Separated into two parts, this walkthrough will first give general hints of gameplay. This section is for those who are starting out and are being overwhelmed with the game, which is quite different from the traditional shooter. (2) Second, I'll spell out every step required in order to have a perfect game in which you never get hit. This section is recommended for those who are comfortable with the difficulty, but die frequently, and therefore are unable to get the Selene.

2. The typical shooter only utilizes two buttons: fire and bomb. Einhander's control system is more complicated, allowing for speed adjustment and weapon selection, but no "super bomb". Quick reflexes and good strategy are important to success, rather than an instant escape mechanism. back

Since only one gunpod is used at a time, it is possible to stock up on Gunpods collected along the way, and protect them from damage when not in use. (5) Despite the fact that a gunpod yields only a third of the ammo compared to the two other fighters, it is possible to collect over 1000 rounds of Wasp ammo, and several hundred rounds of Cannon ammo. There's no way that could happen with the other fighters.

4. The Astrea Mk. I is perhaps the most difficult to use. While the power of two simultaneous gunpods sounds good, keeping track of the direction of fire of each gunpod is very distracting. You're likely to concentrate on where you're shooting, but be unaware of the bullets coming at you. Also, when you pick up a gunpod, you have to position yourself so that it attaches to the intended up or down position, and it's not always reliable. Having two gunpods exposed makes your fighter quite large, so the levels in which you have to navigate tight corridors will be that much tougher. Remember that some gunpods, such as the Grenade and Spreader, are only useful in one position, effectively limiting your Gunpod combinations. All things considered, the Astrea will give you more trouble than it's worth. back

5. Gunpods can block bullets. While Gunpods can protect you from fire, they do incur damage, although their performance isn't hindered. The Gunpod's label on the lower left corner will be green for minimal or no damage, yellow for moderate damage, and red for severe damage. The Gunpod itself will also flash red in this state. The Gunpod will be destroyed when further damage is incurred. back

Square - Arm 1 (fire normal gun)

X - Arm 2 (fire gunpod)

R1 - move manipulator

R2 - speed up

L2 - speed down

Circle - Gunpod Select (right)

L1 - Gunpod Select (left)

7. Sometimes, when you have a spare slot, it is best to keep it open despite the availability of an inferior Gunpod. After all, it's better than nothing, right? But if all your slots are filled, picking up another Gunpod different from the three already equipped will replace the currently active Gunpod. If you leave a slot open, you won't have to juggle Gunpods. back

Except for the small individual bullets, enemy fire will be preceded by a hint that it's about to happen. Typically, you'll be able to see the signs of a devastating attack before it is unleashed. Guns may glow with energy. An enemy may take a moment to get into its attack position. And in case you're too busy to look at the enemy's activities, the game provides audible clues that you're about to be fired upon. For example, the first level's midboss carries two guns, a Vulcan and a Spreader, and flies around the screen with agility. Yet he's pretty easily defeated because you can anticipate his attacks. He'll stop moving right before he shoots, allowing you to move out of his range of fire. If both of his guns are destroyed, he'll pull out one big-ass cannon. Every shot released from his cannon is preceded by the glowing of its barrel, as well as a big sucking sound, indicating that it's being charged.

You start the game in the Endymion Mk. II with 30 rounds of Flash (9) and with level 2 speed. Immediately increase speed to level 3. (10) With the normal gun, destroy the first wave of small ships (about 6) and the first train-like enemy. Pick up its released Vulcan gunpod. Your gunpod slots should read FV_. Shoot the next wave of ships (about 20) using only the Vulcan to get a point bonus. (11) Pick up the Spreader gunpod from the train that follows and use it on the next wave of small ships (about 15). FVS. Replace the Vulcan with the Cannon from the next train. FCS. Replace the Spreader with the Wasp that comes shortly after. FCW. Hitting all the neon signs will yield the first level bonus. (12) Increase speed to level 4 (top speed) and move up and down the limits of the screen. Once you destroy all the neon signs, reduce to level 3 speed for the next wave of small ships and trains. Fire 3 Cannon shots for each train and use the normal gun for the small enemies. Destroying all trains will yield the second level bonus.

Midboss - Greif. Destroy it's lower section with the Flash to get the third level bonus. It should take only 5 direct hits. Shoot it only when it's not shooting at you to avoid stray bullets. It helps to shoot it as soon as it stops moving to keep from missing.

Destroying the midboss' bottom section will cause your fighter to take a detour to what appears to be the remains of a former civilization. Use the Wasp for the descent underground. As you go down, shoot all enemies with the Wasp's homing missile mode. The Anglers require two hits. Pick up any Cannon or Wasp gunpods, nothing else.

Once you return to the surface, use the Cannon as before. Use 4 homing Wasp missiles on the 4 small enemies in the tunnel before the level boss.

