since obviously you
can't go to both Beta and Gamma, or get to Gamma from Zone Eta. :)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zone Overview: Some comments about the level itself.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boss Tactics: Strategies for defeating the boss.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
After the Zone Guides is the One-Page Travelogue, which is just a
summary of the powerup data for each Zone. It was designed to be an easily
printable reference for those who may want a hard copy of some of the info,
but may not want to waste all day printing the entire FAQ. If you use a
10-point monospaced font, such as Courier New, this should come out to be a
little less than one page.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
::: Zone Alpha - Green Globe ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Data:
Music (Beginning): [Unknown Track 1]
Music (Area A or B): G Zero
Mini-Boss: First Captain
Mini-Boss Attack: Spiral Beam (D, DF, F + Fire)
Boss: Eclipse Eye
Boss Music Track: [Unknown Boss Track 1]
Exits: Zone Beta, Zone Gamma
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powerup Data: Red Green Blue Purple Gold Silver 1-Up
Main: 2 2 1 1 0 0 0
Area A: 4 1 1 3 0 0 0
Total A: 6 3 2 4 0 0 0
Area B: 3 2 2 3 1 2 0
Total B: 5 4 3 4 1 2 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Red Route: alA (6R, 3G, 2B, 4P)
Best Blue Route: alB (3B, 5R, 4G, 4P)
Best Green Route: alB (4G, 5R, 3B, 4P)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zone Overview:
Not a particularly difficult level at all. Choose Area A if you are
interested in grabbing more Red power-ups, and Area B if you want the
missile and shield power-ups. Capture the large fish that appears where
the level splits; it fires homing missiles. If you choose Area A, the real
mini-boss of the level appears later on, and you might want to trade the
fish you have to capture the mini-boss.
The sunken area of Area B will look very familiar to longtime Darius
fans.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boss Tactics:
Eclipse Eye-A and Eclipse Eye-B have very similar tactics, and only vary
in one minor area. When you first approach it, it'll spew easily destroyed
missiles from its wide mouth. Its next trick will be shooting trios of
fireballs. These are also easily avoided, but note that their trajectory
changes every two or three shots. Then come the destroyable blue shots.
Whoopee.
This is where EE-A and EE-B differ. EE-A will now launch some large
homing missiles at you. You can capture them if you like, but they have
no direct offensive or defensive capability. Of course, you can use them
to charge your Alpha Beam. EE-B will just swing some spinning blades your
way, while launching the Orange Shield Thingies(tm). Grab one if you need
it.
At this point, EE will have moved to the left side of the screen and will
be charging its Beta Beam. If you don't know what to do about this, please
reread the "G. Darius 101" section. :)
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
::: Zone Beta - Giant Plant :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Data:
Music: [Unknown Track 2]
Mini-Boss: No Mini-Boss present
Boss: Tripod Sardine
Boss Music Track: B.T.Dutch
Exits: Zone Delta, Zone Epsilon
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powerup Data: Red Green Blue Purple Gold Silver 1-Up
Main: 2 2 1 0 0 0 0
Area C: 2 1 1 4 0 0 0
Total C: 4 3 2 4 0 0 0
Area D: 2 2 1 3 0 3 0
Total D: 4 4 2 3 0 3 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Red Routes: alA - beC (10R, 6G, 4B, 8P)
alA - beD (10R, 7G, 4B, 7P)
Best Blue Routes: alB - beC (5B, 9R, 7G, 8P)
alB - beD (5B, 9R, 8G, 7P)
Best Green Route: alB - beD (8G, 9R, 5B, 7P)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zone Overview:
Another fairly simple level: take a nice flight through the clouds, then
descend into a forest. Area D might be a better choice of routes through
this level, but there is no clear better path here. You get about the same
number of power-ups either way, except for Area D has an extra Green.
Whether Tripod Sardine-C or Tripod Sardine-D is more difficult depends on
your current power levels and whether you can keep a capture alive during
the fight.
The huge spiders in Area C are best dealt with using the Alpha Beam, in
my opinion. The green-fireball shooters make a decent if straightforward
capture; the blue spikeballs in C that appear from the background are
pretty neat as well.
