PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 10 of 15

Man, we're having a much easier time on the second loop than on the first, huh?

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Compared to my first trip through here, I've got a much better idea of what I'm doing now to the point that I can do the second loop of the game in seven videos instead of eight. I even blast my way through Twinbellows in record time. Now to ensure that I have 999 hearts when I beat the game...

World 1-3

Map (by Rick Bruns)

The red water is lava, and it will hurt if you land in it.

Halfway up the level, you'll be dealing with the Shemums and the Commylooses at the same time. If you can find a spot where you can somehow shoot down a good amount of enemies and avoid getting hit a lot, you can get a lot of points and hearts here.

You'll also see brown spikes coming out of the sides of the green platforms and walls. Touching those will hurt you.

Near the end, you'll find a training room. In the training room, you'll have to shoot down tiles (known as Monoliths) as they fly around. If you stand left of the center of the room, most of the tiles won't hit you, and if any do, it will be from the side. If you get the "Well Done" message, you'll be able to choose between one of three items: the Fire, which gives you flaming arrows that do more damage; the Sacred Bow, which increases the speed and range of your arrows; and the Protective Crystal, which spawns two crystals revolve that around Pit and destroy enemies while also acting like a shield. You'll need a certain amount of health in order to get these powers to work, or else they won't work.

If you can reach 56,600 points, you'll get a third unit of health for the health bar.

World 1-4

Map (by Rick Bruns)

The fourth level in every world is a labyrinth, and these will play differently from the first three levels. Here, you'll be going in a bit of a maze. On the lower-left corner, you'll have your current weapon and the amount of soldiers that you currently have free. In the bottom center, you'll have your hearts and current health. On the lower-right, you'll have the current level that you're on and the amount of hit points that the boss has left.

The one-eyed white skulls (Ganewmedes) that fly around will go around the room. Shoot them down for hearts. The ones with the bluish hue will drop five hearts each, while the ones with the reddish hue drop ten hearts each.

The one-eyed bugs (Kobils) slowly move back and forth, and the blue ones drop one heart each and the red ones drop five. The red upside-down vases will drop down the Shemums, which you can grind hearts off of as they drop down. They drop down indefinitely, so you can get as many as you need if you have the time and patience.

The gray statues of the statues with the spears are soldiers, or Centurions, that you can free. If you have any mallets, you can switch between those and the arrow with the Select button, then hit a statue with a mallet to free the soldier inside. The soldiers will then help you with the boss, but they will go down in one hit.

The blue, one-eyed men with the white capes and the staffs are the Eggplant Wizards. They will throw Eggplants up towards you at an arc, and if an eggplant hits you, you will be turned into an eggplant with human legs. When in eggplant form, you cannot attack, and all you can do is move around and try not to get hit a lot. Stay low and close so that the eggplant projectiles don't hit you. If you do get hit with an eggplant, you'll have to find the hospital inside the dungeon and go inside to get cured and turned back to your normal self. The hospital is an all-white room with red crosses in the upper corners.

The gray T-shaped pipes shoot spikes out. Watch them carefully so the spikes don't hit you as you get around in the current room.

The pool of orange water is a hot spring. If you find it, jump in and stay in there to slowly refill your health.

There are also stores in the dungeon, if you can find them. Use them to stock up on stuff you need before you fight the guardian of the labyrinth, because once you enter that boss battle, you can't back out and you'll have to fight your way out.

The fortress also have their own stores containing their own items. While you'll have to find the map somewhere in the dungeon, you'll have to buy the torch and the pencil. The torch lets you see your current position on the map, while the pencil lets you see which rooms you've visited (which will be in green) and which ones you haven't. If you draw your own maps while playing, or if you're using one off the Internet, however, it's pretty pointless.

The boss is Twinbellows. Twinbellows will slowly move from one side of the room to the other while shooting their fireballs in an upward arc. When you shoot and hit Twinbellows, he will go up slightly, and if you can time it right, you can avoid being hit by the low fireball that way. Having any soldiers accompanying to the fight can help, as they can do a little bit more damage and make the battle go slightly quicker, even if they go down in one hit. When you beat Twinbellows, you'll get the first sacred treasure.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 9 of 15

It's time for the second loop! I have a much easier time this time around.

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Man, I did a lot better here than I did the first time around, huh? At this rate, I'll just be posting some notes on my second loop through the game.

When you start a new loop, you'll be able to keep your weapons, but the barrel, the Waters of Life and the feathers that you had will all be gone from your inventory, and you'll be forced to get them all over again. On the plus side, I'm able to take out a lot more enemies and get a lot more hearts in the process of suiting back up and getting the best ending. That also includes getting the final arrow power-up and bringing attack up to maximum strength, which I'm able to do at the end of 1-2.

At least my platforming skills are better.

World 1-1

Map (by Rick Bruns)

The D-Pad lets you move left and right with Left and Right, aim upwards by holding Up and crouch and jump down from platforms by holding Down. B attacks, and A jumps. Select switches weapons, and Start pauses the game and opens the menu.

You start out with no hearts, and you only have a little bit of health. In order to increase your health, you'll need to get a lot of points. To do that, you'll need to defeat enemies. As you defeat enemies, you'll not only gain points, but you can also get hearts. Hearts will be used to buy things in the store.

The snakes with the wings (they're called Shemums) will head in one direction, then turn around if they hit a wall. If they reach the edge of a platform, they will drop down. Wait for them to come your way before hitting them with your arrows and taking their hearts. As much as they seem to limitlessly spawn, there is a limit to how many will drop down before you've fought them all in the current spot where you're at before you have to make your way forward.

By walking into a door, you can enter it. Sometimes there will be nothing in the room, while others will contain enemies, shops and treasure rooms.

The screen is wrap-around. If you walk through the side of the screen, you'll end up on the other side. In other words, if you walk through the right side of the screen, you'll end up on the left side, and vice-versa.

The first world's stages are vertical, and you'll have to jump your way up and carefully make your way to the top to reach the exit. If you fall beyond the bottom of the screen for any reason, the game is over and you'll have to replay the level. You only have one life, but you have infinite continues. If you die at any time, you can get a password, which will keep track of all the points, health, hearts and items that you've collected.

The red, one-eyed flying creatures (Monoeyes) fly in groups of four, and they give more points and drop five hearts each. The bigger the heart, the more it is worth.

The heart turns any enemies that pop up on-screen into mallets for a limited time. The mallets are used in the labyrinths to rescue warriors turned into stone back into flesh to assist you. This will be mentioned more in detail at the first labyrinth.

You'll want to get close to 20,000 points by the time you get out of this level. If you can do that, you'll go from the Bronze Arrow - which you start with - to the Silver Arrow, which is a little more powerful. Also, you can get arrow upgrades from defeating a lot of enemies and finding a room where someone will give you an arrow if you've been fighting hard enough.

The Grim Reaper (Reaper) slowly moves back and forth. If he sees you, regardless of how far away you are from him, he will send his own flying mini-Reapers (Reapettes) after you, and he will keep doing that for a limited time, complete with "panic" music that plays when he does this. When in doubt, lay low. If you can defeat him, that will also stop the mini-Reaper attacks. The best way to beat them is to hit them from behind, then wait for them to look away again and go back to minding their own business before hitting them.

