=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
_______ _ _________ _______ _______ _______ ______
( ___ )( \ \__ __/( ____ \( ____ )( ____ \( __ \
| ( ) || ( ) ( | ( \/| ( )|| ( \/| ( \ )
| (___) || | | | | (__ | (____)|| (__ | | ) |
| ___ || | | | | __) | __)| __) | | | |
| ( ) || | | | | ( | (\ ( | ( | | ) |
| ) ( || (____/\| | | (____/\| ) \ \__| (____/\| (__/ )
|/ \|(_______/)_( (_______/|/ \__/(_______/(______/
______ _______ _______ _______ _________
( ___ \ ( ____ \( ___ )( ____ \\__ __/
| ( ) )| ( \/| ( ) || ( \/ ) (
| (__/ / | (__ | (___) || (_____ | |
| __ ( | __) | ___ |(_____ ) | |
| ( \ \ | ( | ( ) | ) | | |
| )___) )| (____/\| ) ( |/\____) | | |
|/ \___/ (_______/|/ \|\_______) )_(
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
**************************************************
* *
* Altered Beast *
* *
* Sega Genesis *
* *
* General FAQ/Walkthrough *
* Version 1.0 *
* By Justin Morgan *
* Created 6/18/2010 *
* Last Updated 6/19/2010 *
* *
**************************************************
Version History:
0.0 (6/18/2010) - Started the guide.
1.0 (6/19/2010) - First complete version of the guide.
=====================
= Table of Contents =
=====================
Introduction
I) Basics
1-01 General Information
1-02 Story
1-03 Controls
1-04 Gameplay Details
1-05 Forms
II) Walkthrough
2-01 Round 1
2-02 Round 2
2-03 Round 3
2-04 Round 4
2-05 Round 5
III) Extra Info
3-01 Enemy List
3-02 Secret Codes
IV) End
4-01 Credits
4-02 Copyright
4-03 Contact Information
================
= Introduction =
================
"But, Klaej", you ask, "why would you randomly be writing an FAQ for such an old
game so suddenly in 2010?" Well, that's a good question. Let me explain.
When I was a very young boy, I would get to go to my older cousins' house every
once in awhile, and I loved it. I was a gamer more or less from the time I was
born (brought into the world into a household with an NES) and going to my
cousins' place meant getting a chance to play their Sega Genesis. They had the
ancient original Genesis model, the really clunky one from the late 80s. They
had a collectin of mind-blowing 16-bit games that were all wonderful to me such
as Golden Axe, Space Harrier II and the brand-new Sonic the Hedgehog. There was
one more that was equally fun to look at and listen to when it was played on the
magnificent blast-processing unit that was the Genesis, but was brutally
difficult to us young gamers; it was the pack-in game for the very early days of
the Genesis/Megadrive outside of Japan, a game by the name of Altered Beast.
Now, about two decades later, I've gotten ahold of a perfectly emulated port of
the game thanks to "Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection" for the PS3 (which I
highly recommend), and I've been bent on mastering it once and for all. And
after a generations-long wait between sitting in that cool room in front of an
old glass-screened TV with my cousin and hoping only to ever reach the end of
Round 2 at best, I've finally done so. If you ever read this, Brandon, you can
consider this guide dedicated to you.
In my ventures to beat the game as flawlessly as possible I got the sudden idea
to make a guide detailing how I managed to finish each stage unscathed, barring
accidents. I figured there'd be little reason to as I was sure such a classic
game would have a massive number of guides online, but upon looking I only found
one single, solitary FAQ on GameFAQs that hasn't been touched in nearly ten
years. What's more, it would seem that this--what I thought up until now was a
well-remembered game that still seems plenty fun to me in 2010--is a very badly
reviewed clunker of a game by many peoples' standards. I feel that I definitely
owe it to this game and the role it played in my childhood and helping initially
form my strong positive view of the Genesis and Sega itself, that holds strong
to this day. I've just gotta make a guide for it.
=============
I) Basics
=============
-----------------------------
1-01 General Information
-----------------------------
Title: Altered Beast (International
Jyuouki [Beast King's Chronicle] (Japan)
Developer: Sega
Publisher: Sega
Genre: Action/Beat 'Em Up
Release Dates (Genesis/Megadrive):
Japan - November 27, 1988
North America - August 14, 1989
Europe - 1990
---------------
1-02 Story
---------------
The setting is ancient Greece. The great god, Zeus, is embroiled in a war
amongst gods, and all of his soldiers are engaged in the conflict. Using this
as an opportunity, the demon lord Neff has captured Zeus' daughter, Athena, and
made her into a hostage. With no way of leaving his own post in his current
situation and not a single warrior to spare, Zeus turns to you, a fallen soldier
who died fighting for him in ages past, and bids you rise from your grave once
more. With a promise of immortality and the hand of Athena should you succeed,
you advance toward Neff's lair, using the power of the sacred beasts to aid you
in the fight against the demon hordes.
