Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: Radical Rescue FAQ (All Eighty Rooms Explored!!) Created and engineered by: Melzo McPhun Today's date: December 2nd, 2000 Temperature: about thirty-five degrees Work today?: yes, unfortunately Breakfast: Cinnamon Toast Crunch (what happened to the other two chefs?) What You'll Find in This FAQ I. In Memory of a Saint: That's right, Nels Grizzbar is dead… again. Check out our humble tribute to the man of honor. II. A Revolutionary New Experience: Just why did this game catch my eye during my bi-annual visit to Funcoland? III. The Rules of the Game: What's changed this time around? Actually, just about everything… IV. Running Around and Getting Things: While it's easier to get lost in this game than the Burkittsville woods, hopefully this section can get you back on track. V. Secrets and Gossip: Here's what little we've been able to dig up that's hidden in this game. VI. A Healthy Treat: Here's Melzo's favorite dessert recipe, just to say thanks for checking this out. VII. Thank You and Good Night: SOMEBODY had to write this FAQ for us… I. A Heartfelt Goodbye Let us observe a moment of silence for the venerable Nels Grizzbar, who died for the second time this past week in a freakish encounter with a possessed piece of farm equipment. Grizzbar was a respected member of the McPhun Corporate Team. He first made his mark in the United States back in 1994, when he lost most of his right arm in a bizarre incident involving a cheese grater. The accident-prone Nels made quite a splash with the senior citizen crowd, his cry of "Oy, me giblets!" causing even the most hardened WWII veteran to reach for his hanky. It was only after Melzo McPhun took Grizzbar under his wing that the man's life began to look up. He became a fairly successful lawyer, representing both himself and McPhun in various murder trials. Unfortunately, Nels fell victim to a strange outbreak of bubonic plague in 1997, and died at home. "Death was pretty odd," Grizzbar admitted, stroking his chin in thought. "You might call it a blessing, though. It inspired my latest novel, not to mention my new animated series. And hey, I don't pay taxes anymore!!" Although Nels may be dead, his lessons and memories will live on forever in the McPhun Corporate environment. Nels: "I wouldn't try this out unless you really knew what you were doing. It plum got me a case of the dithers." II. TMNT III: Uh… Why? Okay, I know what you're thinking. "Not another brainless action game from Konami! Haven't they learned from the past five years?" Well, it seems they have. Not only does the last of the Game Boy trilogy possess more gameplay in its left nut than both of the other TMNT games combined, it actually offers some challenge, as well. The game itself can be compared to the Metroid series or even Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, although it's not nearly as long, complex, or fun as any of those titles. Let's get one thing straight here: the days of walking to the right and simply jamming on the attack button every time you run into trouble are gone. You're gonna have to think to beat some of these traps, and unless you're an action game veteran, this may prove to be somewhat difficult. While the setup of the game is very simplistic, it takes some practice to really kick some ass. That's why this guide is here. That… and because Business Law class is really boring. III. How to Kick Ass and Take Names The quartet of green vigilantes has returned once more to rescue the exact same reporter you've saved for the past ten years: April O'Neil. This is even worse than the Double Dragon games. Please, April, hire a bodyguard or something, so we can save Halle Berry or Angelina Jolie on our next adventure. There's a big, big catch. Michaelangelo (the fat turtle) arrives home from the pizza parlor to an empty sewer. Everybody's been kidnapped but him. Thus, Mike is your default starting character. There's no way to be anybody else until you rescue him. This honestly shocked me when I first played this. I expected the conventional "beat-the-crap-out-of-the-guys-in-masks" adventure. I can say I'm completely taken by surprise. Another new addition is the inclusion of a special ability for each Turtle. And I don't mean some lame variation on a spin attack, either. These guys each possess an essential skill to win the game. Mike can spin his chucks like a helicopter and glide safely over hazards. Raphael can withdraw into his shell, giving him access to previously unreachable