The enemy rooms will be full of flying enemies that look like flying eyes with big noses (Specknoses), much like those funny looking glasses with the big nose connected at the bottom. The more of them you can defeat before they disappear, the more points and hearts you can get. The hearts you get from these enemies will be full, big hearts worth ten hearts each.

The wine goblet will refill one whole unit of health.

The room with the pots is a treasure pots. By shooting down pots, you can get the treasures inside, but you'll want to wait until you shoot down all the pots to get all the treasures, or you'll be warped out of the room the instant you get something. The treasures - which are all either mallets or hearts - are placed at random, and if you get the tiny Grim Reaper, you'll wipe out all your progress and you get nothing. You lose. Good day, sir.

In these rooms, you'll want to shoot down the top two pots on the left and the pot on the bottom-right below the door. The number of mallets you get will tell you which one to hit last. If you don't get any mallets, it's the pot on the lower-left. If it's one, it's the pot on the upper-right corner. If it's two, it's the pot directly above the door. If it's three, it's the one in the middle. Hitting the one you're supposed to hit last before last will give you the tiny Grim Reaper (known in the manual as "The God of Poverty"), ruining your whole progress in that room. If you do manage to hit the one you're supposed to hit last at the very end, you'll get a nice treasure.

The bottle with the liquid in it will revive you if you die. You'll only get a little bit of health left, but it's better than nothing. You can only carry one at any given time, but you can carry more.

On the purple square platforms, do not do a running jump. Just jump to the left or right, or else you run the risk of the game eating your jump inputs.

The red, one-eyed frogs (Nettlers) will move much like the snakes with wings, and they will duck for a second whenever you shoot at them. As long as you aren't super-close to them, the arrows will still hit them when they stop ducking.

There is also a red flame enemy that can pop out of the floor and shoot a projectile (they're called McGoos). Shoot them if you can, but watch out for the projectile.

When you reach the end of the stage, the amount of points you got in the level will be added to your total score.

Your health does not refill between stages. Keep this in mind.

World 1-2

Map (by Rick Bruns)

You'll see the store here for the first time. If you have enough hearts, you can buy things at these stores. The barrel is the Water Barrel, which allows you to carry eight of the health bottles. (The chalices and the bottles contain the Water of Life, which increase your health, with the chalices restoring health immediately and the bottles reviving you upon death.) The feather is the Angel Feather, which will bounce you back up if you fall beyond the bottom of the screen.

If you can reach 28,200 points, you can get a second section of health when you complete the current level.

You'll see some moving platforms near the end of the level.

Also near the end of the level, there will be red octopus enemies that will come up from the bottom of the screen (Commylooses). Shoot them down if you can, but watch them carefully as they move to the side on the way up.

If you have enough points when you reach the door near the end, you can get the Silver Arrow.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 8 of 15

We beat the game...but we still have a little bit of work to do. Time for the second loop!

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World 4-1

Map (by Rick Bruns)

This stage plays differently compared to the others. B shoots, while the D-Pad moves you in all directions. You'll also have a shield in front of you, too.

The green enemies (Totem drop down in groups, while the flying enemies (Moilas) will come in from both sides of the screen and will come Pit. You'll definitely want to watch the flying enemies.

The one-eyed wizards (Erinuses) shoot fireballs, and they split into three when shot. You'll have to watch for those parts, as they will come at you as you try to shoot the parts down to get rid of them for good.

The flying enemies with the wings (Syrens) will move up and down as they fly at Pit.

The green plants (Daphnes) will move up from the bottom of the screen, float for a while, then come back down.

The ghosts (Zurees) just move up and down from the top of the screen to the bottom. That's it.

When the music changes, you'll face Medusa. In order to do that, you must defeat a lot of enemies. If you haven't enough enemies, the stage will loop until you do. Watch out for the green worm (Tanatos; which is a misspelling of "Thanatos") that bounces up and down, and use the shield to block the beams. There is a spot in the middle all the way to the left that allows you to continuously fire at Medusa's eye while avoiding all the attacks (while destroying the green worm at times if your arrow hits the head). After enough shots, Medusa's eye will be gone, Medusa will die and you will rescue Palutena. From here, Pit's appearance will change depending on how well you did (the tall, muscular Pit with the angels around the screen and Palutena kissing Pit is the best ending, and was added for the Western version), and the credits roll before the game loops with only the heart, points, strength upgrades weapons that you've gotten in your playthrough carrying over, even in the password that you get at this point. You'll have to earn back the barrel, any feathers you had and any Waters of Life that you had. 

I end up getting the Guard Captain form of Pit (which is a small Pit with a helmet and spear). This is because I only have four strength upgrades and less than 999 hearts at the end. As a result, I end up playing a second loop to get the best ending, and we'll get started with that in the next video.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 7 of 15

Needless to say, I am not a fan of the third labyrinth.

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World 3-3

Map (by Rick Bruns)

Being able to destroy the Octos with your shield and get a ton of Hearts is fun. At this point in the game, I do a little better at using the rotating shield as a weapon.

The door to the left of the exit is the last regular shop in the game before the ones in the final dungeon.

World 3-4

Map (by Rick Bruns)

If you go down at the start, be careful! There are Eggplant Wizards in the room below that are waiting to turn you into an eggplant on your way down. If that happens, you'll have to go two screens down, one screen right, one screen up and two screens right to the nearest hospital.

The things that look like spinning shurikens are the enemies here that fly around in random patterns, and are known as Tros. They're worth shooting down for the points and the hearts. The guys with the beards (Uranos) just walk back and forth.

If you can quickly get to the top row of rooms in the dungeon, you can just keep going right to face the boss. The last room before the boss will be a store, so refill your health.

Near the end, there will be another room full of Eggplant Wizards, and you won't be able to avoid it. Believe it or not, the Eggplant Wizards have two kinds of throws - low and high - and you can tell the difference between them if you keep leaving and re-entering this room. You'll want the Eggplant Wizards on the left side of the room to throw high so you can immediately brute force your way to the right without stopping and shoot down Eggplant Wizards on the way to the door on the other side. I don't figure this out until my second loop through the game. Needless to say, I'm not a fan of this labyrinth, and I'm not a fan of the Eggplant Wizard placement here.

The boss here is Pandora. There will be two orbs moving in the room along with Pandora, and when Pandora turns black, he will be harder to see. Take your time, avoid the orbs and get a shot in when you're able.

When you beat the first three stages, Pit will equip himself with the three sacred treasures, then the game goes into horizontal shmup mode.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 6 of 15

It's back to vertical travel again in World 3. Hope you're still good at platforming.

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World 3-1

Map (by Rick Bruns)

There is a hot spring at the very beginning of the level.

The knights with the wings (Collins) will have EelEyes circling around them. Be sure to take them all out to get them out of your way and get stronger.

The brown enemies that pop out of the ground (Holers) will shoot projectiles at you, but you can take them down for hearts and strengths.

The red things with the yellow tendrils sticking out of the top will damage you if you touch them.

The little light blue guys with the wings (Pluton Flys) will fly at you when you are lined up with them. They will also steal your weapons if they hit you.

