---------------------------
CHAOS IN THE WINDY CITY FAQ
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Introduction
------------
Released on the SNES in 1994, towards the end of it's lifespan, Chaos In The
Windy City involves Basketball All-Star player Michael Jordon in an adventure
which has little to do with basketball. That isn't to say there aren't
basketballs in it, but they don't seem to be the type of weaponry suited for
fighting zombies and metal spiders. Michael has to find out what happened to
his teammates, and follows a dubious letter attached to a basketball to find
out where they went.
As generic as the plot is, and the fact this is simply cashing in on Michael
Jordon's popularity at the time, this is a polished little platforming title
with plenty of ideas and pretty cool graphics for a game of its era. It even
has Jordon himself applying a few soundbites (such as "Time Out!" for when you
pause the game). Just don't expect Mario/Sonic levels of platforming.
For extra fun try to find all the hidden advertisements for Wheaties and
Gatorade, both of which have sponsored the game.
Controls
--------
D-Pad = Move Michael around.
Down makes him crouch. The screen also drops while
he is crouching so you can see underneath.
B Button = Jump.
A Button = Operate.
Uses whichever item is currently equipped in the circle at the top
right side of the screen.
Y Button = Shot/Slam.
Throws basketball.
Information on the types of Basketball is available below. Keep in mind
Basketballs always go in a straight line and don't bounce, except when Michael
is slamming.
X Button = Slam Jump.
Michael jumps up in one of his dunking poses, and throwing the ball at this
point fires it downwards as a "slam". Not only is this the only way to score
points from Basketball Hoop bonuses, but it can also take out small enemies you
can't normally hit with a normal throw.
(Keep in mind you can switch the above controls in the Options Menu on the
main page.)
Start Button = Pause.
Pauses the game.
Select Button = Switches Item.
If you have more than one item to use, you can switch them by pressing Select.
Your currently equipped item is whatever shows up in the top right of the
screen.
R Button = Switches between Basketball power-ups. See below for descriptions.
Items
-----
Isotonic Drink - Restores a single unit of health.
Box of Snacks - Restores two units of health, or a whole circle/blob.
MJ Heart - 3 whole hearts refilled. Nice! Tend to be in hard to reach places
though. At the beginning of the game, these will always fully heal you.
Basketball Icon - Collectibles. I think 100 gives you an extra life.
Lucky 23 - Jordan's number in the Bulls. Gives you an extra life. Very nice.
Iron Keys - Opens any door with an iron (gray) lock on the level you're on.
Will never run out. Usually found pretty early in the level.
Gold Keys - Opens any door with a gold lock on the level you're on. Found
towards the end of a level, and tends to have rarer stuff (including captive
team members).
Color Keys - Open various locks on the level. They're usually found in this
order: Green, Red, Yellow. They open locks with the matching colored border
and disappear after use. Sometimes they open optional areas, so they can be
well hidden in a level.
Golden Heart - These are the prizes for the Bonus Room in the fifth and final
part of each area. They give you an entire new heart container (like Zelda)
which is permanent for the rest of the game. I cannot stress how important these
are so if you miss one go back and get it as soon as possible.
Basketball Power-ups
--------------------
These power-ups float in the air and can be picked up. If you get a new type
of basketball (or one that you previously ran out of) they'll instantly be
selected as the "active" basketball. Switch back to regulars with the R button
and wait until you need 'em. All of these power-ups will refill your supply,
meaning you can only have a certain amount (which I've indicated after the
description). Red B-Balls are the only exception to this, since they stack
(i.e. if you collect one and then get another, the second one will add to
your total).
Regular Basketballs - Michael starts with these, and they never run out. No
idea where he keeps them.
Flaming Basketballs - Slam these and they blow things up along a straight line.
Get 5 per power-up. Getting more simply puts your total back to 5.
Baseballs - Strangely large baseball. Comes back to you like a boomerang,
hitting enemies twice. Also useful for getting things behind walls. You get 8
shots per power-up.
Red Basketballs - Super-explosive ball, kills most things in one hit. You get
1 extra when collecting the power-up. These stack, so save them up for bosses.
Golden Basketballs - Homing basketballs. Instantly zone in on any enemies in
the area. Useful for flying creatures like bats or eyeballs that follow you. You
get 5 per power-up.
Purple Basketballs - Try slamming one of these or shooting at a wall, and it
will bounce around a few times clearing out enemies. Good for tricky shots and
hitting out-of-the-way switches. 6 of these per power-up.
Bowling Ball - Huge heavy black balls which drop like a stone thanks to gravity
and roll along the floor. Useful for squishing baby spiders or stuff beneath
you without having to slam them. If you do slam these, you get an earthquake
which damages everything around you. You get 3.
Freeze Basketballs - These freeze enemies and turn them into blocks of ice,
without actually hurting them. The enemies return to normal after a few
seconds, but another freeze shot while frozen will shatter them. You can
use the ice blocks as platforms to secret areas. You get 6 per power-up.
Net Types
---------
Power-ups sometimes come in the form of nets you have to dunk b-balls into. The
following are descriptions of the types of net you will find and what they do.
Normal Nets - Wooden/metal trapezoid backboards - Give you items or points.
Alert Nets - Triangular backboards - Damages all enemies on screen equivalent
to getting hit by one of Michael's normal basketballs.
Restart Nets - Square glass backboards that smash when slammed - Lets you
restart at this point in the level if you die.
Explosion Nets - Comic-like "Boom"-shaped backboards - Take out all the enemies
on screen. Useful in a pinch.
Timer Nets - Semi-circular backboards with "23" on them - Freezes all enemies
on the level for a short duration. They can still hurt you if you walk into
them.
Enemies
-------
Cells:
Bats - Not a problem, unless they're flying low. They're pretty quick too, so
there's not always time to hit them or dodge in time. They disappear after they
fly past though, so no real threat.
Kamikaze Bats - Like bats, these guys seem to appear from nowhere. Unlike
normal bats though, they home in on you and explode violently. Try to avoid
them if you can. Appears first in Section 4 of the Cells.
Zombies - These look like basketball players with their heads humorously
replaced with basketballs, which they proceed to pull off and throw at you.
Their basketballs respond to gravity unlike your own, so they can be
troublesome if they're firing from higher areas you can't reach. Otherwise
they're too slow to be much of a problem.
Giant Spiders - These will give you trouble. They require a couple of hits like
the zombies, only they're much quicker. They also have a habit of dropping from
the ceiling when you're not looking.
Baby Spiders - You meet these a few times. Instead of coming after you, they
simply skittle around near to where they hatched. They're super annoying in
that you can't hit them unless you do a slamming downwards shot.
Golden Spiders - Appears in section 2. He spits acid at you, and after killing
him he produces three baby spiders (also golden) which continue to bug you, if
you pardon the expression. If you have any flaming basketballs, nows a good
time to slam one.
Eyeballs - Silver ones are sort of benign, and fly around with a set pattern
bearing you no malice. You can destroy them if you want. Yellow ones tend to
stay put until you walk into their line of sight, at which point they will ram
you. Try and shoot them as soon as you're able to. Especially annoying in
vertical shafts.
Golden Eyeballs - Now these guys mean business. They'll try to follow you and
blast you with their eye lasers. They only need one hit, but they move around
quickly. Sometimes they'll be disguised as silver ones.
Eels - These guys just shock the water occasionally, but are really more like
obstacles than anything else. You can kill them with a few hits (their
segmented bodies come apart piece by piece after getting hit) so do so if you
have the chance to save yourself some pain later on.
Robotic Monkey Guards - Swing about and hurl basketballs at you. Can easily
kill them by jumping and throwing balls back at them. Keep your distance
though, since there are sometimes two of them.
Ball-Bot - Boss of the Cells area. Check the guide on how to beat him.
El Train:
Paparazzi (zealous, intrusive media people) - Simply knock them down with one
ball shot. They're everywhere though, so be wary. The photographers can blind
you momentarily.
Laboratory:
(Spiders, Zombies, Eyeballs are all still around)
Mutants - These steroid-induced freaks appear on the first Laboratory level.
However, since Michael has already started his Baseball career at this point,
he's already used to them. The Mutant blocks all normal basketball attacks but
can be defeated with a few sneaky slam shots. Using something like Baseballs
will work too, as they'll come back and hit him from behind.
Whistle Robots - These walking sports whistles, if left alone, let out a
piercing whistle that will hurt Michael considerably. If you see one, try to
take it out ASAP.
Ball Mimics - Sometimes a floating b-ball power-up will drop down and start
hitting you, so be wary of some of the power-ups just floating there. They're
a lot like spiders, meaning you have to duck in order to hit them. They have
powers similar to the b-balls they represent (so golden mimics will fire homing
shots at you). After killing them, they always give you the b-ball power-up
they were disguised as.
Cyborg Guards - These guys have extendible arms like Bionic Commando, and use
them to pinch your balls (!), make sure to beat them with a few regular
b-balls.
Wheelie Refs - Referees on some kind of metal wheel. They go ballistic once
you're close so try to hammer them repeatedly until they die.
Snakes - These guys are invincible (I believe) but can be defeated momentarily
which allows you to pass. They have a really long reach, so don't get too
close while they're active.
Electro-bot - Boss of the Laboratory levels. Has a Frankenstein's Monster type
head and the rest is comprised by orbs of some kind. Read the walkthrough to
find out how to defeat him.
Factory:
Slime - Like golden spiders, they can be found on the ground or on the ceiling
and turn into smaller versions of themselves when destroyed. Slimes are a lot
more vicious and quick though, so be wary of them. Also, unlike spiders, they
can go back onto the ceiling at will, making them harder to hit.
Giant Green Screw Thing - Boss of the Factory levels. Read the Walkthrough for
details.
WALKTHROUGH
-----------
Story
-----
(The story is told in comic book sequences, like a Marvel or DC game. Or, for
something more recent, like Max Payne or XIII. Therefore, I'll be going panel
by panel.)
Square panel: [It's a windy day in Chicago. First practice for an All-Star
charity game. Michael shows up and finds his team has disappeared...]
Michael: "Their stuff is here, but they're not! This is weird."
Suddenly, through a skylight...
CRASH!
A ball with a note scrawled on it!
