I played Power Strike about a year ago but never managed to get further than the first phase of the last boss even using continues (until I started save stating between levels), so well done 1CCing it. Which subweapon did you use?
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Thanks, I’m pretty pleased about it, that’s why I’m using any excuse to bring it up! 
My weapon of preference is 1 mainly because it has unlimited ammo. Once it’s powered up it has good damage output and screen coverage, and being able to fire in any direction is handy for the enemies that come in at the bottom of the screen.
Once I’ve died though, I normally go for 2. It’s almost impossible to get a subweapon up to full power in the late game (hence running out of ammo is brutal and I stick to 1) and I would argue that 2 is the most effective weapon at level 1. If you hold down the charge button it acts as a front shield kinda like the one you get in Gradius, absorbing enemy fire and even doing big damage to anything it touches, and it doesn’t use any ammo until you let go and fire a shot! The shot also does good damage and is handy on bosses.
My successful run was really scrappy. I try to commit to every run even when they’re going badly as otherwise I just get in this loop of resetting over and over (unless I die right at the start), so in my 1CC run I died multiple times on level 2 and got down to a single life before managing to grab three of the 1 subweapon powerups and get it instantly maxed out. Then I went on a tear all the way through level 3-5 with that weapon, stockpiling lives. I started taking hits again in the final stage and was just grabbing whatever weapon I could to survive until finally managing to get on 2 which I finished the game with.
Weapon 3, 6 and 7 are great at full power, but you really have to pay attention to when you’re using it otherwise you just run out and are left totally helpless.
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Yeah, I also mostly used 1, to the point that I don’t really remember what the others do. Infinite ammo is such a big boost, and from memory I think it cancels enemy shots once it’s powered up so you can defend yourself pretty well. My more successful runs would involve getting 1 up to power early on, using it to get through most of the game and build up lives, and then have it all fall apart as soon as I got hit and lost power and from then on take whatever weapons I could get and hope my lives stock would carry me through (it didn’t).
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A few days ago I was playing Patchwork Girl on an Apple emulator. It’s deffinetly an unique experience. After obsessing with Alter Ego and discovering this one I’m very intrigued to explore old text-based experimental games.
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In order to capture footage for a video, I needed to play Spacewar from 1962. Admittedly, I only played for a few minutes, wasn’t good at it, didn’t know what I was doing, and I don’t have a hot take on it, but still! Pretty old!
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