areas. Leonardo can drill through crumbling floors and masonry like a Black&Decker on speed. And good old Don… well, let's just say he's got a lot in common with Grant DaNasty from Castlevania III. The item system has been completely revamped, as well. You can now carry a Pizza with you at all times, which helpfully regenerates your health upon a fatal hit. Keys, which are obtained by defeating the big and bad Bosses, are needed to free your hideously mutated buddies. Lastly, Access Cards are scattered about, usually in frustratingly hard to reach places, which grant you passage through indestructible metal shutters. You can also find Pizza Slices along the trail (after you KO every tenth or twelfth human-sized enemy), which can come along at very needy moments, let me tell you. There's also a password system at work here, as well. I believe this was the only TMNT game ever made to implement a password feature, so enjoy it while it's there. You can even use these to customize your game (somewhat) using a few handy tricks. Take a look at the Secrets section if you're interested. It's a little disappointing, but the same basic attack repertoire is active here. Swing your weapon or jump and kick. Yahoo. If you're on a ladder, pressing B will cause you to chuck shuriken to the side of you. Simple, but efficient, that's what it is. IV. The Walkthrough- All Eighty Rooms Explored!! It's that time again. Now, I'm no battleship navigator, but I think I have what it takes to get you, the intrepid Foot Clan base explorer, through each and every terrifying obstacle lying in wait. If my directions are off or something is just plain stupid, let me know by dropping me a line at phunruss@hotmail.com. Chapter One: The First Key Room One: Welcome to TMNT III Here's a small sample of what you can expect in the future: lots of Foot Soldiers walking back and forth mindlessly. If you stick to the ground, they'll pop out of the bushes, so it might be wise to climb the trees and glide to the exit. There's surprisingly little interaction with the background here. You can't break the crates, so either use them to jump to the door or just take the high road. (Exit to the right.) Room Two: The First Pizza In this cave you'll meet an annoying new enemy: the Cyber Bat. He'll be waiting after almost every jump you make from now on in the game, so get used to either ducking it or attacking instantly when you land. The Whole Pizza in the upper left at the end will refill your energy completely if you already have one in your inventory, so you might want to come back up after you exit to do that. (Exit downwards.) Room Three: A Fork in the Road There's a new natural hazard here: crumbling rocks. Just wait to the side while they fall, and you'll survive. Floating slowly down as you descend here is a good idea, since you never really know what lies in wait. Use ninja stars to take out the two Bats as you climb down the ladder. (Ignore the first two exits and take the bottom one leading left.) Room Four: Vertical Shaft If you drop to the bottom of this area, you'll find a path obstructed by metal blocks, some of which are rusted and cracked. Combat the Foot Soldiers and Cyber Bats and head up instead. (Exit upwards.) Room Five: Spike Bed Secret Wait for the Soldier to walk left over you before you poke your head up and attack. You'll also run into a new menace. The Battle Attack Droids simply move side to side like the Foot Soldiers, only much faster. They'll speed up if they sense you nearby, too. Kneel and swing to take em out. After you glide across the spikes, cancel the hover and kick the Bat as you land on safe ground. Notice those crumbled metal blocks on either side of the spikes? Remember them. There's a one-way shutter you can't enter at the end here. Don't pay any attention to it for now. (Exit downwards.) Room Six: Laser Drop The lasers around here are easy to avoid as long as you spot the cannons in the walls and don't stand in front of them too long. Take the left split in the path for a Whole Pizza. If you come back here with Leonardo, he can drill down to the exit. Handy. (Exit to the left.) Room Seven: Traffic Area You'll be coming through this section a few more times in the future, but for now just deal with the lasers, Bats, and Soldiers one at a time as you make your way to the bottom. (Exit to the right at the bottom.) Room Eight: Mega Man Corridor Hey, hold on a second! Does this screen look familiar? Yep, there're even those rising shutters before each and every Mega Man Boss in