------------------
1-03 Controls
------------------
(AS HUMAN)
Basic Controls -
+ Control Pad: Moves your character left or right.
A Button: Punch.
B Button: Kick.
C Button: Jump.
Start Button: Start the game from the title screen, pause.
Advanced Controls -
Down + A: Crouching Punch (very fast).
Down + B: Upwards Kick.
A (in air): Aerial punch.
B (in air): Aerial kick.
Up + Jump: High jump.
(AS BEAST)
Wolf -
A: Fireball
B: Flaming Dash
Dragon -
A: Thunder Breath
B: Electric Charge
Bear -
A: Stone Breath
B: Roll
Tiger -
A: Wave Ball
B: Vertical Dash
(Note: All attack moves in all Beast forms perform the same way whether
standing, crouching or in the air. The one exception is the Bear's Roll attack,
which propels you into the air from the ground, but simply falls when used from
the air.)
--------------------------
1-04 Gameplay Details
--------------------------
The basic idea of the game is that you're always moving from left to right as
the screen slowly scrolls to reveal more of the stage all the while. Monsters
will attack you from above and below the ground and in the air but they always
spawn in exactly the same pattern every time you play, so you can memorize how
to tackle any given point in any stage with enough practice. Occasionally you
will find groups of three-headed wolves, usually (but not always) in a pack of
two brown ones and one blue one. Slaying the blue one will always yield a
powerup, and collecting it will cause your shape to shift as your character
shouts the memorable catch phrase, "Powerrr up!". Every so often, you'll
encounter Neff, the main antagonist, who takes the form of a ghastly pale bald
man in purple rags. Though harmless (and unharmable) in this form, he will
summon a boss monster if (and only if) you have attained your Altered Beast form
for the round by collecting three powerups. Otherwise, he'll retreat and you'll
be forced to play more of the stage until facing him again, during which time
you must try and reach Altered Beast form once more or the same scenario will
repeat. The longer it takes you to face the boss, the lower of a bonus score
you will receive at the end of the round. After the boss is defeated, Neff will
return and steal all your powerups before moving on to the next round, with you
close at his heels.
You will begin the game with three blue health bars, as seen on the bottom-left
of the screen, and a total of two extra lives. Each health bar will change
color from blue to green to yellow to orange to red then disappear as you take
damage, then go on to the next--though some attacks can erase an entire life bar
at once, even if it's blue. Lose all three bars (or fall into a pit in Round 3)
and your extra lives will subtract by one, but you'll be allowed to start again
exactly where you left off. Lose all three of your lives and it's Game Over--
and, as far as I know from playing this game many times now, it's impossible to
ever earn more health or extra lives throughout the game, and your health isn't
even refilled between rounds, so in order to win you'll just have to practice
until you can finish the entire game with what is given to you at the beginning.
---------------
1-05 Forms
---------------
The unique aspect about Altered Beast that sets it apart from other action games
(of the era it was released, at least) is the fact that you can change forms,
collecting powerups to grow from a modest human to an increasingly bulky hulk of
a man and finally to an Altered Beast. The Beast form you take varies by stage
(known as Rounds in this game) but all of them are extremely fast and powerful,
and offer abilities far beyond what was capable as a human. The forms you can
take are as follows;
Human, Level 1: You begin each Round as a strong, but sadly ineffective human.
You are capable of punches and kicks that can damage all normal enemies but most
of them will take many hits to defeat in this form. Grab a powerup as soon as
possible.
Human, Level 2: Once you've powered up a single time you will bulk up and your
punches and kicks will glow with superhuman energy. This form is quite
identical to Human, Level 1 but is twice as powerful.
Human, Level 3: Two powerups and you will burst out of your shirt, growing to
immense proportions muscularly. Your attacks are a bit slower in this form than
Humans level 1 and 2 but the superhuman energy left by your punches and kicks
will linger for a moment after delivering them, effectively creating a "wall"
that damages enemies even more effectively than the most rapid punches or kicks
from either previous form. Your attacks also have a longer range due to your
massive body, and you can walk around noticeably faster.
Wolf: An Altered Beast form obtained in Rounds 1 and 5 after collecting a total
of three powerups. Not only do you run very fast, your punches now launch
Fireballs which fly across the screen and your kicks have been changed into a
charging move which envelops you in flames and launches you across the screen.
Dragon: The Beast form of Round 2, you're capable of flying freely in any
direction and no longer have the ability (or need) to crouch or jump in this
form. Instead of punching, your dragon will breathe a long-ranged electrical
bolt, and in place of kicking you can blast a sheet of electricity that covers
your entire body briefly.
Bear: Round 3's unique Beast form is surprisingly extremely fast. Your punches
become short-ranged stone breath attacks that can petrify enemies before
destroying them, and your kicks become a rolling attack that sends you in an
invincible upward/forward arc then down again. Used in the air, it will simply
roll downward/forward.
