Your spaceship, which you see as though you were sitting in its cockpit, is equipped with a maximum of nine energy shields. Each time you run into an obstacle (fireball, tower or catwalk) you will lose a shield, but you can earn extra shields by destroying the Death Star. If you get hit when your shield count is zero, the game will end.

Prior to taking a shot at the Death Star, you must battle wave after wave of Imperial TIE Fighter patrol ships that are swarming around the artificial planet. You must destroy the entire fleet while shooting at and avoiding a barrage of fireballs. Next, you must fly through a maze of laser towers that stretch from the Death Star up into the blackness of outer space. The fireballs make a return engagement, and you can shoot the tops off the towers for bonus points.

After the tower sequence, you will fly through a trench that has been constructed along the surface of the Death Star. As you pilot your X-wing through the narrow passages of this Equitorial Trench, you must maneuver through numerous catwalks. Once again, the fireballs are out to destroy your ship. 

Eventually, after the catwalks stop appearing in your pathway, the main reactor port will appear on the floor of the trench. When this happens, a direct shot with your photon torpedoes will explode the Death Star into space debris. At last, the Rebellion is safe once again from the Empire.

After you destroy the Death Star, the game continues at the beginning of the first wave. Before play begins, you can choose from three skill levels -- easy, medium and hard.