history. What is this, an acknowledgement of Capcom or an honest attempt to be original? Fighting Scratch (Password: 1000002) Room Nine: Scratch Boss battles are a pain in TMNT III. Given such a short life bar and a limited set of moves, expect to lose a few times before you catch on to the attack patterns of each enemy. Thankfully, the "A-B-C repeat" fighting styles of the Bosses in the previous adventure are history. This makes things much more challenging. After you experiment a bit with Scratch, he's no sweat. Approaching him head- on is a bad idea, since he swipes at you with his claw every chance he gets. If he misses a swing at you, go ahead and hit him once. Just like the Turtles, enemies get invincibility time after they take damage. It lasts about three seconds, and believe me, in an action game, that's eternity. If he swings his chain around, duck it and get ready to jump at him. Kicking him on the way down assures that you won't be hit, plus you can move away to avoid the inevitable punch. If he jumps backwards twice, he'll charge. Jump over him and make him pay. With a little practice, you can win without getting hit. Chapter Two: Rescue Leonardo (Password: 2100002) Backtracking: Return to Room Seven and take the upper left exit. Look out for the Bats as you climb the ladders. Room Ten: Spike Chasm Resist the temptation to head down, since you'll have to avoid the annoying spikes as you fall and be unable to return to the top. Just head up the ladder you see in front of your face. Simple. (Exit upwards.) Room Eleven: Tri-Level Troubles As soon as you appear, jump to the right to avoid the marauding Droids and attack them from afar. As long as you take out each foe as he approaches, you'll breeze through these three floors. (Exit upwards.) Room Twelve: Leo's Cave (Password: 3100102) Be careful of the bats that swoop at you after every jump you make. Check out the heavy wooden door on the middle platform and you'll be prompted to use the Key. To do that, just press up again. There's also a cute little message if you reenter the cell after Leo's gone. Besides being the unofficial commander of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the blue turtle's got a strange talent that will come in handy very, very soon. Ducking and pressing A will cause him to spin like crazy, breaking weak floors and stones. Pretty cool. Otherwise, he's the exact same character as Mike, minus the hovering ability. For this reason, Mike should be the main player you use. After you're done screwing around and admiring the neat flame jets, glide to the right and leave here. (Exit right.) Optional But Nice: The First Life Extension (Password: 3100112) This exit will take you back to Room Five and through that mysterious one-way shutter mentioned earlier. Have Leo drill through those partially crushed metal blocks and you'll see a heart-shaped object. Collect it to add an extra two hit points. Go to the right and down the ladder. Back in Room Four, drop down to the vertical shaft that's choked with metal blocks. Again, put Leo's quick feet to work and you'll fall into new territory. Chapter Three: The First Access Card Room Thirteen: Protected Pizza If you took Leo's route here, you'll end up in an otherwise inaccessible area with a Whole Pizza. Drill through the floor to escape, but switch to Mike and float to the ground, so you don't land on either the spikes or the Battle Attack Droids. The right-hand ladder is well guarded and just takes you back upstairs, so head left and through the one-way door. (Exit left.) Room Fourteen: Quick Exit Heading left takes you to a narrow path with feisty Bomb Soldiers, so just avoid the first one, jump to the ladder, and head out of here. The other exit only takes you back to Room Ten, which is a dead-end anyway. Dealing with the bomb squad is really no big thing. If you're forced to fight, just make a high jump at the same time he throws the grenades, and hover in his direction. You can clear the arcing path of the explosives and land in time to annihilate him before he lets loose with another pair. (Exit up, at the first ladder.) Room Fifteen: Card #1 Move right past the enemies and the falling stone. Leo can drill again here, which leads down to a pack of cigarettes that can somehow open another door. (Take the ladder next to the Card.) Chapter Four: The Second Key (Password: 4110112) Backtracking: When you find yourself back downstairs, head to the right and take the ladder up. The bombers on the elevated platforms can be tricky, however. Try