Note: "Mr Jordon - If you want to save your pals, come to the Egyptian Room in
the Field Museum at midnight. Come alone!
Dr. Max Cranium"
Michael: "Man, this is serious! I'd better check it out."
Square panel: [That night, a guard lets Michael into the closed museum.]
Square panel: [In the Egyptian Room -]
Michael: "Well, I'm here. Now what? ... Hey, a door in the wall!"
Square panel: [He enters warily]
Michael: "What the...?!"
Square panel: [Finding himself at the entrance to an underground prison.
Michael sets out to find his friends!]
First Area: Holding Cells
INFO: "Dr. Max Cranium turned a maze of catacombs beneath the museum into a
block of prison cells. Heavy locks keep the captives in. Zombies, giant spiders
and other creatures keep trespassers out!
Complete this level to find the red cardkey."
Section 1:
Items: [IRON KEYS], [GREEN KEY], [GOLD KEYS], [RED KEY], CAPTIVE x1
Michael starts at the bottom left side of the level. Moving right, there are
some bats which won't harm you if you don't jump (they're not worth the trouble
of killing anyway) and a zombie. Kill the zombie quickly to stop it from
attacking, and continue until you see a ladder and a dead end. Jumping up at
the very end will net you the [IRON KEYS] which will open all the silver/grey
locked doors in this area. Go back and open the three doors you've passed
for a flaming basketball power-up, several basketball icons (7 in all, since
the gold one counts as 5) and a food item. The food is in the last door, and
you may want to save it until you've been injured. If you've already been
injured though, go get it. After which, climb the ladder.
Destroy the spider before leaving the ladder. Going right at the top will let
you open a door revealing a Baseball power-up. A bat will come out of nowhere
before reaching the ladder, so duck or attack quickly. At the bottom of the
ladder here is your first captive. Talk to him and he'll leave you the [GREEN
KEY] item. Michael will tell him to return to the gym, at which point the guy
will use his teleportation skill that all basketball players have to go home.
Go back to the first ladder.
To the left are two more doors you can open, though the second one has a zombie
in it so be careful. There are also two hoops over here which you can slam for
Basketball icons (which I'll just call "points" from now on). You should also
see a lock with a green border around it, use the [GREEN KEY] to unlock it and
activate a nearby platform. Continue up the platform after finishing up here.
Before reaching the top level of the platform's reach, jump to an area to your
left slightly below the top level. There will be a spider here (annoying) and
a few baby spiders will hatch once you get near the web (super annoying). Clear
them out and get both power-ups.
If you want to grab that MJ Heart, you have to wait until the platform is in
the right place and go as far as you can with the jump. It'd be hard to explain
exactly when to jump, so just experiment with it.
At the top of the moving platform, go left to find a wall blocking you. This is
a wall that can be destroyed by basketballs, so do so and collect the [GOLD
KEYS] here. Open both these gold lock doors now, and go back to the one you saw
below the moving platform for points and food.
Going right now, watch out for a spider currently crawling along the roof.
Another grey lock door, make sure you switch your key back to the iron ones
using the Select button. Up the ladder again, you can take out these flying
eyeball fellahs if you want, and continue going. The hoop here will activate
something above you (I'm not sure what), so hit it. You'll come across another
stationary moving platform here, activate the small red dot to the left (it's a
lever) with a well aimed basketball and ride it up. Falling down here brings
you back to where you found the gold keys.
Slam the hoop up here to get the [RED KEY]. Continue on, slamming the hoops.
One of them will give you magic sneakers (Jordan Airs one presumes) which makes
you invulnerable for an incredibly short period (like, 10 seconds). Hitting the
last hoop (the one that shatters when dunked) saves the area you're at as a
restart point if you die. Which you may do in this next section.
Activate the platform manually by holding up and down, and while holding down
(and crouched) take out the golden eyeball creatures before they hit you. You
may want to go up again a little so you can switch positions, as they'll keep
alternating sides from which to attack you. The green switch at the bottom
summons the lift if it goes back to the top without you, though you probably
don't need to go back since you should all the keys now.
Open the door with the red key slot like you did with the green slot, and
continue onwards. Now, you have two paths here, based on whether or not you can
jump to the opposite platform and jump to the moving platform above it before
the one you're standing on breaks. I recommend falling, since it's easier and
just as painful (there's a spider where you land). Kill the spider and slam a
few balls where the floor is thin to your right. Go STRAIGHT down this hole and
don't deviate left or right, or you might drown. Shoot the spider, and jump to
your left to open a bonus room.
-BONUS ROOM-
[Slam as many of the nets as you can. They all have items or points inside
them, and you only have 20 seconds. Starting from left to right (don't actually
start at the far left, just get any baskets you can):
MJ Heart, 5 Points, 1 Point, 5 Points, Isotonic Drink, Lucky 23 (GET THIS!), 5
Points, 1 Point.]
Whether you got the baskets or not, you're kicked out of the bonus room and
need to get back to the top. Jump to the right, minding the gaps, and head up
the ladder. Now instead of trying to kill these eyeballs, simply try to get one
to come out by quickly going up and down the ladder. You should have a few
seconds as it slowly floats back to get past it. At the top of the ladder,
watch out for a zombie and more bats from the left. Grab the points to your
left and head up the next ladder.
At the top here, simply dispose of the spiders to your left and hit the star
basket to destroy any enemies on the screen. Take out the final golden eyeball
by jumping and shooting, and head up the final ladder to complete this section.
Section 2:
Iron Key doors here, but you've lost all the items you picked up before, so
you'll need to hunt out the [IRON KEYS] again. Fortunately, they're pretty
close. Continue going right taking out all the enemies until you reach what
looks like a pulley attached to the ceiling. Jump up at it while holding Up to
grab hold and be pulled across the pit. Make sure you take out that eyeball at
the end and grab the [GREEN KEY]. The zombies here can be easily dealt with
from your higher position with slam shots, so destroy them and continue going.
Slam the net at the end to finally get some [IRON KEYS]. Now you can go back
and open those doors.
Heading back, the first iron lock door has bats in it, so open it (so you don't
forget and run away so they won't hit you. The next door has a single point in
it. The one above these two doors can be reached by jumping from the second
step to your right. It contains more points. Heading back to the start opens a
couple more doors, one with points and another with an MJ Heart.
Heading back to where you got the Iron Keys, continue down the ladder. You'll
notice the wall is cracked to your left, so smash through it. Here, grab some
power-ups and free another teammate. Head back out.
The green lock here can be activated with the key you got earlier, and starts
the pulley above you moving. Use it to clear the gap, and watch out for another
annoyingly placed eyeball. Slam the net for an isotonic if you need it.
This section requires some fine jumping skills. Use the big comedy spring to
get you next to the door to the left. Use this to jump to the moving platform
and grab onto the pulley for a lot of points. At the end you'll get temporary
invincibility, so use it to get rid of the ultra annoying golden spider your
friend warned you about.
After you get up the next set of jumps, you'll find a lot of floating eyeballs
blocking you from treasure. Get the one on the far left first, and use the
space he leaves to shoot and get the rest. Collect the goodies, including
points, an MJ Heart and [GOLD KEYS]. Since the first gold lock is right next to
you, open it for a new type of basketball: The freezer ball! Use this to get
past the next golden spider if you want.
I'm not sure how to get the bonuses up there
Collect the nets (especially the restart point one) and head towards another
pulley. Before hitting this one, go down the moving platform and take out some
more zombies. Use the pulley (it's a manual one) to go all the way across to
the gold lock room and another Bonus Room!
-BONUS ROOM-
The object of this room is to clear as many of those flying eyeballs as
possible before the time runs out. But they're too high! Quickly run to either
side and pick up the purple reflecting balls, and pelt them at the wall so they
bounce off and kill as many eyeballs as possible. When you've run out of balls,
run to the other side and start again with a new set of 6. If you're lucky,
you'll hit the eyeball with the Lucky 23.
Head back (getting the MJ Heart from the iron lock door) and use the spring to
get back to that pulley. Use it all the way across for a [RED KEY] and head
down to the low platforms using the sinking moving platforms. Jump across,
killing the golden spider from a distance, and the floating eyeballs, until you
get to the Red Key slot. The jumps here are tricky so be careful. The slot has
activated a pulley above you, so use it.
At the top here, you see a yellow key slot. But you don't have a yellow key!
Smash the wall down to your left to open an area with a [YELLOW KEY] and some
goodies. The catch? the floor beneath the goodies collapse when you get close,
so either run across or grab the power-ups with the baseball power-up you get
from one of the doors.
Use the key to activate another pulley and you'll come face-to-face with a
golden spider on a small platform. Try to survive or hit the lever at the end
and escape and you'll finish the level.
Section 3:
Lots of enemies to start with here. The second zombie gives you the [IRON KEYS]
for this level, so use them on the doors to unlock all sorts of power-ups,
including the new Bowling ball. Hitting the net down here will get you a [RED
KEY] and you'll conveniently pick up some purple balls next to a couple of 45
degree planks to ricochet them off to kill the zombie below. You'll also see a
Lucky 23 seemingly trapped behind one of these planks, just use a Baseball to
collect them (see what I mean about saving power-ups for when you need them?).
Use the pulley to get down the hole, and jump to the tiny platform to your
right. Smash the wall here and open the door with the Red Lock to reach another
Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
This is tricky. You have to smash through several walls and open doors with
switches to proceed further. The further you get, the better your award. The
higher route you take (which would also require jumping and taking the time to
climb the ladder at the start) will get you different prizes, though not always
better ones for some reason. The routes (and prizes) are:
BOTTOM ROUTE:
Isotonic - Baseball Power-up - Points - Points - Points - Golden Ball Power-up
- Lucky 23!
MIDDLE ROUTE:
Purple Ball - Points - Iso - Food - Bowling Ball - Heart - Heart (?? useless)
TOP ROUTE:
Points - Isotonic - Freeze Ball - Fire Ball - Food - Points - Lucky 23 + Red
Ball!