Tiger: This Beast form only found in Round 4 turns you into a tiger-man that's
able to crouch extremely low to the ground. Your punches will deliver a flying
energy ball that's slower than the Wolf's fireball but weaves up and down as it
travels, sweeping a much larger area. Your kicks will cause you to dash
straight up into the air then back down to the ground while an arrow-shaped
shield of energy covers you.
===================
II) Walkthrough
===================
This is a good time to point out that, in case you were wondering, there is no
main menu, no option screen, nothing of the sort. Simply press Start at the
title screen (or wait, if you want to see a game demo first) and you're thrust
into the action.
There actually IS a way to access an options menu, but it's technically in the
form of a secret code. Simply hold the B button on the Genesis (or the Kick
button if you're playing Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection) and press Start.
This will take you to a menu where you can set the difficulty, health and lives
you start with, though it also gives you access to a level select feature, which
I'd heavily advise against using before you've actually finished the game at
least once.
Also, this walkthrough is designed to get you to the boss as early as possible,
while taking as little damage as possible. As of this point I have no plans to
write about the parts of the stages past Neff's first appearance in them, though
they shouldn't be any more challenging than the first part of the stage. Don't
expect to reach every boss on Neff's earliest appearance your first time through
a given stage; though I would like this guide to help you, you will also need to
practice on your own if you hope to finish.
(Note: Difficulty ranges from 1 to 4 stars, 4 being more difficult)
--------------------
2-01 Round 1
BEAST FORM: Wolf
DIFFICULTY: *
--------------------
Zeus will summon you from the ground in one of the most memorable (and short)
opening scenes in video game history, then immediately you're off on your quest
as the screen scrolls and zombies start popping up to fight you. Stay toward
the left edge of the screen at first so no zombies will intercept you and damage
you from below as they crawl upwards. After three zombies, you'll reach a set
of tombstones. Break the first one and you'll see a blue wolf atop the graves;
ignore it and focus your attention on breaking the second tombstone, THEN kill
the wolf as it falls. Killing it on top of the stones may cause the powerup to
float higher than you can reach, and if you take too long at this part all of
the graves can potentially turn into zombies which can be overwhelming.
Once you've powered up for the first time, run to the right and jump-kick the
Headless Horros as it enters the screen. Duck and punch the brown wolf, run
left to jump-kick the next Horror, then right to jump-kick yet another one.
After this, duck and punch a blue wolf and collect the powerup. Wait until two
zombies have appeared around the Headless Horror to the left before you go and
punish all three enemies with standing kicks. Run right and dispatch another
Horror with a kick, followed by a brown wolf (which may run into the same kick).
High jump and punch the Skinny Orcus (little dragon enemy) then squat and punch
at the blue wolf. The powerup it drops may float around Neff who appears here
and pushes you back harmlessly with a thunder spell. If this happens, high jump
into Orcus and you should grab the powerup as you're pushed back. If you've
achieved Altered Beast form by this point, it's time to fight the boss.
/////////////////
BOSS, ROUND ONE
AGGAR
DIFFICULTY: *
/////////////////
This freak looks like a massive, disfigured brown torso of a man with a hideous
face and horns atop his head. Sure scared me as a kid. He just sits in the
corner and attacks by tossing severed heads at you in sets of four. He always
tosses them to the top of the room so that you can see their formation before
they fall onto you, and can position yourself thusly.
The traditional way to battle Aggar would be to either simply attack him between
"toss phases" then position yourself correctly when he starts to throw another
set of heads. Just use fireballs (punches). You can also use the flaming dash
(kick) attack to quickly dash out of a trouble spot and destroy heads on the way
but make sure not to dash too far to the left, or you'll hurt yourself on
Aggar's body. A skilled player could dash into Aggar from a step to the right
of the left edge of the screen, then dash left again and repeat, which would
kill him more quickly as the flaming dash is much more powerful than the fire-
balls, but doing so can be risky.
There is a very easy, "cheap" way to defeat him without taking a hit, which is
advisable if you simply want to go through the game taking as little damage as
possible (which I'd recommend until you've at least finished it once). As Naff
is summoning (or transforming into?) Aggar, look closely at the background. See
that object in between the two sculptures? Kinda looks like some kind of
monitor, or television, or chalkboard? Well, see that winged sculpture on top
of it? It's holding what looks to be a rectangular object with a sun emblem on
the front. At the bottom of that sun emblem, where it meets the "monitor/chalk-
board" portion of the carving, you'll see a little "point" where the bottom of
the sun juts out slightly. I know it's a complicated description, but damn, the
Sega boys really did a good job with the backgrounds in this game. Anyway, you
need to position yourself so that the very top tip of your wolf's ear is
pointing upward juuust barely to the right of that lower point of the sun
emblem. Like, so that the sun is pointing down to the back of your wolf's head/
hair or your shoulder. If you positioned yourself correctly (the more times you
fight this battle the easier it'll be to know how to correctly position yourself
due to trial and error, anyway) you'll be completely immune to all of Aggar's
heads. That is to say, he'll never throw them in a pattern in which any of them
will fall on you at that position. Just hammer the punch button to shoot fire-
balls until he's dead.