[From the guide book:] The enemies in this stage are bigger than their
normal versions in other stages. They are worth more points, and when
captured, they have better armor and can sustain more hits.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boss Tactics:
* Tripod Sardine-C *
You'll have a few moments to just wail on TS before it does anything, so
feel free to do so, preferably at point blank where your bombs can get in
some damage. When it opens its mouth, back off and dodge the spread
fireballs it fires at you. Then you'll have another very brief period of
inactivity, as it repositions itself then extends its claws outward. Then,
they'll create yellow balls that will extend long yellow beams your way.
[Alan:] This attack has no "collision detection" until the beams
materialize a split second after they are fired. You can avoid them easily
by standing still and quickly moving away a little bit as the beams are
fired.
Then, TS will start launching missiles at you. Avoid them and keep
firing. Once you blow its head off, TS will come back holding a large blue
energy ball. Then, it'll flood the screen with shots while it throws the
energy ball at you. Avoiding it is possible, but it is usually better to
deflect it using all the firepower you can muster.
If you have a full Missile cannon, you're in good shape. But you probably
have a relatively weak Laser at this point. So, now would be a good time to
Alpha Beam. It will absorb the shots, turn back the energy ball fairly
well, and take out TS quickly.
* Tripod Sardine-D *
You'll have a few moments to just wail on TS before it does anything, so
feel free to do so, preferably at point blank where your bombs can get in
some damage. When it opens its mouth, back off and dodge the spread
fireballs it fires at you. Then you'll have another very brief period of
inactivity, while TS's claws fire destructable blue spread shots downward.
These can practically be ignored. Then, it's claws will extend outward
and begin firing the shots again. Get in front of one of the cannons and
blow it off, if you can. Eventually, they will reconfigure themselves and
begin firing again. No biggie.
After that, TS will launch some explosive mines at you. Avoid them by
circling around the screen. Then TS will jump to the other side of the
screen, and missiles will begin raining down on you.
What you do _not_ want to do (unless you come with a captured enemy)
is blow TS's head off before it jumps to the other side of the screen,
launches the Orange Shield Thingies(tm), and fires a Beta Beam.
You generally want to weaken TS as much as possible (without blowing off
its head). If you blow off its head too early, you have to deal with its
force-wave attack, and you won't be able to use a Counter beam against it.
If you do end up blowing TS's head off too early and you still have
something captured, turn it into an Alpha Beam and try to destroy TS
quickly so you do not have to deal with the force-wave attack. Otherwise,
you've got to do some smooth manuvering to get around those waves while
trying to finish TS with conventional weapons, and the waves might not
always be possible to avoid. In the words of the Smash TV announcer:
"Good luck! You'll need it!"
[Alan:] If two players are playing, TS (in either area) will become very
easy, because one player can alpha beam the head while the other player
holds on to a captured enemy to alpha beam the body.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
::: Zone Gamma - Gigantic Ship ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Data:
Music: [Unknown Track 2]
Mini-Boss: Queen's Child
Mini-Boss Attack: Energy shots + Lasers (B, DB, D, DF, F + Fire)
Boss: Queen Fossil
Boss Music Track: B.T.Dutch
Exits: Zone Epsilon, Zone Zeta
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powerup Data: Red Green Blue Purple Gold Silver 1-Up
Main: 2 2 1 2 0 0 0
Area E: 3 1 1 3 0 0 0
Total E: 5 3 2 5 0 0 0
Area F: 3 1 2 2 0 0 0
Total F: 5 3 3 4 0 0 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Red Routes: alA - gaE (11R, 6G, 4B, 9P)
alA - gaF (11R, 6G, 5B, 8P)
Best Blue Route: alB - gaF (6B, 10R, 7G, 8P)
Best Green Routes: alB - gaE (7G, 10R, 5B, 9P)
alB - gaF (7G, 10R, 6B, 8P)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zone Overview:
While this zone is a bit more hectic than Zone Alpha, it's still not too
difficult. There is very little to note until the zone splits, except to
try to capture the Mini-Boss before choosing your path. It'll make things
easier on yourself, especially if you choose Area F. That would be the
large bugger that appears in the diagonal section, not the little thingy
with the Solidnite escort as you circle a pyrimad-shaped installation.
