Robotron strategy

chas010

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I cant believe it but I have managed to break 400k!

But is there really a strategy to Robotron or is it more reflex development? I mean I have learned to avoid corners but for the most part im dodging and shooting.
 
I cant believe it but I have managed to break 400k!

But is there really a strategy to Robotron or is it more reflex development? I mean I have learned to avoid corners but for the most part im dodging and shooting.

Of course there are strategies for various levels and a general overlying strategy.
 
There is the 'mikey' trick on the first brain wave. The brains all try and go for him, so if you can protect him and kill everybody but one or 2 enemies. Then you can rack up the points/freemen by collecting all the mommies after.

Try and kill the quarks or whatever they're called before they spawn stuff.

I like to attack the enemies whenever possible, don't run away, but run towards them.

Shoot and move on, don't wait for your bullets to hit something.
 
There is the 'mikey' trick on the first brain wave. The brains all try and go for him, so if you can protect him and kill everybody but one or 2 enemies. Then you can rack up the points/freemen by collecting all the mommies after.

Try and kill the quarks or whatever they're called before they spawn stuff.

I like to attack the enemies whenever possible, don't run away, but run towards them.

Shoot and move on, don't wait for your bullets to hit something.


I've gotta counteract 2 of these strategies...

1) Don't run towards enemies - it just gets you killed on later levels. Learn to run away from them while shooting back at them. This is true of most levels except Brain levels (see below)

2) Brain Level 101.
Brain levels have a surprising amount of strategy to follow, depending onm what is currently happening.

Brains - do NOT get hung up on protecting the single 'mikey' or equivalent except on the first couple of Brain levels. On later levels it is just impossible.
Instead, at the beginning of a level try to do a quick scan and combo of the following 2 -
collect humans
clear a space around you by working out the least crowded part of the level - do not stay central, go to left or right of screen, not very edges

As soon as there are no more easy humans to go for, concentrate on killing Brains/enfiorcers and avoiding their missiles. The key to later levels is to kill Brains as fast as possible as the homing missiles are the hardest items to dodge on these levels.
Once you have cleared an area around you, shoot all Brains above or below you to try and clear the third or half of the screen you're in. This gives you a bit of time to dodge missiles.

At this stage run up and down the screen aiming at the remaining Brains until too many missiles get close THEN start going clockwise or anticlockwise around the screen, always concentrating on shooting Brains first, other enemies second, and only concentrating on missiles that are just TOO close. (in effect pretend the missiles don't exist except when very close to you)

You HAVE to learn to use your diagonal shooting on these levels.

Also, in general, Brains will shoot missiles if you get too close to them, usually giving you no time to dodge. The very first missile of a level is deadly and seems to be very accurate - DO NOT be next to a brain when the first missile is launched - you will notice a small delay after the level start before they start firing, although this time delay reduces significantly (virtually instant) on higher levels

Also, NEVER EVER stay still for even a second - the homing missiles lock onto you and are much harder to shake or kill.

Of course, all that I have described above takes mere seconds and a lot of practice to perfect. Get it right and you'll lose less lives than you gain - get it wrong on later levels and be prepared to get slaughtered.

3) TANK Levels
The tank/enforcer levels are a whole other strategy, mostly involving being ultra aggresive at killing them ASAP, and going for formed tanks in the order they appear as, like the Brains, you have a few seconds between them forming and when they first fire.
Once again, fast reactions help you, but do not go to the edges (especially the 4 corners) and circle as best as you can, only reversing direction if deemed absolutely necessary.

I hope this helps - these tactics are especially useful on scores over 500K when things start to get very hairy

TS
 
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I agree it's good to run away and shoot backwards, but when you get REALLY swarmed it does help to run towards them in a sweeping pattern to kill them faster to make room for yourself..ie on the grunt levels..

Thanks for the indepth tips TallScot, I'm FAR from pro :)
 
I agree it's good to run away and shoot backwards, but when you get REALLY swarmed it does help to run towards them in a sweeping pattern to kill them faster to make room for yourself..ie on the grunt levels..

Thanks for the indepth tips TallScot, I'm FAR from pro :)

Haha! True. :D On grunt levels you tend not to have a choice, until you first get to the edge of the screen anyway. Then it's run away and shoot time again. For some reason, Grunt levels are extra brutal if you lose a life quickly and have to restart in the middle, so as with other levels, find the way out (to the edge) with the most space to give you that extra fraction of a second to survive.
 
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I cant believe it but I have managed to break 400k!

But is there really a strategy to Robotron or is it more reflex development? I mean I have learned to avoid corners but for the most part im dodging and shooting.

IMHO it's a reflex. I sold my Multi-Williams to a buddy of mine last Oct. I was over playing it last week. His FIRST GRADER handed me my ass. His best score is 650K and change. He rips through the tank levels like nothing. It's F'n embarrassing. He was mocking me. I forget what his best score is in Stargate. He beat me, I remember that. I need to record him. It's insane...
 
Thanks for the comments guys, very helpful. Im not sure why but I have been putting in about a half hour a night or so before bed to try and up my high score. Its probably a bad idea because I get all stressed before bed when they mop me up :(.
 
I started playing this for the first time just a week or so ago. I played for a few hours and was able to only crack 50,000. I wasn't playing it on a real machine, but on a collection for my Xbox. It's definitely not gamepad friendly. I would assume I'd get better if I played on an actual machine.
 
I cant get past wave 7. I can get there with 3 guys and then drain them all in a matter of seconds. I try and kill them before they fully spawn. My high is only 120k.. I'll get there once my Multi-Williams is done.
 
IMHO it's a reflex. I sold my Multi-Williams to a buddy of mine last Oct. I was over playing it last week. His FIRST GRADER handed me my ass. His best score is 650K and change. He rips through the tank levels like nothing. It's F'n embarrassing. He was mocking me. I forget what his best score is in Stargate. He beat me, I remember that. I need to record him. It's insane...

A 6 year old is getting 650K on Robotron???
 
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