After Aggar is defeated, Neff will reappear in the form of a giant head in a
beam of light and steal all your powerups. This happens at the end of every
stage and there's no way to avoid it, so don't worry. Your character will jump
into the whole that Neff escapes to to reach the next stage, then you get to
watch a strange bright purple "cinema scene" that consists of a single vague
picture. These indescribable... things happen after every round, though you can
just press the Punch or Kick buttons to skip them.
----------------------
2-02 Round 2
BEAST FORM: Dragon
DIFFICULTY: **
----------------------
Run to the right. You'll see a Round Leech, the slime enemy. Crouch and punch
it a couple times as soon as you're in range; if it leaps high into the air,
perform an upwards kick to try and deter it. If you fail and it lands on your
head, quickly tap left and right repeatedly to get rid of it. Once it's taken
care of, just keep heading right, and try to keep yourself just a bit to the
right half of the screen, squatting and punching rapidly to take care of the
wolves and two leeches that pop up. Once you kill the blue wolf and grab your
first powerup, head right to avoid the Rattle Tail and stay just to the right of
the middle of the screen again, punching the next set of wolves and leech and
getting another powerup.
Now run to the far right, past both Rattile Tails, and deliver a standing kick
to the Chicken Stinger just as it appears. Run left after the Rattle Tails pass
and squat just to the left of the middle of the screen this time, punching the
wolves as they come, but don't run into the powerup until you wait for the leech
to drop and destroy it. Once you're a dragon, use your Kick button to release
an electric charge all around your body, which should destroy a second falling
leech. Wait for the Rattle Tail to go by then fly right and up, shock the Orcus
and fly down to shock the next leech. Turn to the left and fire off a thunder
breath attack to kill the Chicken Stinger; by this point, you'll be at the boss.
//////////////////
BOSS, ROUND TWO
OCTEYES
DIFFICULTY: **
//////////////////
This monster may seem less intimidating than Aggar at first; an egg-shaped bulb
of a plant atop a stem, with a single eye peering at you. That changes when he
opens up to reveal a grotesque array of freakish eyeballs that multiply and
spray outwards to overtake you.
The strategy to defeat him would involve slipping past the projectile eyes and
letting loose on the main oculus in the short opening between waves of attack.
The boss and all his projectiles will flash red with assumed agony whenever you
damage even a single rogue eye but as much as I've tested it this seems to not
actually deal any real damage to the boss whatsoever; when you actually start
hurting him he'll begin to "phase out' in that same eye-straining fashion Aggar
did in Round 1 as he inches closer to death.
Luckily, though, there's also a "cheap and easy" way to deal with this guy, that
takes him from extremely challenging to laughable. It can still be tricky to
pull off, though; like with Aggar, you have to position yourself in just the
right spot on the screen as Octeyes is being summoned, but this time it's more
complicated since you have the Y axis to take into consideration as well.
Basically, look at the background, to the roughly Y-shaped tree on the right.
The left branch, which is pointing out toward the left side of the screen, is
your goal. You want to position yourself so that your dragon is sort of on top
of/in front of it, so that your dragon's feet are touching the very edge of the
branch and his body is "covering" the rest of it. It can be hard to explain but
once you've fought the boss a few times like this you'll get a feel for exactly
where you need to position yourself and adjust it so that you're safe. Anyway,
start spamming the Kick button so as to spam your electric charge move and once
Octeyes is on the screen he should be taking heavy damage immediately. The
severe damage he receives from the charges plus the fact that his attacks are
slowed by them means you should defeat him without taking any damage yourself
within just a few seconds. If you take damage or are shoved backwards position
yourself a bit higher and/or further back than your initial position and try
again.
--------------------
- 2-03 Round 3
BEAST FORM: Bear
DIFFICULTY: **
--------------------
Squat down and await the Cave Needles (yellow ant/wasp guys) to drop in from the
upper right. Walk a bit to the right and punch forward so that the next set of
Needles fall into your fist, or at least safely in front of you. Run to the
right quickly as soon as they're out of your way and run under the brown wolves
leaping overhead. After the second wolf, pay close attention to the above plat-
form and high-jump + kick just as soon as you see the blue wolf so that you kill
it without it escaping. Grab the powerup then run to the right edge of the
platform you're on. Crouch and punch the air until the pair of Grave Masters
walk into your fist and die. Run to the far left of the screen, crouch, and
punch to pre-emptively kill another Grave Master as well as a set of wolves just
as they spawn. A Grave Master will walk toward you from the right but will fall
to his demise if you leave him alone and stay glued to the left edge of the
screen until you reeceive your second powerup.