After 28 seconds, you're back outside no matter what you got. You can't tell,
but it's safe to drop down here and you'll find a zombie, a golden eyeball and
a couple of doors. One of them has a gold lock, so you can't open it yet. Or
can you? Slam the nearby net and you'll receive [GOLD KEYS]. Use them for the
new door, and go down the ladder to the left. Smash the wall down here to your
left and go all the way up this ladder. At the top you'll find a golden ball
power-up (careful, it's guarded by a spider nest), a [GREEN KEY] and another
captive!
Down the ladder and back to where you saw water underneath you. Use the pulley
to get across slowly, and watch you don't touch the water if those eels are
shocking it. Get the [YELLOW KEY] during one of those non-shocking periods and
get to the other side and a welcome restart point net. Up the pulley, open
the green lock to activate the moving platform (after opening the door across
the gap) and follow the path of doors and enemies until you reach a manual
moving platform (the one with arrows).
The first enclosed area (with the eyeball) is unlocked by clicking the lever
next to you as you down. Quickly kill the eyeball and bring the platform back
with the green switch if needed. Next area can be smashed in because it's
another broken wall. Use your Yellow Key here to open the next area below you.
Get the net here, and then activate the platform so it heads up, at which point
you get off the platform and drop down to the area underneath it for some more
doors. Down another platform, and simply head right to finish the level.
Section 4:
Yup, that's a nest up there, so blat it with your basketballs. Also hit that
eyeball with a jumping throw before going up the ladder. If you want, you can
use a baseball if you have one to grab those purple b-balls. Killing the zombie
up here gets you the [IRON KEYS] for this level, so head back down and open
that door you started next to. Head back up and get the first door to your
right (but not the next door along, as it has one of those eyeballs that home
in and attack you). Continue up the next ladder and clear the enemies on the
three small areas and take all the goodies. Use the pulley to go the top right
area, and use the moving platform to go down.
Hit all three switches to open a new area, then drop down to the platform
underneath. Open the door to your far left (the net here should get you some
food) and free another captive. Go right now, and head down this set of jumps
(use the crouch to see what's beneath you) and clear out this area. Opening the
doors should get you, among other things, the [GOLD KEYS]. Head up these
platforms and head left until you see a ladder going down.
Watch out for the current when jumping down here, since falling into the water
will kill you. Get the restart point net, and kill the golden spider to your
right. If you have any flaming b-balls, use one to clear all the little spiders
off the platform before claiming those freezing b-balls. Continue up and left.
Open the gold lock door for points, and continue up the platform. Head right
(avoid going left, it takes you back to the restart net) and get the net (the
door has bats). Watch out for golden spiders up here, and open the door. You
can grab the stuff in the air with a baseball (slam one while you're directly
underneath them at the top of your jump). Head up the moving platform to your
left and prepare for a big fight.
You guessed it: Robotic Monkey Guards. Just jump and smash them with b-balls,
using some of the less useful power-ups to kill them quicker. The second one
has the [RED KEY] you need. OK, now you have to go all the way back to where
you hit three switches (remember that area I said to avoid because it takes you
back? Use it to get back quicker). There was a door that opened here, so go
through it. Grab the gold lock door, and use the red keyhole to activate the
moving platform. Ride it up to finish the level.
Section 5:
Kill the eyeball. Now, when you move forward you'll start sliding down a path.
Constant jumping will keep you from going too far down. Try and grab the [IRON
KEYS] and open the door right at the start for some Baseballs that will be
very useful in getting all the bonuses around here trapped behind walls (if you
have some baseball power-ups left, use them up first grabbing items and then
restock).
Head down the ramp, collecting the goodies. Try and get the net, it's worth a
lot of points but it's sort of tricky. You'll eventually land on next to a
door. This next bit is tricky as you'll spend a lot of time ankle-deep in water.
You might want to blast the eel now with slam shots to avoid damage later.
Make your way across, using the pulley (another tricky jump, watch out for the
current pushing you off) and land on another submerged platform. Now, you might
recognise these sinking platforms. The items underneath might be worth
considering (esp. that Lucky 23) so here's how to get them: Stand on the
sinking platforms until they're just above waterline and keep jumping so the
don't sink any more. Wait until the eels have shocked the water, then let it
sink until you've got the item. At which point, jump like crazy to get out. You
can grab onto another pulley from the Lucky 23 platform to get out of this
water hazard zone. The restart net here means you shouldn't have to do it again.
Up here, go to your left for a slightly annoying jumping bit to get a free MJ
Heart. Taking damage from the spider won't matter because your health will all
come back. Going right now, kill the golden spider for the [GOLD KEYS] and open
the first gold lock door here. Now, this net is new, and what it does it
activate a timer which freezes all the enemies on the level. However, having
the timer and the quick music can often lead to impulsive timing and whatnot
and having the enemies stop isn't all that useful, so you don't have to worry
about hitting it. You'll only be fighting a couple of zombies anyway, the jumps
are the tricky bits. Continue to your right (the road upwards is blocked) and
you'll drop into a pit with a gold lock door. Open this door for a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
No time limit here, so take your time to jump up the springs and get the super
useful GOLDEN HEART. Exiting here will take you back before the ramp that
dropped you in front of this door.
OK, from here, head back down the ladder and smash through the wall to your
left. You'll find the final captive behind this door, and he'll give you the
[RED KEY]. If you want to use the timer net to freeze those flying eyeballs,
you can do so, but I found it easier to kill them all while they're moving in a
circle. Head up here and unlock the red door. After opening a few doors and
killing a few things, you'll eventually head down a ramp. If you can make the
jump all the way to the far right, there's an MJ Heart behind the door. Going
down the ramp drops you off directly after the bonus room.
More tricky jumping puzzles await, be careful of the current both of the river
and of the eel, and make sure to grab the [GREEN KEY] here. Get to the far
right end to discover a dead end, but jumping back gets you to a higher
platform above the zombie. Go up here until you find the green lock and the
[YELLOW KEY], and activate the platform. Up here, activate the last platform
and prepare to meet the guy responsible for all this mess.
After we meet Dr Cranium and soundly reject his offer, he walks away laughing
after releasing something "more basketball than you can handle". Yup, boss
fight.
BOSS FIGHT: BALL-BOT
A giant evil basketball robot. Yes. Run away from it, and reach the lower
platform on the left side and chuck basketballs at it until it's too close,
then jump to the above platform. You have to alternate between the low left
platform and the slightly higher (you'll need to duck) platform to the right.
You can only hurt it by firing at his head, so standing on the floor is
useless. If you have any red balls (you should have at least one from before
you opened the door), use them now and make sure you have a clear shot, they
make this battle a whole lot quicker.
Ball-Bot's attacks:
Besides just running into you, Ball-Bot has two special attacks. The first is
when he sends his arms after you, which can hit you even if you're on the
higher "safe" platform. They're pretty slow though, so you can dodge them
easily. His second attack involves spinning his arms and legs out and then
extending them, making them hard to avoid. Standing on the higher platform
means this can't touch you though. Watch out for this guy's speed, as it can
surprise you. Otherwise, he's not so tough.
After clobbering it enough, it explodes and you get the [RED CARDKEY] for your
troubles. Congrats! The Cells are complete. Go back and rescue any prisoners
you may have missed (there should be one per level, and entering a level will
tell you if there are still captives around). Keep in mind if you're in a level
you've already completed, you can pause and press Select to exit back out to
the map screen.
Otherwise, head to the next area.
-El Train 1-
Since it's easier, we'll use El Train 1 to your right and head towards the
Labs. You have the choice of either the Laboratory or the Factory though, so
it's up to you. If you do go to the Factory first, skip past the Laboratory
section and go to Third Area: Factory beneath.
The deal with the El Train levels is that you have to progress through the
trains, knocking out annoying paparazzi (take THAT journalism!) and collecting
points and power-ups. It's a pretty easy challenge, despite being on a rail
(meaning the screen is constantly moving and you have to move with it). If you
go up top, there are less paparazzi and more items, but you have to jump
occasionally to clear obstacles. You shouldn't have much problems, and it's a
direct route anyway so an FAQ would be useless. My best advice is if you're
getting low on health, go through the cars on the bottom levels firing as you
go, and you shouldn't get hit by anything. You'll miss out on items, but at
least you won't get whammed by a low beam or something.
After which, you can decide if you want to go finish El Train 2 (it's the same
deal only a little more difficult) or go to the second area: The Laboratory.
Second Area: Laboratory
"Dr. Max Cranium created many of his mutants and mechanical servants in the
dark corridors of his laboratory. They feel right at home amongst the arcing
electricity and glass elevators. Unwanted visitors will find trouble here! The
yellow cardkey lies at the end."
Section 1:
You'll meet the first mutant here, but you can beat him with a few different
methods. The first is to slam the first net and get the baseball power-ups that
work well on mutants, and the second is to slam the next net along and kill it
instantly. Or you could just use slam shots to kill it. Moving right, get the
[IRON KEYS] from the zombie here, and jump over the gaps with the electrical
beams. Slam the high net and keep making your way to the right.
Here, you'll find some teetering platforms. The trick with these is to jump
onto the centre of the platform, if you jump on the edge it will drop you off.
Try getting up all three platforms for a small area with a [GREN KEY] and a
door which leads to a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
A bunch of doors you need to open. Obviously, the higher you go the better the
prizes though doors along the way also have some pretty cool stuff. Here's a
list of the items behind the doors, starting from the bottom door and working
up.
Food
Points
Golden B-ball power-up
MJ Heart
Points
Flaming B-Balls
Food
Points
LUCKY 23
MJ Heart
So therefore, I would recommend getting all the points, the first MJ Heart (if
you've taken damage yet), the power-ups and the Lucky 23. So that's door 2, 3,
4, 5, 6, 8 and 9. You should be able to manage it, but if you're running out of
time just head for door 9 to grab that life (it's the second door from the
top).
Be careful getting down from here, try heading right as you fall so the teeter
platforms don't throw you off the edge. Make your way to the first teeter
platform and jump right. You'll find another mutant and a more annoying whistle
robot a few feet further on. Slam the timer net and get rid of both of them.
Now, you should be able to see a B-Ball power-up and a Lucky 23, get them with
Baseballs if you can (you'll need to get as close to the Lucky 23 as possible
by jumping and then slamming a baseball when you're directly underneath it. It
should work.)
