0. TITLE Taz-Mania for Sega Master System walkthrough v1.0 18/July/2004 Hamish Gallagher E-mail (galls@xtra.co.nz) 1. CONTENTS 2. Legal 3. Introduction 4. Controls 5. Baddies 6. Items 7. In-depth walkthrough 8. Final notes 9. Thanks 2. LEGAL Copyright 2004 Hamish Gallagher This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. 3. INTRODUCTION "One day Taz' dad was telling him about a place called the lost valley. A valley where numerous rare animals still live. The rarest of these animals is the giant seabird. The seabird eggs are enormous. Supposedly the largest in the world. A mere legend. Wouldn't you agree..." Game intro. So by reading the intro text, it seams that Taz is on some fairly random quest. Not in the usual gaming quest of "to save the world from an evil genius, but to get himself a feed! So if your in need of some help on getting to tuck into the worlds biggest omelet, or just interested in knowing that some people still play these old but gold games, you're come to the right place! 4. CONTROLS These - due to the Master System's controller - are fairly basic. Left and right on the directional buttons moves Taz left and right (well duh). Down on the directional button makes Taz duck. Unfortually this doesn't move the screen down allowing the player to see what's below. A button makes Taz do a spin attack B button makes Taz jump A + B buttons makes Taz do a spin-jump. Useful for jumping longer distances and for attacking enemies in the air and as soon as you land. Once you're got use to playing the game this will generally replace jump except when trying to land in an exact spot. 5. BADDIES Although I've called this section baddies, they aren't really enemies trying to attack you, just innocent animals living their lives. But they cause harm if you come into contact with them, so spin away! Spear mice: Mice that walk back and forward carrying a spear. Easy meat. Found on the 'Plains' and 'Cavern' stages. Green thingy: I don't know what to call these, they're green and have lots of legs. Whatever. Just spin them. Found on the 'Plains' and 'Jungle' stages. Venus Fly Trap: The only baddie that actually 'tries' to attack Taz as it shoots out yellow balls at you. Jump behind it and then spin them away. Found on the 'Plains' and 'Jungle' stages. Snake: Just moves back and forward. Found on the 'Jungle' stage. Bat: Flies back and forward in a semi circle motion. Spin- jump them or stand on a ledge and wait for them to fly up underneath Taz then spin. Found on 'Cavern' stage. Skeleton: ARGHHH! It's alive! So put them back where they belong. Found on 'Cavern' stage. Mummy: Looks like a mummy, walks... like a zombie? Just spin it. Found on 'Ruins' stage. Ghost: Floats back and forward. Found on 'Ruins' stage. Scorpion: Scuttles back and forward. Found on 'Valley' stage Rock monster: Some run back and forward, some jump up and down. Found on 'Valley' stage. Spider: They just jump up and down. Found on 'Valley' stage. 6. ITEMS Roast Chicken: Yum! Taz loves these. Just walk up to one and watch as swallows it with satisfaction. Restores damage by the way. 1UP: Help Taz out by giving him a life. These are harder to get and/or find than the chickens. Bombs: Eat one the first time you play. Classic! After that spin or jump out of the way as they cause major damage. Star: Gives Taz INVINCIBILITY! Well only to baddies. Careful, bombs still hurt Taz. 7. IN-DEPTH WALKTHROUGH "To write a great FAQ, first I must suffer." Well this is it. The meat of the sandwich. This is my first ever attempt at this type of thing so cut me some slack if it's lacking in some areas. a) Stage 1 'Plains' Part 1 This is where Taz begins his quest. A fairly simple stage to ease the player into the game. Straight away you get thrown an enemy. Spin the mouse and continue along to a small mountain. Spin the mouse and grab the chicken. Drop down and spin the green things till you get to a spring. Use it to jump onto a cloud directly above, making sure you don't land on the bomb. Jump to the left to get a 1UP. Spin jump back to the right and grab the star. Since your invincible the multiple enemies' attacks are futile! Ha HA! At the next cliff grab the chicken. Then keep going along to tuck into another chicken, but wait there's more! Creep gently till you drop off onto the ledge below. Jump to the left, spin the mouse and grab the chicken. After that it's just a couple of jumps to the end of part 1. 