Jump across to the rightmost platform just above the rock on the ground to the
far right. Tap left to turn around, then crouch and start punching the air
again. Watch the first Needle that approaches fall haphazardly to his death,
then punch the next three. A group of wolves will attack next but don't grab
the powerup until the Stone Turtle has fallen and promptly killed himself on
your fist. Once you've become a bear, turn and jump to the right then destroy
the Fossil on the left by crouching and using Stone Breath (punch button) which
will freeze it then kill it. Turn right, still crouching, and repeat this for
the approaching Grave Master and Cave Needle, then you're at the boss.
///////////////////
BOSS, ROUND THREE
MOLDY SNAIL
DIFFICULTY: *
///////////////////
A gargantuan upside-down snail shell-like thing with a draconic head peering out
from the top. Certainly an interesting enemy, and a bit less disturbing than
the first couple bosses. He hides in his shell, with the head on the very top-
right portion of the screen being his only weak point, which makes attempting
Stone Breath on him very difficult. He attacks by blasting highly-damaging
strands of nuclear flame that coil around the room for a bit, and depending on
his stance he will launch one in different ways. His normal "looking forward"
sort of face means he'll launch one high, whereas his "leaning back" face
signifies that he'll fire a lower shot from the "navel" in front of his shell.
Of course, yet again, there's a cheap way to defeat him, but as far as I know
it's really the only way to defeat him regardless. Basically, get just in front
of Neff's lightning storm, as close as you can inch, then wait for him to
summon. Stand still until you guess the smoke is just about to clear and reveal
the boss, then use a roll attack from the ground. You'll hup up and into the
shell, possibly damaging Moldy Snail in the process, and if you did it fast
enough you'll surely avoid damage. Once you've done this, just keep pressing
the kick button as fast as you can and you'll either roll straight up from the
shell to the boss's face, or be pushed out but immediately jump back in. As
long as you keep pressing kick he'll never be able to hurt you and you'll have
him destroyed in no time. It may be worth noting that instead of "phasing" as
he takes damage he changes color, which is much less painful on the eyes.
---------------------
- 2-04 Round 4
BEAST FORM: Tiger
DIFFICULTY: ****
---------------------
First, run right and kick the zombies to death; remind you of Round 1 yet?
Well, Round 4 has many of the same enemies but in much greater quantities, and
more of the harder ones too. Anyway, after the set of three zombies, crouch and
punch the wolves as they come. Before collecting the powerup, wait for the
Headless Horror to fall down and jump-kick it. Get the powerup and repeat this
for the two to the left, then crouch and take out the next wave of wolves.
Again, before collecting the second powerup, jump up and punch the Hammer Demon
then drop and grab the sphere.
Walk to the right edge of the lower platform and deliver a standing kick to the
zombies, then run to the left edge. Wait for the Horrors to drop and perform
standing kicks to both of them. Turn, jump and kill the next Hammer Demon then
run to the right side of the screen and prepare for a Chicken Stinger to come
out. Kick it then turn left and kick the two Horrors to death. Turn right once
more and get rid of the Slow Foot then jump and punch the Hammer Demon out of
the sky. Drop down and kick the Horror before turning around to take out the
wolves and claim your third powerup. Jump into the air and shoot a wave ball to
dispatch the last Hammer Demon before the boss.
//////////////////
BOSS, ROUND FOUR
CROCODILE WORM
DIFFICULTY: ***
///////////////////
As opposed to the rest of the bosses up to this point, Crocodile Worm is not
gigantic, is not scary and is not even that mean looking. He's like a cute
little bluish dragon hugging a red orb (either that or he just has a fat round
tummy). What's funny about that is that he's by far the most difficult boss yet
and also unlike the other bosses up to now, there's no cheap easy way to defeat
him.
Basically, he'll move up and down in a sort of crescent pattern on the right
side of the screen and never moves in any other way. Periodically he'll release
a straight-line barrage of fireballs that moves left across the screen. Then,
after a bit, he'll belch up a little red dragonling that will fly around the
room and attempt to ram into you until it's destroyed. He'll then keep
alternating between these two attacks, always moving along the same set path.
Sound simple? It isn't, at least not compared to anything you've fought up to
now.
It would seem safer to stay to the left and use wave balls but not only are they
weak, slow, and hard to hit with, but his fireballs will absorb them. The key
is to use your vertical dash, but it's not easy. Dashing directly into him will
deal heavy damage to you, and accidentally mis-timing your dash so that you run
into one of his fireball barrages means VERY heavy hurt. You have to dash just
to the left of him, just in front of him, so that the energy from the dash hits
him but your actual doesn't come in contact. It can be tricky to pull off over
and over until you practice a bit. Of course, you also have to get used to his
timed pattern of shooting fireballs, so that you don't get roasted; a great tip
to remember as well when fighting this guy is that his low, near-the-ground
barrages can be avoided by crouching, putting the Tiger's ridiculously low
crouching stance to good use. The good news is that your vertical dashes will
destroy the dragonlings before they have a chance to do anything, so have at it
between fireball rounds.