Head right, jumping when the electricity isn't going through the wires, and
head up the ladder. Take out the enemies from the safety of the ladder and head
up those small platforms. Head right, opening the green lock to find a button
that switches off a laser above you. This will be important later. Head back
and there's a tricky jumping puzzle above you that involves jumping between
some very small platforms while dodging the bolts of lightning. Don't think you
have to keep going once the lightning starts following you or you'll make
mistakes, just hang to the left side of the left platform until it safely
passes you before going up. After you make it to the top, you can open a few
doors, and grab the heart on the teetering platform above to heal any damage
taken from that tricky jumping sequence. Grab a very welcome restart net to
your right.
Heading right, get past these electricity traps until you reach another Robot
Monkey Guard. Take it out, and ride the elevator down. Yeah, that's an
elevator. Press Up to enter it and up and down to control the direction it goes
in. To get out, press A or whatever your Use button is. You can see what you
shut off earlier now, so drop down and get those sneakers. Use them to get the
otherwise inaccessible points under the next laser trap, and continue going.
Use the invincibility to take out that Whistle Robot. Now go back and open the
door for the [GOLD KEYS] and head left. You'll see an elevator and a red lock,
so open the red lock to deactivate the laser above you. By the way, I know
those things aren't lasers and just more electricity, but there are like five
different electricity-based traps and it'll start getting confusing if I call
them all the same thing.
Head up the spring, and deactivate the next "laser" with a lever to your right.
Keep heading up and free another captive, the first for the Laboratory. Head
down to your right and smash the wall next to you for items (and a mutant).
Take out the Whistle, don't worry if it hurts you because it drops a MJ Heart.
Also, take out that cyborg guy with regular b-balls (he steals whatever ball
you're using, so try to keep them out of his hands). Now go up the elevator
here. Just one more Robotic Monkey Guard between you and the exit.
Section 2:
Head left here, slamming the nets as you go, and go up the ladder. Jump up with
the spring and head right. You'll see a small vertical laser, shoot a purple
b-ball past it to hit a lever that turns off a laser behind you. You can grab
that MJ Heart with a baseball if you want. Go down the newly opened pit. Watch
out for both a cyborg guard and a mimic power-up enemy, and use the [IRON KEYS]
you get to open both this door and the door you passed above you. Head back to
the ladder next to the spring.
This next set of jumps is very difficult. You have to jump the first two golden
platforms (which have currents running through them) and land on the bottom
platform for some invincibility sneakers. Use these sneakers for another one of
those "chase the bolt" series of jumps (watch out, some of these platforms sink
if you stand on them) until you reach the top, at which point jump right. Up
here, you should be able to get yourself a [RED KEY]. Head down from here,
going past the teetering platforms. Take out the cyborg and go up the elevator
(the green switches around here call the elevator if it isn't on your floor).
Take out a Wheelie Ref and slam the net for the [GOLD KEYS] and use them to
unlock this door and the previous one before the first elevator. Use the
elevator to get to a small room with the restart net and another elevator. Go
up with this elevator and unlock the laser with the red key (if you managed to
pick it up) before continuing upwards. Deactivate the next laser with the
lever, and go left (not up). Watch out for another Mimic (I'll just tell you
now to be wary of all power-ups floating in the open like this) and head left
for a door and more nets. You can use the switch here to summon a gold
platform, but you'll want to take the two elevators there and slam the net for
a [YELLOW KEY] on the way. Heading left, use the platforms to jump across the
laser (duck if the platform you're on gets too close to the ceiling laser) and
use the yellow lock to deactivate the floor laser for all those goodies. Make
sure also to grab the [GREEN KEY] above the lock. Head back to the golden
platform and take it down one floor. Smash through the left wall here and free
the captive. Also, open the next door along for a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
You have to figure out which combination of three switches needs to be turned
on to open the door. Luckily, this guide is here to help. Open the first door
by shooting the second switch only (move closer to it to avoid hitting the
other switches). DO NOT HIT THE THIRD SWITCH, as you can't easily switch it
back (you'll need a baseball). Grab the MJ Heart, and this time hit the FIRST
and THIRD switches. The next is the FIRST and SECOND. Next is the SECOND and
THIRD and the final one (if you get to it) is the SECOND and THIRD switch
again. Well done if you got to the end of this in time, as two LUCKY 23s are
now yours.
Head back to where I told you not to go upwards, and head up there. After
taking out some enemies, open the green lock to deactivate the forcefield. Ride
the elevator up and out of the level.
Section 3:
A cyborg will attack almost instantly, so be wary. Since your way left is
blocked, head up the elevator and clear this area out. Slamming the net will
get you the [IRON KEYS] for this level. Down the next elevator, stay in the
elevator until the whistle robot has stopped, and go kill it. Explore for items
and continue up.
[Side mission: Head back to the start and deactivate the laser with a well-aimed
purple b-ball slam. You need to slam it so it touches ground about where the
elevator is (it may take a few shots of trial and error to do it correctly).
Jump past two very difficult jumps and take out the wheelie ref here. Open the
door, head up and open this door, then jump the gap and smash the wall for a
door with a Lucky 23 behind it. I don't believe this life is worth going for
since you'll probably lose a couple with the jumps getting here, but you might
want to go for it if you're think you're good. And if you do think you're good,
what do you need an extra life for?]
There's a fake power-up here, take it out. Slamming the net will get you a
[GREEN KEY], make sure to take out another Robotic Monkey Guard before heading
further left. With this platform, you have to jump on it, duck, and hit the
switch to turn off the laser you're about to float into. Down here, grab the
door to your left and stay the hell away from that snake. Make sure you're
standing far enough way that you can just see the snake's head, and throw
b-balls at it until it falls apart. Quickly run past (make sure you have the
green key equipped) and open the door for the [RED KEY] an a MJ Heart. Head
back up the platform and open the red door on your left.
Slowly head down this next section by checking the areas underneath you so
you can land on the centre of the teetering platforms. Collect all the items
as you go down, and you'll eventually hit the bottom. Hit the restart net,
head left over the gap and smash the wall to your left to open up the way
to a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
Collect items in here while making your way to the left. You don't have to
pick up everything, just make sure you get the Lucky 23 in the top left
corner of this room. Then bounce back and collect as many power-ups and
points as you can within the time limit, there aren't any more Lucky 23s so
don't think you have to rush to the right side of the room.
Back out, head right and up the ladder (get rid of the eyeball first). Jump
from ladder to ladder to make your way up this section. With the two eyeballs
it's better to just take the one hit and head up to the next ladder than to
try to kill them and suffer lots of damage. Hit the three switches and stay
clear of the laser above you when jumping to your left. Kill the enemies in
here, and go past the forcefields when they're down. Get the items up here,
head down the gold platform and get the items to your left. You need purple
b-balls to hit this switch by slamming down in front of the door. Jump
across the ladders and open the gold lock door here. If you miss a jump, you
can't get back up and will need to restart the level to get back here. Sucks,
I know. Behind the gold lock door is this level's captive.
Head down now, as far right as you can, and hit the timer net. Use this to
take out the wheelie refs. Open more doors, and smash the wall to the far left
for more stuff. When you're done here, go down the elevator and take out the
mutant for more doors and the net for a [YELLOW KEY]. Head left now, clearing
the gap and opening the yellow key door. Go through it to finish the level.
Section 4:
This a pretty big level, and the way to go is upwards, so expect a lot of
jumping. Start with the elevator, it'll lead you to an enclosed room with a
net. Back down, take out the mutant (if you haven't already) and slam these
nets for points and the [IRON KEYS]. Take out the ceiling snake from a
distance and continue to the end of the left passage. Make sure to jump on
these in & out platforms when they're coming out of the wall, not going back
in.
At the top, you see those two floating eyeballs in seemingly random
positions? Try freezing them and going up to the next area. If you don't
have any freeze b-balls, make a mental note of where these guys are (don't
kill them whatever you do) and come back. Up here, you'll find a door with
a captive behind, and some items. To get past the door next to the whistle
robot, hit the first and fourth switches. There should be a lot of points
in a big "M" and a red b-ball power-up. Now head back down where you froze
those eyeballs and head right through the tunnel, going past the
forcefields when they close.
The trick to these charged platforms is to jump with a rhythm, so that the
shock is always above and below you. Jumping too soon or too late will
allow it to hit you. Ignore that wheelie ref, and head on up to the top.
If you didn't have freeze b-balls for those eyes earlier, there are a
set of them at the very top here. I would grab them and head back now.
To get past these lasers, you need to shoot a ball to hit the switches,
any switch will turn the first and third lasers on or just the second
laser on, so use this to proceed through them I.E. turn the first laser
off, walk between the first and second laser, turn the second laser off
and the first back on, walk between the second and third laser, turn the
third laser off and the second back on and continue left to the elevator.
You can hit the first switch by simply using the action button, but the
others will probably need to be shot at.
Going up here, you'll find a bunch of moving platforms. Now, try heading up
again. Grab the [GREEN KEY] here. Back in the moving platform room, you can
grab those sneakers and try and grab all the items protected by lasers here.
It's easier to grab the ceiling ones first by jumping to the silver platform.
Make sure you're on a platform before the sneakers wear out. Jump to the
right to continue. If you want, you can hit the switch and go after any
ceiling items you missed (the laser is down now) but keep in mind the floor
laser is still active and it's easy to fall down there and get killed before
finding your way out.
Here, open the green lock to summon the platform. Get the net, but avoid the
door as it has one of those golden eyeballs in it. Before heading up the
platform, destroy a thin bit of floor here (it's noticeable) with slam shots.
Down here is the easiest Lucky 23 to earn and a spring back up. Now, up the
platform you summoned with the green key.
Hit the restart net, but avoid those barriers to your left. Head up the
ladder instead and explore up here. Use the elevator to drop you behind
those barriers you saw earlier. Grab the [GOLD KEYS] here from the net and
go back up for a useful MJ Heart behind the door. Also get the [RED KEY]
before going back down the elevator again. Open the red keyhole to activate
more in & out platforms. Up here, jump onto a platform with currents on it
and try to jump to the right platform. It's sort of hard because of the low
ceiling, but it's easier than going up those currents going through them.
If you can't manage that jump, or need more power-ups, head up the platforms
and get the power-up above them, then take out the snake at the top for a
couple more power-ups. The elevator takes you down to the right platform
you couldn't/didn't jump to.
