StarCannon/iPhone

For the version found on FunOrb.com, see StarCannon.

StarCannon

Genre	N/A
Release	15 April 2010
Multi-player	No

StarCannon is a remake of the space-themed shooter on FunOrb of the same name, released for the iPhone and iPod Touch. The game is integrated with OpenFeint, which is used to record highscores and achievements.

The main menu of StarCannon.

The interface, from left to right, top to bottom: pause button, lives remaining, level progress, score, laser grade and number of super bombs held, number of bonus orbs held.

Gameplay

The basic idea of StarCannon is to shoot down Insectoid invaders as they come towards you, avoiding their firepower while collecting powerups. The invaders will continue to attack throughout the level until the boss is reached. Bosses shoot masses of bullets and have three parts to their body: left and right wings, and the main body. These three parts are taken down separately, and the boss' firepower increases with each part destroyed. Survival in StarCannon is often a matter of evading bullets and tactical use of your shields. StarCannon consists of five levels, and can be played as a campaign with three difficulty modes, Normal, Hard and Extreme, or on Level Attack mode, where only one level is played and your ship starts with a pre-set laser grade.

Armaments

Weapons

Your ship has three different weapons, which can be switched by collecting the appropriate power-up.

Balanced: Pulse - fire with a wide spread.

Aggressive: Lance - fire in a concentrated band.

Defensive: Helix - fire in tactical arcs.

Also collectable:

Super Bomb: Collect up to 3. Massive damage.

Shields

The ship's shields are completely impervious to any one attack or impact. When hit, the shields will flash outwards, destroying or deflecting all nearby enemies, objects and bullets. The shield then require time to recharge.

If the ship is hit while its shields are down, it will be destroyed and the player loses one life. The ship will have a temporary invincibility shield upon respawning to prevent the loss of multiple lives within a short timeframe.

Power-ups come in two varieties; weapon power-ups and ship power-ups.

Weapon Upgrades

Collecting these power-ups increase the ship's laser grade by one, as well as switches the type of laser corresponding to the power-up collected. Laser grade is a measure of how powerful your laser is, which can go up to 18.

Blue - Pulse

Yellow - Lance

Green - Helix

Red - Super Bomb
The type of laser automatically changes every second or so. If your weapon is at maximum power, the weapon you are currently using will not be available from the power-up.

Ship Upgrades

There are five types of ship upgrades. Unlike the FunOrb version, these upgrades cannot be turned into one another.

Speed Up - Manoeuvre quicker for 20 seconds.

Extra Shield - Survive one extra strike.

Extra Cannons - Boost firepower for 20 seconds. Collect two for maximum power.

Extra Life - Live to fight longer.

Bonus Orb - Collect up to 20. Start Bonus Mode to multiply your points.

Enemies

StarCannon features a variety of enemies, and a boss at the end of each level.

Appearance	Name	Description
	Hawk
	Destroyer
	Cruiser

Achievements

StarCannon features 12 achievements via OpenFeint, and a total of OpenFeint score can be gotten from these achievements.

Image	Name	Description	OpenFeint Score
	Kill 10	Kill 10 Enemies.	60
	x10 Multiplier	Obtain a x10 multiplier.	60
	Finish Normal	Finish the Campaign on Normal Difficulty.	70
	Finish Hard	Finish the Campaign on Hard Difficulty.	80
	Finish Extreme	Finish the Campaign on Extreme Difficulty.	100
	Kill all Hawks	Kill all Hawks in Campaign.	80
	Kill all Destroyers	Kill all Destroyers in Campaign.	80
	Kill all Cruisers	Kill all Cruisers in Campaign.	80
	Obtain 10,000	Obtain 10,000 points in Campaign.	60
	Obtain 25,000	Obtain 25,000 points in Campaign.	60
	Obtain 50,000	Obtain 50,000 points in Campaign.	70
	Obtain 100,000	Obtain 100,000 points in Campaign.	80