Boss Battle: Ridley

Use your arsenal of super missiles and missiles to blast away at the mobile Ridley.

Move right. Use the statue to replenish your health and ammunition if necessary. Enter Ridley's lair. Find safe footing on the right side of the screen--at least initially--and blast Ridley with your super missiles and missiles. Move along the bottom of the screen as necessary to avoid the fireballs and Ridley's deadly grasp (if he does grab you, fire away at him!). Move underneath the boss and shoot at Ridley's underside. Score enough damaging shots and the menacing flyer crumbles to the ground. Watch as the second statue in Brinstar opens.

Upon defeating Ridley, exit to the right. Watch as the enemies emerge from the pipe. Freeze one of the enemies at the height of its movement so you can use the creature as a platform. Jump on top and then up to the room's ceiling to hop over to the far right side.

Work your way up the far right side of the map. You can now break a block at the top permitting access to a door on the upper left. Freeze an enemy that emerges from a pipe near the room's center. Shoot it near the left side of the overhead beam. Jump onto the frozen enemy then onto the beam to find a hidden missile tank.

Freeze one of the enemies that emerges from the pipe to reach the room's top--and a hidden item.

This hallway will allow you to generate enough speed boost to break the necessary blocks.

The speed boost breaks these blocks and allows you to fall into the area below.

The following is a challenging missile tank item. You can skip this section unless you're hoping to grab every single item. Return to the long hall leading into the map room. You can get inside the top fenced-in area. From the far left door, find the upper fenced-in area and shoot the blocks that obstruct the entrance. Jump inside and move to the far right. Run uninterrupted to the left so you generate a speed boost.

Before you fall down out of the fenced-in area, press down on your directional pad to duck and charge your booster. Drop out of the fenced-in area, leap over to the left (small jump so you won't activate speed boost). Before the ramp leading to the left, jump up and press left to perform a speed boost shoulder block. Keep moving to the left and Samus will be running in speed boost mode. Keep firing to open the doors and you'll reach the far left room and break the speed boost blocks along the ground.

Upon dropping down to the bottom, go to the far right then run uninterrupted to the left. You'll generate a speed boost. At the far left end of the next room, duck to charge the boost. Press jump and up to destroy the blocks above you. Work through the tunnel in morph ball form. Don't stand on blocks too long or they will disintegrate. Grab hold of the ledges and shoot the necessary blocks to reach the missile tanks on the far end.

Navigate the tunnels in morph ball form. Grab hold of the ledges as you drop and work your way to the missile tank.

There's a hidden tunnel in this room that contained a super missile tank.

Use the propulsion device to return up above the tank so you can drop down on its other side.

There are more optional missile tanks to be found. Return to the room where you grabbed the super missile tank (above Ridley's lair). There's a hidden ledge above the platform on the upper right side of the ceiling. Hop in via morph ball form. In the room above, shoot the lone block to reveal a missile tank.

Go left and enter a vertical chamber with two missile tanks. To get the bottom tank, shoot the block on the left side of the tank. Drop down into the propulsion device and launch up the right side. Drop back down the left side quickly before the block reappears. You can drop down and roll into the tank. To get the upper tank, use a bomb jump to propel yourself up to the left. Use the power grip to hold on then roll into the tank.

Return to the long tunnel along the bottom of Ridley (where the fenced-in area runs along the top). Move to the far right side of the hall then go up into the fenced-in area. Start at the left of the fenced-in section and run to the right. When you enter boost, duck to charge. Drop down out of the top area, jump over to the door, and shoot it open. To get over the save game platform, you must do a short jump up (just above the platform) and hit right. Shoot open the exit door. Now you're in a vertical shaft. Hit duck to charge the boost again. Leap up two platforms to your right. Jump straight up and perform a shoulder block move to the right. You'll break through to a door on the far right and gain access to a missile tank.

The last Ridley missile tank is located on the far right side of the map (just above the one described above) and also requires speed boost. Start from the far left side of the location and shoot the door open as you run. Blast away the blocks as you build to your speed booster. When you reach the blocks, perform a jump to maneuver across the pillar. Crush the blocks to the far side to find the missile tank.

Return to the far right of the map and go up the shaft. Traverse the upper room going left. When you can't continue left, go up and around. Bust the far left floor block with a missile then a bomb to drop down inside. You're now near the lift. Return up the lift and back into Norfair.