The dark blue flying enemies (Keepahs) will dive down at you, but you can shoot them down from below if they happen to be above you and you happen to be close enough.

World 3-2

Map (by Rick Bruns)

The platforms at the beginning will stop and turn around when they hit a wall. Keep that in mind while fighting the Grim Reaper enemies.

Shortly after the start, there will be another training room. Shortly after that, you'll find another shop.

The blue Metroid looking things are called Komaytos. They fly around like the other flying enemies that always show up in fours. 

The orange octopi that leap around and keep moving their mouths (Octos) will keep leaping at you. They can show up with other enemies, and that can cause the game to slow down considerably.

You'll get one more chance to buy things in the middle of the level.

There is a hot spring to recover your health with near the end, and it is the last one in the game.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 5 of 15

In this entry, we cap off World 2 and head on down to World 3.

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World 2-3

Map (by Rick Bruns)

The thorns in the ground will hurt you; try not to fall into them.

In the middle of the level, you'll need to watch out for the lava.

The upgrades from the training rooms where you have to shoot down the tiles do not work in the labyrinths.

If you wait long enough after buying something in a regular store (not a black market), you can buy something again. Also, if you press A and B at the same time on Controller 2 in the stores, you can lower the prices, but there is a 20% chance that the shopkeep will raise the prices instead.

Watch out with the platforms moving around near the thorns. Make sure the platforms are away from the thorns when you get on and jump off.

Near the end of the level where all the tombstones pop up, a gaggle of upgrade thieves will jump around. Tread carefully so they don't steal your stuff. Make sure you enter the Black Market in this area to get rid of them a little prematurely.

World 2-4

Map (by Rich Bruns)

The floating circle enemies with the one eye (Tamambos) fly back and forth the same way that the Specknoses do and take one hit to kill. The blue ones will drop five hearts each, while the red ones drop ten each.

The red mushroom enemies (Shulms) will take a quite a few hits before they go down.

You'll have to face off against the Eggplant Wizards before you make it to the boss, whether you like it or not. There are two hospitals in this labyrinth: one in the lower-left corner and one in the upper-right corner.

The boss here is Hewdraw. Hewdraw will bounce around the room, and you'll need to avoid him while hitting him in the head and also stay out of the lava. It will take a while, but Hewdraw can be beaten.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 4 of 15

Now that we're out of the first world of the game, everything becomes a little bit easier!

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World 2-1

Map (by Rick Bruns)

Compared to what we've experienced so far, this is easier. This time, you'll move from the left end of the stage to the right end, and you won't have to deal with many pits.

The little rock guys (they're called a Rokman) that fall down from the sky will come down from pretty fast. Thankfully, they go down in one hit and drop ten hearts each. They also give you 500 points each.

From here on out, you'll find the occasional hot spring with the orange water. Take advantage of it.

If you see any beetle-like jaws pop out of the ground, stay away from there so you don't get bitten when the bug actually pops out and shoots a projectile at you. Those are Girin, and they can be a bit of an annoyance.

There will be pink, circle-shaped creatures that will pop up from the bottom of the screen after the third door (the one with the flying nose creatures; they're known as Minos). They will soon slowly back down afterwards. Hit them if you can.

The green creatures with the big mouths (Micks) will fly back and forth across the level, and they do it pretty slowly, making them easy pickings. They move more or less like the one-eyed red octopi.

In the treasure pot rooms with the blue backgrounds, the rules change a little bit. This time, you'll want to hit the two pots above the entrance and the second pot from the top on the left side. From here, you're counting mallets again. If you see zero mallets, you'll have to hit the pot on the lower-right corner last. If you see one, it's the second one from the bottom on the left side you'll want to save for last. If you see two, you'll want to save the pot in the center for last. If you see three, you'll want to save the pot in the top-left corner for last. Failure to do so will cause you to see the God of Poverty and lose everything.

The credit card allows you to buy on credit at the black market, allowing you to get an item for free. If you want to use a credit card again, however, you'll have to pay back what you owe, and until then, your heart count will stay at zero (and will basically be in the negatives, as the can't show an integer less than zero) as you keep collecting hearts. If this happens, you'll have to keep collecting hearts until you hearts in the hearts counter again, and the amount of hearts you'll have to collect depends on how much the thing you bought with the credit card was worth.

The green frog-like enemies with wings (Kerons) will leap towards you. They take two hits to kill.

The third arrow upgrade will turn you a purple hue and allow you to do three times the damage that could deal at the beginning. You'll have a shot at getting it around 167,000 points. Keep killing those enemies to get those arrow upgrades!

If you can get 122,300 points, you'll get a fourth bar of energy.

World 2-2

Map (by Rick Bruns)

You'll need more than two bars of health to have the fireball activated if you have it. With this, your arrows can go through multiple enemies at once. If you have at least one or two arrow upgrades, this is a treat.

The little guy who hops around at a fast speed with a sack on his back (known as Pluton) must be avoided at all costs, as he can steal one of your upgrades if he runs into you. You can earn them back, but there are only so many rooms in the game where you fight flying tiles.

The guys with the red eyes (Snowmen) move slowly move towards you, and will shoot projectiles.

Whatever you do, don't fall into the water. Falling into it is not good. Take your time with the platforms, and remember not to press Down on the D-Pad while making your way through the very platform-y part of the stage.

If you can get 204,200 points, you'll get a fifth bar of health. This is the most health you can get in the game. If you can get 227,700 points, you can get the fourth strength arrow, the Gold Arrow, in the sacred chamber.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 3 of 15

The labyrinths at the end of each world are a little different compared to the regular stages.

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World 1-4

Map (by Rick Bruns)

The fourth level in every world is a labyrinth, and these will play differently from the first three levels. Here, you'll be going in a bit of a maze. On the lower-left corner, you'll have your current weapon and the amount of soldiers that you currently have free. In the bottom center, you'll have your hearts and current health. On the lower-right, you'll have the current level that you're on and the amount of hit points that the boss has left.

The one-eyed white skulls (Ganewmedes) that fly around will go around the room. Shoot them down for hearts. The ones with the bluish hue will drop five hearts each, while the ones with the reddish hue drop ten hearts each.

The one-eyed bugs (Kobils) slowly move back and forth, and the blue ones drop one heart each and the red ones drop five. The red upside-down vases will drop down the Shemums, which you can grind hearts off of as they drop down. They drop down indefinitely, so you can get as many as you need if you have the time and patience.

The gray statues of the statues with the spears are soldiers, or Centurions, that you can free. If you have any mallets, you can switch between those and the arrow with the Select button, then hit a statue with a mallet to free the soldier inside. The soldiers will then help you with the boss, but they will go down in one hit.

The blue, one-eyed men with the white capes and the staffs are the Eggplant Wizards. They will throw Eggplants up towards you at an arc, and if an eggplant hits you, you will be turned into an eggplant with human legs. When in eggplant form, you cannot attack, and all you can do is move around and try not to get hit a lot. Stay low and close so that the eggplant projectiles don't hit you. If you do get hit with an eggplant, you'll have to find the hospital inside the dungeon and go inside to get cured and turned back to your normal self. The hospital is an all-white room with red crosses in the upper corners.

