Earning every medal in Campaign Mode requires absolute perfection from your trigger finger and a complete disregard for your wingmates’ egos.
You get absolutely nothing for coasting through on Easy or messing around in Challenge Mode. Medals only drop in the Normal and Expert campaigns. To earn one, you have to hit a specific score threshold while keeping Falco, Peppy, and Slippy entirely intact. If one of them taps out and retreats, your medal vanishes instantly, regardless of how high your hit counter climbed.
Claiming all 15 medals on Normal unlocks Expert mode. Once you are there, earning all 16 on Expert rewards you with an alternate title screen, an extra multiplayer mode, and that sweet 100% completion achievement.
The Complete Target List
Before you start flying blind and guessing what a «good» run looks like, you need the hard numbers. The hit targets remain identical across both Normal and Expert difficulties. The only difference is that Expert makes surviving long enough to reach those numbers much more punishing.
| Stage | Hits Required |
|---|---|
| Corneria | 150 |
| Meteo | 200 |
| Sector Y | 150 |
| Aquas | 150 |
| Katina | 150 |
| Fichina | 50 |
| Zoness | 250 |
| Solar | 100 |
| Sector X | 150 |
| Sector Z | 100 |
| Macbeth | 150 |
| Titania | 150 |
| Area 6 | 300 |
| Bolse | 150 |
| Venom | 200 |
| Venom 2 | 200 |
Essential Scoring Tactics
If you want to clear the hardest routes in the game, basic survival simply won’t cut it. You have to play aggressively and exploit a few systems to push your hit count up.
Charge Shots Over Rapid Fire
Rapid fire is fine for panic situations, but it totally ruins your score. To get high numbers, you need charged shots. Hitting multiple enemies in a single charged blast awards bonus points you desperately need. Bombs clear the screen beautifully, but they give zero multikill bonuses. Save your bombs strictly for enemies that are about to vanish off the screen.
Steal Kills From Your Friends
Your wingmates are out there stealing your points. Kills made by Falco, Peppy, and Slippy do not count toward your final total. Watch their targets and blast them out of the sky before your team gets the credit. This is basically mandatory on Katina, where your allies get extremely aggressive and will ruin your run.
The Checkpoint Restart Trick
Before you grit your teeth trying to salvage a bad run, just pause and check your score. Enemy counts vary wildly before and after the mid-stage checkpoint. If you reach the halfway mark and your score is pathetic, restart the level. Grinding through a doomed second half wastes time.
Intentional Deaths for Bombs
If you enter a tough stage without bombs, you are already at a severe disadvantage. Dying intentionally right at the start respawns you with three fresh bombs. This trade is highly recommended for brutal stages like Venom 1. Just be incredibly careful trying this on Expert. Exhausting your lives there triggers a hard game over and wipes your entire run.
Maximize Your Lasers Early
Grab the green H-shaped laser upgrades immediately. A maxed out laser makes every single encounter easier. If you take wing damage, you lose the upgrade, making later stages substantially harder. Keep your wings intact at all costs.
Stage Checkpoint Targets
Memorizing enemy patterns is the only way to consistently nail these targets. I mapped out exactly where your hit count needs to be at the halfway mark for every stage.
Corneria and Meteo
On Corneria, aim for 70 hits by the checkpoint. Fly under the arches during the second water section to trigger extra enemies. For Meteo, the back half of the stage is loaded with targets. The warp rings lead to dense enemy clusters, so hitting 90 by the checkpoint keeps you on track for the 200 total.
Sector Y and Aquas
Always take the upper path at the fork in Sector Y. Use your bombs on the massive ship formations and aim for 50 hits by the halfway mark. Aquas demands constant torpedo spam. Destroy every cracked pillar and target boss weak points, looking for 90 hits at the checkpoint.
Katina and Fichina
Katina requires 150 hits before the Saucerer countdown begins. Stay ahead of your squad and steal every kill you can. Fichina has a remarkably low target of 50. Aim for 30 hits before Star Wolf shows up. Taking down each Star Wolf member quickly gives you 10 bonus hits, easily closing the gap.
Zoness and Solar
Zoness is rough. You need 140 hits by the checkpoint. Blast the searchlights, but intentionally miss a specific one near a gate right after Rob offers supplies. This spawns a bonus enemy wave that is vital for reaching 250. Solar is sparse. Destroy absolutely every rock and enemy, aiming for 40 hits at the checkpoint.
Sector X and Sector Z
Always take the right path at the fork in Sector X for higher density, aiming for 80 hits at the mid-mark. Defeat Spyborg fast so Slippy doesn’t end up on Titania. Sector Z requires tight pacing against missile waves. You want 25 hits before the first missile, 40 before the pair, and 70 before the final wave.
Macbeth and Titania
Shoot every rock, train car, and enemy on Macbeth for 100 hits by the checkpoint. Hitting all eight switches to derail the train gives a bonus, but you should already be on pace. Titania requires heavy bombing on the large four-legged units, aiming for 70 hits halfway through.
Bolse and Area 6
Bolse requires 40 to 70 hits before the core is exposed. Clear the core fast for roughly 80 hits, and wipe out Star Wolf quickly for 40 more. Area 6 is an absolute nightmare requiring 300 hits. Go in with full bombs and aim for 175 by the checkpoint. You have to memorize the spawn timings here or you will fail.
Venom 1 and Venom 2
Arrive at Venom through Area 6 to fight Star Wolf before Andross for extra points, aiming for 180 by the checkpoint. The Golemech yields 10 hits, but Andross grants zero. Venom 2 is locked behind the hard route. You need at least three fast-takedown bonuses against Star Wolf to hit 180 before the tunnel. The final hits come from Andross himself. Clear his eyes quickly for 6 hits each, and finish his true form for 11 more.