'Plains' Part 2 Spin the mouse and use the spring to get to the ledge. It doesn't matter if you fall down the next cliff as theres a safty island to catch you. Keep going until you get to a third spring. Jump up onto the cloud and jump then to the right to eat the chicken. Fall off the left edge of the cloud and while falling, spin. This will dispose of the Fly Trap. Keep walking until you get to another Fly Trap and spring. Spin the Trap and instead of using the spring, jump to a lower ledge. Spin the mouse and grab the star. Continue along the lower level until you reach the 1UP. Then spin-jump back on to the top. Jump along the ledges until you reach another spring jump up to the cloud and jump again to the right to grab a third 1UP. Drop off the right edge to finish part 2. 'Plains' Part 3 The third part of every stage is the Boss part. I'm not sure why Taz has to fight 'bosses' as he's not trying to kill anyone as an ultimate goal, but hey. This is a video game. Your first boss his a rampaging bull that is dead simple to conquer. Jump up over him when he runs towards you and again when he comes back off screen. When he hits the wall, spin him and then run back. Repeat 5 times and that's it. Taz will celebrate and it's off to the next stage! Stage 2 'Jungle' Part 1 Pretty similar to 'Plains' but with more harder jumps and quicksand. It's all pretty straight forward at the start, until you get to a tree with two braches. This is your first hard platform-jumping bit in the game. Taz can be quite difficult to control in the air when trying to land in an exact spot so take your time. Pluck the chicken on the top branch and you're on your way. Just up the next hill is a star. Go down the hill and kill the Green Thingy. You will be able to see a 1UP above you. How do you get it? Walk back up the hill and spin-jump onto the first tree, then jump to the next tree to get it. Now don't drop down, spin- jump to the right to clear most of the first quicksand pit. Quickly jump to the island and use the spring to get a chicken in the tree. While on the top branch do as you did before and spin-jump. If you get it right Taz will land on the next island. Spin-jump on the spring and land on the tree branch. This will avoid the bomb below. Just do a regular jump next to fall between the cliff and the spikes. The rest of the part is straightforward. 'Jungle' Part 2 This part stars off with a tricky platform jumping from one tree stump to another. The best way I found was too not stop between jumps, this keeps a good rhythm making it easier to time them. But that's only the start! The whole part is much more broken up requiring skilled jumping. A secret of this part is that around 1/3 of the way through where there is a Fly Trap on a narrow ledge. Spin that and jump to the next ledge which contains a bomb. Spin this as well and jump to the edge of the next one. Now, creep to the edge and fall into the gap you just jumped. There's a tree stump roughly in the middle. Follow the trail of stumps till you get to a 1UP. Jump the next couple then spin-jump back to the top level. Spin-jump again over the two quicksand pits. The rest of the part is pentely more jumping. Just don't cough it up now! Cause remember there's no checkpoints! 'Jungle' Part 3 The 'Jungle' boss is even EASIER that the last one! Just jump onto the tree branch while the dumb jungle kid firers his arrows. When he jumps up just spin without falling off the branch. Just repeat 9 times to win. Stage 3 'Cavern' Part 1 While exploring through the Jungle, somehow Taz stumbled across a mysterious cavern. Will the bird be in here?! (I doubt a giant bird would live in a cave so I don't think so). Jump the lava and spin the mouse. Now use the island in the lava (the one with spikes above it) to jump to the ledge to you left. This trail leads to a 1UP. Spin the wall to grab it. This is great as it's so easy to get and so early on that if you die at any other stage you can just get it again, thus you shouldn't lose a life overall on this part. Now keep going back to the right. Go past the spring to get a chicken. Generally on this stage, the fast route to the end is up top while the items are down below. Bounce up on the spring and head right. After spinning the mouse drop down to find a chicken. Use the spring to get back up. Now you have a choice of top or bottom level. The top got a chicken but watch out for the bomb, they're quite hard to see with the black background. Spin the mouse and drop down again to take the chicken. Spring back up and collect the star. Jump along the ledges (there's a lot of them) till you get to another spring. DON'T USE IT. It's a bogus dead end with just a chicken at the end of it. Instead spin through the wall (I love the sound it makes!) and hop over the lava pools to the end. 