The gray T-shaped pipes shoot spikes out. Watch them carefully so the spikes don't hit you as you get around in the current room.

The pool of orange water is a hot spring. If you find it, jump in and stay in there to slowly refill your health.

There are also stores in the dungeon, if you can find them. Use them to stock up on stuff you need before you fight the guardian of the labyrinth, because once you enter that boss battle, you can't back out and you'll have to fight your way out.

The fortress also have their own stores containing their own items. While you'll have to find the map somewhere in the dungeon, you'll have to buy the torch and the pencil. The torch lets you see your current position on the map, while the pencil lets you see which rooms you've visited (which will be in green) and which ones you haven't. If you draw your own maps while playing, or if you're using one off the Internet, however, it's pretty pointless.

The boss is Twinbellows. Twinbellows will slowly move from one side of the room to the other while shooting their fireballs in an upward arc. When you shoot and hit Twinbellows, he will go up slightly, and if you can time it right, you can avoid being hit by the low fireball that way. Having any soldiers accompanying to the fight can help, as they can do a little bit more damage and make the battle go slightly quicker, even if they go down in one hit. When you beat Twinbellows, you'll get the first sacred treasure.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 2 of 15

Due to my relative inexperience with the game at this point, I spend three videos getting out of the first world of the game. It works out, though.

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World 1-3

Map (by Rick Bruns)

The red water is lava, and it will hurt if you land in it.

Halfway up the level, you'll be dealing with the Shemums and the Commylooses at the same time. If you can find a spot where you can somehow shoot down a good amount of enemies and avoid getting hit a lot, you can get a lot of points and hearts here.

You'll also see brown spikes coming out of the sides of the green platforms and walls. Touching those will hurt you.

Near the end, you'll find a training room. In the training room, you'll have to shoot down tiles (known as Monoliths) as they fly around. If you stand left of the center of the room, most of the tiles won't hit you, and if any do, it will be from the side. If you get the "Well Done" message, you'll be able to choose between one of three items: the Fire, which gives you flaming arrows that do more damage; the Sacred Bow, which increases the speed and range of your arrows; and the Protective Crystal, which spawns two crystals revolve that around Pit and destroy enemies while also acting like a shield. You'll need a certain amount of health in order to get these powers to work, or else they won't work.

If you can reach 56,600 points, you'll get a third unit of health for the health bar.

PrinceWatercress plays Kid Icarus - Part 1 of 15

After watching NintendoCapriSun play through this one, I decided to give this one a shot.

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Here is the plot of the game, courtesy of Wikipedia:

The game is set in Angel Land, which is a fantasy world with a Greek mythology theme. Before the events of the game, Earth was ruled by Palutena (Goddess of Light) and Medusa (Goddess of Darkness). Palutena bestowed the people with light to make them happy. Medusa hated the humans, dried up their crops, and turned them to stone. Enraged by this, Palutena transformed Medusa into a monster and banished her to the Underworld. Out of revenge, Medusa conspired with the monsters of the Underworld to take over Palutena's residence the Palace in the Sky. She launched a surprise attack, and stole the three sacred treasures — the Mirror Shield, the Light Arrows and the Wings of Pegasus — which deprived Palutena's army of its power. After her soldiers had been turned to stone by Medusa, Palutena was defeated in battle and imprisoned deep inside the Palace in the Sky.

With her last power, she sent a bow and arrow to the young angel Pit. He escapes from his prison in the Underworld and sets out to save Palutena and Angel Land.

From here, Pit - who used to be in charge of Palutena's personal bodyguards according to the instruction manual - has to get the three sacred treasures, defeat Medusa and save Palutena and Angel Land.

World 1-1

Map (by Rick Bruns)

The D-Pad lets you move left and right with Left and Right, aim upwards by holding Up and crouch and jump down from platforms by holding Down. B attacks, and A jumps. Select switches weapons, and Start pauses the game and opens the menu.

You start out with no hearts, and you only have a little bit of health. In order to increase your health, you'll need to get a lot of points. To do that, you'll need to defeat enemies. As you defeat enemies, you'll not only gain points, but you can also get hearts. Hearts will be used to buy things in the store.

The snakes with the wings (they're called Shemums) will head in one direction, then turn around if they hit a wall. If they reach the edge of a platform, they will drop down. Wait for them to come your way before hitting them with your arrows and taking their hearts. As much as they seem to limitlessly spawn, there is a limit to how many will drop down before you've fought them all in the current spot where you're at before you have to make your way forward.

By walking into a door, you can enter it. Sometimes there will be nothing in the room, while others will contain enemies, shops and treasure rooms.

The screen is wrap-around. If you walk through the side of the screen, you'll end up on the other side. In other words, if you walk through the right side of the screen, you'll end up on the left side, and vice-versa.

The first world's stages are vertical, and you'll have to jump your way up and carefully make your way to the top to reach the exit. If you fall beyond the bottom of the screen for any reason, the game is over and you'll have to replay the level. You only have one life, but you have infinite continues. If you die at any time, you can get a password, which will keep track of all the points, health, hearts and items that you've collected.

The red, one-eyed flying creatures (Monoeyes) fly in groups of four, and they give more points and drop five hearts each. The bigger the heart, the more it is worth.

The heart turns any enemies that pop up on-screen into mallets for a limited time. The mallets are used in the labyrinths to rescue warriors turned into stone back into flesh to assist you. This will be mentioned more in detail at the first labyrinth.

You'll want to get close to 20,000 points by the time you get out of this level. If you can do that, you'll go from the Bronze Arrow - which you start with - to the Silver Arrow, which is a little more powerful. Also, you can get arrow upgrades from defeating a lot of enemies and finding a room where someone will give you an arrow if you've been fighting hard enough.

The Grim Reaper (Reaper) slowly moves back and forth. If he sees you, regardless of how far away you are from him, he will send his own flying mini-Reapers (Reapettes) after you, and he will keep doing that for a limited time, complete with "panic" music that plays when he does this. When in doubt, lay low. If you can defeat him, that will also stop the mini-Reaper attacks. The best way to beat them is to hit them from behind, then wait for them to look away again and go back to minding their own business before hitting them.

The enemy rooms will be full of flying enemies that look like flying eyes with big noses (Specknoses), much like those funny looking glasses with the big nose connected at the bottom. The more of them you can defeat before they disappear, the more points and hearts you can get. The hearts you get from these enemies will be full, big hearts worth ten hearts each.

The wine goblet will refill one whole unit of health.

The room with the pots is a treasure pots. By shooting down pots, you can get the treasures inside, but you'll want to wait until you shoot down all the pots to get all the treasures, or you'll be warped out of the room the instant you get something. The treasures - which are all either mallets or hearts - are placed at random, and if you get the tiny Grim Reaper, you'll wipe out all your progress and you get nothing. You lose. Good day, sir.

