STAR BLAZER
Another classic Apple IIe game
The game is copyright 1981 Tony Suzuki and Star Craft Inc.
This FAQ/Walkthrough is copyright 2000 by Andrew Schultz. Redistribution
without my consent is prohibited. Please ask before redistributing.
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OUTLINE
1. WHAT IS STAR BLAZER? WHAT ARE ITS CONTROLS?
2. WHAT ARE THE POINT TOTALS?
3. HOW DO YOU SOLVE THE MISSIONS?
4. SURVIVAL TRICKS:
5. MISCELLANEOUS
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1. WHAT IS STAR BLAZER? WHAT ARE ITS CONTROLS?
It's a pretty straightforward shoot-em-up game from the early days of Apple
programming. You have a view from the side of your plane which goes on five
bombing missions. Levels 1, 3, and 5 present random targets, and although
bombing or shooting random targets will get you points, you cannot advance to
the next level until you have bombed the specific target for the mission. You
also must be on the lookout for parachutes that contain recharges(your fuel and
bombs are limited, and moving around/shooting costs fuel!) The missions are as
follows:
1)Destroy the Radar
2)Waste the Tank
3)Bomb the ICBM
4)Waste the Tank Again
5)Bomb Enemy Headquarters
After you've completed the fifth mission, you will get a bonus in a multiple of
a thousand. It seems to be related to the overall time you've taken, whether or
not you hit the target the first time it passed, and the ships you have left,
but no exact formulas are given.
The controls are fairly straightforward. You can toggle joystick use with
control-c(default is keyboard) or you can use A/Z for up/down and the left/right
arrows to thrust your ship left/right. It's important to note that your ship
has momentum so pushing A, waiting, and pushing Z from a standstill position
will move you up, but you'll still be standing still. Also note that you can
never stand still horizontally unless your momentum would carry you over an
edge--a nice touch by the programmers to make it tougher for you. Space
bar(button for joystick) releases a bomb if you are close enough to the ground.
Otherwise you fire your guns.
2. WHAT ARE THE POINT TOTALS?
General:
In all rounds, you get 100 points for picking up a parachute.
1)You get 300 points for bombing the radar.
You get 40 points for bombing houses, towers, etc.
You lose 20 points for bombing a tree.
2)You get 300 points for bombing the tank.
You get x points for shooting a plane.
You lose 20 points for bombing a cactus.
3)You get 300 points for hitting the ICBM.
You get 80 points for shooting a plane.
You get 20 points for shooting its missiles, the blue trees.
You get 40 points for bombing ground targets.
4)You get 300 points for bombing the tank.
You get 120 points for shooting a tank missile.
You get 80 points for shooting a plane.
You lose 20 points for bombing a cactus.
5)You get 1500 points for bombing headquarters.
You get 120 points for bombing a ground-to-air missile.
You get 60 point for bombing a ground-to-air gunner.
You get 40 points for bombing general ground targets.
NOTE: If your ship(with empty fuel) or the parachute falls on an object, you
get those (positive) points--including main targets! Also, if a "smart" missile
hits something other than you, you get points for the missile and the other
object.
On the ICBM level if an enemy plane hits a tower, you get points for that, too.
Also, when you soar away after completing a level, you gain points for anything
you hit.
3. HOW DO YOU SOLVE THE MISSIONS?
1)Destroy the Radar
This is pretty risk-free. There are no missiles to shoot at you, and you can
remain close to the ground and bomb away. The one thing you must watch out for
is the tall towers. They make it so that you can't drop a bomb, which could be
a problem if a radar is between them. Also bombing a tree is a problem. If a
radar is hidden, then the best thing to do is to drop the bomb before the tree,
moving your ship up(good timing may take practice) because the bomb will roll a
bit forward. However, luck plays a large part here.
2)Waste the Tank
This is tough until you get the timing right. Basically you must sweep in an
overhead arc from the far left corner of the screen. I recommend starting
halfway up to the left(just below the enemy planes) and swooping down to the
right corner, first right then right and down. Once you've got practice this is
easier than the first mission and less time-consuming too.
3)Bomb the ICBM
Tougher than the first mission, you need to watch for the plane that shoots the
blue balloons. Keep an eye on what's passing below you and keep the enemy plane
at a good height, although you can bring them low and hope they hit a tower in a
pinch. Swoop when you see the ICBM.
4)Waste the Tank again
A lot like 2) only you should be aware of the tank's "smart" missile. You may
have to dodge around a bit but "cutting back" will confuse the missile enough to
allow you to swoop as in 2).
5)Bomb Enemy Headquarters
This has ground missiles like 4) and enemy airplanes like 3) The enemy
headquarters looks like a teapot and is a bigger target than the radar.
However, you won't be able to hug the ground like in the first mission. Again,
sharp turns will confuse the "smart" missiles.
4. SURVIVAL TRICKS:
Watch out for the parachutes. Don't shoot/bomb freely or you may regret it.
Out of fuel and ammo, you'll have a tough time surviving. Remember, if the
parachute touches an enemy plane, or you shoot it, it crashes(although you can
still try to catch it.) It will destroy whatever's on the ground(including,
say, the radar) but that may leave you stranded, too.
Take your time with the tanks. Time the planes' rushes so that you don't swoop
right when they're coming at you. Don't get macho and try to shoot them--it's
not worth it.
You'll have to move around a lot for the last three missions, especially the
last two when "smart" missiles are introduced. It's a good idea to shoot the
smart missiles if you can line them up.
Try to stay horizontally in the center for the non-tank missions. That way you
can back up in a hurry and you will be able to hit the target. If you're too
far forward you won't see what's coming, and if you're too far back you may
technically hit the target, but it's not on the screen any more, so it doesn't
count.
If a target is under a tree, it is protected, unless you manage to sneak the
bomb to the left of the tree and it falls forward. You can make the bombs
"roll" by pushing your ship to the right and releasing--that way, you can maybe
hit two separate targets at once!
5. MISCELLANEOUS:
Sometimes a bird may "pick up" the parachute--a sign that you'd better move it!
During the demo(a random level) pictures and point values will pop up. Also
"THANKS A LOT RALY" is displayed.
Refueling gives you 3000 fuel and 30 bombs. Shooting takes 30 fuel. Thrusting
uses fuel more quickly.
There are several random ground targets for the non-tank missions:
Office building(greyish), residential building(green/red, pointy roof), red
centipede building, green/red circular looking building, tower(will kill you if
you're too low), tree. Buildings and radar may not overlap each other but they
may overlap towers/trees.
The game layout is as follows:
SCORE: xxxxxx FUEL: xxxx BOMBS: xxx (after you lose a ship, ships left are
displayed here)
[top row: refueler airplane drops parachute here]
[playing area--space]
[the ground]
[the name and number of the mission you're on]
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This FAQ/Walkthrough is copyright 2000 Andrew Schultz. Reproduction rights are
restricted.
Thanks to Apple.asimov.net for the disk images.
Version 1.0.0 3/20/2000.
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