Like the Moldy Snail, Crocodile Worm will change colors as he inches closer to
death. He'll go from blue to purplish to completely red, but then at the very
end he'll change once more to a ghoulish black and red, like he's perpetually
stuck in his "being damaged" animation frame. Once he looks like this, he'll
only take a couple more hits before he's had it, so don't give up!
--------------------
2-05 Round 5
BEAST FORM: Wolf
DIFFICULTY: ***
--------------------
Immediately run to the right, crouch, and punch. The goat dudes may or may not
fall victom to your assault but this will at least keep them at bay while you
wait for the two brown wolves to leap overhead, and for the blue wolf to take
the lower route straight into your fist. Grab the powerup and finish the goats
if you haven't, then turn around to face a Dark Unicorn. Jump-kick to make him
go splat then turn to the right, where a Rad Boar, the most fearsome normal
enemy in the game, will approach. Jump-kicks are the way to go but he can jump
too if you take too long.
Turn left, crouch and punch to stave off the goats until the wolves arrive.
Kick or jumpkick away the remaining goats to grab the next powerup then turn
right and high-jump + punch to get the Orcus out of the way. Fall down to the
lower level, ignoring the brown wolves up top, and immediately turn left to hit
the blue wolf which, like the one earlier, takes the lower route. Jump and
strike the next Skinny Orcus, drop and dash through the Saw Fish then jump again
to hit the last Orcus. Fall to meet the final boss.
////////////////////
BOSS, ROUND FIVE
NEFF
DIFFICULTY: ****
////////////////////
Finally, the ultimate showdown with Neff himself... who, for some reason, turns
into a rhinocerous instead of fighting you with his normal body like one would
expect after all these flukes. Well... maybe it's his own Altered Beast form?
Anyway, he's got a lot of nasty moves that can combo you into a pulp from full
health in a flash if you're not careful.
The basic plan of attack is to punch a fireball at him one time, then high-jump
and dash over his head once he charges at you. It's possible to just barely
scrape his head for extra damage from the dash, but it's very tricky to do and
you're much more likely to accidentally run into his horn, which just pushes him
back and pisses him off. Just keep repeating the pattern; fireball, high-jump,
dash, turn, fireball, etc. Sometimes, if your timing gets off, you'll stop his
dash too soon and he'll start trying to combo you. You'll still be able to
quickly high-jump and avoid it if he happens to perform a kick first but if it's
a punch get ready to spam pressing the Kick button so you get out of it as soon
as possible with a dash--which will also damage Neff, at least to pay him back
for what damage he caused you. It actually is possible to dash through his body
from the ground to damage him without getting hurt yourself, but he tends to
immediately turn around and combo you if you do that and it can throw off your
pattern if you attempt it. The only time I'd say it's worth even trying is if
he's almost dead (he glows red, though not as deep a red as the bosses of rounds
3 or 4), you have at least one extra life to spare, and you simply wish to
finish the game at all costs.
Once, and only once, I've gotten Neff to do some kind of continuous charge at me
during which time it seemed like I could charge right througth his body over and
over without him stopping until he ran into me standing straight up (as opposed
to jumping over him or charing through him). I'm not sure how to trigger this,
but it would seem to be the key to unlocking the "cheap strategy" for him, if it
is actually logically reproductable and wasn't just a bug.
Once you defeat Neff, a blue bird will fly around and eventually shapeshift into
Athena. She walks up to you and you're greeted with the final purple "cutscene"
which consists of Athena hugging up to your sexy wolf self. Afterwards is the
short credits sequence, and then you're prompted to pressy any button to "start
the next rounds". This puts you back at Round 1 with your score intact, but
you're playing the next higher difficulty (so Hard if you just beat Normal, and
Hardest if you just beat Hard). This new difficulty boasts a much more
challengin and action-packed placement of enemies across all rounds, but also
much more potential for much higher scores. Good luck!
===================
III) Extra Info
===================
--------------------
3-01 Enemy List
--------------------
In order of actually seeing them. Like before, difficulty ranges from 1 to 4
stars, with more meaning more difficult.
----------
Slow Foot
Difficulty: *
Lumbering zombies in purple garb. They're the first enemies you see in the
game, immediately after you've risen from your own grave. Hit them once to de-
capitate them, again to destroy them (unless in any form higher than Human Level
1, in which case they will die in one his regardless). They have a habit of
satisfyingly crumbling to bits when destroyed. Watch out, though; if you touch
one it'll explode and deal a full health bar's worth of damage!
----------
Headless Horror
Difficulty: **
Not counting the very first Blue Wolf which would look better situated after its
companion anyway, this is the second enemy you'll face. Carrying their heads
around like a Dullahan from Castlevania, they're far smarter than their
braindead cousins and actually make a valiant effort to avoid your attacks by
standing just out of reach. Attacking frontally against this defensive stance
is just asking to take a hit from their long punch attacks, but they will gladly
walk right into a nice jump-kick. At Human Level 3, your normal ground kicks
will out-range their punches and make them easy pickings.