Both Area E and F take place up close and personal with Queen Fossil, but
since they are technically the boss battle, I'll cover the survival
strategies here. Pick Area E to for an easier route (and because Queen
Fossil-E makes a _huge_ tactical error that you can use to your favour.)
Area F is a bit more difficult, but is more rewarding in the power-up
department.
As you might have guessed, the Mini-boss is named "Queen's Child"
because it is released from Queen Fossil herself.
* Area E *
When Queen Fossil appears, she'll come butt first waving a laser cannon
at you. Be sure to blast it now, as doing so might save you some trouble
later... if you seriously screw the boss battle up, that is. More
importantly, blasting it rewards you with a Red Orb. Dodge the missile
volleys to claim it.
After a few waves of weenies attack, you'll find yourself situated above
3 cannons and a set of Queen Fossil's fins. Try to blast the cannons out of
the way, and be ready for Queen Fossil to toss her fins at you like
boomerangs. Destroy them all to get a Green Orb. Another missle volley
later, you find yourself in the same situation as above. Except this time a
few Laser Cannons have been thrown into the mix. Destroy all the Laser
Cannons and the pea-shooter Cannons for a Blue Orb, and take out the
boomeranging fins again for a Red one.
[Guide book:] It's a certain one in each set of fins that gives you a
power-up. You don't really have to destroy the others. (It's usually the
second or the third one. - Zach)
Dodge another missle volley, and take out the weenie swarms again. When
Queen launches another Mini-Boss, grab it and prepare for the real battle.
* Area F *
You'll be greeted by the sight of Queen Fossil's backside. Lovely, innit?
Take out the cannon that waves around shooting lasers; if you captured the
Mini-Boss, make liberal use of Queen's Child to bring this about more
quickly. You'll be awarded a Red Orb for destroying it. Look out for the
missile volley as you try to claim your prize, though.
A large cannon arm will now extend your way. Plant yourself right at the
barrel of this thing, since its projectiles can be destroyed. Again, use
the Mini-Boss's special move to help you out, if possible. If not, watch
out for the red homing lasers. Another Red Orb will be yours after you
destroy the cannon.
Queen Fossil will back off a bit while some weenies will come your way.
Blast them for a few more orbs, and prepare for two rectangular
installations to come at you. Try to blast off their cannons, and if you've
got an enemy captured, Alpha Beam both of them when they meet at the right
side of the screen.
Next, a large laser cannon will descend from Queen Fossil's belly. Get
above its aim and you can destroy it with no problems whatsoever and get
a Blue Orb for your effort. A few more peon ships will come your way,
followed by another Mini-Boss. Try to grab it, even if you've kept the
one from earlier on, since the older one has probably taken a good bit
of damage by now.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boss Tactics:
* Queen Fossil-E *
The Queen will charge from the left side of the screen, then back off.
Keep to the far right to avoid her. Dodge or destroy the Solidnite Bullets.
This is where the fun begins. Queen Fossil will reappear on the left, and
throw some lasers at you. While that goes on, some scales will fly off,
circle around the center of the screen, and fly at you one or two at a
time. After that, she'll charge up not one, not two, not even three, but
four Beta Beams that she'll fire one at a time. Grab one of the Orange
Shield Thingies that appear if necessary, and let out an Alpha Beam to
absorb them all and throw them right back at Queen Fossil.
If by some chance you manage to screw this up, Queen Fossil will continue
fighting using the tactics outlined below for Queen Fossil-F.
* Queen Fossil-F *
Queen Fossil will come on screen from the right, then back off. Then,
she'll present her side to you, while five lasers will come out. The one
on top and the one on bottom will fire a constant laser that will limit
your room to move, while the three middle ones will shoot shorter lasers.
All the while, little bullets will be coming at you; destroy as many of
them as possible while dodging the lasers. When the lasers are retracted,
Queen Fossil will begin shooting spread shots at you, then launch a
volley of missiles.
Then, she'll swing her rear back on screen, and arc two electric beams
your way. Your best bet is to hang close to the right side of the screen
and dodge the spread shots.