In these rooms, you'll want to shoot down the top two pots on the left and the pot on the bottom-right below the door. The number of mallets you get will tell you which one to hit last. If you don't get any mallets, it's the pot on the lower-left. If it's one, it's the pot on the upper-right corner. If it's two, it's the pot directly above the door. If it's three, it's the one in the middle. Hitting the one you're supposed to hit last before last will give you the tiny Grim Reaper (known in the manual as "The God of Poverty"), ruining your whole progress in that room. If you do manage to hit the one you're supposed to hit last at the very end, you'll get a nice treasure.

The bottle with the liquid in it will revive you if you die. You'll only get a little bit of health left, but it's better than nothing. You can only carry one at any given time, but you can carry more.

On the purple square platforms, do not do a running jump. Just jump to the left or right, or else you run the risk of the game eating your jump inputs.

The red, one-eyed frogs (Nettlers) will move much like the snakes with wings, and they will duck for a second whenever you shoot at them. As long as you aren't super-close to them, the arrows will still hit them when they stop ducking.

There is also a red flame enemy that can pop out of the floor and shoot a projectile (they're called McGoos). Shoot them if you can, but watch out for the projectile.

When you reach the end of the stage, the amount of points you got in the level will be added to your total score.

Your health does not refill between stages. Keep this in mind.

World 1-2

Map (by Rick Bruns)

You'll see the store here for the first time. If you have enough hearts, you can buy things at these stores. The barrel is the Water Barrel, which allows you to carry eight of the health bottles. (The chalices and the bottles contain the Water of Life, which increase your health, with the chalices restoring health immediately and the bottles reviving you upon death.) The feather is the Angel Feather, which will bounce you back up if you fall beyond the bottom of the screen.

If you can reach 28,200 points, you can get a second section of health when you complete the current level.

You'll see some moving platforms near the end of the level.

Also near the end of the level, there will be red octopus enemies that will come up from the bottom of the screen (Commylooses). Shoot them down if you can, but watch them carefully as they move to the side on the way up.

If you have enough points when you reach the door near the end, you can get the Silver Arrow.

PrinceWatercress plays Taz-Mania (SMS) - Longplay

...and now, the whole game in one sitting, minus commentary! Enjoy!

First | Previous

One day, Taz's dad was telling him about a place called the Lost Valley, a valley where numerous rare animals still live. The rarest of these animals is the giant seabird. The seabird eggs are enormous, supposedly the largest in the world. A mere legend...wouldn't you agree...?

And there he goes - off and spinning! He's rushing to find the long-lost nest of the giant Tasmanian seabirds. Its legendary egg will make one Taz-sized omelet!

Stage 1: Plains

Section 1

Taz leaves home in search of the legendary valley of the giant seabird eggs, even though he hasn't got a clue as to where it is. Will Taz be able to find it?

At the start of the game, your lives will be in the lower-left corner, while the upper-left corner will show your current health (L) and the current power of your spin attack (P). When the L bar goes all the way down, you'll lose a life. Left and Right lets you move left and right, Down lets you duck, Button 1 lets you jump, and Button 2 lets you perform the spin attack. The spin attack lets you take down enemies. You can also use them to get rid of the bombs that are in your way, but don't forget that you can accidentally get rid of the good power-ups that way, too! The P meter will quickly drain when you attack, but it will quickly refill. When it's full again, you can attack again. 

Turkeys give you more health, and 1-Up icons with Taz's face will give you extra lives. Red stars give you temporary invincibility. There's a few 1-Ups here, and if you look high and low, you'll be able to easily find them.

The springs are much like the games in the Sonic games and let you reach higher areas.

Enemies include bushrats with spears that move back and forth and plants that can spit projectiles. While you can attack the plants, you cannot attack the projectiles.

The pedestal with the egg and the arrow on it is the exit. Move past it to get to the next section. The time bonus gets bigger the less time it takes to clear a section, while the life bonus is dependent on how much life you have when you beat the section.

Section 2

If you press the Start button while the game is giving you bonus points at the end of a section, the game will do you a solid and pause when you enter the next one.

The slopes will slowly push you downwards, so watch where you're going.

In case you can't make a jump, spin attack forwards. You'll get that boost that will let you get to where you need to go.

You'll get an extra life at 20,000 points.

Section 3

After two sections, you'll face a boss. The first boss is a bull that charges at you. Jump over the bull when it charges at you, then jump over it when it returns. When it hits the wall, use the spin attack. After five hits, the bull goes down. 

Stage 2: Jungle

Taz enters the jungle. Could the giant egg be located somewhere here in the jungle? Giant egg, where are you?

Section 1

Enemies here include snakes and Venus flytraps, both of which move back and forth. You'll see the latter more often.

There are more platforms here than in the first world of the game, and there are also spikes. The spikes don't kill you instantly, but you still don't want to land on them.

The brown stuff is quicksand. Keep jumping to get through it.

Section 2

Now you have even smaller platforms in the form of the tree platforms. The trees do not have a lot of room to maneuver, so you'll want to watch where you're jumping from and landing to.

The plants that spit projectiles from the first world make a return here.

Section 3

The boss here is Francis X. Bushlad. Avoid the arrows that he shoots, then hit him as he hops to the other side. You can stand in the corner behind him and keep pressing the attack button, but you'll go down before he does, so go ahead and just do it in the way you're meant to do it.

Stage 3: Cavern

In the depths of the forest, Taz finds an enormous cavern. Inside the cavern, it is dark...eerily quiet. The egg can't possibly be here, can it?

Section 1

The lava is the biggest threat here. If you touch it, it's instant death. If you die, there are no checkpoints, and while the sections are short, not having checkpoints can make the harder parts of the game a bummer.

There is a 1-Up right above the start.

The bats have plenty of different flight patterns, but diving back and forth is their most common one.

Watch out for fireballs leaping in and out of the lava.

Section 2

This section is bigger than previous, and the inability to look up or down with the D-Pad really stinks here. 

In case you die, any 1-Ups you pick up will respawn.

The skeletons just move back and forth. That's all they do.

Be careful near the exit. Stay on the left platform and spin to take care of the bat, then jump your way to the right to get to the end.

Section 3

The boss here is Bull and Axl...or rather, Bull. He throws one boomerang upwards and one boomerang downwards as he jumps around. Watch the boomerangs and hit Bull with spin attacks. For best results, hit him with spin attacks when he is in the middle, as you can get two hits in that way. When he goes down, Axl shows up and carries Bull to safety.

Stage 4: Ruins

Taz escapes the cavern only to find himself in the ruins of a macabre looking building...

Don't be afraid! Remember, the giant seabird egg awaits you...!

Section 1

The mummies just move back and forth, as do the ghosts.

If you know where all the dead-ends are, you can find a few 1-Ups. This is true of not only section, but also the next. Also, you may have to do some wrap-around jumps just to get to where you need to go.

The cracked blocks can be broken with the spin attack.

Take small hops and then use the spin attack to get past the narrow pathways with the spikes on the floors and ceilings unharmed.

If a pit has black at the bottom, it's a bottomless pit. That means you're at the bottom of the level and you're also almost at the exit, too.

Section 2

The snakes from Stage 2 make a return here.

At the end of the stage, spin attack the center block to avoid the spikes, then spin attack the block on the right to get to the exit (the rest lead to death).