Now, see the eyeballs? See how they're in a random pattern (this is just
before that half closed gate)? Yeah, I think you know what to do. Freeze
'em, and head on up. Smash the wall quickly before they defrost (switch
to something other than freeze b-balls to do this) and head through the
door for a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
Yup, another "slam all the nets" level. If you want to know where the Lucky
23 is, it's the third net from the left of the room. Get as many as the
others as you can before the time runs out (the rest are just Hearts,
points and one or two food items and power-ups).
The eyeballs hovering around these ladders are very slow, so you should be
able to jump past them and take them out. A lot of them drop health items
so follow them down if you need them. At the top, you have another corridor
with forcefields to destroy and another set of in & out platforms to climb.
Now, this could be tricky, but don't be too worried about taking damage
(unless you're already low). You have to jump to the platform and hit that
switch from the other side with a ball. If you miss you'll get hit by the
laser, but you can still use the platform to turn off the switch. Ride
the platform up and get that MJ Heart to refill your health meter. Get
the sneakers and quickly jump into the next pit along for a Lucky 23 and
another spring. Make sure to hit that switch to turn off the laser above
you. Head right, get rid of all the eyes and grab the [YELLOW KEY]. Use
it to exit the level.
Section 5:
Last Laboratory level, aren't you glad? Of course, there's bound to be a
boss at the end of this one. Walk forward to find three separate elevators
and a ladder. First off, climb the ladder to the top to find some power-ups.
Then take the rightmost elevator down and pick up the [IRON KEYS] opening
the door here. Take the middle elevator down once you're finished and open
the door here for a [GREEN KEY]. Before we take the final elevator down, go
down the ladder and time your descent so you don't get hit with the lasers.
At the bottom, free the captive (he has some useful advice and leaves a
MJ Heart) and use the sneakers to get back up the ladder pronto. Now you
can take that final elevator. Here, get the items and open the green keyhole
to find another elevator downwards.
In this area, we have some tricky jumps over a laser pit, and an eyeball
will come by to make it difficult. Get to solid ground and blow it up.
Continuing to the circular golden platforms, make sure you don't get zapped
by the ceiling laser by crouching and jump to the silver platform. Wait
until it sinks far enough to jump to the right side. Go up the teetering
platforms here and look for a sort-of hidden switch on the right wall.
Hit it to summon a platform that takes you to another Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
Like the final Bonus Room of the Cells, this is a simple, non-timed room
which contains a GOLDEN HEART. Collect it, and exit to your right to find
yourself back where you were.
Take the elevator down and continue left through the tunnel, dodging the
usual forcefields. Up these in & out platforms, you'll find a restart net.
Going along, head up the ladder and go right for a [RED KEY]. Go left at
the top of the ladder and continue following the linear path. Activate a
platform with the red keyhole, and grab the [GOLD KEYS] to your left here.
Head on up after getting the sneakers and jump another diagonally charged
set of jumps (the sneakers make this a whole lot easier). Find another
pair of sneakers under the door to the left of the jumps halfway up (you
have to slam a baseball, which can be conveniently found in the door
above it). At the top, head right by turning off both switches. Turn the
final switch off with a purple b-ball (if you don't have one, there's a
power-up at the top of those charged platforms you just made your way up).
Continue through the door.
In here, you have to jump over the laser and onto an in & out platform.
Grab the sneakers here and jump into the next pit along for a [YELLOW
KEY]. Follow this path up. You have to wait until the platform you're on
is about to go into the wall before jumping up onto the next one. You
have a few more seconds of sneaker power to figure out the timing. At
the top is here is what I can only describe as a full recharge and a
second pair of sneakers to get you past the final set of annoyingly
charged platforms. Quickly open the yellow lock and slowly make your way
across the golden platforms while you still have invincibility. Try not
to fall off, as you'll have to repeat the process without the sneakers.
If you get really battered, there's a MJ Heart behind some more barriers
to the bottom right. When you finally make your way to the top right, go
through the corridor and prepare for another boss.
BOSS: ELECTRO-BOT
Name sucks, I know, but based on what this thing looks like it's hard to
come up with a good name. Electro-bot is very much like your old
friend Ball-bot, in that he's about 50% taller than you are and you can
only hit his head. Unfortunately, you don't have any nice platforms to
batter him from. You'll need to get some idea of timing with regular
b-balls before you start hitting him with red b-balls and flaming
b-balls (which is what he's weak against and will take him down a lot
faster), since you don't want to waste them.
Electro-bot's Attacks:
Besides the usual walking into you (this guy is a lot slower thankfully)
he will sometimes stop and do one of three things:
* Raise his arms and activate lasers above your head. Just be sure to
stand between where they come out when he does this.
* Stop, and then fire two sparks which fly out at random heights.
Usually, you can jump these, but the highest of the sparks can still
hit you, so you'll need to duck it. You'll have some warning of where
they are if you're far enough way.
* Turn into some weird floating thing. He's invincible at this point
so just run away. He'll fire more sparks at you in this form.
After hammering him sufficiently with b-balls, he'll blow up like his
friend before him and you can collect the YELLOW CARDKEY. Congrats!
Like before, go after any levels which still say "Captive Here!" when
you go in. If they don't say that, just pause and press Select to exit
the level. OK, now we can take either El Train 2 or El Train 3 to the
Factory stage. Read my description of El Train 1 if you don't remember,
and afterwards head to the Factory.
Third Area: Factory
INFO: "Dr. Max Cranium turned an abandoned warehouse into a factory to
produce his most lethal creations. The chemical vats and hydraulic
presses make it a hot spot for uninvited guests! he green cardkey lies
within. You need all 3 cardkeys to get through the Tunnel."
Section 1:
Welcome to the Factory, the most difficult area yet. Mr Slime here is
ready to introduce you. Either avoid or try killing it with slam shots,
it'll break into three littler ones (like the golden spider). Continue
right and slam the net for [IRON KEYS]. I don't need to tell you to
avoid the green goop or the trash coming out of those pipes. Jump to
these quickly spinning platforms, and try and grab that [RED KEY].
It's tricky, but you can land on the platform you jumped off of if
you time it right. If you have purple b-balls, head right. Otherwise
head left at the top of the circle until you find an iron lock door.
Open it to find a fake purple mimic ball, which turns into real purple
b-balls when destroyed. Now you can head back right over the circular
platforms until you find a switch behind a wall. Fire a purple b-ball
into the gap (by ducking) and the floor should disappear beneath you.
Free the captive (who has some interesting names for the ball power-
ups) and jump back out with the spring. Now head left again to where
you opened the purple b-ball door.
Avoid the vat, and go up the ladder. You can get that MJ Heart with a
well aimed baseball to your left. Avoid the pounders to your right
and keep heading right. Make sure you jump to the platform at the end
of the conveyor belt, or you'll go back before the pounders (or
possibly just die). Slam the net here if you want, but it'll just
pour out points that'll probably end up falling off the platform into
oblivion. Up and right, take out the mutant and go up the manually
controlled platform. Hit the three switches here, and go through the
newly opened door to your left.
Go across the conveyor belt, taking out eyes as you go. At the end
there is a restart net for you. Onto the next conveyor and you'll
have these claw pounder things after you, quickly run underneath
them. Go up these ladders (you can actually take out that mutant
by slam jumping from the platform below) and turn off the fan with
the red keyhole. Before going up the ladder, head right and try
firing a purple b-ball underneath the door. It should let you in,
where you can restock your purple b-balls and get some points.
Heading up past the fan, go right onto a conveyor belt and head
down the ramp using the almost hidden pulley above you. Before
hitting the ground, throw a b-ball at the switch to the right to
turn off a pounder.
[Side mission: This path leads to a Bonus Room, but then I can
find no way to get back forcing you to kill yourself. So, I can
only recommend this route to someone who's finished this level once
and can then Start>Select to get out after obtaining the extra
life. Jump across to your left over a big vat and open the door
for a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
10 seconds. 5 nets. The fans make the second and fourth net harder
to slam, which is unsurprisingly where the Lucky 23 and MJ Heart
are. The centre net has food, and the two nets on the edges of the
room have points. If you want the Lucky 23, go left as soon as you
come in and slam the rightmost of the two nets here.
Back out, you now have an impossible jump the conveyor belt to the
right. I did warn you.]
Go right, and hit the switch with the spring to turn on a fan above
you. Before going up, head down and left for a little area with a
slime and a [YELLOW KEY]. Back up the spring, hold down left on the
second jump to get blown all the way onto the left platform. Keep on
heading left and go past the claws once all three have come down and
gone back up. The run under the next pounder and jump over the vat.
Switch off the fan with the yellow keyhole, and slam that BANG net
to get rid of the annoying Robot Monkey Guard. Head left jumping
over the saw, slam the net and fire a purple b-ball at standing
height (so don't duck) to hit the switch at the end. Jump over the
vat and get the [GOLD KEYS]. Head back to where the Robot Monkey
Guard was taunting you.
Now this jump seems impossible, but it is doable. I think it helps
if I jump with a slam jump. Don't know why. Keep trying to get up
there, and try to avoid the saw if you can. When you're finally up
take out the enemies in this area, and grab the [GREEN KEY]. Use it
to open the final door to your left and exit the level.
Section 2:
Watch out when entering this level, as you'll have to deal with a high
up (and therefore hard to hit) Robot Monkey Guard. Head right. Notice
the big pool of liquid metal. If the T-1000 couldn't survive it, it's
doubtful his Airness will be able to either. Make sure you have some
idea where it is once you go up this ladder, as the floor directly
above it caves in dumping you into the molten goo. Nasty. Jump over it
(or jump on it and quickly jump off) and head right and up. At the top,
before heading under the pounder, pick up a freeze b-ball power-up and
the [IRON KEYS]. Get the door beneath you, and you may want to go back
and get the other two doors (one is left of where the lava pit was, and
the other is at the start). You'll need to jump over the broken floor
over the molten pit again though, and they don't have much in them
besides points and health items.