jumping just as the first explosive detonates. If you want to drill back down to get the Pizza again, hey, great, but don't forget you can cancel the spin at any time simply by pressing A again. In the vertical shaft, take the first right to Room Three. Here, head down at the ladder. You can't do much if you take the right exits, so forget it for now. Room Sixteen: Locked Door (Password: 5111112) There's a Whole Pizza if you stay near the top of this room. When you get to the bottom of the screen, go left and use the Access Card on the metal shutter. Fight the Foot Soldiers and take the ladder downwards. (Exit down.) Room Seventeen: Laser Mayhem Avoid the mad bomber at the entrance and drop down to the split in the trail. Have Leo dig his way down on the right side to bypass most of the heat this stage has to offer. Switch to Mike in midair and float to safety, since there's a laser cannon just to your left. (Exit to the left.) Room Eighteen: Spikes and Bombs When you reach the bed of spikes, float a bit left to trigger the Bat's flight, then cross when the coast is clear. The bomb throwers are awkwardly placed; try to hit the grenades in the air before you jump to them. (Exit down.) Room Nineteen: A Convenient Pizza Wait for the Bats to come to you at the beginning, then head down and to the left. The bombers should be pretty easy for you to scrap by now. Snatch the Whole Pizza in the upper left corner (could be a bit hard to see), then head up the ladder. (Exit up, on the left side of the divider.) Room Twenty: Robot Walkers As soon as you reach the floor, you'll brawl with a mysterious new beast. Walk forward to meet it and attack. It'll jump at you while it's still invincible, but it should get caught on the overhang and fall a few steps in front of you. Three hits take out this trash. Take the right path up, timing your jumps to avoid the Attack Droids. Jump kick the Bats and knock out a Bomb Soldier before you leave. (Exit left.) Room Twenty-One: Boss Corridor It's Mega Man's hall again! When does the madness end?! Battling Dirtbag (Password: 1111112) Room Twenty-Two: Dirtbag Here's another little detail I like about this game: different Bosses. I can't tell you how glad I am to be rid of the usual cast of Rocksteady, Bebop, Baxter, and Krang. These TMNT newcomers are as fresh as it gets. I'm not even sure who these guys are. Like the last guy, Dirtbag should fall easily to you after a few tries. It's safe to attack him up close, as long as you move off quickly to avoid his mattock, which he swings around frequently. Dirtbag always telegraphs his next move with his jumps. A single hop backward means he'll leap at you, so stand next to him and he'll fly by overhead. Two jumps in place should prompt you to jump yourself, because he'll dash across the ground and uppercut you. Get him from behind while he's recovering from this move. If he raises his pick a few times, he's going to jump up and off the screen. Move to the center of the battlefield and walk towards the nearest wall. He should land behind you. Jump as he touches ground and hover, because the earthquake will stun you, giving him the perfect chance to uppercut you. If you're too close to him when he lands, he'll just use his weapon. As always, make sure to grab the nearest Pizza before you fight him if you have to use a Continue. Chapter Five: Save Raphael (Password: 2311112) Backtracking: Head back to Room Nineteen (the one with the Whole Pizza in the upper left corner). You'll have to fight the Walkers out in the open now. Just slash them once so they get knocked away. Meet them in the air when they lunge at you with a couple of well-timed kicks and you'll make quick work of them. When you reach Nineteen, take the exit leading downwards. Room Twenty-Three: Fun Jumping You'll probably notice here that those Foot Soldiers picked up a dash move somewhere along the line. The top level doesn't have anything, so head to the lower floor as soon as you can. The flame jets won't harm you unless you jump, so move on to the huge bed of spikes. A couple of tricky jumps need to be performed here; high enough to allow you to glide across, and low enough so you don't stab your skull on the ceiling spikes. Leo can shorten the middle platform so you'll have an easier time of making it across. (Take the ladder up.) Room Twenty-Four: Cavern of Raphael (Password: 3311312) Go to the left, and you'll find a locked door over a chasm populated with Droids and bomber Soldiers. Use the Key, and you'll add Raphael to the