----------
Brown Wolf
Difficuly: *
More numerous than any other enemy in the game, these guys are found in every
section of every round. But they kinda have to be, since they serve as the
"guardians" for the powerup-filled Blue Wolves. They leap across the ground and
will occasionally stop between leaps, especially in Round 1. Just crouch and
punch fast to create a "wall of fist" they can't get past for an easy 1,000
points, except in Rounds 3 and 5 in which case you may need to perform jumping
attacks or well-placed upwards kicks if you want to take care of them all. They
take but a single hit, even as a Human Level 1.
----------
Blue Wolf
Difficulty: *
These special enemies are the only ones you'll ever see drop an item, the one
and only item in the game, which I've so eloquently dubbed the "powerup". They
are every bit as weak and defenseless as their brown bretheren but tend to be at
the back end of the pack, as they're usually being "protected". Theere is only
one I know of that doesn't travel with Brown Wolves, the very first one in the
game, atop the graves at the very beginning of Round 1.
----------
Skinny Orcus
Difficulty: *
The first flying enemy you'll encounter, it's found every once in awhile in
Round 1. It flies along the top of the screen until it intercepts you
vertically, at which point it'll slowly dive toward you. Either high-jump and
punch it from the front, or wait for it to descend and deliver an upward kick.
----------
Grave Master
Difficulty: **
Powerful yellow zombies that will only be found in Round 1 if you miss the first
boss encounter chance, but you're sure to see them in Rounds 3 and 4 regardless.
They're like much more aggressive and more offensively and defensively powerful
Headless Horrors. Their aggressiveness can be their undoing if you simply
crouch and punch as they advance toward you, which is the preferred method of
defeating them no matter what form you're in. Otherwise, be prepared to deal
with some very powerful and long-ranged punches.
----------
Round Leech
Difficulty: **
Little round piranha-faced pinkish slime creatures. They'll bounce around and,
once close enough to you, leap high into the air in an attempt to couple with
your head. Be aggressive and crouch-punch them before they're able to fight
back (takes two hits as a Human Level 1). If they do leap, try to intercept
them with an upward kick. If they attach to your head, tap left and right
repeatedly to shake them off and kill them in the process.
----------
Rattle Tail
Difficulty: **
What appears to be a weird random rattlesnake tail poking out from the ground
turns out to be an Eastern-style dragon that bursts out where the tail shook and
then flies vertically in the opposite direction. Take out the tails as soon as
you see them to dispatch the Rattle Tail early, or smack their head while
they're flying to cause the rest of the body to become harmless.
----------
Chicken Stinger
Difficulty: ***
These little guys seem easy enough but they can be an outright source of rage if
they catch you into one of their little tail combos. They basically just
scuttle across the ground, looking like a mix between a bird and a reptile,
until they get near you, then they hyperactively tail-swipe over and over. The
best way to deal with them is to deliver a well-placed standing kick from
optimal distance (or an even safer and longer-ranged Beast form attack) but if
they start attacking you and you get "caught" in the combo there's little you
can do until you fall backwards.
A couple words of note; first of all, you may recognize these guys if you've
every played Golden Axe; this was their first appearance. Also, this is the
only enemy I was able to find the name of anywhere outside of Khaos' FAQ, but
according to Wikipedia their name is "cockatrice". That's boring, I like
Chicken Stinger much better.
----------
Cave Needle
Difficulty: **
Fast-running bizarre insects that look like wingless wasps, or giant yellow ants
with front-facing stingers. They prefer to run like a human than walk like a
normal insect, too. They just run from one side of the screen to the other
wildly, but this alone plus the fact they usually come in pairs can make them
quite a nuisance. Just squat and punch or get ready to jump over them. It's
too bad that the Bear, the Altered Beast you attain in the one round these guys
infest, is like the least efficient form in the game for dealing with them,
though rolling from the ground can avoid them quite well.
----------
Rock Turtle
Difficulty: *
A turtle with a rock for a shell, obviously. They'll drop down in Round 3 about
once per section. They're slow and weak but their arrival from the top of the
screen can catch you off-guard if you don't expect it through practice.
----------
Fossil
Difficulty: *
Like the Rock Turtles but it can be seen plain as day as a large rock on the
battlefield. Take it out quickly or it'll start hopping around you and stunning
you.
----------
Hammer Demon
Difficulty: **
The only new enemy in Round 4. It flies around the top of the screen just like
the Skinny Orcus (which, interestingly, is the only Round 1 enemy missing in
Round 4). The difference is that this guy'll drop straight down on you like a
ton of bricks if you don't react instantly with an upward kick. The best way to
deal with them is to just high jump + punch them as soon as you see them on the
screen.