Head left under the pounder, and open the door for some bowling ball
power-ups. Smash the wall to your left and jump the gap for this level's
captive. You can head down and get the iron lock doors you missed, or
head back over the gap and up the ladder. Go left for goodies, and head
right. Strangely, you get both the sneakers and the timer net here, but
there isn't any real danger around here besides some exploding bats
(sneakers are useful here) a zombie and a spider. Is that it?
Heading to the manual platform, go down and jump on the platform going
diagonally up and right. If you miss, try to hold right and you'll land
in front of an iron lock door. Use the platforms heading downwards to jump
onto the ones heading up, but do it quickly as the descending platforms
go into the molten lava. There's also a Bonus Room entrance to your left,
but it's a tricky jump and it may land you in lava. Go for it if you want,
details follow.
-BONUS ROOM-
Lots of springs. The difficulty here is staying still so you can keep
springing until you find a direction to go in. Otherwise you'll miss the
spring you were jumping on and fall to the bottom. There's a MJ Heart to
the left slightly, and the Lucky 23 can be found near the very top left
corner. On the far right is a line of points and items you can jump into,
but it'll cause you to drop to the bottom wasting time if you want the
rest of the stuff. Most of the other good items are at the very top,
unsurprisingly.
From here, or if you ignored the bonus room, take the platforms going up.
As you're going up, you'll pass the manual platform you jumped from, and
an iron lock door all by itself on a ledge. There's a MJ Heart in it if
you need it. When at the top, hit the restart net. You can try going for
that Bonus Room if you passed it. There are also a couple more locked
rooms with items (a power-up and a food item) if you go down that slope
next to you. Otherwise, head right onto the conveyor belts. Jump over
the saw blades, and make sure you slam this net for the [GOLD KEYS].
Now, shoot the eyeball that's following you around, but instead of killing
the eyeball floating up and down over the molten pit, freeze it with one
of those freeze b-balls you got near the start of the level. Make sure it's
about head or chest height, and use it to climb to the red b-ball power-up
and a gold lock door which has a Lucky 23 in it. It's worth trying for.
Heading down, kill that annoying whistle robot for a [YELLOW KEY] and the
mutant walking from the other direction. Head left. Go under some claw type
pounders, and get rid of an unhelpfully-placed Robot Monkey Guard. Something
is pushing you away from the yellow keyhole, so keep running towards it
until you're close enough to unlock it. That'll shut off the fan allowing
you to continue. Head down the ladder now onto another conveyor belt.
Dodge the lava as it pours out from above, and get to the end. Don't bother
with the door as it has an eyeball (but the eyeball drops an isotonic, so
you may risk it for a very small health boost). Make sure the mutant doesn't
push you back onto the conveyor belt. Head past these diagonally shooting
lava spurters, and head down the sinking platform. Jump off it before it
sinks all the way into the lava and continue left. You have to jump over
quite a few lava pits now, at the end is a door and a whistle robot. Get rid
of them and walk onto the platform. It'll take you down to the next level.
Section 3:
Your old friends the garbage chutes and green gloop vats are here. Make your
way right over the platforms and conveyors. You can try slamming that net
for items but keep in mind that tiny platform above the vat of green stuff
won't hold your weight for long. Getting to the end, jump down and meet some
new platforms. These things turf you off by spinning if you stand on them for
too long. If you keep jumping up and down though, you can stay on indefinitely.
Down here, you see a green keyhole. Can't open it yet, so head left over more
conveyors. Grab the [IRON KEYS], slam the net above you for lots of points,
and you can try risking another net over a green vat. The [GREEN KEY] is at
the end of this path, on the far left. Head back to the green keyhole and
unlock it. Open these iron lock doors, and check out what's underneath it.
The gold keys and a slime?! All will be explained. Head right and up. You can
grab onto these hooks floating overhead to get to the next area. You can drop
and get the iron key door, and back onto the hooks again. Follow the path down,
hit the restart net and shoot the valve to lower the green slime level opening
more areas to explore. Use the timer net to get past all the slimes down here.
Make sure to grab the [GOLD KEYS] you saw earlier. At the end, fire a purple
b-ball into the small alcove to hit another valve. Now, head back to the timer
net to find a new little area underneath you. Go in, and open the door here
for a Bonus Room. Also, you can slam a baseball and grab that Lucky 23 just
beneath you.
-BONUS ROOM-
This is an odd bonus room, as it only seems to have three doors. And none of
them have an extra life in them. The highest door is on a ledge that's
impossible to jump onto, but you can open the gold lock by jumping and
pressing your Use button. After collecting a few measly items, you come out
again. Weird.
OK, now you have to freeze a slime that's underneath the first floating
platform you come across to your left. You shouldn't be able to reach it
unless you've frozen a slime on the floor. Jumping up gets the golden b-ball
power-up, but what you really want is back where you found the green key.
Drop beneath the vats and conveyors for two doors, one with points and the
other with the hardest captive to find in the whole game. The game tells you
as much when you receive a Lucky 23 off the player you rescued. Drop down
where you opened the green keyhole.
Head left now and go into the other newly opened area. More slimes down here,
so take a cautious approach and slam shot them all. The next valve is above
the ladder here, so hit the valve and continue down the ladder. Dropping
down gives you a much needed MJ Heart, though the platform it's on may
collapse so head right. Get the net for points and watch out for the small
conveyor belt. Hit the next net for more freeze b-balls, but be quick. As
soon as the next ladder is in view, the water level starts rising again.
Hitting the valves on the right side of the ladder will sink them for a
while, but they'll climb up again. You have to grab onto the hook and
take it to the end to find a valve that stops the water rising and also
drops it a little further.
Coming down off the hook, head back left over the slimes and drop down.
Quickly jump off the ramp and onto dry land. Head right again. Make this long
jump over the gap to finish the level.
Section 4:
Head left. There is a very nasty four-way lava firing thing on the ceiling, so
be careful and time it right when passing underneath. Here, grab the [IRON KEYS]
and continue onwards. You may want to head back to the first iron lock door you
saw at the start, but it only has a golden b-ball power-up and trying to go
under that trap in the opposite direction to the conveyor belt WILL hurt you.
Heading left still, you'll come across a few more lava traps. Watch how and when
they fire and pass at the right moment. At the very end, there's an elevator
down and another one of those half-closed doors with the switch on the other
side. You've already come across some purple b-balls on this level so I'll
assume you still have them. SLAM one underneath the door (not duck and throw)
and you should get the switch, opening a small area with a door and a mutant.
You cannot jump to the [RED KEY] in here, so just use a baseball to get it. Head
back to the manual moving platform and go down.
You'll pass a lot of closed doors on the way down, until you reach the bottom
with a mutant and a door (it has a golden b-ball mimic inside, so keep some
distance when opening the door). Open the red keyhole first, then grab those
sneakers and run through. With any luck, you'll get past all the lava traps
and take out the whistle robot before the sneakers wear off. The door opens at
the end, so go through.
Here, board the platform and ride it to the top. There are some items up here.
When you're done, ride it down to the floor you were on (the middle floor) and
go right. Now, the switch-behind-a-wall here requires a tricky shot to hit
with a purple ball. You can't simply crouch and shoot, or slam a ball in there.
You need to stand on the lower platform, and jump up then throw a ball in there.
Practice with regulars until you have the timing down, then fire a purple b-ball
to shut off the fan and continue up.
Here, you'll have a painful sequence involving conveyor belts. You may take a
few hits dodging the trash chutes and the green slime, but there's a food item
towards the end that might help. Now we're at the other end and have picked up
the [GREEN KEY], kill the mutant (you can just about hit him with slams from
the platform below) and hit the switch to open the door.
Recognise this place? It's one of the pairs of doors you passed earlier when
you were going down the platform. The door on the opposite side has been opened
too, so continue onwards. Jump between the ladders here making sure not to fall
(a pit of molten metal awaits), and head to the bottom left. Jump the pit and
open the next set of doors you passed riding down the platform earlier. Jump
across, grab the [YELLOW KEY] from a door and the [GOLD KEYS] a little further
on. Open the green keyhole to end back where the three-floor moving platform is.
You should be on the top floor, so ride it to the bottom and go right. Another
purple b-ball is required, and it's another SLAM the ball underneath the gap
situation. Free the captive here, and head left.
Be careful, you're near the furnaces here and it's difficult to see at times.
Of course, if you're playing with an emulator like ZSNES, you can turn
Background Layer 3 off to get rid of the yellow (though it's still wavy from
the intense heat) if you really can't see anything. Open the yellow keyhole
door here and continue onwards. Try and get the door the first time you jump
down here (the fan pushes you away from it). Make sure you turn around and
jump as far as you can here, the fan should help. After some more difficult
jumps, you'll have a small area with a door and a net for a breather. Continue
going after you've collected the stuff here and ride on the platform. Jump to
the left here for a gold lock door with a power-up. Back on the platform (if
it disappears upwards, press the green buttons in these areas to summon it down
again). Smash the first left wall you see going up (it sort of sticks out) and
go through another gold lock door for a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
Lots of nets again. The twist with this area is that you can go up a ladder on
either side of the room and waste time going to the second floor for nets.
Needless to say, the one Lucky 23 is on the top level. It's third from the right
so try and head towards the right side of the room while slamming nets.
Otherwise it's normal power-ups all round. You're very close to the level exit
now, so food items shouldn't be too necessary.
Back out, ride the platform up again. Go to the top, and head left. That's it.
Section 5:
Final section of the Factory, thank Jebus. Crouch and kill that cyborg as soon
as you enter, then go right. You'll have to jump this vat, but not the next one
thanks to some handy claws going across the ceiling. Ride them to the end and
kill the mutant here for some [IRON KEYS]. Use the springs to get the top here.
Now, this has to be the sneakiest hiding space this game has though of yet. Try
firing a few balls to your left here and find that they pass right through the
wall. Jump through this fake wall and open the door for a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
Again, like the other Golden Heart rooms, completely timer-free. Just make your
way upwards grabbing the Lucky 23 and GOLDEN HEART. Exit at the top and head
back to where you were.
Now, use the pulley (get rid of the eyes first) to ride all the way down to the
[YELLOW KEY]. Now, heading back is very difficult for some reason, since you
have a massive vat to clear (the conveyor helps with this) and then a smaller
vat which is all but impossible to clear because the conveyor belt is going the
opposite way and you can't get a good run up for the jump. The trick here is to
do the big jump across the gap and keep jumping once you're across. You should
still be taking normal Michael-sized leaps as long as you don't let the conveyor
slow down your momentum. It's hard, but if the conveyor slows you down, use the
hooks to go back and try again.