group. Like Leo, he's exactly the same as Mike, with one exception: press A while you're ducking or jumping and he'll withdraw into his shell, allowing you to enter small passages. You can transform multiple times when you jump, which can get you some serious air time. Proceed to the right, floating across the spikes, and make your way past the flame jets. (Exit right.) Chapter Six: The Second Access Card Room Twenty-Five: Subterranean Intersection Fall down to the bottom of this vertical area, where you'll find a ladder. Have Raph take you through the crawlspace (he actually sort of just bops around when he's in his shell). (Exit down.) Room Twenty-Six: Card #2 (Password: 4331312) The Foot Soldier with the pickaxe is actually pretty stupid. He'll attack the wall, allowing you to simply run up and take him out. Use Raph to crawl under to the second half of the cave, which holds the second Card. (Exit the same way you entered.) Backtracking: When you reach the vertical section, head upwards. Wait on each ledge so the Bat flies harmlessly above you. At the top, exit right. Chapter Seven: The Third Key Room Twenty-Seven: Hot Drilling Action Leo comes through in the clutch again here, allowing you to both bypass hazards and collect a Pizza. After you're done eating, attempt the difficult climb. Remember that the tiles adjacent to you will come out when yours starts to withdraw, and you should be able to make it up easily. Just look out for the ever-present lasers. (Exit upwards on the ladder.) Another Bonus: The Second Life Extension (Password: 4331332) Room Twenty-Eight: Cyber Foot Soldiers Forget the left room, since there's nothing but danger waiting for you. Move right and drill through the cracked blocks. This neat object restores your health, as well as permanently extending it. You may also have noticed the new bad guys roaming around: the Cyber Foot Soldiers! Uh oh! As always, there's a simple technique to deal with them. When you knock them back with a hit, jump over them as they run towards you. They'll probably turn around to make another pass, but by then they'll be vulnerable again. Watch it if you're fighting in close quarters, though. When you reach the end, use Raphael again to get to the ladder. (Exit down.) Room Twenty-Nine: Cyber Goons Take it to the floor as soon as you hit this room and you'll find a Whole Pizza in the left corner. Never mind the one-way shutter for now; you'll be using it soon enough. (Exit downwards.) Room Thirty: Laser Folly It's easy to avoid these three laser cannons if you wait on the ladders. Take care of the Cyber Soldier near the exit and get ready for the next Boss battle. (Head left.) Room Thirty-One: Mega Man Hallway Once again, get ready to fight a fierce enemy. Don't let the ominous music scare you off… Dueling Triceraton (Password: 1331332) Room Thirty-Two: Triceraton With a little practice, you can beat this prehistoric foe without taking much damage. You can hit Triceraton up close with few worries, since he rarely engages in close combat. You'll instead want to play it cool, moving in to attack him repeatedly unless he does one of three things… If he hops backward… move in close. He'll jump over your head, giving you a great opportunity to hit him on the way down. Leap away from him when he lands, though, or he'll headbutt you, causing three hit points of damage. Not a good thing. If he shoots into the air… retreat as far away from him as you can. The plasma blob will create a field of electricity upon contact with the ceiling. Do everything you can to avoid this. Not only does it cost you four health bars, it'll stun you temporarily, giving him plenty of time to set up another attack. On the upside, he won't often come through the electricity to get to you, so exploit this to your advantage. If he stomps his feet repeatedly… take to the air and float. He'll dash across the screen with his horns out, which causes problems for unwary heroes. If you know the timing of his running, don't bother hovering. You'll find plenty of opportunities to seriously mess up Triceraton if you're patient. If you have to continue, don't forget to grab the Whole Pizza two rooms back before you return to the fray. Chapter Eight: Free Donatello (Password: 2731332) Backtracking: Retrace your steps to the room with the last one-way door you saw (Twenty-Nine). Pass through it and you'll return to the large vertical area with lasers and a Pizza. Drop all the way to the bottom, drilling with Leo if you wish, and exit out the right side. Room