PrinceWatercress plays Quartet (SMS) - Part 2 of 3

The second half of the game is where things get much harder.

First | End

Round 3

In the regular world, you'll need to blast your way through a maze. Get the jetpack, then head all the way to the right. You'll need to avoid the boss' head as well as its shots as it moves its head around around wildly, which is easier said than done. You can use the platforms leading to the underworld as cover, but don't be afraid to get out of there to the other side if the boss gets too close. When you beat the boss here, get the key, then head to the underworld.

In the underworld, grab the clock to stop the enemies. The three black balls on top of the jars will shoot out in various directions if you shoot them. The Hyhofailokes, which are the skull enemies, take a lot of shots to take down and they will slowly fly towards you if you hit them enough times.

To get the star here, shoot twice at the top of the pot immediately to the right of the exit to the exit. 

Round 4

In the regular word, head to the right and get the jetpack; you're gonna need it. Make sure that you take as little damage as possible in this world, and take the upper part of the screen to the exit. If any enemies are chasing you, try to lose them; turning around to hit them will cost you energy.

The butterfly enemies with the faces in the middle are called Abukutsus. There are nine of them in the level, and you'll want to shoot them all down. They will fly around in a bit of a figure eight pattern when you attack them, but they can only go so far. If you can keep away from them, you can easily shoot them all down and get the Star that pops up in the middle of the first (regular) part of the round.

Be careful with the snail enemies, or Hodates. If you shoot them from behind, your shots will ricochet back at you off the shell and hurt you. Also, the turtle enemies, or F.T.'s, will rush at you at rocket speed if you shoot them once. Unless you have the distance to plug away at them with enough shots to defeat them, don't even bother fighting them.

Line yourself up with the yellow turrets from a distance before shooting at them. It will make it easier to avoid their shots.

In the underworld, which has a gray background instead of a blue, you'll want to stick to the low road. When you reach the boss, you'll want to stay low and close enough to it so you can fire at it and avoid the boss' projectiles while the boss itself bounces low. If it goes high, it will fly back and forth for a little bit before returning to where it was. If it does that, avoid it until it comes back, then start firing away and avoiding enemy fire again. When it goes down, take the key.

When you destroy all of the Abukutsus, take the doorway near where the boss was back to the surface world and head to the right. You'll find the Star.

PrinceWatercress plays Quartet (SMS) - Part 1 of 3

This one is hard, but it's fun.

Next | End

Believe it or not, not only is the Master System version of this game different from the arcade version, but it has a completely different story, too.

It's thousands of years into the future. And by now mankind has established space colonies throughout the galaxy.

Most of them are peaceful, productive places to live. Most of the time. But once every few centuries or so, something somewhere goes amiss.

This time it happened on the beautiful Colony Number Nine, renowned for the contributions of its late, great ruler, Queen Cynthia.

What's happened? The colony has been invaded by a group of awesome ALIENS of the nastiest kind. Despite state-of-the-technology protection, the ALIENS have entered Queen Cynthia's tomb, confiscated her casket, and are about to destroy the rest of the colony.

There's very little time left.

But there's still a lot of hope. Hope placed in the spiritual powers of the famous MARY and her partner, EDGAR.

Together only they can wipe out the ALIENS. And purge the colony of their vicious evil. For good.

Round 1

Player 1 is always Mary, while Player 2 is always Edgar (spelled "Edger" in-game).

Left and Right let you move left and right. Down crouches. Down-Left and Down-Right let you duck walk. Button 1 shoots. Button 2 jumps.

You start out with two lives and 10,000 units of energy that go down in units of 10, and you'll lose quite a bit of energy if you touch an enemy in any way. If you get sent to zero from an enemy hit, you'll lose a life. 

Stay low at the beginning and defeat the enemies by shooting at them. By shooting enemies, they will leave point balls; always collect the point balls, as you'll need them for skill upgrades and bonuses. Get the jetpack as soon as you see it; you'll want to keep the jetpack on you to make it easier to get around and more easily avoid and shoot things, as there will be a ton of fireballs being shot into the sky by the mushroom-shaped turrets in the stage. You also won't risk falling into pits, either. Make sure you don't get hit with the jetpack, as you will lose it and have to get it back.

There is a yellow star out in the open. Pick it up, as you'll need all five starts in the game to enter Round 6 and beat the game.

The yellow clock freezes enemies for a brief amount of time, allowing you some easy shots to increase your score and get to another rank. (More on that later.) A good amount of the enemies are pretty easy, though some are a bit difficult; the more difficult enemies will get a mention.

The Phoenix-like bird at the exit door flies up and down, and it will shoot eight bullets at you at various angles if you shoot it. Take it out from a fair distance so you can avoid the projectiles. When you shoot the bird down enough times, you will get a key, and you can press Up at the exit door to go through the exit and enter the next round. If you have the jetpack equipped, you can press Button 1 instead, but only if you're wearing the jetpack.

When you complete a stage, you'll get a medal for defeating the boss, then see your current and total score. 

Round 2

From here on out, there are two worlds in each round: the normal world and the underworld. You'll start out in the normal world, and you'll have to make your way to the underworld.

You'll need to head to the far right to get to the underworld at the start. Along the way, there are a few enemies worth mentioning. The eyes with the red orbs in the corners are called Mabacks; they will open up and fire immediately when you are lined up with them.

The brown medicine bottle gives you temporary invincibility, but certain ones can also increase your energy level.

The yellow item that looks like a water bottle is really a screen-clearing bomb; grabbing it will get rid of all enemies currently on-screen.

When you see the ventilation shaft at the far right end, press Up to enter the underworld. The normal world has brown walls here, while the underworld has blue. Go left and stay low. Get the jetpack and fight the boss. You'll want to fly around and shoot it down while also avoiding the many projectiles that the boss spits out. When the boss is defeated, grab the key to unlock the exit. 

Near the boss are three Mabacks. You'll need to carefully take out the ones at the top and middle, then head left to get some more energy from the medicine bottle as well as the second star. You must take out at least the top Maback in order to get the star. I just get rid of two to make it easier to move. From here, you can head back into the normal world and then head for the exit.

Before I leave, I bring my score to 40,000 points to go from Sergeant to Captain. At Captain, your gun's range is extended.

At 80,000 points, you'll reach Major and earn an extra life. At 120,000, you'll reach Colonel, and your gun's range will be extended again. At 200,000 points, you'll reach General, which increases the speed of your bullets. I don't get all the rankings in this game, as I want to keep my energy high.

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 9 of 9

Here it is: the final level. Be ready to run through the level and take out enemies as you look for keys and figure out where you need to head next.

First | Previous

Red Rock Junction Penitentiary

Since this is the final level, there are also no bonus cards in this level.

The jail wagon at the beginning is locked. You'll need to unlock it.