Section 3

The boss here is a pair of witches. Take a short hop to avoid the projectiles, then move towards the witch on the lower level and spin attack. You'll be alternating between the witches as you do this, but you'll be damaging them, and after one goes down, the other will go down not long after that. 

Stage 5: Valley

A giant seabird soars above Taz. At last! The Lost Valley!!

Section 1

Scorpions and rock monsters move back and forth in this mountainous area. You'll be going up and down as you make your way to the right, so watch where you jump, as the pools of water are instant death. I stay away from all of the slopes and stay only on flat ground because of it.

Some of the rock monsters don't move at all, and will just stand there and jump.

The music here is very monotonous.

Section 2

The spider-like enemies jump up and down more quickly than the rock monsters.

When you reach the blocks that you have to spin attack to break, don't attack the two that are side by side. That will send you into instant death water if you do.

Sometimes it's better to take a hit if you know you're going to hit the ground while jumping. Don't forget that your health refills upon entering a new area.

Section 3

It's time for the final boss: the giant seabird.

Keep jumping up and hitting it while it is in the area. If it comes down to dive at you, avoid it; don't hit it. If it flies around in a zig-zag pattern, you can actually hit the seabird while it does that and get some free hits in. When the seabird falls straight down, you've defeated it.

You'll get that seabird egg, but it will hatch and the baby will think that Taz is its mother, much like in all of the other Sega console versions (Genesis/Mega Drive and Game Gear). The credits then roll. You just beat Taz-Mania!

PrinceWatercress plays Taz-Mania (SMS) - Part 5 of 5

It's time for the final level of the game! Hope you're ready to do a lot of jumping!

First | Previous | End

Stage 5: Valley

A giant seabird soars above Taz. At last! The Lost Valley!!

Section 1

Scorpions and rock monsters move back and forth in this mountainous area. You'll be going up and down as you make your way to the right, so watch where you jump, as the pools of water are instant death. I stay away from all of the slopes and stay only on flat ground because of it.

Some of the rock monsters don't move at all, and will just stand there and jump.

The music here is very monotonous.

Section 2

The spider-like enemies jump up and down more quickly than the rock monsters.

When you reach the blocks that you have to spin attack to break, don't attack the two that are side by side. That will send you into instant death water if you do.

Sometimes it's better to take a hit if you know you're going to hit the ground while jumping. Don't forget that your health refills upon entering a new area.

Section 3

It's time for the final boss: the giant seabird.

Keep jumping up and hitting it while it is in the area. If it comes down to dive at you, avoid it; don't hit it. If it flies around in a zig-zag pattern, you can actually hit the seabird while it does that and get some free hits in. When the seabird falls straight down, you've defeated it.

You'll get that seabird egg, but it will hatch and the baby will think that Taz is its mother, much like in all of the other Sega console versions (Genesis/Mega Drive and Game Gear). The credits then roll. You just beat Taz-Mania!

PrinceWatercress plays Taz-Mania (SMS) - Part 4 of 5

This level is a bit more maze-like compared to the others, and 1-Ups await those who go off the beaten path.

First | Previous | Next | End

Stage 4: Ruins

Taz escapes the cavern only to find himself in the ruins of a macabre looking building...

Don't be afraid! Remember, the giant seabird egg awaits you...!

Section 1

The mummies just move back and forth, as do the ghosts.

If you know where all the dead-ends are, you can find a few 1-Ups. This is true of not only section, but also the next. Also, you may have to do some wrap-around jumps just to get to where you need to go.

The cracked blocks can be broken with the spin attack.

Take small hops and then use the spin attack to get past the narrow pathways with the spikes on the floors and ceilings unharmed.

If a pit has black at the bottom, it's a bottomless pit. That means you're at the bottom of the level and you're also almost at the exit, too.

Section 2

The snakes from Stage 2 make a return here.

4:19 - The worst hitbox in the game.

At the end of the stage, spin attack the center block to avoid the spikes, then spin attack the block on the right to get to the exit (the rest lead to death).

Section 3

The boss here is a pair of witches. Take a short hop to avoid the projectiles, then move towards the witch on the lower level and spin attack. You'll be alternating between the witches as you do this, but you'll be damaging them, and after one goes down, the other will go down not long after that. 

PrinceWatercress plays Taz-Mania (SMS) - Part 3 of 5

Things get a little more difficult here, and the inability to look up or down with the D-Pad leaves a little to be desired in terms of the gameplay.

First | Previous | Next | End

Stage 3: Cavern

In the depths of the forest, Taz finds an enormous cavern. Inside the cavern, it is dark...eerily quiet. The egg can't possibly be here, can it?

Section 1

The lava is the biggest threat here. If you touch it, it's instant death. If you die, there are no checkpoints, and while the sections are short, not having checkpoints can make the harder parts of the game a bummer.

There is a 1-Up right above the start.

The bats have plenty of different flight patterns, but diving back and forth is their most common one.

Watch out for fireballs leaping in and out of the lava.

Section 2

This section is bigger than previous, and the inability to look up or down with the D-Pad really stinks here. 

In case you die, any 1-Ups you pick up will respawn.

The skeletons just move back and forth. That's all they do.

Be careful near the exit. Stay on the left platform and spin to take care of the bat, then jump your way to the right to get to the end.

Section 3

The boss here is Bull and Axl...or rather, Bull. He throws one boomerang upwards and one boomerang downwards as he jumps around. Watch the boomerangs and hit Bull with spin attacks. For best results, hit him with spin attacks when he is in the middle, as you can get two hits in that way. When he goes down, Axl shows up and carries Bull to safety.

PrinceWatercress plays Taz-Mania (SMS) - Part 2 of 5

This level is a little tougher, but once you know how to jump from platform to platform at this point with the spin attack, it's not by much.

First | Next | End

Stage 2: Jungle

Taz enters the jungle. Could the giant egg be located somewhere here in the jungle? Giant egg, where are you?

Section 1

Enemies here include snakes and Venus flytraps, both of which move back and forth. You'll see the latter more often.

There are more platforms here than in the first world of the game, and there are also spikes. The spikes don't kill you instantly, but you still don't want to land on them.

The brown stuff is quicksand. Keep jumping to get through it.

Section 2

Now you have even smaller platforms in the form of the tree platforms. The trees do not have a lot of room to maneuver, so you'll want to watch where you're jumping from and landing to.

The plants that spit projectiles from the first world make a return here.

Section 3

The boss here is Francis X. Bushlad. Avoid the arrows that he shoots, then hit him as he hops to the other side. You can stand in the corner behind him and keep pressing the attack button, but you'll go down before he does, so go ahead and just do it in the way you're meant to do it.

PrinceWatercress plays Taz-Mania (SMS) - Part 1 of 5

Believe it or not, this is not the same game as the Game Gear version. This is its own Europe-exclusive version...and it's quite good.

Next | End

One day, Taz's dad was telling him about a place called the Lost Valley, a valley where numerous rare animals still live. The rarest of these animals is the giant seabird. The seabird eggs are enormous, supposedly the largest in the world. A mere legend...wouldn't you agree...?

And there he goes - off and spinning! He's rushing to find the long-lost nest of the giant Tasmanian seabirds. Its legendary egg will make one Taz-sized omelet!

