5) Get the auto-firing weapons for extra firepower.
The two auto-firing weapons (aside from the main cannon itself, obviously) are the wing cannons and the homing missiles. Wing cannons are great for picking off small enemies and doing some extra damage to large ones. Homing missiles are excellent for doing heavy damage to larger enemies, especially bosses or large planes. They’re also great for getting hard-to-reach enemies like the speedboats.
4) Get the three pieces of manual-activation equipment for extreme firepower.
The megabomb kills all enemies on screen, the laser fires a huge blast forward and the energy shield will make you immune to any damage for awhile. Use these strategically, such as using the lasers against bosses and the energy shield to pull kamikaze attacks on loads of small planes.
3) Upgrade beyond the maximum to change your weapon’s appearance.
This is mainly for the main cannon. When you upgrade one past the maximum level, the upgrade bar will start over again, and your shots will change appearance. In addition, your firing rate will increase permanently, and you can upgrade beyond the maximum over and over again. Do this with your other upgrades too and see what happens!
2) Change the controls around to fit your comfort level.
You can change the controls so that the aircraft is exactly where your finger is, or so that wherever you put your finger, the screen will act as a simulated joystick, allowing you to actually see your plane. Try both sets of controls and pick whichever one you find the most comfortable to play with.
1) Don’t get hit!!!
This is the most important thing to remember, and almost every loss in this game is due to losing focus on avoiding enemy bullets and small kamikaze planes. Don’t let yourself get hit. The stars and medals will come in due time, but this is the most important thing you can do if you want to consistently be victorious.