Don't fall into the pits when you go down at the beginning, as there are spikes in them. They don't kill you instantly, but they still damage you.

You'll run into the first boss battle of the game as you go through the penitentiary. Once again, shoot when the mortician brings his hand down. This time around, you'll also have to shoot up and left at the enemy in the hole while also shooting at the boss. When you beat the boss, you'll get a key.

Head back to the jail wagon and unlock it to enter another underground area. Avoid the spike pits as you head to the left. To get the key, you'll need to drop down from the top level. Once you get the key, you'll need to look for a dark blue door. Unlock it, and you'll go in.

You'll meet Joe Dalton as well as Fingers the Magician for the final boss battle. Avoid Fingers as you drop down to the lower right to grab the log, and avoid him again as you head back to the upper-left where you started to throw the log into the furnace. You don't want to be pickpocketed at any point in this battle. Joe Dalton will be shooting at you from the upper-right corner in addition to throwing firebombs, and you'll need to avoid both attacks as you do this. You'll need to throw four logs into the furnace to burn up Joe Dalton, and when you do, you'll finally send him back to prison along with the rest of his brethren. You just beat Lucky Luke: Wanted!

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 8 of 9

This level is really short if you know what you're doing.

First | Previous | End

The Apache Camp

At the start, you'll need to shoot the tomahawks that are thrown at you without moving. If the warrior throws high, just stand there and press B. If he throws low, hold Down to duck before shooting. If he throws it into the air, hold Up and then shoot when the tomahawk is directly above you.

Make sure you are at the end of the fire pit to jump clean over it.

For the next part, you'll need to recreate the sacred totem pole by heading to the other side of the mountain and looking for them. You'll have to do some platforming and exploration to get them, but if you know how to get around, you can find them in only a few minutes. There are a few enemies along the way, but you can easily avoid them.

When you reach the totem pole on the other side with all five parts, you'll recreate the totem pole, then face the boss. You'll need to shoot at the top of the totem pole in order to knock the tops of them over and hit the boss in the head while ducking over the tomahawks that the boss throws. If you're fast, you won't even be attacked.

Afterwards, you'll rescue/recapture William Dalton, who tells you that Joe has hightailed it to the Red Rock Junction Penitentiary.

There are no bonus cards in this level.

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 7 of 9

The stages are starting to get a little shorter, but they're also starting to get harder. Be ready to jump over attacks.

First | Previous | Next | End

Rabbit Gulch Fort

The soldiers have been taken hostage by the Native Americans while the Dalton Brothers were raiding the place, and you'll need to restore order.

The enemies here will be Native Americans, and they will attack pretty quickly. You'll want to jump over their attacks as you head all the way to the left and grab the dynamite. You'll then need to go up, then swing over the pegs by holding Right and pressing B...assuming you can grab onto them, which can be a tad tough to do at times.

You'll need to head to the left when you get to the top. Blast open the door with the dynamite, then go into the hole at the bottom, then go to the left and grab the lockbox. You'll then need to stay on the top left as you head right, and you'll get a hand icon next to the dynamite telling you where to put the lockbox. Now you'll need another one. At least all the pick-ups will re-spawn, along with the enemies.

The second lockbox is on the other side of the level, and you'll need to head all the way to the right and do what you did earlier to get to the other lockbox. You'll then have to head back to where you placed the first lockbox and place the second box on top of the first. This will allow you to jump to the right and head to the boss battle.

To beat the boss, you'll need to jump over the tomahawks while shooting at the guy. You'll also want to jump over the guy when he charges at you towards the other side of the screen. Ducking the tomahawks does not work, as you will get hit. After enough hits, he will tell you that William and Joe Dalton - or at least one of them, anyway - was captured by the Apache. The other brother has escaped. You'll then free the soldiers who were taken captive.

There are no bonus cards in this level.

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 6 of 9

You'll be looking high and low for the cards here. The mini-boss battles are easier in comparison!

First | Previous | Next | End

The Runaway Locomotive

You'll need to get to the engine and stop and re-apprehend Jack Dalton in this stage.

Tread carefully so you can take out enemies. 

Card #1 is in the first car. Enter the car from the right side to get it. You'll need to enter all the cars from either the side or from an opening at the top to find everything.

There are nine hostages on the train, and you'll need to save them all before you can clear this stage. Thankfully, they're never in any real danger from the enemies here, and all you have to do is run into them to free them.

Shortly after the fifth hostage, Card #2 will be in the air. You'll need to jump off the nearby car to get it. The card is just before the mini-boss battle.

To beat Jack Dalton in the barrel, you'll need to move into the bombs to kick them. Make sure to jump on the see-saw in the center of the screen so that the left end is up, then jump on the left end to launch the bomb into Jack Dalton. After a couple of bombs hit him, he disappears. Make sure the explosions don't hurt you in the meantime.

You'll soon have to face another mini-boss. Duck under the bullets coming out of the middle barrel, then kick the bombs Jack Dalton sends at you to the right. After you blow up the bottom barrel, you'll have to jump over the bullets. When the second barrel is gone, it's just you, Jack and the bombs. He'll be gone again soon enough.

Card #3 is between the last two cars where the last hostage is, and you'll have to jump to get it. Card #4 is in the car that you see after you see the train conductor again. Shortly after both of these cards and the second conductor is a train car full of logs. Move past it to get to the engine, and make sure you get the last two cards before you get over there, as the game won't let you turn back when you enter the third and last boss battle here.

Stay at the log car. Jump over the bullets, then kick the bombs to the right so they stop in front of Jack Dalton again. After three more bombs, you'll stop Jack for good, and he'll tell you that his two brothers will be in Rabbit Gulch Fort.

The bonus level here is an arm wrestling contest against Jolly Jumper. Keep mashing L and R repeatedly to bring Jolly Jumper's arm down. The first person to get three points in this quick mini-game wins, and if you're victorious, the game will tell you that you're stronger than a horse.

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 5 of 9

Short stage, but also a difficult one.

First | Previous | Next | End

Attack on the Pacific Express

For this stage, you'll be riding Jolly Jumper from a side-scrolling angle. Left and Right will move Jolly Jumper, B shoots and A jumps. As always, the D-Pad will allow you to aim. You're going to be doing a lot of aiming and jumping just to keep your health and ammunition high. You'll also need to pay attention to the floor so you can jump over the rock, as the game is not going to be like Mega Man 8 and tell you to jump.

If you see any dark-colored crates, you can shoot them down for extra health and ammunition.

The guys in green throw knives, but they have a delay in their attacks. This makes them the easiest enemies to tackle in this stage.

If you hear any dynamite, look for it and stay away from it. You don't want to get hit by any explosions here.

Unlike the other stages, the bonus stage cards are not present here.