Stage 1: Plains

Section 1

Taz leaves home in search of the legendary valley of the giant seabird eggs, even though he hasn't got a clue as to where it is. Will Taz be able to find it?

At the start of the game, your lives will be in the lower-left corner, while the upper-left corner will show your current health (L) and the current power of your spin attack (P). When the L bar goes all the way down, you'll lose a life. Left and Right lets you move left and right, Down lets you duck, Button 1 lets you jump, and Button 2 lets you perform the spin attack. The spin attack lets you take down enemies. You can also use them to get rid of the bombs that are in your way, but don't forget that you can accidentally get rid of the good power-ups that way, too! The P meter will quickly drain when you attack, but it will quickly refill. When it's full again, you can attack again. 

Turkeys give you more health, and 1-Up icons with Taz's face will give you extra lives. Red stars give you temporary invincibility. There's a few 1-Ups here, and if you look high and low, you'll be able to easily find them.

The springs are much like the games in the Sonic games and let you reach higher areas.

Enemies include bushrats with spears that move back and forth and plants that can spit projectiles. While you can attack the plants, you cannot attack the projectiles.

The pedestal with the egg and the arrow on it is the exit. Move past it to get to the next section. The time bonus gets bigger the less time it takes to clear a section, while the life bonus is dependent on how much life you have when you beat the section.

Section 2

If you press the Start button while the game is giving you bonus points at the end of a section, the game will do you a solid and pause when you enter the next one.

The slopes will slowly push you downwards, so watch where you're going.

In case you can't make a jump, spin attack forwards. You'll get that boost that will let you get to where you need to go.

You'll get an extra life at 20,000 points.

Section 3

After two sections, you'll face a boss. The first boss is a bull that charges at you. Jump over the bull when it charges at you, then jump over it when it returns. When it hits the wall, use the spin attack. After five hits, the bull goes down. 

PrinceWatercress plays Rod Land (Game Boy) - The Longplay

...and now, the whole game, minus commentary, in one sitting. Enjoy!

First | Previous

Scenes 1-10

When you start a one-player game, you'll have a choice between Tam and Rit. Both characters play exactly the same. The aim of the game is to rescue Tam and Rit's mother, who is trapped in a tower. There are 40 levels, or "scenes," and you must beat all of them to rescue her.

Left and Right let you move left and right, while Up and Down allow you to climb up and down ladders. A and B allow you to use the rod, while Up+A or B and Down+A or B allow you to create a ladder going up or down. You can only create one magic ladder at a time, and if you make another one, the previous one will disappear and the new one will appear where you created it. Keep in mind that enemies can use ladders, including the one that you created, so be ready to move.

The first enemies that you see that look like cat slimes just move back and forth and also climb up and down ladders when they want to. You can zap them with the wand, then keep pressing the button to slam them back and forth until they turn into an item. Sometimes they will turn into fruits that give you bonus points, and other times, they will turn into weapons such as bombs that you can move towards to send them towards other enemies to defeat them. Whatever you do, don't let enemies touch you, as this game is a "one hit and you're dead" affair and getting hit will cost you a life.

There are sixteen flowers in a scene, and when you collect them all, the enemies all temporarily turn into slimes that move towards you. If you defeat them, they turn into circles with letters that cycle between E-X-T-R-A. If you can spell EXTRA, not only will you be able to end the scene early and go on to the next one, but you'll also get an extra life and 10,000 points. If you want to play for score, this is how you do it. Just be careful, as these enemies can still hurt you and cost you a life, and they won't keep their blob-like slime forms forever.

The level usually ends when all enemies are defeated. If you take too much time, the enemies change into more aggressive ones that will do their darndest to try to destroy you, and even those enemies will eventually fly away and leave you moving on to the next scene, anyway.

The shark enemies will charge at you if you happen to be across from them, if you give them the chance.

Make sure you are standing above the balloons so that you can ride them to higher areas. 

The worm enemies with the horns will charge at you, much like the shark enemies, and they're much better at doing it, too. 

At the end of every tenth scene is a boss. The first boss is a set of six crocodiles. You'll want to stand two tiles away from one and keep hitting it with the rod, not only to defeat the crocodiles, but to attack the birds that they spit out. When you take one out, it makes it easier for other crocodiles to ascend or descend to your level so you don't have to create ladders to get around. 

Scenes 11-20

At this point, you'll probably notice that you can't stockpile lives past nine.

The little guys that look like they are angry and have horns can spit projectiles, and you'll need to avoid those.

Scene 15 is the debut of the bee enemies, who will fly around at 45-degree angles and will have a habit of sometimes doubling back.

Scene 18 introduces doors. Stand in front of them and press Up on the D-Pad to enter them. The doors are two way and are linked to each other. You can use them, but the enemies cannot. When you use them, you'll also be invincible for a few seconds.

The boss for Scene 20 is a giant whale. You'll need to hit in the eyes with your rod, but you'll also want to take out the smaller whales that it spits out. Don't use the ladder; just stick to the ground and you can easily take out the smaller whales.

Scenes 21-30

The starfish enemies that first show up in Scene 26 can throw boomerangs at you. Approach them from behind if you can.

Scene 28 introduce floating spiked balls that will cost you a life upon touching them.

Scene 30 is probably the hardest scene so far. You'll need to zig zag your way between the blocks in the middle of the level, and the fact that you have to deal with those flying enemies doesn't help much, either. The sooner you can get to the top of the level, the better.

The boss for Scene 30 is an elephant on wires. Climb up to one of the lower blocks, face the center of the room and keep attacking. That's all you have to do to beat this boss. The boss will shoot out smaller elephants, but they will not climb up to get you.

Scenes 31-40

The doors at the bottom will protect you from the floating spiked balls at the top of the room in Scene 31. Keep that in mind as you're getting all the flowers.

Scene 37 is much like Scene 30. Once again, you'll have to zig-zag through the blocks at the center of the room just to get to one side or the other and make it easier to deal with the enemies and get the flowers.

The boss at Scene 40 has four forms. The first form is a tiny beast who just jumps around. You'll need to anticipate where he lands and hit him with the rod. 

The second form is a bigger beast who ascends slightly before stomping you as soon as you are directly under him. Be ready to move all the way to one side, then move to the center of the screen and zap him at least once as he makes his way back up to the screen. After that, head to the other side and repeat the process.

The third form is an even bigger beast who shoots a five-way shot downwards out of his hands that turns into minions. Get to the left or right of him, make a ladder going upwards and climb up and keep hitting him.

The fourth form is a giant version of the beast that takes up almost the whole screen. Keep the ladder just to the left or right of him and keep hitting him with the rod. Avoid the fire that he spits downwards as well as the debris that drops down from the top of the screen when he stomps his foot. After enough damage, he turns back to his smallest form. You've just beaten Rod Land!

PrinceWatercress plays Rod Land (Game Boy) - Part 4 of 4

...and now, the stunning conclusion!

First | Previous | End

The doors at the bottom will protect you from the floating spiked balls at the top of the room in Scene 31. Keep that in mind as you're getting all the flowers.

Scene 37 is much like Scene 30. Once again, you'll have to zig-zag through the blocks at the center of the room just to get to one side or the other and make it easier to deal with the enemies and get the flowers.