'Cavern' Part 2 This is a much harder part and it's easy to get lost, so listen carefully! First jump up and spin the skeleton. Then follow the ledges upwards till you get to solid ground. Hop carefully across the -tiny- ledges spinning the bat along the way. Now creep to the edge of the big ledge and as soon as you fall, hold left and your drop into a secret cave. Grab the 1UP over the spikes and drop to the bottom of the cavern. Use the spring on the right side to make your way back up. It's a long way up but if you fall you can just use the spring again. Once at the lava pit with the flame ball, jump it but don't take the ledges that are above the lava pit, unless your low on health (there's a couple of chickens) as it leads to a dead end with the end tantalizingly close but not close enough. So what should you do? Take the ledges to the left. Try not to jump into the spikes above. After spinning the skeleton it looks like a dead end but spin-jump to the let and your land on a spring attached to a ledge in the west wall. Jump up the series of ledges till you reach the top level. But don't fall! As your end up right back at the start. D'OH! This time don't use the ledges, instead jump across the lava pits, grab the chicken in the middle, then use the - tiny- ledges to reach the end. 'Cavern' Part 3 Just as the main parts of the stage have upped the ante, so has the boss who is much harder, possible the hardest in the game. First thing: never try attacking him while he throwing the boomerangs. Jump on the ledge and avoid them. When they have done the 180, he will hop to a new spot on the screen. Spin him now. If he hops onto the ledge, drop down to one of the corners to avoid the boomerangs. Good luck! Around ten hits will get him. Stage 4 'Ruins' Part 1 First thing I noticed about this stage was that the game makers must of got a little low on effort or money as the rest of the game's music is just the boss levels music! Anyway, walk along and jump over the gap for a chicken. Jump right again and spin the ghost. Now for the hard bit. Use the spring to jump up to get onto the first of the bricks that stick out of the wall. Spin-jump your way up them. At the top, bust through the wall then the floor inside the hidden room. Spin the ghost then move to the floor below to grab the 1UP. Go back outside and jump onto the top of the pillar you saw on the way up. Spin-jump to the left and break the two walls and spin the ghost. Go up and over the steps to grab collect the chicken. Fall down the gap to the left and then make your way back up. Use the steps to reach the pillar top then jump to the ledge. Jump onto the pillar (the one with a bomb beneath it) and spin- jump to the right to associate your self with a chicken. Spin jump back to the pillar then jump onto the ledge to the left. Spin the ghost and go down the steps to eat up a chicken. Move back to the right and jump up onto the ledge. Jump to the top of the steps and go down the right side. Jump onto the second of the short pillars to get to the above ledge spin the bomb and then devour the chicken. Spin the Mummy and spin jump onto the grass-covered ledge to consume a chicken. Drop down the gap you just jumped on ever of the sides, as in the middle are spikes. Use the pillar in the quicksand to clear it. Move your way down the stairs and then along the hall of spikes, it's almost impossible to avoid being hurt here, so just spin through as quickly as possible to minimize damage. The next ledge has a bomb and chicken squeezed between spikes and a wall. It's a bit of a risk so you can decide if you can time it right. Go down the steps and through another hall of spikes and spin of the end as there's a hole directly below the edge. Bash the wall and carefully go down the steps, jump the gap and grab the 1UP. Go back out onto the grass- covered, spin a couple of Mummies, jump the gap and your home free. 