When you see the train conductor a second time, you'll reach the end of the stage and immediately enter the next one.

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 4 of 9

Things start getting a little more difficult at this point in the game.

First | Previous | Next | End

The Coyote Gulch Mine

At the start, press L to avoid the falling planks that drop down from the ceiling, as they will hit you if you are running. If you're going slower, you'll trigger them before you can reach them. Jump, then shoot, to take out the first enemy you see. Once you reach the edge, shoot down the next enemy, then press L again to go back into run mode.

Go left from the mine cart when you drop down to get ammunition. Watch out for the dynamite that is thrown from the mine cart full of Dalton Brother goons in the background. You're supposed to grab the pegs to swing over the spikes, but it is hard to grab them even if you're holding Up on the D-Pad to do just that.

Going up from the right of the mine cart takes you to an old prospector. If you help him find three gold nuggets, he will help you capture Averell Dalton, the tallest of the Dalton Brothers. Get the dynamite near him, then walk to the right to avoid getting hit by falling planks. Use the dynamite on the plank on the platform to uncover the first gold nugget.

Head right, take out the enemies, and drop down two stories. Use the dynamite you find on the way to blow up the covering on the floor. Get the nearby stick of dynamite, then head left and blow up the door to find Card #1. Go up one left, make your way to the right, and swing over the spikes. You'll get Card #2 along the way. Go down from here to get the dynamite. There are two see-saw platforms here. Stand on the left platform, place the dynamite on it, then jump to and stand on the right platform to raise the left one up. This will uncover the second gold nugget.

Go left of where you blew up the covering, and grab some dynamite on the way there. Take out the enemy, then blow up the plank to get the third gold nugget. You'll also find Card #3 here. With three gold nuggets, head back to the prospector. He will give you nitroglycerine to access the underground passage where Averell Dalton is hiding. He will also tell you that if you jump more than five times with the nitro in hand, it will explode and hurt you, and you'll have to go back to him for more.

From the prospector, drop down and head left, get over the spikes and drop all the way down while jumping as little as possible. Press R on top of the rock in the floor to blow it up with the nitro. (If you use regular dynamite here, the game will tell you that it will not work when it explodes.) Head right, then head up and to the left when you have a choice of where to go next. Blow up the door with dynamite, and you'll find health and Card #4.

Go back and head downwards. When you see the enemy hiding behind the orange mine cart, you're near the end. Take him down for ammo and keep heading left. You'll run into Averell Dalton, who will try to fight you only to hurt himself in the process. He then lets it slip that William, Jack and Joe have hijacked the Pacific Express to head back to Rabbit Gulch Fort and pick up ammo.

For the bonus stage, you're riding Jolly Jumper again. Left and Right moves left and right, A jumps, and L and R lowers yourself to the left and right to pick things up, respectively, just like last time. This time around, however, you're avoiding exploding sticks of dynamite. The game will tell you that you outsmarted the canyon trap if you succeed, and call you unlucky if you fail.

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 3 of 9

Fingers the Magician seems to know something about the Daltons...and Lucky Luke figures that it is about time to have a chat with him.

First | Previous | Next | End

The Haunted Saloon

When you start the stage, you'll meet Fingers the Magician, who threatens to pickpocket you later before disappearing. You'll see him a couple of times around the stage, so if you see him, shoot him! This will get rid of him in certain parts of the level and ensures you don't see him again until the boss fight at the end.

Below the stage is a basement full of barrels...and enemies! You can drop down from the holes in the stage to get down there, and if you drop down the middle hole, you'll get Card #1.

From here, if you head all the way to the left, you can jump up into the floor and get a shortcut back to the start. Meanwhile, if you take out the hands shooting at you in the barrels, you can get coins. This is easier said than done to the hands having weird hitboxes, and you'll need to be behind them to hit them. The coins are needed for the roulette wheel just right of the stage area. The first coin will net you Card #2, while the second coin will give you an extra life. If Fingers touches you while you have them, he will take them away, so explore a little first and take him out before you go for the coins. 

Going down further will take you to a key. You'll need the key later on. Don't let Fingers touch you if you have the key, because he will steal the key and you'll have to go get it again. While you're on the lower basement level, leap around to look for platforms. One of them will take you to Card #3.

You'll need some sheet music in order to get the piano to play.

The buffalo heads will shoot at you, but you can shoot them down yourself to stop them from attacking. Speaking of attacking, watch out for enemies behind saloon bar counters as well as broken tables.

Be ready to find and press a switch to lower a chandelier. The chandelier will swing back and forth, and if you jump into it, you can grab onto it and swing to the other side with Left and Right. Just be ready to jump. There is a second chandelier soon after the first one, and if you drop straight down the middle from where that chandelier is, you'll score another extra life.

The stairs past Rintincan lead to a locked door leading into the attic; use the key on that to open it. To the left from the stairs is Card #4, while all the way to the right is the sheet music. Take it back to the piano near the beginning, and you'll enter a boss battle with Fingers himself. He's just as easy to take out as he was in the rest of the level. Just shoot at him when he comes at you. After you shoot at him three times, he gives up and tells you that the Dalton Brothers headed to a mine to look for explosives.

For the bonus level, aim the target reticle with the D-Pad, then shoot with L, R or A. Reload with B, especially when the game tells you. Keep shooting down bottles, and after shooting down enough, you'll win. If Rintincan shows up with a pocket watch in his mouth, shoot him to get more time. The timer will be on the clock just right of center. For best results, keep the target reticle just above the counter. 

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 2 of 9

The next level is a bit of a maze, but you can still breeze through it once you figure things out.

First | Next | End

Prison Rebellion

It just dawned on me that the four holes at the beginning are holes made by the Dalton Brothers when they blasted through the prison wall. 

Go left at the start and shoot the guy who pops out for more ammo, then jump straight up for Card #1.

Head right, and you'll find out that the wardens have been trapped in the powder store by the now-escaped Dalton Brothers, and that you'll need to get the key from Rintincan. Jump over the hole for more ammo, then drop down the hole to get in the prison.

Move in slowly and take out the enemies as you see them, and jump from platform to platform to avoid the spikes. After you jump up to the next level, head left and go down the first hole you see for an extra life. Backtrack, head right, and get the firewood. Go all the way to the left and press R in front of the fire in the furnace to use the firewood and make a platform that goes up and down near you. You'll need to do this to continue on. If you see the hand icon at the top center of the screen, you're in position to use an item. Jump on the platform, then jump again when it rises to get Card #2.

Be sure to go upwards on the platforms above you with Up on the D-Pad to get the dynamite, among other things. With the dynamite, go all the way back to the right, go up to the barrel with the lid on top of it, place the dynamite, then jump on the lid. When the dynamite's explosion knocks the lid upwards, jump to the right when the lid is in the air. Use the lid on the level above to get ammo and a key. It's not the same key Rintincan has, but it's still useful, anyway.