After backing off and firing a volley of missiles that will close in on
you from the top and bottom of the screen, she'll reapproach from the left
and fire four Solidnite Bullets at you. Destroy or avoid these, depending
on your current weapon power. Then, she'll launch a few scales that will
gather in the center of the screen and form a "flower" that will match your
vertical movements, and eventually fly at you. All the while, you have to
dodge a never-ending stream of spread shots.
Then, a few waves of Orange Shield Thingies(tm) will appear. Grab one,
and dodge the Queen's shots until she backs off again. Her tail will
reappear once more, and fire spread shots while she charges her Beta Beam.
Charge your Alpha Beam and counter it. If the Queen fires her homing lasers
before you can destroy her, use the Alpha Beam to absorb them. (Notice that
QF's Beta Beam here is already a counter beam, meaning that you can score
a double-counter here, or even a triple-counter if you use Queen's Child to
Alpha Beam QF.)
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
::: Zone Delta - Granulated Star ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Data:
Music: [Unknown Track 3]
Mini-Boss: Reverse Direction
Mini-Boss Attack: Back Fin Boomerang (F, D, DF + Fire)
Boss: Dual Horn
Boss Music Track: H.G.Virus
Exits: Zone Eta, Zone Theta
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powerup Data: Red Green Blue Purple Gold Silver 1-Up
Main: 2 2 1 2 0 0 0
Area G: 3 2 2 2 1 2 0
Total G: 5 4 3 4 1 2 0
Area H: 2 2 3 2 0 3 0
Total H: 4 4 4 4 0 3 0
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Red Routes: alA - beC - deG (15R, 10G, 7B, 12P)
alA - beD - deG (15R, 11G, 7B, 11P)
Best Blue Routes: alB - beC - deH (9B, 13R, 11G, 12P)
alB - beD - deH (9B, 13R, 12G, 11P)
Best Green Routes: alB - beD - deG (12G, 14R, 8B, 11P)
alB - beD - deH (12G, 13R, 9B, 11P)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zone Overview:
The main area is your basic Darius Asteroid Belt Level, just with your
upgraded PSX polygonal asteroids. Area H gives you an extra shield powerup,
and another homing missile fish (like the one where Zone Alpha splits) is
available there for your fiendish purposes. Area G has an extra Red
available. Not much more to say, really.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boss Tactics:
* Dual Horn-G *
After its obligatory dancing around that all bosses seem to do, Dual Horn
will open with a volley of spread fireballs. No big deal here, until some
sort of a beam with a coloured laser on the end appears. The beam is
harmless, but the laser is not. It will chase you around the screen while
you are trying to dodge spread shots. Then, a volley of bullets will come
from Dual Horn's tail. Surviving that, the beam will disappear... but the
laser will split into three homing lasers that will come your way, while
Dual Horn is firing spread shots at you again. If you've brought in a
captured enemy, it might not hurt you to use it: at least you can absorb
the spread shots and destroy the bullets.
Dual Horn will then present its back to you, and begin firing bullets.
Keep to the top of the screen, and when it fires the exploding mines at you
head straight down, to the right just enough to keep you out of the
explosions, then drift back to the top. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. But look out
for DH to charge you from the right.
After that, DH will curl into a donut-shape and roll counterclockwise
around the screen, starting at the left. Dodge the lasers and orange shots,
and destroy the blue ones if necessary.
Then, it will present its underside to you, launch Orange Shield
Thingies(tm), and some spread fireballs. Grab an OST if you need it, and
dodge. Then it will point its tail at you and fire a Beta Beam. Counter it,
but don't get carried away; once it's finished firing, it will charge
straight at you.
* Dual Horn-H *
After its obligatory dancing around that all bosses seem to do, Dual Horn
will open with a volley of spread fireballs. No big deal here, until some
sort of a beam with a coloured laser on the end appears. The beam is
harmless, but the laser is not. It will chase you around the screen while
you are trying to dodge spread shots. Then, a volley of bullets will come
from Dual Horn's tail. Surviving that, the beam will disappear... but the
laser will split into three homing lasers that will come your way, while
Dual Horn is firing spread shots at you again. If you've brought in a
captured enemy, it might not hurt you to use it: at least you can absorb
the spread shots and destroy the bullets.
Dual Horn will then present its back to you, and begin firing bullets.
