Descpription:
The objective of Galaga is to score as many points as
possible by destroying insect-like enemies. The player controls a fighter
spaceship that can move left and right along the bottom of the playfield.
Enemies fly in groups into a formation near the top of the
screen, then begin flying down toward the player, firing
bombs at and attempting to collide with the fighter.
Occasionally, a "boss Galaga" attempts to capture the player's
fighter using a tractor beam – if successful, the fighter joins
the formation and must be freed by the player (using another
ship and costing him/her a life), enabling him/her to
control two ships simultaneously.
The game is over when the player's last ship is destroyed or captured.
Galaga introduces a number of new features over its predecessor, Galaxian.
Among these are a realistic explosion sound that occurs when the player loses
a life, a count of the player's "hit/miss ratio" at the end of the game, and a
bonus "Challenging Stage" that occurs every four levels, in which a series of
enemies fly onto and out of the screen in set patterns without firing at the player.