Head left and take out the enemies, and use the key on the closed door. This will take you over the makeshift barricade that is in your way. At the left end, you'll see a pipe that has a piece missing, with a hole in the floor. On the next level up, head right and take out enemies as you see them, then get the key at the end. Use the lid to get up one more level for dynamite and a bent pipe. Jump left from where the bent pipe is/was to get Card #3. Head left, use the key on the closed door to get past another barricade, then drop all the way down when you see the ball and chain to go back to the pipe. Use the bent pipe on the pipe in the wall, then get back to the ball and chain. Use the dynamite on the ball and chain, then go back to where you used the piece of bent pipe. The iron ball will go down the pipe and force open the door to the left. (Had you not used the bent pipe for this, the ball would go in the hole in the floor, and you'd have to do this all over again. Thankfully, everything necessary re-spawns.)

After heading to the left and taking out the enemies along the way, press R at the cannon. You'll blast open the door in front of you. Head to the left and get the bent pipe, then make your way down and get the dynamite. Place the bent pipe near the jail cell, then head right. Rintincan will have the key, but you won't be able to get it from him...yet. Card #4, if you're looking for it, is below where you found the second bent pipe; you'll have to drop down from where you entered this room to get it.

Go right from Rintincan to end up back at the start. You'll have to loop back around to where you entered the second jail section to get back to the ball and chain above the jail cell. Thankfully, all the enemies and items will re-spawn, so if you need more health and ammo, you can get it. When you use the dynamite on the ball and chain, the ball will go down the pipe and break through the jail cell, allowing you to get the bone. Press R near Rintincan to give him the bone and get the key to the powder store, then head to the right to where you dropped into the jail in the first place and you'll free the wardens and finish the stage.

You'll learn that the Dalton Brothers have mentioned Fingers the Magician, who hangs around the Coyote Gulch Saloon. Fingers knows a lot about the Daltons, and it's time to have a chat with him.

The bonus level after this stage is the slot machine. You'll start with $1000. Press A to pull the lever and get the barrels rolling, and press Left and Right to select the barrel you want. Press B to stop the selected barrel. If you can time things just right - which takes a lot of practice, as the barrels run at different speeds and you have to press B on the icon before the one you want - you can get a lot of money. If you go bust or fail to earn enough money, the game makes fun of you; if you earn enough money (which is around $10,000), the bonus level ends and Lucky Luke gives his casino earnings to an orphanage. The game tells you which combinations win you something. Two in a row of something will get you a little bit of money, while three of the same thing will net you bonus multipliers that multiply the current amount of money that you have. 

You have three tries to score, and if you don't score on anything, you'll lose one of your tries.

The winning combinations for the slots are as follows:

Two ball and chains: $500

Two feathers: $400

Two clovers: $300

Two horseshoes: $200

Two sheriff stars: $100

Three sheriff stars: 4x current money

Three horseshoes: 3.5x current money

Three clovers: 3x current money

Three feathers: 2.5x current money

Three ball and chains: 2x current money

PrinceWatercress plays Lucky Luke: Wanted! - Part 1 of 9

Didn't think I'd be playing another Lucky Luke game, but here we are.

Next | End

Believe it or not, this is a port of the Super NES game from 1997 - which was Europe-only - for the Game Boy Advance. Not surprisingly, this port is also Europe-only.

In the menu, the red bullet in the chamber is pointed at what you are highlighting, and the background will move towards what you are highlighting.

Normal is the easier of the two difficulties, while I want to believe that Difficult is the original Super NES difficulty.

The story begins with the newly-elected President of the United States granting general amnesty to all felons. This allows the Dalton Brothers, Lucky Luke's most persistent nemeses, to be free men, and not surprisingly, they start committing crime again the moment they get out. After being freed from prison, they rob the Yuma City Bank, which gets the attention of our hero Lucky Luke.

Yuma City

Left and Right moves left and right, Down ducks, A jumps, B shoots, and Up on the D-Pad can be used to shoot upwards with the B button. You can also aim diagonally upwards and fire in those directions, but you'll also have to deal with moving and shooting at the same time. If you press L, you can switch between walking and running, and that will allow you to aim diagonally upwards more easily.

If you press Up in certain spots, Lucky Luke will super jump to the platform above him, Rolling Thunder style. You'll need to be under the edge of a platform that is above Luke to be able to do this.

Your current ammo will be in the upper-left hand corner, You'll need to pick up six-shooter cartridges in order to get more bullets. The bullets left in your current cartridge will be in orange on the icon in the upper-left, and you'll reload if you have a free cartridge. You can have up to nine cartridges on stand-by at one time.

Your current amount of lives and health will be in the lower-left hand corner. Any lives that you pick up will only be good for the current stage; you'll be knocked back to the default of three lives when you reach the next stage. To get more lives, look for white cowboy hats throughout the current level. As for the starts, you have four hits, and when you run out, you will lose a life. Pick up stars to refill one unit of health if you get hit.

If you have maximum health, bullets or lives, you won't pick up the item that you already have maximum of if you move into it. 

Enemies will pop out of windows and other things. Be ready to shoot them before they shoot you. If they shoot, duck or jump to avoid their bullets. The hands with the gun that poke out of certain areas are hard to shoot, as their hitboxes are pretty small, but you can hit them.

When you reach the well, Lucky Luke will notice that the well has been bricked up. Press A to stop reading the dialogue bubbles and get back to the game. When you're reading dialogue, a red X will flash where your ammo is; it will disappear when you get rid of the on-screen dialogue.

There are four playing cards that you can pick up in each stage that takes you to a bonus area. These playing cards were not in the original Super NES version. Any cards that you pick up will appear in the lower-right corner, but they will all be face down. You'll need to remember which cards you picked up as you go through each level. The bonus areas are not needed to beat the game, and you'll get nothing from them, but some of them are more beatable than others and there's a bit of satisfaction in beating them.

If you jump into the covered wagon shortly after the start of the level, you'll get the Ace of Hearts. Go left and jump to get it.

If you go inside any place that the game considers a room and then leave, all the enemies you defeated and all the items you picked up will re-spawn. This will allow you to get more bullets, health and lives. 

Shoot down the haystack to drop it onto the see-saw. This will allow you to jump on the see-saw and get launched towards the rest of the level. When you do that, remember to head back and get the Ace of Spades.

Jumping on the vulture allows you to get the nearby extra life.