Keep to the top of the screen, and when it fires the exploding mines at you
head straight down, to the right just enough to keep you out of the
explosions, then drift back to the top. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
DH will stick its head from the right and fire some more spread fireballs
at you. No tricks this time, so enjoy it while it lasts. Then, it will use
its arms to slightly restrict your moving area, then fire single fireballs
and bouncing destructable blue shots. Again, no big deal; destroy what you
can, avoid what you can't. Dual Horn will move around to close you in
further, but the same tactics will still apply.
Then, it will present its underside to you, launch Orange Shield
Thingies(tm), and some spread fireballs. Grab an OST if you need it, and
dodge. It will then draw back, and fire some more spreading fireballs.
Don't get too cocky, because it will suddenly charge to the left side of
the screen. Get around it, then charge up your Alpha Beam to absorb the
Beta Beam that will soon be coming. That should just about finish it off.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
::: Zone Epsilon - Galaxy Islands :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Data:
Music: [Unknown Track 3]
Mini-Boss: Reverse Direction
Mini-Boss Attack: Back Fin Boomerang (F, D, DF + Fire)
Boss: Dimension Diver
Boss Music Track: [Unknown Boss Track 2]
Exits: Zone Theta, Zone Iota
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powerup Data: Red Green Blue Purple Gold Silver 1-Up
Main: 1 2 1 1 0 1 0
Area I: 3 1 3 3 1 2 0
Total I: 4 3 4 4 1 3 0
Area J: 3 1 2 2 0 0 0
Total J: 4 3 3 3 0 1 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Red Routes: alA - gaE - deI (15R, 9G, 8B, 13P)
alA - gaE - deJ (15R, 9G, 7B, 12P)
alA - gaF - deI (15R, 9G, 9B, 12P)
alA - gaF - deJ (15R, 9G, 8B, 11P)
Best Blue Route: alB - gaF - epI (10B, 14R, 10G, 12P)
Best Green Routes: alB - beD - epI (11G, 13R, 9B, 11P)
alB - beD - epJ (11G, 13R, 8B, 10P)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zone Overview:
Another variation of the Standard Darius Asteroid Level, this time with
some floating asteroid islands. Zone I is pretty much the way to go here,
with one extra Blue powerup. Even if it is a background rehash of Zone
Delta, Area H.
[Alan, from the guide book:] DD in Area J is slightly easier, because its
attacks come in a sequence which is more favorable to the player. For
example, after its first firing of the double beta beams, it stays there
for you to apply the full force of your double counter beam to it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boss Tactics:
DD's major claim to fame is its ability to warp space, so that it can
be somewhere in the background, and poke its head in a wormhole and attack
you.
* Dimension Diver-I *
But first, it will open up with a volley of crisscrossing but easily
avoidable laser shots. Then it will move to the top of the screen, and
fire some fireballs and laser shots from its tail. You can destroy the
tail, but I would not recommend that.
DD will then move to the left and some mines will rain down on you.
They can't be destroyed, so avoid them as best you can, and do not go
near the bottom of the screen where they will explode.
DD will warp in from the left, and fire large balls that will explode
into a ring of shots when hit. After that, it'll warp in from the right
and repeat this attack.. only this time it'll create rows of bullets that
will close in on you from the top and bottom. Then he'll warp in from the
left again. Same attack, only missiles this time.
After it launches some Orange Shield Thingies[tm], it will attack from
the right with a dual Beta Beam. Counter it, but you'll not have long
before DD moves out of the way and comes in from the left firing fireballs
at you. Take out its fin to put an end to that. Then it will warp in
from the right launching spinning propellers your way. After that, it'll
launch waves of your standard Darius Anchor-Looking Things and some
homing lasers.
If DD is still around, you'll now get your second chance at some Orange
Shield Thingies[tm] and another dual Beta Beam. There's no excuse for not
winning now.
* Dimension Diver-J *
Like its Area I cousin, this DD opens with the volley of crisscrossing
lasers. These are quite easily avoided. Then it will do its warping trick
and launch a volley of little doohickies at you, that are easily
destroyed. Next, it warps to the left side and fires tons of fireballs at
you. These are a bit more difficult to avoid. Then, it will fire these
multicoloured cubes that break into 8-way shots when destroyed.