The boss at Scene 40 has four forms. The first form is a tiny beast who just jumps around. You'll need to anticipate where he lands and hit him with the rod. 

The second form is a bigger beast who ascends slightly before stomping you as soon as you are directly under him. Be ready to move all the way to one side, then move to the center of the screen and zap him at least once as he makes his way back up to the screen. After that, head to the other side and repeat the process.

The third form is an even bigger beast who shoots a five-way shot downwards out of his hands that turns into minions. Get to the left or right of him, make a ladder going upwards and climb up and keep hitting him.

The fourth form is a giant version of the beast that takes up almost the whole screen. Keep the ladder just to the left or right of him and keep hitting him with the rod. Avoid the fire that he spits downwards as well as the debris that drops down from the top of the screen when he stomps his foot. After enough damage, he turns back to his smallest form. You've just beaten Rod Land!

PrinceWatercress plays Rod Land (Game Boy) - Part 3 of 4

The enemies get a little more dangerous once you enter the second half of the game.

First | Previous | Next | End

The starfish enemies that first show up in Scene 26 can throw boomerangs at you. Approach them from behind if you can.

Scene 28 introduce floating spiked balls that will cost you a life upon touching them.

Scene 30 is probably the hardest scene so far. You'll need to zig zag your way between the blocks in the middle of the level, and the fact that you have to deal with those flying enemies doesn't help much, either. The sooner you can get to the top of the level, the better.

The boss for Scene 30 is an elephant on wires. Climb up to one of the lower blocks, face the center of the room and keep attacking. That's all you have to do to beat this boss. The boss will shoot out smaller elephants, but they will not climb up to get you.

PrinceWatercress plays Rod Land (Game Boy) - Part 2 of 4

The second quarter of the game is a little bit harder, but not insurmountable.

First | Next | End

At this point, you'll probably notice that you can't stockpile lives past nine.

The little guys that look like they are angry and have horns can spit projectiles, and you'll need to avoid those.

Scene 15 is the debut of the bee enemies, who will fly around at 45-degree angles and will have a habit of sometimes doubling back.

Scene 18 introduces doors. Stand in front of them and press Up on the D-Pad to enter them. The doors are two way and are linked to each other. You can use them, but the enemies cannot. When you use them, you'll also be invincible for a few seconds.

The boss for Scene 20 is a giant whale. You'll need to hit in the eyes with your rod, but you'll also want to take out the smaller whales that it spits out. Don't use the ladder; just stick to the ground and you can easily take out the smaller whales.

PrinceWatercress plays Rod Land (Game Boy) - Part 1 of 4

A shame this didn't come to the States. Fun game!

Next | End

When you start a one-player game, you'll have a choice between Tam and Rit. Both characters play exactly the same. The aim of the game is to rescue Tam and Rit's mother, who is trapped in a tower. There are 40 levels, or "scenes," and you must beat all of them to rescue her.

Left and Right let you move left and right, while Up and Down allow you to climb up and down ladders. A and B allow you to use the rod, while Up+A or B and Down+A or B allow you to create a ladder going up or down. You can only create one magic ladder at a time, and if you make another one, the previous one will disappear and the new one will appear where you created it. Keep in mind that enemies can use ladders, including the one that you created, so be ready to move.

The first enemies that you see that look like cat slimes just move back and forth and also climb up and down ladders when they want to. You can zap them with the wand, then keep pressing the button to slam them back and forth until they turn into an item. Sometimes they will turn into fruits that give you bonus points, and other times, they will turn into weapons such as bombs that you can move towards to send them towards other enemies to defeat them. Whatever you do, don't let enemies touch you, as this game is a "one hit and you're dead" affair and getting hit will cost you a life.

There are sixteen flowers in a scene, and when you collect them all, the enemies all temporarily turn into slimes that move towards you. If you defeat them, they turn into circles with letters that cycle between E-X-T-R-A. If you can spell EXTRA, not only will you be able to end the scene early and go on to the next one, but you'll also get an extra life and 10,000 points. If you want to play for score, this is how you do it. Just be careful, as these enemies can still hurt you and cost you a life, and they won't keep their blob-like slime forms forever.

The level usually ends when all enemies are defeated. If you take too much time, the enemies change into more aggressive ones that will do their darndest to try to destroy you, and even those enemies will eventually fly away and leave you moving on to the next scene, anyway.

The shark enemies will charge at you if you happen to be across from them, if you give them the chance.

Make sure you are standing above the balloons so that you can ride them to higher areas. 

The worm enemies with the horns will charge at you, much like the shark enemies, and they're much better at doing it, too. 

At the end of every tenth scene is a boss. The first boss is a set of six crocodiles. You'll want to stand two tiles away from one and keep hitting it with the rod, not only to defeat the crocodiles, but to attack the birds that they spit out. When you take one out, it makes it easier for other crocodiles to ascend or descend to your level so you don't have to create ladders to get around. 

PrinceWatercress plays Wario Land II - Part 51 of 51

...and Wario Land 2 comes to an end.

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When you beat the game, you'll also unlock a mini-game. The mini-game in question is called "Flagman D.D.," and plays just like the Game & Watch Game "Flag." Since the Game & Watch Gallery games were in vogue at the time, Nintendo decided to put this in the game if you've reached 100%. It costs 100 coins from your total coins to play it, and it can be quite fun.

A series of flags will be raised, and you'll need to raise those same flag in the same order. If you mess up, you'll take a hit. There's also a timer on the left side of the screen, and if it runs out before you can complete the pattern, you'll also take a hit. Three hits, and the game is over. Up, Right, Down and Left are 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively. The B Button is 5, and the A Button is 6. You'll start out with just the first four flags, then the fifth one will be added in at ten points, and the the sixth will be added at fifteen.

The Really Final Chapter

Time Attack: Steal the Syrup's treasure!

Map (by Wanopio)

Unlike the other levels, you'll be entering a hidden cave near Syrup Castle and going from the beginning to the end. There are no coins to collect or treasures to find; instead, you have a timer at the lower-right corner to show how long you've been playing. The game will throw a series of challenges at you, such as trying to break your way through walls, floors and ceilings to find paths, or jumping from dresser to dresser across the water, or move an enemy around the room to get past certain blocks and move on to the next area.

The half-circles are platforms that you can jump on and through. 

In order to tackle the wrap-around jumps that the level throws at you, you'll need to position yourself so that it looks like Wario in mid-air, and do that, you have to stand on the edge of the platform before jumping up and around to the platform above.

Other challenges include jumping off birds diving to the side to reach platforms, throwing enemies onto platforms that only enemies can walk on and jumping across, getting to a door as Flat Wario while avoiding water droplets, and dealing with spikes and conveyor belts.

To defeat the Giant Spear Man without falling to the bottom of the screen, you'll need to alternate between the left and right sides of the Giant Spear Man as you keep butt bouncing on him. If you do that, he will go down, and you'll finish the level.

When you finish this level, you'll find the treasure, which is a big bag of money. After this, you'll get the credits one more time. Wario runs back to his castle with the treasure while a Giant Spear Man chases after him.

With that, that completes Wario Land 2!