You'll find Rin Tin Can (originally named Rantanplan in the French language version) near a stick of dynamite, which you can collect. When you have dynamite, it will appear next to your ammo in the upper-left corner. You'll also meet the bank teller, who will tell you that the bank manager has been thrown down the well that has been bricked off. You'll need to head back to the well, then press R to light the stick of dynamite and lay it down while standing on the well. Back off so you don't get hit by the explosion, then go down the well when it's open. When the platform goes down, jump to the right when it stops so you don't drop into spikes, then head right and talk to the bank manager to free him. 

After this, you can take the platform back up and jump straight up when it stops after moving upwards. Head back to the bank and jump onto the covered wagon to continue, then jump to the second level of the next building and jump to get your third card, the Ace of Clubs. The fourth card, the Ace of Diamonds, will be above the next building directly over the coffin. You'll need to jump on the platforms on the buildings further to the right to double back and get it.

The see-saw near the end is used to get another extra life, if you need it.

The boss here is a gunfight. Press A after being told to fire on the signal to get the dialogue off the screen, and when the mortician brings his hand down, fire your gun. After three bullets, you'll shoot the other guy's belt off and you'll beat him. You'll then find out from Jolly Jumper, Lucky Luke's horse, that the Dalton Brothers have started a mutiny at the prison in Casper. You'll need to head down to the prison and stop the mutiny.

The bonus stage after this level is a trip to the canyon. Move Jolly with Left and Right on the D-Pad, press A to jump and press L and R to lower yourself and grab dollars bills to your left and right respectively. You'll need to get through the canyon and collect all the dollar bills while also getting through the canyon without getting hit too many times. The amount of dollar bills you've picked up will be in the upper-left corner, while the amount of hits you have left will be in the lower-left corner. If you run into holes, rocks or cacti three times, the game tells you that you are unlucky. If you survive the canyon but fail to get all the dollar bills, the game will tell you that you avoided the canyon trap. The game will congratulate you if you survive with all 50 dollar bills, but you won't get anything else out of it.

PrinceWatercress plays Surround - The Longplay

...and now, to play all the one-player variations, minus commentary. Enjoy!

First | Previous

Long before they were called "Snake games," you had a ton of games backed on Blockade by Gremlin Industries. Not surprisingly, this Atari 2600 launch title was one of them. And back then, instead of running around running into a lone dot without hitting yourself or the wall, you played against another player in an attempt to trap each other, with the first person to run into a wall or part of their or the other player's being the loser. And it was fun. And we liked it.

Game Mode 1 is the standard two-player mode, while Game Mode 2 is one player against the computer, with the human player controlled with a joystick in Controller Port 2. The joystick moves your square around, with different colors used to tell the two players apart. Player 1's score and color is at the top left, and Player 2's score and color is at the top right.

As you move, you'll leave a trail that stays on the playfield for the duration of the round. The aim of the game is to get the other player to run into the wall, their own trail or your trail without doing the same to yourself.

The controls are simple. You don't use the fire button for anything in Game Modes 1 and 2; instead, you just move your square around and leave a trail with the joystick. That's it.

Both players need to strategically move around in order to trap the other player without accidentally trapping themselves. Whenever someone runs into a wall or a trail, the other person scores a point. The first to ten points wins.

The left difficulty switch controls the difficulty of the computer controlled opponent, with B/Novice giving you the easier difficulty and A/Expert giving you the harder difficulty. The right difficulty switch acts as a failsafe that keeps both players from accidentally backing into themselves. B/Novice keeps players from accidentally moving opposite their current direction and backing into their own trail, while A/Expert allows for it.

Game Modes 3 and 4 introduce Speed Up. Speed Up makes the game gradually go faster the longer it goes, with the pitch of the background noise getting higher as the game gets faster. The game will speed up up to five times before maintaining that speed, and whenever either player scores a point, the game goes back to normal speed, then gradually speeds up again. Speed Up Game Mode 3 is two-player mode with Speed Up, and Game Mode 4 is one-player mode with Speed Up.

Game Modes 2 and 4 are the only game modes out of the first 12 that are one-player variations; the rest are strictly two-player. That's a shame, because the rest of the game variations have other things going on.

Game Mode 5 introduces Diagonal Movement. This allows you to move diagonally with diagonal directions on the joystick, and can make for some interesting situations. If you know what you're doing and where you're going, you can move diagonally in such a way that you can move through the other player's diagonal paths.

Game Mode 6 combines Speed Up and Diagonal Movement. Game Mode 7 is the same as Game Mode 6, but it also introduces Erase. Erase makes it so that when you hold the fire button while moving, you won't leave a trail; instead, you'll just leave empty space behind you. If you know what you're doing, you can mess with the other player.

Game Mode 8 simply has Wraparound. Wraparound allows you to move past one side of the screen and instantly re-appear on the other. You can move past the left side and end up on the right, and you can move past the right side and end up on the left.

Game Mode 9 combines Speed Up and Wraparound. Game Mode 10 combines Speed Up, Diagonal Movement and Wraparound, as does Game Mode 11. Game Mode 12 combines Speed Up, Diagonal Movement, Erase and Wraparound all in one game.

Game Modes 13 and 14 are their own game: Video Graffiti. It's a game within the game that allows you to draw on the screen, and it's actually pretty nice. Both modes can be played with one or two players, and while Game Mode 13 does not allow for diagonal movement, Game Mode 14 does, so I stick to Game Mode 14.

Drawing is easy. Just hold down the fire button and move around with the joystick to draw. You can draw smiley faces, make letters and numbers, or whatever the blocks allow you to do. It's super simple and there's not much depth to it, but it is a nice little set of game modes.

If you make a mistake while drawing, you can just draw over the mistake to erase it. Thankfully, both game modes for Video Graffiti allow for erasing. You can also wrap around the screen and quickly move your cursor from one side of the screen to the other.

That's it for Surround. All in all, it's a nice launch game, but I wish there were more one-player game variations. It's a little easier to enjoy if you have friends to play it with. At least Video Graffiti is fun, albeit super simple, and it allows you to draw on the screen. You probably won't play this game for very long, but it is far from a horrible game and is worth picking up and playing for a least a few minutes.

PrinceWatercress plays Surround - Part 3 of 3

...and now, Video Graffiti. What can I say? For something from the early years of console gaming, it's nice.

First | Previous | End

Game Modes 13 and 14 are their own game: Video Graffiti. It's a game within the game that allows you to draw on the screen, and it's actually pretty nice. Both modes can be played with one or two players, and while Game Mode 13 does not allow for diagonal movement, Game Mode 14 does, so I stick to Game Mode 14.

Drawing is easy. Just hold down the fire button and move around with the joystick to draw. You can draw smiley faces, make letters and numbers, or whatever the blocks allow you to do. It's super simple and there's not much depth to it, but it is a nice little set of game modes.

If you make a mistake while drawing, you can just draw over the mistake to erase it. Thankfully, both game modes for Video Graffiti allow for erasing. You can also wrap around the screen and quickly move your cursor from one side of the screen to the other.