Thirty-Three: Meet the Jetpack Soldiers Here you'll encounter a troublesome new adversary: airborne Foot Soldiers. While their jetpacks are pretty high-tech, the missiles they drop on you are of the standard variety. Wait till they pass over you once (they shouldn't shoot anything at you), then kick them while they're flying low. Get used to these guys, because they can make lots of trouble later on in your quest. The jump over the spikes is pretty easy if you stand just to the left of the ones on the ceiling and start the hovering a little later. Dispatch the last flying Soldier, and exit down. You'll see the locked shutter you need the Access Card for, but don't bother with it yet. (Exit downward.) Room Thirty-Four: Donatello's Crib (Password: 3731732) You should be a pro at passing the flame jets by now. Remember that some of them flare up twice instead of once before pausing. Use Raph's invaluable crawling ability to pass through to the main chamber of the cave. Jump up and kick the bomb Soldier while he's off the screen. The cell at the left side holds Don, the smart Turtle. You're here to save his ass for one reason: he can climb walls. Press A while you're in the air against a wall and he'll stick to it until you jump again. He can't move upside down, though (like Grant could in Dracula's Curse). Switch back to Raph and head back the way you came. (Exit through the entrance.) Backtracking: NOW you can unlock that door. What awaits on the other side? Well, to be honest… nothing really exciting. Chapter Nine: Another Access Card (Password: 5733732) Room Thirty-Five: Donny's First Climb Rejoice, for now that your party is fully assembled, you can explore anywhere in the game you choose. The first order of business is to make use of Don's new ability. Leo can drill at the bottom of the shaft for a Whole Pizza. After you dispatch the bomber, switch to Big D and start the ascent. There isn't much new up here to challenge you, aside from the usual Foot Soldiers and Battle Droids. Look out for the Bat at the top. (Exit upwards.) Room Thirty-Six: A Pizza Mystery Here's a rather odd stage. Both floors have a Pizza, but when you collect one, the other will disappear. Jump as high as you can to clear the Foot Soldiers in the mine cars, since they cause big damage if they hit you. The upper exit lets you glimpse the next Access Card for a second before you fall back down. Try as you might, there's no way to cling to the sides of the gap up here. Give it up, pal. (Exit left.) Room Thirty-Seven: A Route Back Home More flame jets lie in wait this time. After the first drop, move right to trigger the falling rock, then double back and let the flame recede. The exit takes you back to Room Sixteen. (Exit left.) Backtracking: You probably don't need the Whole Pizza here, but feel free to grab it if you do. Head up the ladder and you'll be in Room Three. Climb the next ladder, and take either path leading right. Room Thirty-Eight: The Way Opens If you were puzzled as to how to proceed in this area, Don will provide the answer. Climb upwards (the lower area has nothing but spikes), using D to reach the platform just above the oil drums. Don't scale the wall too far up, or you'll be knocked down by the annoying Cyber Bats. Jump cautiously until you reach the top level. (Exit right.) Room Thirty-Nine: Another Fork in the Road There are two routes to take here. The upper one presents you with jetpack Soldiers (they can easily be decimated by kicking as you jump to the next platform), and the lower offers landmines. Careful stepping if you drop down; the bombs do very heavy damage. Whichever way you go, you'll need to take the lower ladder at the end. Note that you can't climb or jump back up to reach the top ladder. (Exit downward.) Room Forty: Card #3 Use Mike's slow descent ability here, or you'll most likely land on an Attack Droid. Have Leo drill the third stone from the left, and hold that direction on the pad as you fall so you land on the platform next to the Access Card. Don't step into the flame jet, though. Grab the Card and jump into the pit. (Exit down through the hole.) Chapter Ten: The Fourth Key (Password: 4773732) Backtracking: Back in the room with the mine carts, go left and take the shortcut back to Sixteen. Head up and right through either of the two exits. Climb this Bat-infested section again and return to Room Thirty-Nine. (This is the exact same route you took to get here in the first place.) Stay on the upper platforms and make your way to the ladder. If you