Other tactics it may use are the same as above, plus additional bullets
or missiles. Another thing it often does is flood the screen with flame
waves. These can be a pain to avoid, but the attack can be stopped by
destroying DD's fin. However, doing that will make some subsequent attacks
more annoying, so use that as a last resort.
Then, it is Orange Shield Thingy time, then DD throws two Beta Beams at
you. Not only that, it is nice enough to hang around long enough for you to
blow it off the screen. If you take too long, it will point its tail and
fire some bullets while you continue to blast away with your double
counter.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
::: Zone Zeta - Gravity Zero ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Data:
Music: [Unknown Track 3]
Mini-Boss: Reverse Direction
Mini-Boss Attack: Back Fin Boomerang (F, D, DF + Fire)
Boss: Absolute Defender
Boss Music Track: [Unknown Boss Track 2]
Exits: Zone Iota, Zone Kappa
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powerup Data: Red Green Blue Purple Gold Silver 1-Up
Main: 2 2 1 2 0 0 0
Area K: 2 1 2 2 0 0 0
Total K: 4 3 3 4 0 0 0
Area L: 3 1 1 2 0 2 0
Total L: 5 3 2 4 0 2 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Best Red Routes: alA - gaE - zeL (16R, 9G, 7B, 13P)
alA - gaF - zeL (16R, 9G, 8B, 12P)
Best Blue Route: alB - gaF - zeK (9B, 14R, 10G, 12P)
Best Green Routes: alB - gaE - zeK (10G, 14R, 8B, 13P)
alB - gaE - zeL (10G, 15R, 7B, 13P)
alB - gaF - zeK (10G, 14R, 9B, 12P)
alB - gaF - zeL (10G, 15R, 8B, 12P)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zone Overview:
The main area is a rather cool looking area, graphics-wise. A
homing-missile fish (like the one where Zone Alpha splits) will appear
early on and prove quite useful. Area K gets you a neat approach to a
planet that resembles Uranus (no lame jokes, please).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boss Tactics:
Absolute Defender-K may have a few attacks that Absolute Defender-L does
not and vice versa, but there are a few things they have in common.
1) They both have a shield generator that MUST be destroyed before you can
do any damage at all to AD. The generator is the glowing orb on its
chin. However, the generator will regenerate after a short time, and
there does not seem to be any way to destroy it completely.
[Guide book:] The more times you've destroyed the generator, the longer
it takes for it to regenerate. Avoid shooting at the shield too
much, since that would bring on a counterattack.
2) They do not necessarily adhere to any pattern, like the previous bosses
have. They have a finite set of attacks, but may not always do them in
the same order.
Both of them will launch a capturable Missile doodad at you from time to
time, but rest assured it will not survive long during the bullet storms
that AD produces. If you want to be bad, you can charge your Alpha Beam and
hold it until AD decides to Beta Beam you. A much safer plan of action is
to just Alpha Beam AD whenever it's dumb enough to throw something
capturable your way. Not only will it get rid of AD faster, it will absorb
many of his attacks, leaving you with more room to move.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
::: Zone Eta - Glowing Cave :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Level Data:
Music (Main): [Unknown Track 4]
Music (Area M or N): [Unknown Track 2]
Mini-Boss: Gray Stripe
Mini-Boss Attack: Laser + Wave (F, B, DB, D, DF, F + Fire)
Boss: Fire Fossil
Boss Music Track: Adam
Exits: Zone Lambda, Zone Mu
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powerup Data: Red Green Blue Purple Gold Silver 1-Up
Main: 1 2 2 2 0 1 1
Area M: 2 1 1 2 0 0 0
Total M: 3 3 3 4 0 1 1
Area N: 3 2 2 0 0 0 0
Total N: 4 4 4 2 0 1 1
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Best Red Routes: alA - beC - deG - etN (19R, 14G, 11B, 14P)
alA - beD - deG - etN (19R, 15G, 11B, 13P)
Best Blue Routes: alB - beC - deH - etN (13B, 17R, 15G, 14P)
alB - beD - deH - etN (13B, 17R, 16G, 13P)
Best Green Routes: alB - beD - deG - etN (16G, 18R, 12B, 13P)