That's it for Surround. All in all, it's a nice launch game, but I wish there were more one-player game variations. It's a little easier to enjoy if you have friends to play it with. At least Video Graffiti is fun, albeit super simple, and it allows you to draw on the screen. You probably won't play this game for very long, but it is far from a horrible game and is worth picking up and playing for a least a few minutes.

PrinceWatercress plays Surround - Part 2 of 3

Believe it or not, the game has some extra variations. Too bad only two game modes allow for one-player action.

First | Next | End

Game Modes 3 and 4 introduce Speed Up. Speed Up makes the game gradually go faster the longer it goes, with the pitch of the background noise getting higher as the game gets faster. The game will speed up up to five times before maintaining that speed, and whenever either player scores a point, the game goes back to normal speed, then gradually speeds up again. Speed Up Game Mode 3 is two-player mode with Speed Up, and Game Mode 4 is one-player mode with Speed Up.

Game Modes 2 and 4 are the only game modes out of the first 12 that are one-player variations; the rest are strictly two-player. That's a shame, because the rest of the game variations have other things going on.

Game Mode 5 introduces Diagonal Movement. This allows you to move diagonally with diagonal directions on the joystick, and can make for some interesting situations. If you know what you're doing and where you're going, you can move diagonally in such a way that you can move through the other player's diagonal paths.

Game Mode 6 combines Speed Up and Diagonal Movement. Game Mode 7 is the same as Game Mode 6, but it also introduces Erase. Erase makes it so that when you hold the fire button while moving, you won't leave a trail; instead, you'll just leave empty space behind you. If you know what you're doing, you can mess with the other player.

Game Mode 8 simply has Wraparound. Wraparound allows you to move past one side of the screen and instantly re-appear on the other. You can move past the left side and end up on the right, and you can move past the right side and end up on the left.

Game Mode 9 combines Speed Up and Wraparound. Game Mode 10 combines Speed Up, Diagonal Movement and Wraparound, as does Game Mode 11. Game Mode 12 combines Speed Up, Diagonal Movement, Erase and Wraparound all in one game.

Game Modes 13 and 14 are their own thing...and I'll cover them next time.

PrinceWatercress plays Surround - Part 1 of 3

It's time once again for one of the launch games for the Atari 2600.

Next | End

Long before they were called "Snake games," you had a ton of games backed on Blockade by Gremlin Industries. Not surprisingly, this Atari 2600 launch title was one of them. And back then, instead of running around running into a lone dot without hitting yourself or the wall, you played against another player in an attempt to trap each other, with the first person to run into a wall or part of their or the other player's being the loser. And it was fun. And we liked it.

Game Mode 1 is the standard two-player mode, while Game Mode 2 is one player against the computer, with the human player controlled with a joystick in Controller Port 2. The joystick moves your square around, with different colors used to tell the two players apart. Player 1's score and color is at the top left, and Player 2's score and color is at the top right.

As you move, you'll leave a trail that stays on the playfield for the duration of the round. The aim of the game is to get the other player to run into the wall, their own trail or your trail without doing the same to yourself.

The controls are simple. You don't use the fire button for anything in Game Modes 1 and 2; instead, you just move your square around and leave a trail with the joystick. That's it.

Both players need to strategically move around in order to trap the other player without accidentally trapping themselves. Whenever someone runs into a wall or a trail, the other person scores a point. The first to ten points wins.

The left difficulty switch controls the difficulty of the computer controlled opponent, with B/Novice giving you the easier difficulty and A/Expert giving you the harder difficulty. The right difficulty switch acts as a failsafe that keeps both players from accidentally backing into themselves. B/Novice keeps players from accidentally moving opposite their current direction and backing into their own trail, while A/Expert allows for it.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 18 of 18

...and with this, the game - and the Crazy Castle series - comes to a close.

First | Previous

Fairy Stage 4

The lever near the car activates and deactivates the barrier on the right end of the rollercoaster track. You'll need to deactivate the barrier there, press A at the car to go in, make your way to the left and press a switch to activate the barrier at the center. You'll then have to ride the car, get dropped down at the center, then press the switch you see after you drop down to mess with all of the barriers. This will drop the barrier at the left end. With the center barrier down and the right barrier up, you'll be able to get to the top-left of the stage and get to the last of the items and head down to the final switch. Pull it to bring the center barrier down to get to the exit.

As you do all of this, you'll want to avoid the enemies and open up all of the doors to get the keys and power-ups throughout. 

Fairy Stage 5

The boss is a clown who flies around and spits projectiles downwards at you in addition to ramming into you. He can move around pretty quickly, can show up when you least expect it, and has an awful laugh that is more creepy than anything else.

The red-white-and-blue straws act as pipes that can be used to get to other places more quickly.

There is health left of the exit as well as the dark yellow layer of the ice cream cone.

When you beat the stage, the Crazy Castle comes down, and you'll get the treasure of Crazy Castle...which is Winnie Woodpecker, making the ending a carbon copy of the fourth handheld game. The fairy world has been saved, Woody is with Winnie and the game ends. You just beat Crazy Castle 5!

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 17 of 18

In this entry, we finally complete the dreaded Fairy Stage 2, then make heads and tails out of Fairy Stage 3.

First | Previous | End

Fairy Stage 2 (continued)

As you can probably tell from the last video, you can only go so far up with the clown nose bridges, and you'll eventually have to use the jack-in-the-box trampolines to get to the highest parts of the three towers.

For best results, you'll want to open all the doors on the bottom third of the level first, then use the jack-in-the-boxes to get to the top third and explore all of that. You'll want to save the middle third for last, especially since the exit is in the middle of the second tower anyway.

Also, you can stand near the beginning or end of the clown nose bridges and let them disappear from under you to get to other areas when necessary. This makes it easier to go to other areas on the towers that you wouldn't be able to climb to.

Fairy Stage 3

Stage 3 has a Ferris wheel in the center of the stage. You'll need to get on the Free Fall platform that slowly slides up and then quickly drop down on the left side of the stage, then ride it upwards and pull the switch on the left to get the Ferris wheel moving. Once you do that, you'll be able to get around more easily. The Ferris wheel will only move for a brief time, so you'd better be ready to get on the cars that rotate around and ride it. You'll need to do this to get one of the keys and also get to the exit.

Explore the bottom first. You'll be able to figure out more quickly where you can get to the top of the screen and access other areas from.

The right side of the level has slowly-moving elevator platforms, and you'll need to use them to get to the last remaining items.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 16 of 18

Never thought I'd lose a life to a suddenly-(not-)appearing invisible enemy, but here we are.

First | Previous | Next | End

Fairy Stage 1

The Pinocchio enemies will chase after you, as will the pink bears. The UFO's will be the standard flying enemy that you'll have to deal with around here. Start making it a habit to run around a lot and paying attention to get the slip on enemies.

