Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters is a very fun attraction in some Disney Parks that is based on the Toy Story movies. Use these Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters tips to help you get the best score possible next time you ride this attraction.
This is one of the most popular rides at Disneyland. I mean, what’s not to love about it? It has Buzz Lightyear, bright colors, fun sounds, and is interactive. The Walt Disney Company sure knows how to make fun rides!
Whether it’s your first time riding or you’ve been on it plenty of times, you may be wanting some pointers on how to get a higher score. If you score high enough, you might even see your score at the exit on the high score board.
This ride is very similar to the Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom ride Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, but these tips are not specific to that ride.
What Is Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters?
In case you’re not quite familiar with the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters ride, it’s a family friendly attraction in Tomorrowland. Space Rangers will have a laser that you aim and fire at targets. Some targets are worth more points than others.
You’ll be in a space cruiser and can move around in a full 360 degrees with the joystick.
There is a dashboard in your space cruiser that will show your score. At the end you can see if your score qualifies you to be a low ranking Star Cadet, a Galactic Hero (highest rank), or somewhere in between.
These are the rankings–
- Level 1 Star Cadet: 0 – 1,000
- Level 2 Space Scout: 1,001 – 10,000
- Level 3 Ranger 1st Class: 10,001 – 100,000
- Level 4 Planetary Pilot: 100,001 – 300,000
- Level 5 Space Ace: 300,001 – 600,000
- Level 6 Cosmic Commando: 600,001 – 999,998
- Level 7 Galactic Hero: 999,999+
The ultimate goal is to defeat the Evil Emperor Zurg in a space battle. Helpy Buzz Lightyear defeat him.
It is a slow ride in the dark and there is spinning. There is no height requirement to go on this ride.
This ride is located in the Disneyland Resort in California, Disneyland Tokyo, and Disneyland Paris. The tips in this post work for all 3 locations since they’re all very similar to each other.
Thankfully the wait times for this ride usually aren’t too bad since people are continuously boarding and getting off the ride. Hopefully you won’t wait much more than about 20 minutes.
While going on this ride isn’t exactly relaxing like a Disney Cruise Line vacation, it sure is fun!
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters Tips
These tips are guaranteed to help you impress your fellow space rangers!
1. Know The Target Values
Each target has an assigned point value based on its shape. These are the point values:
- Circle – 100
- Square – 1,000
- Diamond – 5,000
- Triangle – 10,000
Definitely be on the lookout for triangle targets and diamond targets.
Also, when the edges of a target are lit up, it’s worth 10x the points! The lights will go out for a few seconds after someone hits it though.
So if you find a lit up triangle it would be worth 100,000 points!
Related Content: 48 Buzz Lightyear Quotes That Are Simply Otherworldly
2. Improve Your Aim
This sounds obvious, but it’s definitely something to practice and work on that can make a huge difference on getting a high score.
Line up the end of your astro blaster with the target you’re shooting at. This will help you aim better and have a better chance of hitting each target you fire at.
You may want to go on the ride a few times to practice this and work on it. I’m sure you’ll get a better score each time you ride!
3. Learn Where The High Value Targets Are
Almost every room has a target or two that is worth a lot more points than the other targets. Try to remember what they are so you can find them.
Here’s where they are:
- In the first room, the moving sawblade on the spaceship.
- Also in the first room, the backside of the robot’s hand.
- In the alien planet room right when you enter the room, hit the triangles on the back of the circle of moving aliens.
- Find the jack in the box and shoot the target on the outside to open it, then an alien will pop out and you need to hit the triangle target on him.
- In the dark starry tunnel the walls have three hidden triangles. Sometimes lights will shimmer across them.
- In the final Zurg scene, there is a box on the opposite side of the room from him. Hit the circle on the box and a valuable target will pop out.
- Read tip #5 for the most valuable target!
4. Fire At The High Value Targets Repeatedly
If you’ve found a good target, then keep shooting it multiple times. Don’t spend time finding a new one and aiming at it when you already have one that’s racking up the points for you.
5. Make Sure To Hit Emperor Zurg’s Chest
Emperor Zurg in the first scene and in the last scene has the most valuable target in the whole game. These targets are each worth 50,000 points! There is a tiny hole in the middle of Zurg’s chest that is not lit up.
Fire at his astro blaster and if you hit it, he will turn towards you, which makes it much easier to hit the target on his chest.
6. Don’t Stop Shooting
This is the best for improving your score! As long as you’re shooting you’re bound to hit a few targets.
Another great tip with constantly shooting is to especially do this if the ride stops. Sometimes it comes to a halt while someone is boarding or if the ride is having any problems. This happens pretty frequently and you can keep shooting and adding to your score during this time.
Also, when you shoot 5 times and miss every shot, the game awards you 100 points. So there’s really no reason to stop shooting whether you’re actually hitting the targets or not.
This is also a great way for kids to get a better score on the ride since they might never actually hit a target. They don’t have to know they didn’t them though. This is one of my toddlers’ favorite rides!
7. Sit On the Left Side
A lot of the highest scoring targets are on the left side of each room in this ride. If you’re on the left side you’ll be better situated to hit those targets and have a clear shot to them.
8. Rotate Your Space Cruiser
If you’re riding with someone else, try to be the one in control of driving the space cruiser. This way you can position yourself to be at a better angle for hitting the goldmine targets.
You may have to get a little competitive with your ride companion, but it’ll be so worth it when your score leaves them in the dust!
9. Ride By Yourself
Split up from your group and get your own Space Cruiser. This way you can see which laser is working better and you’ll be in control of rotating your cruiser around so you can hit the best targets.
No more fighting over who gets to drive! Also, if seeing the second gun lit up is distracting to you, you can set it on the seat so you don’t see it.
10. See If Your Laser Is Working
If you are pretty sure that your laser wasn’t properly, then you should let a cast member know when you get off the ride.
There’s a good chance they’ll let you board into a different space cruiser and go on the ride again. It’s at least worth a shot!
11. Check The Photo Kiosk If You Max Your Score
999,999 is the most points that your dashboard will show. If you hit that number, then be sure to check the photo kiosk after you get off the ride since it will have your whole score on it.
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters FAQ
There used to be a ride called Rocket Rods in place of the Buzz Lightyear ride at Disneyland. It was open from 1998 to 2000. Before that it was an attraction called Circle Vision.
No, people of any height can go on this attraction. I wore my 7 month old baby in a baby carrier on this ride and it worked great.
The highest score you can get on this ride is 999,999.
This attraction in Disneyland takes about 5 minutes to ride. It can of course end up being longer if the ride gets stopped at all though.
Pin this image to save this post with Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters tips for later!
