Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fall of the Foot Clan Stuff Thunked up by: Melzo McPhun The date is: March 20th, 2000 Was anybody else baffled by the simplicity of this game? Sure, the TMNT are meant for the younger crowd, but couldn't this be a LITTLE more challenging? Anyway, this brief tour of the cart is the result of a slow, boring work day. Luckily, I seem to be having a lot of those lately. Codes and Stuff Instant Life Refill- If you find yourself somehow near death, pause and enter the traditional Konami code (up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A) and your life will completely regenerate. This only happens once, though. Practice the Bonus Games- If you tire of Foot fights, try hitting A, B, and Select at the same time on the Configuration screen. A question mark will appear to the right of the Stage Select. Here's a quick rundown of the best strategies: Bonus Game 1: Splinter challenges you to guess a number between zero and a thousand. You'll get ten tries, since the Psychic Hotline went down. Start off by guessing five hundred (note that "bigger" and "smaller" refer to YOUR number, not the answer). If you're bigger, try two fifty. Then narrow it by a hundred, fifty, and then ten. This is the most difficult Bonus Game, which is pretty depressing. Bonus Game 2: It's you against Krang in this mind-numbing puzzler. The object is to leave one star remaining. Start out by eliminating a whole row and let the fool do the rest. He'll usually take all but one of another column, setting you up for an easy win. He may try different tactics, but outsmarting him is no big feat. Bonus Game 3: Using the crosshair, your goal is to shoot a specified number of balls bouncing around the screen. Getting a perfect score isn't hard, but there's always one or two of the bastards that seem to surprise you with sudden speed. Combat Tactics- Besides the usual attack, you can jump kick multiple times in midair. Besides being much more powerful, this can help out lots against swarms of Tubular Transports and other unexpected encounters. It's definitely the move of choice for the Boss battles. Ducking while pressing B produces a shuriken attack that's handy for taking care of foes hanging out behind barrels or walls. It's not incredibly powerful, though, so make sure to throw a few to make sure. If you're surrounded on the ground, pressing B and then turning causes your slash to hit in both directions, making this a lifesaver. Your timing must be perfect, otherwise you'll just get hit. Once practiced, you're basically unstoppable. Play as Delroy Lindo- It's rumored that this famous actor is hidden in later versions of this game. Beating every level three times in a row without losing a turtle seems to work reliably, but hopefully a less time-consuming technique can be found. You'll know you've found him when you see the special ending. The heroes are pretty surprised when they discover April is really you-know- who in a clever disguise. Unfortunately, he looks just like the other turtles and even shares the same attacks. What a waste. Bad Guys and Their Buddies Everybody and their uncle seems to be out to get you, so here's a guide to your foes and how to deal with em. Foot Soldier- These annoyances inhabit every level and will pop out of every conceivable nook, cranny, and crevice to take a shot at you. One attack of any sort will do them in, although it may take a few shuriken. The ones that jump into the fray can be foiled with a jump kick, but the stationary ones will scream and throw projectiles at you. It may be wiser to tag them from a distance. Later on they'll grab bricks and toss them at you. These can be deflected, but your enemy won't be harmed. You'll have to do it the old- fashioned way. Tubular Transport- Pairs of these microscopic menaces will hover around in an upper corner of the screen before they attack. Jump kicks work great, or you can just wait until they come to you. A few tricky ones might fly low overhead. Mouser- They're back once again, and they're nearly as big as you. If you touch them, they'll chomp your knuckles, but even that's really nothing to worry about. Cave Bat: You probably won't even notice these creatures, since they don't pose any threat. Dice em and move on to bigger battles. Fudge Doughnuts/ Spare Tires- No one really knows what these things are, but they'll make life difficult for anybody that didn't use the elevator. You can jump over them easily, but look out if there's more than one. Crumbling Masonry- Falling overhead columns can cause headaches for any heroes caught unawares. You can destroy them easily with a well-placed attack. Keep an eye out for them when you make a high jump that scrolls the screen vertically. Foot Brigade- A group of goons on a motorcycle means trouble for you. Turn away from them and jump backwards over the marauding maniacs. As much as you'd like to, they can't be destroyed. Ceiling Pillar- Vertically moving pistons can squash even the hardest of shells. If you duck, though, you're safe, so keep this in mind if you get caught in a fight underneath one. Flamer- You'll come across strange jumping fireballs in the darker corners of New York. They're incredibly weak and probably only cause problems for the blind and similarly impaired. Lava- Your evil-faced enemies rise out of the depths of this deadly substance. Falling in means au revoir to a few health bars. Maneating Trout- If you hang around too long underwater, these irritating creatures show up and clomp onto your hand. They move fast and can be a pain if you don't take them out upon sight. Flaming Munchie- These oddities drop into the water from the riverbank and roll along the ocean floor. Kneeling and chucking stars is the only foolproof method of destruction. Spiked Pod- Very similar to the previous object, they'll move horizontally until they're near you before going in for the kill. They're easy to mop the floor with, but you have to wonder if there's some hidden purpose... Mean Torpedo- Missiles with mad faces on them will dive at you without warning. They'll crumble with a single hit, so they aren't anything to worry about. Look out if you're assaulted from both sides by