You will not have a lot of room to maneuver on the cakes, so you'll need to be very careful.

You'll eventually have to get into the robot, get to the door at the top and flip the switch. This will allows you to go up to the top of the left cake, as pulling the switch will cause the robot to switch sides.

The fairy power-up turns you into a robot, and you can stun an enemy in front of you as the robots. Sadly, you won't be able to climb ladders as the robot.

Fairy Stage 2

You'll be told to "press the nose to bridge the gap. You'll have to push the nose by walking into it to make bridges to other platforms. These bridges won't be up for long, so you'd better be ready to run to the other side. That's rough, since you 

The red boxes with the orange lids and the yellow stars are trampolines, but you'll need to leap onto them to be launched quite high into the air.

ALSO, WHAT THE HELL IS THIS.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 15 of 18

...and you thought the squid boss was nasty.

First | Previous | Next | End

Fire Stage 6

The boss here is a dragon that also looks like a unicorn. The unicorn will fly around and spit a three-way fireball shot at you. If you have any of the plunger guns that you can get in this level, have it out at all times. 

Believe it or not, you can climb the ropes that are behind the lava waterfalls. You can also fall into the lava itself, so you'll want to keep an eye out for the boss at all times.

If you get the fairy power-up, use it. You'll want to be able to stun the boss long enough to get away from it.

There is a regular heart and a big heart that serve as your only health replenishments, and they are both near the top of the stage.

At the top of the stage, the metal plates in the background are clues as to where to drop down for door keys.

When you beat the Fire Stage, you'll unlock Fairy World, which is the toughest world yet.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 14 of 18

Man, this took more time than it should have.

First | Previous | Next | End

Fire Stage 5

Conveyor belts finally make their debut in this stage. You'll be seeing machinery that puts lava in big pots, and if you touch the pots in any way, it will hurt. There is a switch in the upper-left corner of the level that stops the pots from scooping up lava. This will allow you to ride the pots upwards and progress further into the level. You can also go up the pipe to the door that lets you get the metal block passer. This gets you un-stuck when you make it to the lower-right corner of the level.

Take care near the crushers above where you start, as you don't want to get smashed or accidentally fall through them. Amazingly, if you do get crushed, you only lose one heart. If you get caught between the crusher and the top of the screen, you'll also lose one heart.

If you get the object that lets you pass through metal blocks, be careful near the switch, as there is a bottomless pit below where the switch is that will instantly kill you if you fall in. A bottomless pit in a Crazy Castle game? That's a first.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 13 of 18

Last entry wasn't so hot. This time around, we do a lot better.

First | Previous | Next | End

Fire Stage 2 (continued)

Your best bet to get through this stage is to go through the upper-left corner of the level thoroughly first. As for the guns, you'll want to use them on only the cat enemies, as they will be the most annoying to deal with. 

As it turns out, the blue hedgehog-like enemies have orange counterparts that use the ladders. 

Fire Stage 3

The doors that look like open mouths lead in and out of indoor sections, giving us an indoor maze in a stage with a much more forgiving level design that the previous one.

Fire Stage 4

There are lava plumes that slowly move up and down. Those things will fry you if they hit you, so try not to get close to them. Also, the fake floors that cause you to drop down when you move onto them come back.

Also, the orange hedgehog enemies can go up and down the stairways, much like the cat enemies. Thanks, game, I needed another reason to not like those enemies.

I finally figured out the slot machines! Turns out you need to press A on what appears two positions before the item you want. 

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 12 of 18

It's time for the last third of the game, and this is where the difficulty goes out of the window due to annoying enemies that are allowed to re-spawn and level design that allows said enemies to have an edge.

First | Previous | Next | End

Fire Stage 1

You'll want to avoid the steam from the geysers.

The green enemies will spit a fireball forward if they see you.

The blue creatures that look like hedgehogs will spin towards you if they see you.

The yellow bats fly around in a specific pattern.

The black cat enemies can suddenly stand still before doubling back, which can make them an utter pain to deal with if you need to. Yeah, that's what this game needs: an enemy that stands still and then turns around when you don't want that to happen.

The boulders will fall down if you get close enough to them. They'll bounce towards you twice before ultimately breaking, but they will pose a threat in the meantime.

The fairy power-up gives you a fireball that will allow you to stun enemies and briefly freeze them. The fireball launches forward, but also returns like a boomerang, so if you miss the first time, you can hit an enemy on the rebound. That's either a good thing or a bad thing depending on the situation.

Fire Stage 2

You now have gray cat enemies to deal with, although they aren't able to do as much as the black cats, as they can't even use the ladders, much less the pipes or the mushroom trampolines.. Also, the black cat enemies can use the mushroom trampolines to get to higher areas.

The pipes are back! You can now use them to get to areas you wouldn't be able to get to normally. Unfortunately, the black cat enemies can use the pipes to get to you.

The breakaway platforms are back. Remember that you can only step on them three times before they break once and for all.

Amazingly, the clock that freezes enemies do not freeze the geysers that spit out steam.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 11 of 18

That's the third world of the game down! But things are about to get harder...

First | Previous | Next | End

Water Stage 5

The green wasps move back and forth and will try to sting you if you get too close to them. Also, pulling levers and finding the item that lets you pass through metal blocks are both going to be a must. You'll need to go through all of the pipes in order to reach all of the levers and turn off all of the waterfalls.

You cannot use levers while underwater.

Water Stage 6

The boss here is a giant squid which will leap up from the bottom of the stage when you least expect it. Just like with all of the other bosses, you'll want to keep running.

Aside from the spin attack that the squid can hit you with when it leaps out of the water, it can also spit ink on the floor, which can be slippery if you move around on it. If you get hit by the ink projectile yourself, you become slippery yourself when you move. Thankfully, it's only temporary either way.

The two pipes on the sides actually wrap-around, and if you go in on one side, you'll end up on the other, and the game even scrolls seamlessly as you move. That's pretty nice.

As long as you keep moving quickly and have the four or five guns you can find throughout the stage, you'll be able to get the Water Key and move on to Fire World.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 10 of 18

Just one stage this time. Man, figuring out how to use that machine in the center of the stage took forever.

First | Previous | Next | End

Water Stage 4

Be ready to play with levers in this level. One of them is at the top shortly to the right of the start, and if you flip it, you'll play with the nearby lights. This dictates which pipe you can enter and go through when you enter the pipe at the bottom of this big yellow contraption, and there are four different routes to open up in all. When one route is opened, the other three are closed, so play with this lever carefully. As for the pipe, you want to make sure you are not in motion before positioning yourself below it and pressing Up to enter.

Also, pressing the L button while in map mode allows you to see which doors you have yet to open.

