Just a correction to my earlier post.
Random:
When enemies shoot during the entrance swoop
When enemies peel from the formation at the top of the screen
Fixed:
Which enemies divebomb from the entrance swoop
Which enemies are in formation at the top of the screen, along with their placement
Enemy divebombing is so quick, and enemies are so numerous, that divebombing appears random. However, the enemy formations per stage are fixed, and so you can't have enemies randomly divebombing--that would mean you have random formations. That said, you do still have enemies shooting randomly during that entrance swoop.
Got the dimension 4 clear this evening on normal difficulty:
1,129,280
Took me about 5 hours of practice after clearing dimension 3, and about 20 hours total of playing the game. I should mention I use a Memento-style practice regimen using save states:
-save scum to the final level
-clear the final three levels in one go
-clear the final six levels
-clear the final nine levels
-etc., working backwards, until...
-get the full clear
This drills in the final level without playing the first level to death. This way, I spend the most time practicing the hardest part, the final level. I also practice it with gradually higher levels of fatigue.
And don't forget the Restart Syndrome board, it would be cool if someone could unseat Master Kollision:
https://www.restartsyndro...amp;mode=PCE%20-%20Normal----
Some additional notes as I work through the
level design:
-Bees are always at the top. Not too significant, although it means you are less likely to shoot it down by accident.
-Joining enemies have the greatest horizontal reach, from one side to the other. No other enemy can shoot or fly so far. This makes them the most dangerous enemy IMO.
-Every stage in a dimension has the same formation shape. The variation is in the formation composition.
-Every stage in a 3-stage set (e.g. stage 11, 12, 13) has the same formation composition. The difference between each stage is in the entrance swoops and the environment (where the rocks are).
-Err, which means the scrolling stages are identical when you get to the part where the scrolling stops and the formation teleports in.
-I'm pretty sure fast mode (when enemies can advance from formation with a heightened flight speed) is triggered when 12 enemies remain. I only tested this on dimension 1, so take that with a grain of salt.
-Dimension-specific enemies shield enemies above them.
-Fireworks drop droplets when in fast mode. These eat bullets.
-Throwing star enemies have 3 health after advancing.
-Balloonies always have 3 health. Plus, they grow in size, blocking bullets from a wider range.
-Shield enemies block all bullets unless they are currently advancing out of formation.
-This last point leans into what makes Galaga work. Enemies lower in formation naturally protect enemies above them by being a meat shield. The dimension-specific enemies each have a unique way of being a meat shield. Additionally, each dimension higher has a more sturdy meat shield, until you get to the sometimes-invincible shield enemies of dimension 4.
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