Levelboss - Drache. Immediately get as close as possible and fire the Wasp in the down position as quickly as you can. Aim for the point in which its arm meets its main body. It kind of looks as if it would be its nose, if it had one. It should take about 100 Wasps. You should have about 200 remaining.

10. Every playable ship has four degrees of speed. Level 1 is slowest, whereas Level 4 is fastest. Change speed at any time using the L2 and R2 shoulder buttons. back

11. Whenever you destroy an enemy, the point gauge will increase. If you destroy several enemies in rapid succession, the point gauge will increase more. If you destroy enemies using a Gunpod, the point meter will increase faster than if you had used the normal gun. If the point meter goes beyond 16x (indicating that the next enemy shot down will yield sixteen times it's normal point value), it will flash for a short time and give your score a big boost in points. While all this is not necessary in obtaining the Selene fighter, a high score and a lot of point bonuses are important in receiving high letter grades in the final evaluation. back

12. In each level lies 3 hidden level bonuses acquired by performing a certain task. Each yields an instant 100,000 points. While level bonuses and point bonuses both add to the score, getting 15 level bonuses awards the Schabe fighter. Since the game awards extra lives based on points, getting bonuses are important, but don't risk a life for them. back

The next portion will be somewhat tight, so use the Cannon to eliminate anything that comes at you. It'll tear through a whole line of the pods and flying droids, which makes it easy to get a point bonus. The walkers require several Cannon hits each. Don't be tempted to get the Grenades they carry. The second piston section is just like the first one, except small droids will fly in occasionally. The method for this section is the same, except you have to remember to keep shooting in the area in which the droids appear so that they get destroyed as soon as they come into the playfield.

Midboss - Garnele. Pretty simple. Position yourself so that the Flash, in it's lower position, is pointed at the midboss's head. As soon as the German voice starts, (13) shoot it exactly 6 times; no more, no less. If it's still alive, use a few Wasps. Remember that it will shoot 3 large homing missiles before it dies, and they are difficult to see behind the fiery explosion.

Use Wasps for the remainder of the level. You should have plenty.

Levelboss - Spinne. If all goes according to plan, you should have 19 shots of Flash remaining. Use them all on the head of the levelboss. Once the Flash is spent, the head armor should be blown apart. Switch to Cannon and start shooting the upper arm that carries a Hedgehog, which may be tricky to obtain, but makes the next level much easier. Use it's flame as a cue to take action. When the flamethrower fires, swoop down. When it fires again, swoop up to hit the upper arm. As soon as the upper arm is destroyed, and the Hedgehog is available, quickly pick it up, and then finally shoot the head with the weapon of your choice. HCW. Remember that you may safely fly through the center of the trio of blue rings it spews. If there's room, position yourself above the head and blast it with about 15 rounds of your recently acquired Hedgehog. The levelboss should die with a satisfying groan.

Midboss - Gecko. Start out with the Cannon and shoot its twin laser turrets as quickly as possible. Once the turret is destroyed it will move around a lot, so try to avoid a collision. Once it settles down, pummel it with your Cannon. Occasionally a truck will show up that will work with the Midboss to perform a big laser attack that will severely limit your range of movement. Don't let it happen. The trucks position themselves on the left side of the screen, so as soon as they are in position, quickly switch to Hedgehog and take them out. Better yet, destroy them before they get into that position. If you take out enough of them (about 5), a level bonus will be awarded. A good strategy is first to destroy as many trucks as possible in order to get the level bonus, and then move on to blast the levelboss itself. The Midboss will shoot a homing laser as well as multiple green lasers. They're pretty easily avoided; just don't panic and only move when you have to.

The descent down a tube is littered with wall-clinging cranes and a great big plug on top. Use Hedgehogs on the plug and stay out of reach of the cranes. As soon as the plug is destroyed, dozens of little critters will drop. If you rapidly shoot them with your Wasps, a level bonus will eventually be awarded. The heavily armored snail-like enemies will return, but I've already discussed how to deal with them. Once they're gone, the screen will scroll horizontally again. An arm sticking out of the floor holds a Grenade Gunpod. Replace your Cannon reserves with the Grenade. HGW. More arms sticking out will appear, so you'll have opportunities to pick up a Wasp, Hedgehog, and Grenade.

Levelboss - Gustav. At this point you should have at least 50 rounds of Hedgehog. Use them on the Levelboss by hovering above its head. Hedgehogs not only repeatedly hit their target, but they will stop the spinning disks. So the only thing you have to watch out for is the little wall-clinging suckers. At some point, the Levelboss will release three slow, small, exploding, homing pods from its back. When that happens, you may quickly move behind the Levelboss so that the pods hit the Levelboss in an attempt to get to you; which is very gratifying, especially when they manage to finish him off.