Even though there are metal blocks here, the item that lets you pass through them is not in this level.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 9 of 18

Hard to believe this is the halfway point of the Let's Play. This game almost felt like it went on forever, but not in the same way that the fourth handheld game did.

First | Previous | Next | End

Water Stage 2

The sailboat will be able to take you places along the water's surface,

The bone fish don't chase you relentlessly, unlike the red one that does.

The blue doors lead to the indoor routes that will take you to various areas in the Water World stages. If you enter any of the blue doors that are underwater, water will flow into the room.

The crabs will move back and forth, and they will spit foam at you if you get next to them.

You'll also want to find the object that lets you pass through metal boxes if you want to complete this stage. Thankfully, the exit is on the right end of the stage.

Water Stage 3

There are now two red fish that will chase you around underwater.

You'll need to hit the levers in order to turn the water streams off so you can go up the pipes and get some of the items in this stage, including some keys.

The little crusher platforms can be stood on and ridden on. You'll need to do this to get the item that lets you pass through metal blocks for this stage.

The enemies cannot come after you on the bridges where the pipes are; they will just turn around when they reach these bridges.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 8 of 18

In retrospect, I really don't like that Wood World boss at all.

First | Previous | Next | End

Wood Stage 5

Things are looking a little different here; I do like the stone background. Aside from that, you'll have a whole bevy of enemies to deal with and a whole ton of vines to climb on. At this rate, getting around is as difficult as ever, and once again, you'll need the item that lets you go through metal blocks to get through the stage.

Wood Stage 6

The boss here is a mutant plant that will pop up when you least expect it, and you'll need to be fast to get though this level to get the keys, get to the door and get the Wood Key. If the plant isn't biting at you, it's spitting seeds at you. You can press Up and Down to get into the pipes and go where they take you. Also, use the map function often; you'll need to figure out where to go quickly.

Water Stage 1

The D-Pad will allow you to swim in the water in eight direction. Watch out for that red fish, because it will chase you all around the level. Climb up ladders to get out of the water. If you need to enter a door in the water, stop moving when in front of it, then press Up. Just remember to hold Up while moving towards the stairs on the way out of the rooms.

Press A in front of a lever to toggle it. This will allow you to turn things such as the waterfalls in this stage on and off. 

The fairy jar allows you to wear a scuba snorkel. It doesn't give you a weapon, but it seems to allow you to swim faster.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 7 of 18

In this entry, we blow through three stages in Wood World. At this point, things definitely start getting more difficult.

First | Previous | Next | End

Wood Stage 2

The bees, which first showed up in the last stages, will stab at you if you get close enough to them.

The teddy bears are out in full force, so be ready to move wherever you are so you aren't hounded by them.

If you press Down on the top of the broken tree tops, you can go down them.

Wood Stage 3

The pink birds that fly around will chase you and try to hit you if you get close enough to them.

Also, these vine paths are becoming more and more confusing. Pay attention to where they go, and you'll be able to figure where you can go.

Wood Stage 4

The brown doors lead to the indoor routes that lead to other parts of the level. You're going to have to make some odd leaps off certain platforms in order to reach certain brown doors as well as reach the item that lets you move through the metal blocks. There's also going to be teddy bear enemies at just about every turn, so save any weapons that you find for when they are absolutely in your way.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 6 of 18

The Wind World boss was incredibly annoying. You're better off just going straight for the keys and moving past the boss rather than fending it off with a plunger gun.

First | Previous | Next | End

Wind Stage 5

You're near enemies as soon as you start the stage.

The red Karate Ducks cover a shorter area than their black-clad counterparts. They cannot use stairs or ladders.

The jetpack is going to be very useful in this stage, as it can help you get to the 

Wind Stage 6

You'll need the plunger guns that you find throughout this area to keep the genie at bay. As long as you keep moving and use the jetpack, you'll do fine, get the Wind Key and continue to Wood World.

As far as it went for me, I was better off not even trying to face the boss to avoid being attacked, and the jetpack from the fairy power was an absolute must.

Wood Stage 1

There are not only vines you can climb up and down on, but also vine floors that you can climb on the undersides of.

The spiders will drop down at you if you get close enough, then slowly climb back up. The teddy bear enemies make their debut here, and move very quickly. They'll become a menace later in the game.

One of the enemies is a fly with a chainsaw for a nose. That's a visual. 

The spider web is a trampoline you can jump on.

The vines that swing back and forth take you to other areas. Just walk into them to grab them, then walk off to get off the vine.

The fairy power turns you into an archer. You can fire infinite arrows at enemies, but firing takes a few more seconds than usual.

The mushrooms here act as trampolines.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 5 of 18

The Wind World stages are starting to get nastier now. Just keep using the map mode and watch for enemies and you'll get where you need to go.

First | Previous | Next | End

Wind Stage 3

The red door with the line over the "up arrow" cannot be entered; it is part of a one-way route and you can only exit from it.

The turkeys slowly move back and forth, and they will not only slow you down, but they will also peck at you if you are in front of them. If it's not the karate ducks that constantly chase after you, it's the turkeys getting in your way. Be ready to be strategic with your item use.

You'll need the item that allows you to move through metal blocks to get to the exit.

Wind Stage 4

The brown doors lead to inside routes that take you from one level of the stage to another. Enemies thankfully cannot follow you into these areas, but you may find enemies inside these areas, especially later in the game.

You're better off running off the edge to get from one platform to another if the next platform is lower than the one you're currently on. Otherwise, you'll be forced to do some crappy backtracking just to get back to where you were.

PrinceWatercress plays Woody Woodpecker in Crazy Castle 5 - Part 4 of 18

In this entry, we get started with Wind World by completing the first two stages.

First | Previous | Next | End

Wind Stage 1

There are different colored platforms. The green ones are bouncy and will launch you upwards. It'd be easier to see where you are going if the camera wasn't always centered on Woody. You'll see others in the later stages.

The kung fu ducks are relentless, and they will rear back before chopping at you. Unlike the other enemies you've seen so far, they will follow you throughout the level unless you can get far enough away from them. The birds will fly in a specific route, while the thunder clouds fly around and will shock you if you get close enough to them.

The slot machine is another way to win items. Press A to get the barrels spinning, and press A again to stop each barrel. If you can get all three barrels on the same item, you'll win that item.

The clock will freeze enemies for a brief time when collected. You will also hear a clock ticking while it is in effect.

The fairy power for wind World is a jetpack, and you'll need it to get to higher areas, including the exit.

Wind Stage 2

The yellow clouds move up and down, while the red clouds move left and right. They work much like your usual, standard platforms.

The winged fish will blow on you in an attempt to hurt you.

Pressing R while in map mode lets you zoom to all of the unopened doors in a stage.