Star Cruiser
Star Cruiser stands as a defining shooter title on the Sega Genesis. With polished gameplay mechanics and memorable level design, this classic delivers an experience that has stood the test of time.
- Developer
- Arsys
- Released
- 1990
- Platform
- Mega Drive
- Genre
- Shooter
- Players
- 1P
- Rating
- 4.8 / 5 (636)
- Last updated
Star Cruiser Controls — Mega Drive Keyboard Keys
Default keyboard bindings for Star Cruiser on our in-browser Mega Drive emulator. Plug in a USB or Bluetooth gamepad to auto-detect mappings, or rebind any key from the emulator settings menu.
| Keyboard | Console button | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| ↑ | D-Pad Up | Move up |
| ↓ | D-Pad Down | Move down |
| ← | D-Pad Left | Move left |
| → | D-Pad Right | Move right |
| X | A | Primary action (jump / confirm) |
| Z | B | Secondary action (attack / cancel) |
| S | C | Tertiary action |
| A | X | Quaternary action |
| Q | Y | Fifth button |
| W | Z | Sixth button |
| Enter | Start | Start / Pause |
These bindings cover the 6-button Mega Drive controller. Most older titles only use buttons A/B/C; the extra X/Y/Z buttons matter for Street Fighter II and other 6-button fighters.
Rebind any key from the EmulatorJS in-game settings menu (gear icon → Controls). A connected gamepad auto-maps to the same buttons.
Star Cruiser Longplay & Gameplay Videos
Watch a full playthrough of Star Cruiser on Mega Drive before you dive in — recommended for getting a feel for the game's pacing, story beats, and difficulty curve.
Watch longplay on YouTube
"Star Cruiser" Mega Drive longplay 1990
Star Cruiser Cheat Codes
11 community-curated cheats for Star Cruiser. Tick any to activate them automatically when you click "Play with cheats" — or copy a code into your own emulator.
-
Don't lose any energy when your ship moves
RH0T-A6TJ -
Shields will take less damage from enemy attacks
REAT-C6ZA -
Infinite shields
D2AT-CA9W -
Shields will take much less damage from enemy attacks
JEAT-DGZA -
Makes Shot Laser twice as strong
AVDT-CACR -
Makes Shot Laser 5 times stronger
BKDT-CACR -
Makes Homing Missile 1 twice as strong
HVDT-CAH4 -
Makes Homing Missile 1 five times stronger
W3DT-CAH4 -
1 shot kills enemy
BKAT-CA3J -
Infinite Homing Missile 1
AJ9A-CA6W -
No key needed to open gates
CL9T-AA5L
External references
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Star Cruiser released?
Star Cruiser was released in 1990 for the Mega Drive.
Who developed Star Cruiser?
Star Cruiser was developed by Arsys, available to play in your browser on RetroGameSpace.
How many players does Star Cruiser support?
Star Cruiser is a single-player Shooter game for the Mega Drive.
What type of game is Star Cruiser?
Star Cruiser is a Shooter game for the Mega Drive, playable instantly in your browser — no downloads, no installs.
How can I play Star Cruiser for free?
Open this page and click "Play Now" — Star Cruiser runs free in your browser via WebAssembly emulation. No account, no payment, no installer.
Do I need to download anything to play Star Cruiser in the browser?
No. Star Cruiser streams from a public archive into a browser-side Mega Drive emulator. Nothing is installed on your computer.
Can I save my progress in Star Cruiser?
Yes. Save states are stored in your browser (IndexedDB) per game, and you can also use any in-game save the original Mega Drive cartridge supported.
Does Star Cruiser work on mobile devices?
Yes — the Mega Drive emulator runs on iOS Safari and Android Chrome. Touch controls overlay the game; landscape mode is recommended.
Is it legal to play Star Cruiser this way?
RetroGameSpace is a transient caching reverse-proxy and does not host first-party copies of Star Cruiser. Game files are fetched on demand from publicly-accessible archives. You are responsible for compliance with your local laws and the bring-your-own-ROM principle.