Submarine. Pull out that trusty Hedgehog and first destroy the three missile bays on the submarine's hull. Keep shooting until the hull explodes, at which point you should head for the control tower. There's no need to conserve Hedgehogs, so release those Hedgehogs quickly because the control tower will try to escape. If successful, a level bonus will be awarded, along with a Juno Gunpod. Replace your Hedgehogs with the Juno. JGW.

Midboss - Salamander. Pull out that Juno and shoot the Midboss's head and only its head. Do not point the Juno downward from above. Stay in the water and shoot the Juno straight ahead. Quickly move to the upper left corner of the screen when he throws his mines into the water. Avoid shooting the small area on his back, near his head, or else he will attack from above water, when it's considerably tougher. But he'll eventually come out of the water if you blow apart its head armor and do some damage to his green critical area. When that happens, continue to aim for its green colored head. You'll know you're doing damage when you hear "pangs". (14) Once it's dead, you should have about 50 Juno rounds left. Use them all so that you will have a free Gunpod space.

When you come up out of the watery area the first thing you should do is reduce speed to level 2 because you'll have to maneuver through tight areas. First pick up a Spreader Gunpod (SGW) and head all the way down to the lowest level, where a Mosquito Gunpod lays behind you. Avoid it. Throughout this area pick up Wasps and Grenades, if available, and take the lowest route possible. The second level bonus is awarded by destroying the mech that slides on its back. As soon as it appears, destroy the mech using Grenades. (15) The third level bonus is awarded towards the end of the level by destroying the harmless ship that hovers above the series of grates. Rather than completely destroying the hovering ship, it's engine will explode, causing it to fall into the grates below, and subsequently destroying the grates as well. While the lengthy explosion sequence plays out as you travel up through the nuclear missile silo, dispose of all your Speader ammo so that the Gunpod will jettison, leaving an open slot. _GW.

Levelboss - Sturmvogul. As the levelboss falls from the sky, get as close as possible to its head and rapidly fire all your Grenades at it. Don't worry, it won't attack as long as you use a powerful weapon against it. Its head will explode, armor from heaven will arrive, and it will retreat out of the screen. A robot piloting a ship will show up carrying two Gunpods, usually including either a Grenade or a Wasp, along with a second Gunpod. The Levelboss should die as soon as it comes back into the screen again. All this and the it didn't even get a chance to attack. I've never been able to destroy the Levelboss before it retreats, no matter how many Grenades I throw at it. I think the game has rigged it this way. You should have about 25 Grenades remaining.

15. There is actually a way to get a Gunpod out of the mech, but it's a bit tricky. If you wait a second or two, a close inspection reveals that the mech is carrying a big long gun that shoots Grenades, and Mosquitos that shoot up from its back. The only way to get that Grenade Gunpod is to destroy the big gun the mech carries. This is somewhat difficult because you'd need a weapon that you can depend on to aim directly at the gun, because if the mech is destroyed, the Grenade Gunpod goes with it. However, at this point you should only have a Spreader, Grenade, and Wasp Gunpods. The Spreader can destroy the gun, but you'd have to get very, very close to the mech. Wasps are dependable for numerous targets, but not just one, so it is likely to hit the mech as well. While the idea of using Grenades to get more Grenades sounds inefficient, you do get a net increase in ammo. However, the Grenades' downward arc makes aiming difficult, and there are other enemies that must be dealt with at the same time. So if you're an expert looking for something to test your skills, go ahead and try getting the Grenade Gunpod. Otherwise, it's probably not worth the risk. Even if there's a way to purposely get the Mosquito Gunpod, it probably isn't worth the effort. back

Midboss - Ausf A Gestell. This monkey is one of my favorite bosses in the game because he's so unpredictable and animated. He'll often jump in and out of the background, so sometimes you can't hit him unless you use the Wasp. His most lethal attack is when he shoots his homing missiles, expecially when it happens at the same time as another attack. If he tries to jump on top of you, shoot off a few Hedgehogs so that he'll fall into them. Try to estimate where his missile launcher would be. The sooner you get rid of that thing, the better. It's quite amusing how the Hedgehog's repeated attack makes him seem to writhe in pain. If he steps to the side and shoots the spray of blue lasers out of his arm, lower your speed to level 2 so that you can maneuver through the spray. While this is happening, keep shooting Wasps. Sometimes, he'll use his laser spray attack when he's towards the middle of the screen. When this happens, fly above his head and shoot Hedgehogs at him. The Hedgehogs will hit his shoulder armor and later his arm, perhaps destroying it completely and knocking him down. Once he gets knocked down for the first time, he gets really predictable. He'll jump into the background and release the spinning discs, so stay on the bottom left of the screen and shoot the disks. They may occasionally hit you, but not kill you. (16) Destroy his missile launcher by shooting Wasps while he's in the background. The Wasp missiles will go right to his missile launcher on his back. Usually, after the last attack, he tries to swat you with his hand. Quickly, very quickly, get up close to its hand and destroy it with a bunch of Grenades and he'll get knocked down. A crate holding a Gunpod will fall, and he'll try to whip it at you. He'll jump into the background again, release the spinning disks, and swat you with his other hand. Destroy that one as well. Finally, he'll come back into the foreground. Fire a constant stream of Wasps to destroy his head armor. If you manage to knock him down 3 times, a crate holding a Flash Gunpod will fall. If you still have some Hedgehogs, replace them with the Flash. Don't finish him off until you get the Flash. FGW. So remember the hit list: missile launcher, hand, other hand, head armor.

