What was the first bonus stage in Namco’s 1981 arcade game Galaga called?

The first bonus stage in Namco’s 1981 arcade game Galaga is called the Challenging Stage.

During a Challenging Stage, enemy formations enter in patterns and fly across the screen without firing at the player. The objective is to destroy every enemy in the formation. Clearing the entire stage awards a perfect bonus, while missed enemies reduce the reward.

These stages interrupt the regular waves of Galaga and give players a chance to score heavily without facing ordinary enemy fire. They also showcase the game’s carefully choreographed formations, which became a memorable part of its identity.

Galaga is the sequel to Namco’s Galaxian and retains the fixed-screen shooting format while adding more complex enemy behavior. A captured fighter can also be rescued and combined with the player’s current ship, creating a dual-fighter arrangement with increased firepower but a larger target.