Stardust


 PASSWORDS:

 1: BCQQAAAAAGGN
 2: CCSAQAAAALOO
 3: DDSAQAASANMN
 4: EDSAQAQTANKM


 CHEAT MODE:

 Entering 'INTRODUCTION' as a password opens up all of the levels warp
 sequences and special missions. You'll have 14 lives and are powered
 up with the three way shot, bouncer and buster.
 To skip a stage, quit the game while on the stage you want to skip
 and start the game again. You'll now find that the stage has been
 completed for you.


 PLAYING GUIDE:

 World 1
 ~~~~~~~
 If you follow these steps carefully then clearing the first world
 shouldn't be too much of a problem. Begin at level one, in the left-hand
 corner of the war plan.
 Tackle one meteor at a time and don't shoot at all the big boulders at
 once as the screen will become filled with hundreds of smaller ones,
 which are a lot harder to shoot or avoid.
 In level one, try to pick up a gun power-up - represented by a (G), then
 go to the bottom centre level and collect another. Your three-way shooter
 will now be at full power. Destroy the small ship that enters from the
 left and get the bouncer. Clear the other levels, finishing with the
 level in the bottom-left of the plan, with the bouncer powered up.
 The first end-of-level guardian is best tackled by flying your ship from
 left to right, so you can shoot the boss as well as the shots that fly
 towards you. Try to stay at the same vertical position as the guardian.
 As it closes its doors, rotate 90 degrees and fly away, so that you enter
 on the other side of the screen. Repeat the same manoeuvre until you have
 defeated the guardian. If something goes wrong, hide behind the open
 doors of the ship because the shots can't penetrate them.
 If you get killed while trying to kill the end-of-level guardians, when
 you reappear you will have full shields so you can fly straight into the
 guardian with your shield up. This should kill the guardian very quickly
 and easily.
 You'll now enter the first warp tunnel. The mines are indestructible and
 a lot smaller than the rocks. Because of this, the rocks will sometimes
 block your vision. It's best to move around instead of staying in one
 place. Focus your eyes on the centre of the tunnel and this will give
 you more time to react.

 World 2
 ~~~~~~~
 You'll encounter a wave of Stellar Blades. When they appear, they will
 home in on you and attack. Your best defence here is to keep moving
 around, so they don't get a chance to locate you.
 In the top-centre level, a couple of bombers await you. Beware of the
 exploding mines they leave behind, they can be destroyed with a couple
 of well placed shots. In the bottom right level you must tackle four
 huge Space Balls. Destroy one to break their formation and this will
 make it easier to take out the rest.
 In the bottom-left level you will find a squadron of Trilons.
 You'll need shields to deal with these. Put your shields up and fly
 straight towards them as soon as they appear.
 When you face the end-of-level guardian, shoot its appendages while
 evading the tailed eye. When all the appendages are destroyed your
 shots can penetrate the main body. To defeat the eye, fly backwards
 and forwards at the edge of the screen and this way it won't be able
 to home in on you.
 The special mission, should you accept it, is a tough one.
 Firstly, your ship is constantly being pulled to the ground.
 Secondly you must keep an eye on your fuel gauge. Remember, when you
 fly through tight spots use your brake by pressing fire.
 For the warp tunnel, use the same tactics as you did in the first.

 World 3
 ~~~~~~~
 The bombers you face in the top-centre levels leave spinning morph heads
 behind instead of mines. The heads rotate and breathe fire. When they
 start to morph from the ball shape, do a runner or you'll wind up dead.
 In the bottom-right level you'll have to deal with the Thorn Balls.
 They spin around, bouncing from the edges of the screen. Stay in the
 centre of the screen and fire where you want by rotating your ship.
 In the bottom-left level an Orbit Plate awaits you and you'll definately
 need you shields to face it. The Space Worm is best taken out with
 missiles. Fly your ship around it and try to hit its body parts.
 If all else fails, put your shields up and make a kamikaze attack.
 The guardian is quite easy to defeat. Fly behind it (not too close) and
 shoot. When it stops, keep your distance and hit it with everything
 you've got.
 The third tunnel sequence features a lot of Thorn Balls on a collision
 course with your ship. They bounce off the tunnel walls, are much bigger
 than the mines and are indestructible, so avoid them like the plague.

 World 4
 ~~~~~~~
 This level introduces two new threats: the Speeders and the Beetles.
 The Speeders try to home in on you just like the Stellar Blades, but
 they take more hits to destroy and are affected by inertia.
 Make sure you keep moving around the screen while you shoot them.
 The Beetles attack in groups and the best time to shoot at them is when
 they begin to rotate.
 The end-of-level guardian has three phases. To deal with it, you must
 wait until it spins around, then you must accelerate, fly away and turn
 around to shoot at it. When it stops it either morphs into a plate or a
 ball.
 If it takes the form of a plate you can expect a burst of shots.
 If it turns itself into a ball, look out for the homing missiles.
 The best weapon you can use against this guardian is the flamer.
 Enter the fourth tunnel and make sure you get every energy power-up that
 you can see because you're goind to need your strength for the final
 world.

 World 5
 ~~~~~~~
 This world is what your shoot-em-up nightmares are made of.
 This is where you will face everything the professor throws at you,
 before he finallyhas a go.
 In the top-center level you will encounter waves of Orbit Plates flying
 from the bottom of the screen to the top. Shooting them won't help, so
 concentrate on avoiding them and use your shields when you get yourself
 into a tight spot.
 The guardian of this level is the professor himself. He will attack you
 with and egg-shaped machine which is armed to the teeth. The egg will
 try to crush you, so keep moving and shooting.
 When the egg stop, a hatch will open revealing a flame-thrower or, maybe,
 a cannon. The flame-thrower has a limited range and it only comes out of
 the top of the egg.
 The other weapons include a missile launcher and a rapid fire plasma
 rifle. When the egg is destroyed, Professor Schaumund himself will
 appear, shooting at the sides of the screen at an incredible rate.
 He is immune to your weapons so concentrate on avoiding his shots and
 attacks by moving up and down in the top and bottom edges of the screen.
 Defeat him and the 'I'm really quite good at the really rather hard
 shoot-em-up Stardust' award will be yours.