Obviously, the remaining areas of level 5 are tough. Equip the Wasp as your default weapon, because you'll be swarmed. Try to eliminate the spinning pods using a few Grenades for each. It's best to get rid of them rather than allowing them to explode. Once you reach the area in which there are a line of those pods in the center of the screen, a walker below, and a hovercraft above, use the Flash to get rid of all of them. Next comes the section of this level in which there are a line of pods along the floor and a bunch of little flying enemies show up at the same time. Preceding this area is a walker that carries a Hedgehog Gunpod. It's there for a reason. FHW. By positioning yourself in the middle of the screen and frantically shooting Hedgehogs downward, you just might be able to get through this area unscathed. It won't be easy, as you'll have to keep track of the flying enemies, the pods, and their innumerable fire in your peripheral vision. Use up all your Hedgehogs and pick up the Grenade in the next area, in which you can get a level bonus by shooting the large red hovering craft before it goes off the screen. FGW.

Levelboss - Ausf D Duerer. The most important thing is to get rid of his Vulcan arm as quickly as possible. He should lose his Cannon arm pretty easily. Use up the Grenades first, then the Flash. Once both arms are destroyed, go for the head. Try go get close for rapid fire. His next attacks are randomized, but they're easy to avoid. He may charge. He may launch missiles from his rear. He may disperse yellow lasers. He may launch a missile from his foot. He may spray little blue lasers. He may materialize 4 pods that spray bullets. Whatever the attack, they all come with a warning, so position yourself in a safe spot, preferrably in front of his head. An interesting tactic involves using a powerful Gunpod, most likely the Grenade, to destroy the mech's bodily components in a series of rapid explosions. After each piece is destroyed, he'll reel back momentarily, and his attacks get canceled. Potentially, the levelboss won't be able to attack for a few seconds. It is a very useful tactic that only applies to this boss, but if successful, is thrilling to behold and makes the levelboss look like a whimp.

Levelboss - Schwarzgeist. Pick up the free Cannon and Wasp Gunpod. GCW (not necessarily in that order). If you have Grenades, this levelboss is incredibly easy. If not, it's a nightmare. Reduce your speed to level 2 and get as close as possible. Be careful to not damage the Gunpod in such close quarters. Assuming you have Grenades, quickly shoot them off at the boss' midsection. You have 30 rounds and that is exactly how many you'll need. As you unleash a series of Grenades, the levelboss will begin it's yellow laser spread attack. Don't worry about that; just stay put. Have faith that the levelboss will be destroyed the moment you run out of ammo, and that the yellow lasers will be cancelled. It's that easy. _CW. Before the level ends and the screen fades to black, ready the Cannon Gunpod in its down position.

The Hyperion mech is very predictable. It only has a few attacks, but it requires some fast maneuvering, so immediately maximize your speed. Once again it's weak spot is its head, but due to it's attacks, you may not be able to get a direct shot. It's best to fire off Wasps as quickly as possible, because they conveniently target its head. If you feel like a hotshot, you can try to pummel him with Cannon rounds, which can be fun as well. Once it releases the numerous little pods, just stay still and allow them to run into your fire. They'll soon stop moving to shoot you with their yellow lasers. They all target your current position, so just move a short distance up or down to dodge their lasers. Immediately after all the pods have been destroyed, move down the screen quickly because Hyperion will often shoot a devastating white blast at you from the distance. It's most deadly attacks are its two types of homing missiles. If he releases the large blue homing missiles, just move a little out of their way and allow them to pass. They aren't very maneuverable so they'll take quite some time to get turned around. Avoiding the smaller red homing missiles is a little bit trickier. Try to fly in the shape of a big "C" throughout the limits of the screen (lower right, lower left, upper left, upper right). As long as you keep moving, they won't be able to hit you. Now, the biggest problem you'll have is when Hyperion simultaneously releases both the blue and red homing missiles. It's best to dodge these the same way you'd dodge the red missiles, and hope that you won't run into any stray blue missiles.