them while rumbling with a Soldier. Roadkill Rodney- They've returned to haunt our heroes, but they're considerably weakened. It only takes a couple hits to blow up these robots. If you're more than a few steps away, be sure to jump so they don't ensnare you in their cables. Electric Current- It's not hard to get by these without being hurt. If you jump too high, you'll bump your noggin and most likely be zapped. They'll show up on the floor as well. Mobile Spiked Column- Every once in a while you'll see one of these cruise by. Take care not to be standing in its way, or you'll be skewered. They move faster than the motorcycles. Very Tall Spiked Column- If you see this lumbering toward you, get ready for a high jump. You need to clear the trap, but don't overdo it or you'll knock the ceiling and you might get caught anyway. They move around overhead sometimes, too. Unless you squat and watch them pass, you'll end up a little shorter. Pizzas, Bosses, and Bonuses Stage One: The Sunny Side of Brooklyn - Slash the second oil drum a couple times and you'll uncover a hidden Bonus Area 1. - If you're low on health near the end of 1-1, a Foot Soldier will helpfully drop a Whole Pizza upon his defeat. - As soon as you hit 1-2, you'll find a Mouser that gives up a Pizza Slice. - Under the first overhanging pipe, you'll find a warp to Bonus Area 2. - After outrunning a few Mad Max types, some Foot Soldier will leave behind a Pizza Slice. - A pair of Mousers will surround you at the beginning of 1-4. The one on the left holds a Pizza Slice. - Jump in the drink at your first opportunity and crawl underneath some pipes to reach Bonus 3. - Upon exiting the third Bonus, you'll find enemies patrolling above you. Jump up to their level as soon as they leave a gap. One of the Mousers will relinquish a Pizza Slice. - Just before the end of 1-4, yet another Mouser carries a Slice. Boss: Rocksteady Scholars have written essays as to how to defeat Rocksteady, but so far no real answers have been found. Seriously, though... if you know your ABCs up to, say... F... you've got a good chance of beating this guy. Slash him so he flies into the corner, then knock away the bullet he shoots at you, and repeat. You'll put this bad boy away in no time. Stage Two: Industrial Zone -You'll find Bonus Area 3 by jumping into the corner on the right side of the first vertically moving ceiling column. - Bonus Area 2 is on the left side of the next ceiling pillar. - Near the second Bonus is a Foot Soldier with a Pizza Slice. - After the first few Doughnuts, a Foot Soldier hides another Slice. - When you reach safe ground after combating the Flamers, a box will fly around the top half of the screen. Touch it or kick it to reveal a Whole Pizza. Those delivery boys probably got laid off... Boss: Bebop He's a bit more difficult than Rocksteady, but nothing a two-year-old epileptic couldn't handle. Attacking him will knock him up into the air, so move away and get ready for the laser rings he starts firing at you. These can be decimated with quick hits. He may throw a few punches at you, but the range is so short, he'll just open himself up for more abuse. Putting him out is pretty much as easy as it gets. Stage Three: Truck Convoy - On the fourth truck loaded with bricks, a Foot Soldier has a Slice. - The fifth truck like this also has a Soldier hanging out with some food. - On the big semi after the last flatbed, you'll discover another Foot Soldier hoarding Pizza. Boss: Baxter Stockman Aside from throwing small rubber balls, there's not much Baxter does to harm you. Striking at these to destroy them and hitting the fly guy as he swoops in at you is very effective, almost guilt-inducing. Jump kicks work just as well, but he may pop you a couple times unexpectedly. Stage Four: River Pursuit - One of the Foot Soldiers hopping around on the logs will cough up a Pizza Slice. - The first underwater section includes a Soldier holding a soggy Slice. - Ditto in the next submerged area. - At the beginning of 4-2, jump into the upper left corner to find a Bonus with Splinter and his guessing game. - The first Mouser that jumps out at you in the water cave lets go of a Pizza Slice. - After about half a dozen devilish Doughnuts, another Mouser assaults you. Your prize is a Pizza Slice. Boss: Shredder Possibly the only memorable thing about this game is the fact that Shredder isn't the final boss. Jump over him as he strolls across the floor and attack him once or twice from behind. It's hard to hit him from the front when he's swinging that sword all over the place. After he reaches the end of the screen, he'll teleport to the other side and you can dupe him again. Stage Five: Technodrome - As soon as the Stage kicks off, jump into the upper left corner for some target practice. (It's the exact same spot the last Bonus was in.) - As you approach the first laser on the floor, a box will sail by overhead. If you can grab it, you'll be awarded a Pizza Slice. - Right at the start of 5-2, jump once again into the upper left corner (can you tell they got tired of the whole Bonus Area idea by now?). - As those Spiked Columns start coming at you, a Soldier will show some sympathy and give you a Pizza Slice. - You'll see another box containing a Slice after a little longer, but be careful not to scroll any further, since you might trigger more Ceiling Spikes. - When you find yourself battling a small army of Roadkill Rodneys, you'll know you're approaching the end. A Mouser will hand over a Whole Pizza with his death, and that can definitely decide whether or not you win the game. Boss: Krang Unless you're intimidated by his kicks and hops, Krang isn't very special. Jumping around and kicking like crazy will bring you a fast victory, but a ground attack is much easier to keep up. Make sure to jump away after a couple of hits if you take him on toe-to-toe. The confrontation should last less than thirty seconds. Congratulations, man. Oh, yeah. The ending IS longer if you start from Stage One and play all the way through. Notice I didn't say "better". Also, it seems I was wrong about Delroy Lindo's appearance in this game. I think I had it confused with Operation C. Well, I'll see you later, buddy.