Stage Three

This stage begins on platforms resting high in the clouds. From the start, head toward the right. This will start the screen rolling. For the next little bit, you're going to have to keep moving while the screen forces you to leap around the various ledges. None of the jumps are particularly difficult, but you will need to watch out for the circular, electronically-charged robots that move in circular paths around most ledges.

When you reach the far right, you'll encounter a chubby, pogo-shaped enemy before you'll be able to climb a ladder up near the top. From there, shoot left to get the spike-tipped enemy that is drifting through. Then get to the top of the ladder. You'll notice the ledges to the left have robots circling back and forth. You can defeat them with pharaoh shots.

Once the way is clear, you can make your way to the ladder and climb up to the next screen. When you start walking to the right, the level again catches you up in scrolling motion.

This time, the hazards you will encounter are different from those you saw previously. There will be wide gaps with no visible platform, and suddenly, ledges will appear. When you jump on one, it starts to sink. You can hop repeatedly to make it slowly rise, or stay on it to sink it to the appropriate level. When you step on one, another will appear shortly ahead. You'll cross many gaps in this fashion. Along the way, watch out for the Saturn-shaped robots that will try to knock you into the bottomless pit you're crossing.

When you reach the end, you'll have to start high on the screen against a wall, and ride the platform down low enough to slide through a gap just before the scrolling screen crushes you. Once the screen stops scrolling, you'll see an energy tank sitting on a ledge. To the right is the gate leading to the level's boss. Before going through the gate, use a carefully-placed Balloon item and slip through the gap to collect the goody. Then it's time to face the boss.

Wall Crawlers

You'll walk into this screen automatically, and two gray ledges will fall away. From that point on, you'll have three ledges to rely on, hanging suspended in the air over a spike-wrapped room. A bay will open, and a wall-crawling machine will emerge from the opening.

This fellow is going to spread shots your way as he crawls along the top half of the room at a fairly leisurely pace. Switch to the ring shot and hit him where the red jewel is glowing. You'll have to move around a lot, and it seems being on the center of the three ledges gives you the most room to move (both for avoiding attacks, and for countering with your own).

To hit, you'll have to jump up from the side, and throw the ring that way. When you've got the life meter halfway drained, the robot will explode, and a new one will come from the lower bay. This one moves much more quickly, and will zip around the entire room. The strategy you should employ will still be the same, though, so just finish it off with more ring shots. Use an energy tank if you must, as this battle as a whole tends to tax your life meter quite a bit.

NEXT: Stage Four