'Ruins' Part 2 Jump onto the brick sticking out of the wall to move onto the second floor. Jump to the third floor, spin the ghost then to the fourth floor. Jump the gap and fall through the narrow gap on the right. Spin the bomb and then wall and then the ghost but not the chicken, which you should eat up. JUMP the gap and use the brick to go through the invisible wall to the left. Inside is a 1UP. Continue along right and fall into the quicksand. The floor below it is fake so move to one side and drop through avoiding the spring. Take the 1UP. Spin the wall and spin while falling to dispose the snake. Go right. Use the short pillar to jump up to the next floor, then to the ledge to the left, to dine out with a chicken. Go along right as far as you can go, then fall down the gap. Spin off the ledge to get the snake below. Spin-jump through the tunnel of spikes and then up to gnaw on a chicken. Don't use the spring unless you want another chicken, just keep going right till you get to a short pillar. Jump up and go right and bash through the wall and grab the star. Climb up the bricks in the wall and go spin the wall on the left and gulp the chicken. Jump back across and your face three destructible blocks. Spin the middle one, fall through then spin the right one. And that's that. Pheeew! 'Ruins' Part 3 For some reason two old witches aren't to happy with Taz so yet again, its boss time. This time it's two-on-one but its not hard, more a test of patience. Jump up top (doesn't matter which ledge you choose) and stand on the edge of the screen. Jump to avoid when she shoots at you from the opposite ledge. She will then tally port to the next ledge, right in front of you. When she's fired, spin her then move back to where you were and repeat. It'll take about 16 hits to remove both of them. Stage 5 'Valley' Part 1 Yay, Taz is there! The lost Valley! Spin the scorpion then bomb. Jump to the ledge with the rock monster and spin it. Jump straight up twice to munch on a chicken. Jump onto the small ledge to reach another rock monster jumping up and down. Continue along to the chicken. (Grubs up). Head down, when you reach the water, head right. You will reach a spring. Don't use it, just keep going. The bottom path will lead to a chicken. After that there will be another spring on a narrow island. It's another trap to try to get you to go along the top, so don't use it. If you accidentally do, you will be shot up into a Rock Monster. Just after the spring is a chicken and a 1UP. NOW jump straight up to be on the top level. Continue along. Just after the scorpion, spin-jump to continue on the top level, which has a star. Then just keep jumping to the end. 'Valley' Part 2 The last regular part, thus it starts with an extremely difficult platform jumping exercise. Not much I can say, just don't grab the bomb, and collect the chicken. At the top don't go up the ledges/steps as it's a dead end, designed to make you jump into the water. drop down and jump past the water and have a quiet chuckle at the map designer. Once you reach the wall, jump up the small ledges till you reach a major land mass. Craw to the right edge ad drop down holding left all the way. Your land on a small ledge with a 1UP. Head Taz in the -right- direction! !!GET IT!! (Sorry 'bout that). Your reach a chicken. Utilize it to its maximum potention. About two jumps later is a star. Seize it then use the spring near by. When you reach the destructible blocks, bust through 5, anymore and your end up in the drink. Spin-jump up the Valley walls then there's a bit more classic platform jumping to go. Where there's the spider, drop straight of to the left and take the 1UP. Just along is a chicken. Ingest it. Don't use the spring, spin-jump to collect another 1UP, and another chicken which you should dine with it. A little more jumping and you will reach the end. 'Valley' Part 3 This is it. This... is Tazs' destiny. The giant bird -for a final battle- isn't really very hard. His attack pattern (while more detailed that the other bosses) is pretty predictable. Watch out for the ocasially swooping dives and just go hard with the spin-jumps. Roughly 15 hits will knock him away from his nest, leaving the precious giant egg vulnerable!! Congratulations! You're beaten Taz-Mania! THE END 8. FINAL NOTES If you want to complement me on this walkthrough, have some constructive cristism or have something to add to it, I will happily accept an email: galls@xtra.co.nz 9. THANKS Nick Gallagher for the numerous and increasingly crazy ways to eat a chicken. Muter Thomas for moral support.