Now that we've learned how to do things in the game, let's make some progress.
First | Next | End
As you travel through the map, you may run into enemy aircraft and therefore face a bunch of enemies. You'll need to go from left to right and take out the enemies.
The most dangerous enemy in this entire area are the heavily armored ones. They are only vulnerable when they do not have their shield out in front of them. If you can destroy them, they will drop an eagle emblem. Collect these for continues. You can have up to nine, and you're going to need all the continues you can get your hands on in order to make this game easier.
You'll also start seeing enemies parachuting in after the first armored enemy. Watch out for them, especially as you take on the second armored enemy. After the second armored enemy, it won't be long until you reach the end.
Area 3
Before you enter this area, equip the Flare! Make sure you get the flare from Area 2 and equip it here before going in. You can make your way through this place without it, but it's not exactly advised, especially with all the spike pits that take off two units of health at a time. That's not good, especially when you do not have a lot of post-damage invincibility frames in this game.
Once you enter the cave, the cave will go dark. If you have the Flare equipped, you can press the Start button to use the Flare and light up the area. Use your grappling hook to swing over the spike pits. Press A by itself to shoot the hook up and forward, and when you're all the way forward, press Down or Right to move forward. Keep in mind that pressing Right launches you further than pressing Down. Once again, make sure you don't fall into them, as landing in a spike pit takes off two units of health and can cause you to lose all your health in seconds if you can't get yourself out in time.
Midway through the cave is the communications room. By contacting your fellow men, you'll find out that there are four types of video receivers: Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta. You only have the Alpha Receiver, which works only in Areas 1, 3 and 4. Past Area 4, you're going to need the Beta Receiver. By tapping into enemy communications, you'll find out that the Doraize forces are pretty tight-lipped about the Albatross project and that only the higher-ups really know anything about it.
The enemy with the blade will run straight for you. Shoot at him and take him out immediately before he runs into you.
There is a big open area where you can get some more experience with the grappling hook. If you can get to the top, you can get an extra life. Just watch out for the spike pit, as there is not much room between that and the ceiling. Make sure you keep your swing arcs small and tight by hooking up to the ceiling while you're very close to it, and you should be able to come out of it without much trouble.
You'll eventually reach the power reactor. There is only one human enemy in the room: a soldier who runs across ground level shooting a hook out of his head. All the hook does is stun you and knock you back, as the hook actually does not damage you. If you touch him, however, you'll lose health from the contact damage. If you get knocked into the power reactor, you'll take even more damage! Get this guy near the power reactor, facing left. Keep holding Right on the D-Pad and keep firing your weapon. You'll keep getting knocked back, but you'll also keep firing at the power reactor, making this a good loop to be in. You can still fire while you're stunned, so make use of that. It won't be long until you clear Area 3 and get the Wide Range Rifle, which gives you a better shot than the gun that you have. Equip this immediately; this gun has a three-way shot and is much better than the one you begin the game with.
Area 15
If you enter Area 15 now, you'll be stopped by a wall. You won't be able to get rid of it until you're nearing the end of the game, so remember this spot for later.
Area 4
Since you won't need the Flare for the rest of the game, switch back to the Bio Protein.
This is the first area in the game where your grappling hook skills are going to be put to the test. Be ready to grapple and swing a lot just to get where you want to go.
Slime will come out of the pipes in the background, and it will push in the direction that it is traveling. If you're not careful, you'll be pushed into a pit and forced to lose a life in the process. Thankfully, hooking upwards onto the ceiling stops the slime from pushing you around.
Some of the tiles on the floor are springs, and if you walk onto them, you'll hop forward in the direction you're facing. Use this to hook onto some ceilings and get further into this area.
Don't forget to enter the communications room before going into the rest of the level, as you'll need to go in there to open the power reactor room. Your side of the war will tell you that there is a leak in Area 6 that is soaking through the wall. Enemy communications will reveal someone named General Rile, who commends Super Joe on being a good fighter.
There is an extra life near the end, but you'll need to drop down from the communications room entrance, face right, swing your way in that direction, and not bop into the walls on the way there.
The robots with the crane arms can only be destroyed from behind. This is where the Wide Range Rifle comes in, as you can pull yourself right up to a ceiling and hit them from below with the three-way shot as they go under you. The smaller soldiers that bail out of the robots when they explode have to be hit with a crouching attack, but they still leave cartridges, so take them down, too.
The power reactor in this area is guarded by a guardian system: a small flying robot that hovers up and down and fires at you. Stay close and duck, and keep firing with the Wide Range Rifle to destroy it. You'll get the Shield Goggles, which acts as extra armor and protects you from random shots sometimes.