When you finally get back across the gap, use the yellow keyhole to unlock a
platform above you, and ride that platform up. Smash the right wall and enter
this little area for some power-ups and a food item. Use the pulley above the
moving platform to get you up into the next part of the level. Ride the
platform across and head up into an area full of slopes. Going left, you can
go up the ladder and to the right to board the circular moving platforms, or you
can just jump right from the starting platform and take your chances on the
slopes. Either way will get you to the same circular platforms. Grab the [GREEN
KEY] while you're here and go right.
[Side mission: Not much of a side mission. The two slopes beneath the circular
platforms are filled with goodies (including a Lucky 23) but they're on slopes
heading towards the green vats you passed over getting here. Jump between them
or jump back onto the circular platforms to escape, once you have all the
items.]
Follow the path right, unlocking the green keyhole for a platform over the vat
(make sure you jump when the platform is at its lowest, or you may miss and
fall into the vat). Go left at the top here and slam a net for the [RED KEY].
Also slam the restart net up here, it will be useful if you decide to go for the
items on the slopes. Ride the sinking platform down. Smash the wall to your left
while on the platform to reveal the way to the final captive of the Factory
area. When you reach the bottom you can smash a wall to your right to find a
short cut back to just before the circular platforms. If you want to go back
and get those items, do so, otherwise open the red keyhole door and go down.
Now, you'll have a series of not-so-fun conveyor belt jumps. Make your way down
and right (grab that MJ Heart behind the slime if you need it) dodging all the
obstacles until you come to a door with a fan in front of it. Open it for the
[GOLD KEYS]. The green switch here turns off the fan, but it's likely you can't
reach it at the moment. Go back so the fan is off-screen then take a running
jump. You'll just able to reach the button before the fan drives you back. Make
sure you only press it once, because a second click will turn the fan on again.
Past the fan, head right past the mutant. Go down the platform, and use the
spring to jump up and right for another restart net. Down here, you need to use
the springs to clear the vats next to you. It's always best to wait a few
bounces for Michael to reach as high as he can before heading left over the
vats. The doors all contain power-ups, so stock up because a boss is coming. At
the very end there's another SLAM the purple b-ball underneath the door to hit
the switch. You should've picked up some more purple b-balls getting here, so
go ahead. After you've opened the door, go up the spring and head right for a
useful MJ Heart just before the boss. Talking of bosses, go left.
BOSS FIGHT: GIANT GREEN SCREW THING
As you might be able to tell, I've given up naming these things. The boss looks
like a green cupcake mounted on corkscrews. As weird as he looks, he isn't much
of a boss. Simply go up the platform right above you and clobber him with
everything you have. As usual, only head shots count, but since this guy is 60%
head it isn't nearly as tough to get an accurate shot. You can use the manual
platform to dodge his spinning propeller attack by going up or down. Or don't,
since he'll be dead long before you will be if you keep hammering away at him.
Although it's funny to watch, don't get distracted by the somewhat irate Dr
Cranium since you can't touch him. But he really looks teed off.
Once the thing is dead (nowhere near as difficult as the levels you had to go
through to get to him). Collect the Green Keycard and leave this place. As
standard, make sure you aren't missing any captives (you should have 15) and
have all six hearts on the ready before taking on the Tunnel level which has
now been unlocked. If you came here right after the Cells and still have the
Laboratory to do, scroll up to "Second Area: Laboratory".
OK, once you have everything and are ready to go, let's hit the final area of
the game.
Fourth Area: Tunnel
This level is a little odd. First, you don't have a map. Second, you don't need
one as the entire level is practically one tunnel. Which is why they call it
"The Tunnel" I guess. Follow the path, opening the circular doors with the
Keycards you've selected. Also make sure to pick up the [IRON KEYS] (they're
right in your path) and clear all the enemies you've ever encountered between
the entrance and the exit. Between the Yellow and Green doors, you should be
able to find a door with an iron lock. This has a captive inside (in case you
were wondering where that extra 21st captive was). Continue past some
forcefields and open the last Cardkey door. Continue through to open up the
final area in the game.
Ooh, the screen's gone all dark and sinister. Better hurry to Dr Cranium's HQ:
The oddly-named Amusement Park "Riverview".
Final Area: Riverview
Bet you thought this was going to be another five-part area? Nope, just one
giant one with a lot of little sub-levels. All five of the remaining captives
are here, don't worry. First, head right until you come across the [IRON KEYS].
It's around where the eel electrifies the water. Then, go the platform just to
the left of it and go up the awnings to find the [GOLD KEYS]. Now you have both
sets of master keys, we can explore this map properly. Go right a little and
open the iron lock door here for this area's captive. He'll describe what this
hub level is for, and he'll also mention that the sub-levels open in a certain
order. We'll need to find the first sub-level then...
Back to the start, open the door here for points and open the door above for
food items. This level is a bit maze-y, so bear with these directions. Head
right and open this first gold lock door with the Dr's head on it to open the
first of many sub-levels. I call this one...
-THE HAUNTED HOUSE OF SPOOKTACULAR SIGHTS-
Check out Munch's "Scream" in the background, the eyes follow you! Get the net
on the right and continue left and up the platforms. The net here will give you
a new set of [IRON KEYS] (your old ones got taken off you when you entered
here). Go left and open these doors and keep going left to enter a secret area.
Not much here but points, so follow the ladder to the top and go left into a
little hiding place full of points. Back down, head right past where you found
the iron keys until you see a skeleton guarding a MJ Heart. If you need the
heart, stand a small distance from the skeleton and turn your back on him. He'll
follow you until you turn around again, at which point it'll act nonchalant.
The skeleton is indestructible, so don't waste your b-balls on it.
Up the platform here and take out the snake on the ceiling. Jump up and right
to enter another small area which has a captive. Head back out and go left.
More skeletons here, don't let them creep up on you or trap you. Keep heading
left slamming nets and avoiding skeletons until you reach the restart net.
In this area, you have to hit three switches to open the door. It'll require
some jumping and shooting, and there's a skeleton creeping up behind you. If
the skeleton gets too close, jump over his head and go to your right while
looking right until he's creeped far enough away from the switches so you can
resume shooting them. Once all three are hit, head past the open door for a
platform going down. Again, hit all three switches to continue. Down here, hit
the normal net for the [GOLD KEYS] and the bang net to kill that skeleton.
Use the yellow keyhole to summon a platform.
[Side mission: Head right before going up the platform to find circular
platforms. There are spikes and everything here, so be careful where you step.
You can try and get that Lucky 23 in the wall with a baseball (there's a small
gap to its left you can throw from). It's difficult though, and you may hit the
spiked ceilings. Keep on going right and open the door at the end for a Bonus
Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
This should be familiar to you. Throw the purple b-balls here against the walls
to get rid of eyeballs above you. One of the eyeballs in the centre has the
Lucky 23. Remember that there are two sets of purple b-balls you can use, one
on the right and one on the left. IF you run out at one end, run to the other.
Head back to the yellow keyhole.]
Go up here, opening doors with your new gold keys, and kill (or incapacitate
briefly at most) the snake to grab the [GREEN KEY]. Go right, and climb the
ladder all the way to the top. You'll find the top disappears off the screen,
and our hero will find some sneakers there. Drop down and take out these
creatures with your invincibility. Continue taking the path up and right, and
you'll come across a thin piece of floor. Don't stand on it too long, and head
right for power-ups. Now step on the broken floor to fall to a new area. Keep
going right, and you'll have a series of jumps on platforms with little tracks.
Very "Super Mario World". At the end of them, you'll exit this area and head
back to the hub stage, which I'll call "the Boardwalk".
-BOARDWALK-
You'll need to collect the keys again. The Iron Keys are where they
were last time, but the Gold Keys have moved. If you're low on health, you can
exit (Start-Select) the boardwalk stage and go back to the map screen, or you
can enter and exit the Haunted House stage. Either method will drop you outside
the last sub-level you entered, and you won't lose a life from damage.
Head left (or right, but it'll take longer this way. The level is a continuous
cycle so you'll reach it eventually) until you reach the only door with a gold
lock on it. To your left are two platforms, the leftmost one is slightly higher
up and you'll need to jump from the rightmost one to reach it. Above the
leftmost platform are the [GOLD KEYS]. Unlock the new sub-level, which I've
named...
-THE CIRCUS OF CERTAIN DOOM-
Names are not my strong suit. This place is truly horrible though, so good
luck to you. Head to the right, jumping over the large area of cracked floor.
You can grab some sneakers here that'll help in the next set of jumps. Head down
the cracked floor area for a bunch of slopes (there's a power-up if you follow
the ladder to your right. It's not necessary and you'll be running out of useful
sneaker-time) and go right over the little puffs of steam from the floor (they
hurt, but you should still have invincibility at this point).
Another set of jumps with platforms on little tracks. Don't stand on the floor,
even to grab that life, as it will knock half your health off. Unless you're
still invincible of course, in which case by all means collect that Lucky 23.
Stand on the platform as it follows its track, and jump off onto the checkered
platform. Grab the MJ Heart above you and jump onto the flipper platform to
the right. Jump again onto the next platform and hit the net for [IRON KEYS].
Now, this is an odd request, but jump to the left just so you miss the spikes
there and fall down. You should land on a small outcropping of platform next
to a door. Go past the door down here for a fake wall leading to a second Lucky
23. Then enter the door for a Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
This should be familiar to you as well. Instead of stating everything on the
three routes, I'll just tell you that the bottom two paths lead to points and
a MJ Heart, and the top route leads to a Lucky 23 and a red b-ball power-up.
However, since you have a much shorter time limit this time (or at least it
seemed so), you'll want to take the bottom route all the way to the end to
avoid wasting time jumping over gaps, then climb the ladder before the last
room and collecting the good stuff at the top. You can tell when the final
rooms are coming up because there's a little "+" made of points and you have
about 5 seconds left on the clock.
