Trouble Shooter by Vic Tokai Author: DJ Tigresa and MC Pantera Email: djtigresa@classicgaming.com, mcpantera@classicgaming.com At first glance Trouble Shooter appears to be a two- player game, but one player controls both female charac ters in this side-scrolling shooter similar to Forgotten Worlds. You must help Crystal and Madison rescue Prince Eldon. He’s King Fredrick’s only son, and heir to the throne. He’s been kid napped by the evil Blackball, a mutant military weapons genius whom you must fight with a selection of weapons and power-ups. This highly-rated shooter features excellent graphics and long-lasting playability for an ultimate challenge. Stage 1: Central Line Shopping Plaza There are various Special Weapons to choose before beginning each level, but none seem to cover the screen with mass destruction as well as the Lightning Storm, which is the first weapon shown each time (how convenient!). As in all shooters, the basic strategy is to keep moving to avoid enemy fire while returning fire as rapidly as possible. The first stage has few enemies, requiring less reflexes, but the difficulty increases with each stage. Your special weapon must fully charge before being used. Charging is slow, so only use it when you need to. If you try to fire the weapon (by pressing A) before it fully charges, it will discharge with no effect and you’ll have to wait for it to charge again. Before the boss you’ll encounter two mechanical bees. Aim your part ner backwards by press ing C, then stick near the center of the screen and fire away while avoiding their bullets. This might be a good time to use your Special Weapon. The first boss is Chuckles, recognizable by his uncontrollable laugh ter. The first time he appears is simple. Just fire away while he stands proudly with his fist in the air. That seemed too easy. He sinks as explosions cover his body. But then he rises up on the left side and his head propels off his body. This time he doesn’t fall as quickly. Simply attack his floating head while avoiding his guided fist. Stage 2: Underground Hideout Near the beginning don’t miss the three hearts near the center. During your trip downward, stay near the top to allow yourself enough time to react to enemies appearing at the bottom. Don’t shoot the cargo pods until they’re close enough to grab. Halfway through you’ll meet a mini-boss. He looks like a miniature Darth Vader riding an undersized spaceship. During the beginning stay near the top and fire, but be ready to fly down when he charges at you. He’ll run back and forth across the bottom and blow up the exit when defeated. Your life meter will increase by three. After the fourth set of large saw blades you can grab a heart at the far right of the screen. This additional energy will be useful while fighting the next boss, so don’t miss it. Before the boss you’ll have to destroy two wheels firing lasers. During the beginning, move to the top left cor ner of the screen and fire rapidly, then follow the second one out of the top left area until it’s destroyed. After destroy ing the other wheel you’ll encounter the next boss— Charger. Charger is the boss for this stage. He fires a laser beam that follows you until it hits a wall. Move quickly in a wide pattern to avoid being trapped by the laser, then fire rapidly at Charger. After two beams are on the screen for a few seconds they will explode, then he’ll form two new ones. If you become trapped in a small space by the beams, use your Special Weapon to escape. Stage 3: Outside Colossus On this level you must search the outer area of Colossus for an entrance. The beams that appear near the front of the ship shoot in a pattern from left to right or top to bottom. Watch for the hearts across the top of the ship, and a power-up that flies by quickly. Near the top front of the ship is the boss, Jack La Pain. Jack La Pain is a health- conscious robot on an exer-cycle, and the boss for this stage. Stay to the far left, moving up to shoot his head as he moves to the right, then down near his feet as he closes in on you. The fireballs shot from his helmet will be destroyed by your firepower, but become too dangerous when he gets close, so stay low. Stage 4: Inside Colossus Near the beginning a group of red eyeballs will appear around you and spin in towards you. Move away from them before they stop flashing, then blast them with your gun. Near the end of this stage you’ll meet a mini-boss in the form of two pods that bounce up and down off each other as they move from side to side. You can move between them as they bounce off each other to avoid a collision, then shoot rapidly. This is a very good opportunity to put your Special Weapon to use. It should have enough time to recharge before you reach Piston, which is next. The boss Is Piston. There are three pistons on each side of his head, which you must shoot and destroy. During the beginning move to the center and blast away with Crystal facing back wards. As the screen scrolls around, trap Crystal into the piston area while you move around the outside and destroy the other enemies that appear. Use your Special Weapon to weaken him, but the only way to destroy him is with your Normal Weapon. Stage 5: The Escape The end appears to be near, but there’s plenty more to do. You’ll be joined by Prince Eldon, who moves in the opposite direction of Madison and Crystal. You won’t have your Special Weapon, so build up your normal weapon at the beginning of this stage. At the beginning, a plane on the horizon launches what appear to be small missiles, but as they pass downward next to you they are much larger. Stay near the bottom of the screen to allow yourself enough time to react. After the missiles pass by, stay near the right to fight a group of bazooka-toting enemies, then move to the left to avoid the next few enemies that appear from the right. Most of these enemies will seem familiar, requiring basic dodg ing and blasting. The next boss is Winger. Stay to the left and avoid the laser beams while using Prince Eldon to shoot the laser cannons. Once Prince Eldon destroys all of the can nons Winger will use his stinger to attack by swing ing it in a circle. Stay away from the left-center of the screen, because this is where the tail will occasionally reach. Continue to blast him until he’s toasted. Well, looks like that’s it. Here comes your reward in the form of an animation with plenty of dialogue. As the credits begin to roll... What? That’s not it?!? Stage 6: The Final Finale The first part of this battle requires precise maneuvering. As the bombs drop from the ship you have to wait for gaps and fly through them. You want to fly up to the top left area and blast the two red cir cular engines (below the letters ANC) on the bot tom of the ship. Once you destroy the ship Winger’s daughter ‘will fly out and attack. She flies much faster than you, and shoots fireballs. Keep moving in a circular motion to avoid her firepower while shooting her with yours. Here comes Blackball! He has a tricky pattern that is easy once you know it. He begins by shooting out balls of fire which you can destroy by shooting with your Normal Weapon. Then he’ll display his heart from his stomach, which is his only vulnerable moment. Shoot it rapidly while you can. In between each part of the pattern you’ll have to fly around him to avoid being trapped. Fly up and behind him, then back to the front. After his heart moves back into his stomach he’ll pull out a machine gun, but you’re totally safe behind him. Next is a triple beam, but you can still find safety behind him. The pattern repeats with the first fire balls. Keep moving to avoid being trapped, and be sure not to miss a shot at his heart. After the fourth time he’ll be destroyed, but it’s still not over! The “real” Blackball is huge. He looks like an alien insect, moving from left to right while shooting fireballs. His head seems to be his soft spot, but you’ll only be able to shoot him while you’re on the left. When he becomes weak his arms fall off and Crystal appears. His head also looks much softer, exposing his brain. Aim Crystal backwards, moving quickly to avoid fire balls while shooting rapidly. After defeating him you’ll receive a long ending with full credits (check out those names!). Secrets STAGE SELECT: Go to the title screen where “Start” and “Options” appears. On Controller 2 press Start, Right and C at the same time. The words “Select Stage” will appear between the words of the title. Press Start, Right and C to advance through stage numbers.