----------
Gory Goat
Difficulty: ***
The first of several new enemies you'll face in Round 5, these guys attack you
as soon as you enter the stage. They hop around left and right and attempt jab
punches at you. Crouch and punch to keep them at bay, and move in when you
think you can intercept one as it leaps toward you. Usually comes in pairs.
The Wolf form's flaming dash move is extremely useful against them.
----------
Dark Unicorn
Difficulty: ****
For whatever reason this dude looks way more cartoony than any other enemy in
the game, but don't let this lull you into any sense of security. At first
opportunity a Dark Unicorn will deliver a flying kick that's extremely painful
and hard to dodge. The way to avoid such a bad situation is to immediately
assault one with a flying kick as soon as you see it. It comically "splats"
upon defeat, which has got to be my favorite enemy death animation in Altered
Beast. They can also leap onto higher platforms if they pass under them, so
keep that in mind.
----------
Rad Boar
Difficulty: ****
Far and away the hardest non-boss enemy in Altered Beast, I'd say. These yellow
pigs are somewhat slow but take a lot of punishment and deal it back with
powerful electrified swipes. The one way to combat them without serious danger
is to fight with jump-kicks. Like Dark Unicorns, these can also leap onto
higher platforms if you leave them alone long enough.
----------
Saw Fish
Difficulty: ***
Looks like a buzzsaw, kind of like Silver Sonic from Sonic the Hedgehog 2 when
he's rolled into a ball. These guys zip around the ground left to right, and
can be very painful if touched. Just jump over them unless you have a few power
ups; a good standing leg sweep can take them out, but the safest way is to use
the Wolf's flaming dash if you have it.
----------
Fish
Difficulty: *
Not sure of the name of these guys, they aren't mentioned anywhere online that
I know of. They're only encountered in the later sections of Round 5, if you
don't reach the boss after the first section. Unlike the Saw Fish it has no
dangerous armor and simply meanders slowly from the right edge of the screen to
the left, along the ground.
----------
----------------------
3-02 Secret Codes
----------------------
Altered Beast may not have a main menu or any visible options menu to speak of,
but it at least does host some secret codes that will allow you to roll with the
punches of the sometimes-annoying difficulty and change some stuff around.
All codes are performed at the title screen.
----------
Options Menu
Hold B and press Start
Takes you to a menu that, aside from one option, looks like it should have been
available from the main menu. You can alter the difficulty from Normal to Hard
to Hardest (no Easy here, guys!), change your health meter to contain anything
from one to five health bars, and allow yourself to start with anywhere from one
to five lives (zero to four extra lives as shown on the upper-left of the screen
during gameplay). Also, and perhaps most notably, is a Round Select feature.
(Note: You have to hold A and press Start at the title screen--which you return
to after you press Start on the options menu--to actually begin at the round you
selected. Otherwise, you'll just start at Round 1 with the other options you
selected in effect.)
----------
Continue
Hold A and press Start
Allows you to continue the game from the last stage you got a Game Over on, with
three lives and full health.
----------
Sound Test
Hold A, C, Up and Right and press Start
Takes you to a sound test menu.
----------
Beast Select
Hold A, B, C, Down, Left and press Start
The ultimate code, and the hardest to pull off on any kind of controller... this
allows you to change which Altered Beasts you earn with a third powerup on any
level, which not only can make the game easier but also a lot more interesting
once you've finished it. Want the Wolf on every round? Done. Having trouble
with Neff and want to be cheap and destroy him with the Dragon? Done!
----------
===========
IV) End
===========
-----------------
- 4-01 Credits -
-----------------
Thanks to Sega, for creating Altered Beast for the arcades and eventually
porting it to so many other consoles; for creating the Genesis (Megadrive); and
for overall just being a fantastic video game company, giving me and many others
many happy memories. Here's to you ever getting back in the console business,
Sega; we miss you.
Thanks to GameFAQs for giving me the idea of writing guides like this in the
first place. It's always nice to indulge in this hobby, especially if it ever
helps anyone else in any way with a game.
Thanks to Khaos' Altered Beast FAQ on GameFAQs from which I took all the names
for the enemies and bosses, as nowhere else on the internet could I find those
names no matter how hard I looked. I hope you don't mind, though if they're in
fact the official names it should be no matter anyway.
-------------------
- 4-02 Copyright -
-------------------
(c) Copyright 2010 Justin Morgan
This guide may only be used (outside of personal, private use) with credit
given to the author.
Altered Beast and all related characters, names, etc. copyright Sega.
All other trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by
their respective trademark and copyright holders.
-----------------------------
- 4-03 Contact Information -
-----------------------------
As with all my FAQs:
Be sure to send me suggestions, additional hints and tips, spelling or
grammatical error alerts, and anything else you can think of!
(Note: If you send me a hint, error report or anything else you feel should be
added to my guide, be sure to include the name or alias you would like for me
to use to credit you in future versions of the guide!)
E-mail: jkm553(at)gmail(dot)com