Back out here, grab the Lucky 23 to your left AGAIN, and go right. The jump's
tricky, but you've just picked up 3 extra lives so you can risk it. There's a
door with a green keyhole here, so go back up and past where you found the
Iron Keys. Keep on heading up, getting those doors to your left when you pass
them until you reach the top. Head left over the obviously thin and breakable
floor until you find a door with a [YELLOW KEY] inside. Now break down the floor
you passed and pick up the [GREEN KEY]. Keep on heading down. Open the door
here by hitting the first and third switch and go through the secret wall behind
the MJ Heart. You'll end up near the start. Go up the ladder here and enter a
secret room by jumping into the right wall. Free the captive (only 2 more to
go!) and backtrack to the green keyhole door.
Go through the door with your green key, and head across the springs. The second
one will get you to the spinning candy cane above. Jump up some more and you'll
find the spinner platforms the captive was talking about. Be careful on these,
because you'll be jumping at random strength (meaning it could be anything
from a small hop to a great leap). It's sort of hard to time when you jump off
exactly. Once you get up, hit the much needed restart net.
In this next area, you can bypass most of it by dropping down the second flipper
platform and hitting the switches to the right. However, I recommend jumping
all the way across and getting the [GOLD KEYS] to the far right. They're not
essential (you already rescued the captive for this level) but they'll lead to
good things. Head down and to the left to end up in a new area with a gold lock
door. If you picked them up, open it for a power-up and hit that net for some
food. Head right, jump over the pit with the [RED KEY] and hit the bang net to
kill the annoying wheelie ref down there. Now collect the key. Go right until
you find some spinners over some spikes. Now, this is where it gets frustrating,
you have to jump over all of them without messing up and falling on the spikes.
It's really hard to figure it out, so I'll leave it to you the player to figure
the exact timing. If you die, there are spinners beneath the restart point, so
try and work out timings and stuff with those.
After clearing those spinners, you'll have a couple of platforms on tracks and
a couple of ladders to get past. Kill the zombie at the top and open the red
keyhole door to exit this hellhole.
-BOARDWALK-
Back out here again, go back right if you want to pick up the Iron Keys again.
They're in their usual place. After doing so, or if you don't feel like taking
that detour for items and want to go straight to the next level, head left from
where you exited the Circus level until you find another door with Dr Cranium's
face on it. Right underneath you is a platform and a lot of points. Go to the
area just left of it and board the moving platform to pick up [GOLD KEYS].
You'll need to go back left and up some flipper platforms to get back to where
the face door was. On the way, you'll pass a structure with three doors, the top
one is a Bonus Room. The Bonus Room just has doors you can unlock and no extra
life for finding the right door. It's worth entering if you're low on health
or power-ups though. Use the spring to the right to jump next to the face door
and unlock it. Enter the second Haunted House stage.
-HAUNTED HOUSE OF SPOOKTACULAR SIGHTS PART 2-
Same look as the last Haunted House, a lot harder this time around. First of all
they make you work for the Iron Keys. You'll need a baseball, if you don't have
one take out the mutant to your left and then kill the little baseball mimic
that drops down after it. You'll receive some baseballs. Go right, and go up
the platforms with tracks. Use a baseball on the wall to the left of the track
platforms (remember to duck when it gets near the ceiling!) and collect the
[IRON KEYS]. Now head back to where the mimic was. Keep on going left, there
are a lot of mimics around here. Down the platform, hug the right wall to find
a secret path to another captive (only 1 left! yay!). Follow the platform to the
bottom and take out the ground beneath where the platform stops (you may need to
ride it up and get off so you can hit the area underneath it). Hit the switches
(quickly, as the skeleton will trap you in if you take too long) so that the two
middle doors are down and the two outer doors are up. Go back up (this is a high
jump for some reason, but you can just make it. Try a slam jump if you're having
trouble since they're usually a little higher than normal jumps). Hit the
switches to get past the four doors.
Big jump here, so get a run-up. Over the gap, head past the snake and up the
ladder. Get the bang net here to clear those little gaps of monsters, and then
head back to the snake and jump up into the little gaps you just cleared (again,
this is a highish jump to make, so use slam jumps). Hit the switch to open the
door to the ladder and pick up the power-ups here and to your left (jump over
the big gap again). Continue up the ladder.
Jump on the spring here and hug the right wall for a little secret area with an
item. Head left at the spring for a restart net. Here, you'll have platforms
going around a square track. Follow them up (while ducking) to get a [GREEN KEY]
and follow them down and right for a [YELLOW KEY]. Make sure not to walk into
the secret wall next to the yellow key, or you'll end up at the very start of
the level (really annoying). If you go to the platform on the other side of this
pit (you can try jumping down on the spikes for that Lucky 23 if you have the
health for it) there is another secret gap about halfway up the wall which has
a lot of points behind it. Go up and left now using the platforms (you may need
to pass by while shooting b-balls to get rid of the Robot Monkey Guard) and
open the way to the next area with the yellow keyhole.
Up the in & out platforms, and jump up onto the ladder. Follow it all the way to
find the [GOLD KEYS] (you'll need a baseball to get them). Go right and open the
first gold lock door and use the manual platform to go down. You'll need to
make another SLAM purple b-ball shot (there's a purple b-ball mimic if you go
up the manual platform and go left) to get past. Now, in this room is a series
of platforms which break when you stand on them, dumping you onto spikes. You
want to jump to the first one, and quickly slam jump to the next one getting the
net. If you miss the net, slam jump to the next net and jump onto the safe
platform with the ladder. If you hit the first net though, you can get some
sneakers which allow you to pick up all the good stuff on top of all the spikes.
In either case, head to the ladder and go up it. Go left in this area for a
bang net and power-ups. If you can, entice the skeleton as close as possible
before hitting the net and blowing it up. Afterwards, open the green keyhole
and ride the platform up. Hit the timer net to help clear that wheelie ref and
mutant (get the [RED KEY] he drops), then go through the right door into a
Bonus Room.
-BONUS ROOM-
Yup, nets again. The Lucky 23 is the rightmost net, so make your way right
hitting all the nets. If you're down to about 5 seconds on the timer, go
straight for the Lucky 23 net.
Out of the door, go left until you find a secret wall. There will be some items
and sneakers to help you in the next final little area. Open the doors up here
and open the red keyhole door to complete the level.
-BOARDWALK-
OK, one more sub-level to go. Grab the Iron Keys again if you want, otherwise
head left until you see another circus-y door with a gold lock. Directly left
of where you are is a sinking platform with the final set of [GOLD KEYS] in
the water underneath. Watch out for the current and the eels while collecting
them and head right and up (using the flipper platforms) so you can leap to the
platform with the gold lock door on it. Open it to enter the final level of the
game.
-FRIGHTENING FUNHOUSE OF FORSAKEN FIENDS-
Last level, and the last time I get to name something. Both must be a relief to
you :). This level is much like the previous circus one, only understandably
harder. Jump as far as you can leftwards to get the [IRON KEYS] and keep
holding left to narrowly avoid the spikes. Try and hit this net if you can, but
it doesn't matter if you don't. Eventually you'll reach the bottom and can't get
back up, so head left through some steam shooters on the ground. Make your way
up these platforms (you'll have two very tricky jumps, but they are doable)
until you reach the spinning candy cane platforms above.
Keep going up these (the second one has a shortcut back to the start area with
all the pulleys, but you'll need to take the long way back so I wouldn't
recommend it) until you reach the top via spring. Open up the gold door here
with the [GOLD KEYS] you get from the net to your left to free the final captive
in the game. Hit the restart net and continue left. Here, you have a wall that
needs to be smashed in so you have to hit it while falling past it and heading
back up via in & out platforms. This is sort of annoying if you're getting hit
by the snake each time (you shouldn't be though). After three or four hits, the
wall crumbles and you can continue onwards. Through this door lies the final
boss of the game.
[[[NOTE: I never found the final Golden Heart, so if anyone does locate it send
me an e-mail using the address at the end of this FAQ.]]]
FINAL BOSS FIGHT: JORDON-BOT!
Yes, it's a giant robot version of his Airness being controlled by Dr Cranium
himself. This boss is disappointingly easy for one reason: the nets. These nets
won't get used up if you slam them, so if you're ever feeling low on health
you can stop fighting Cranium and keep slamming the nets for food items to
restock.
Cranium's Jordon-Bot acts like Jordon himself, with the usual slam and shot
attacks. You'll take a lot of damage just running through the robot to reach
the other net (which is why they let you replenish damage, since it's
unavoidable).
To take out Cranium, use the very familiar method of aiming for his
head. Here's a tip: sometimes Cranium will fire large reddish b-balls which
bounce a few times then stop on the ground. The real Jordon can use these to do
a lot of damage to the Doctor's Jordon-Bot, but he'll only get one per pick-up
and they eventually disappear if you don't use them. After taking a lot of hits
the dome on top will start to crack after a while, and eventually smash
all together. It has four stages:
The dome is there and solid to begin with
It has several cracks on it.
It has a lot of cracks on it.
The dome is mostly gone with a few shards still left.
After this, the entire robot explodes and falls off the stage. You've won!
-ENDING-
You get a screen telling you how many points you've received in the game and
how many captives you've freed. Michael then high-fives all the freed captives
as the credits roll. The credits keep rolling as Michael just stands there and
spins the ball on his finger. Not much of an ending to be honest, I was sort of
hoping for a comic-like epilogue similar to the intro. Ah well.
Congrats if you see this screen, you've completed the game!
EXTRA BITS
----------
The FAQ is finished, in my book, but if anyone has any details on the following,
it would help make it even more finished. Like Super Finished. Or something.
Anyway, here's the list:
* Final Golden Heart location (read the Walkthrough of the final level to see
what I'm talking about)
* Actual names of the bosses other than the first boss. The name of that one is
given to you in-game, but the rest are merely hinted at.
* Changes with higher modes of difficulty, if any. I played the game through on
Rookie so I could finish it faster, but if there's any real difference besides
enemy strength or losing more health when getting hit, send me some info.
Send all corrections, extra info or anything relevant to this game or FAQ to
spento AT gmail DOT com (replace the AT and DOT with the right symbols, I just
wrote it like that to avoid spamming).
Usual thanks go to CJayC and the makers of this game.
---END OF FAQ---
