Gamertell

For those of you who have decided to take my advice and download the Japanese arcade game Ikaruga for Xbox Live, here are a few tips that should help you enjoy the game:

The Single Polarity Approach
If you are going for maximum points, you’ll be switching polarity every second or two. You can, instead, play through many sections with only one polarity. This will help minimize accidental deaths and make levels with quickly swarming opponents a little easier. It will also help charge up your more deadly secondary attack much more quickly since killing same polarity opponents releases additional same polarity goo. You will still need to swap polarities to get through many areas, so don’t think you can avoid that B button all day. Trying to play as long as possible with one polarity can also prove a nice challenge for those who finish and can cruise through the game.

B Button Boogie
If you are especially good at holding down a button (without chronic thumb stress) and resisting the urge to tap unless necessary, then use the Polarity switching button (the B button) to fire. Normally the A Button is for firing and the B Button is for swapping polarity, but if you lift and re-press B, it will continue to fire. The trick will be to switch at the right moment without mistakes, otherwise you’ll be the wrong polarity in the middle of a barrage of bullets. This will be the technique the pros use to really rack up the pointage,

Communication is Key
When playing online, plug in your headset and turn it on. I usually don’t bother with my headset for most games (yeah, I’m that guy - don’t be a hater) but, with Ikaruga, communication can help you both stay in the right polarity. It’s also especially helpful when one of you forgets the polarity of the upcoming opponent. Also, many swarms and bosses alternate between polarities for attacks, so one can charge up their secondary attack with the same polarity while the other lays in with the opposing polarity attacks. Bosses also often lay out two or more drones that will overlap the attack with small doses of opposing polarity fire, just to keep you on your toes.

Charge!
If you really dig the fierce secondary attack, then you may want to sit and suck up same polarity projectiles for a while. Opponents will retreat after a while (without penalty), so you can decide whether you want to (or need to) max out your polarity intake or take them out as they retreat for a few extra points. A skilled player can usually do both.

It’s Swithin’ Time
Get very used to the dead time between your polarity switching since you cannot fire when in mid-switch (which is unfortunate). Also, switching right after killing a same polarity opponent can put you on top of wrong polarity fire. Get used to either switching a little earlier to resisting the urge to kill that nasty until after you make the switch.

Product Page [Ikaruga] Read [Gamertell]

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