Nostradamus is a vertically scrolling shoot' em up. Players control either a male pilot named Dalas (player one) or a female pilot named Joanna (player two). Dalas' ship is faster and has a weaker, but wider-coverage shot that loops behind the ship, whereas Joanna's ship is a bit slower but provides more powerful forward-firing shots. You can power up your shot up to seven times by collecting purple crystals. There's also an option weapon called the E.B.A. (Energy Boost Acceleration) which attaches to the sides of your ship and adds additional weaponry. It comes in two colors: blue one gives you homing plasma shots while the red one provides fireball shots. Collecting another E.B.A. item of the same color powers up the extra shots while grabbing the opposite color switches over. By holding down the fire button the player can charge up the system thus forming an energy barrier behind the ship which serves as a shield that protects the ship from rear attacks. Once the player releases the button, the E.B.A. will discharge a wave weapon: the blue E.B.A. unleashes the Plasmic Wave - a large blue laser beam that reaches the full vertical length of the screen, while the red E.B.A. grants you the Phoenix Wave, which creates a fiery pair of wings that cover and roast a wide horizontal area. The game consists of nine stages.