fall, you'll have to loop around again. Exit upwards out of Room Thirty-Nine. Extra Fun Stuff: The Third Life Extension (Password: 4773772) Room Forty-One: A Team Effort You'll utilize everybody's talents to clear this area. Use Leonardo to drill through the leftmost stack of bricks. Switch to Raphael to crawl into the nook and grab the Life Extend (you can grab it with your weapon if you're too lazy to change characters). Donatello is needed to return to ground level. Gliding across the spikes is very tricky. Ignore the hole in the ceiling and float under the first set of thorns, where you'll find safe ground. Fly the remaining distance with caution, because it's a long flight and you can bang your noggin on the spikes overhead. (Exit left.) Room Forty-Two: The Sun Returns You're finally back outside. Ah, the fresh air. Climb the tree, chopping up any Foot baddies in your path, and enter the door that warns you to keep out. (Exit right.) Room Forty-Three: Access Card Madness (Password: 5777772) Raph needs to crawl to enter the main area of this cave. Use his midair transformation trick or just climb the wall on the other side and drill down to reach the Whole Pizza. Definitely use Mike to jump over the mine and past the flame jet, since a normal jump will bump the ceiling and blow you up. There's a small section of floor that Leo can drill through in the lower right corner, which is a shortcut back to Room Forty-One. I'm sort of clueless as to what purpose this serves. (Exit to the right.) Room Forty-Four: The Great Outdoors Take to the treetops and have Mike glide as far right as you can to discover a Whole Pizza. You can also kick the jetpack Soldier at your convenience, since he can't follow you into the hole. There's absolutely nothing of note in the grass, so move on out of here. (Exit down.) Room Forty-Five: Cave Drop Another set of flame jets and falling rocks bar your path in this section. Take the first exit leading left, because there's a cleverly placed landmine at the bottom of that ladder which you can't see if you jump down. Just keep going and you'll save yourself a few toes. (Exit left.) Room Forty-Six: Foot Mining Operation Make quick work of the incredibly easy mattock-wielding Soldiers and pause for a moment at the bottom. You can walk right, or Leo can drill downward (leftmost block) to reach a new room. Using the normal exit gets you a Pizza, but the lower route's a much better choice. (Exit right for Room Forty-Seven, or just drill down to reach Forty-Eight, which holds the last Life Extend.) Room Forty-Seven: A Well-Guarded Pizza If you don't need the Whole Pizza, double back and drill down to the next stage. In this level, Leo can destroy the metal blocks near the beginning to reach a rather claustrophobic little area. Use Raph to move left and collect the Pizza amongst the rabble of lasers and fire. Crawl all the way to the right, and you'll find a ladder. If you don't drill or for some reason choose to explore the rest of this room, you can get a sneak preview of the Cyber Foot Soldiers that carry rocket launchers. These guys wreak havoc from a distance, but they're creampuffs in a close encounter. Duck right in front of them and you can swat them until they give up. (Exit down.) One More Little Sidetrip: The Last Life Extension (Password: 57777H2) Room Forty-Eight: Maze of Pipes The lower level is home to a few Robot Walkers, but they're no problem if you use the keep-away routine discussed earlier. Bypass the second ladder heading down for a moment and scroll all the way to the right-hand wall. The fourth and final Life Extend will be lying there in plain sight. Take it and loop around to the exit. (Exit right.) Room Forty-Nine: The Road Converges Depending upon which way you went in Room Forty-Six, you'll enter this stage at different points. If you took Forty-Seven and want the Life Extend, you can always turn back. Jump the first gap and head right, taking the first ladder down. (This saves you a painful walk over spikes.) If you keep going right in this level, you'll come up to a locked shutter. Enter the one-way door if you came through Forty-Eight. You won't get far at all, so just take the first ladder leading down. (Take either exit downwards.) Room Fifty: Plasma Problems The irritating wall cannons blast blobs of energy that home in on your location. Fortunately, these can be destroyed. You'll have to cross either this bed of spikes or the one in the room below if you passed through Forty-Eight. It's a good idea to wait for the next one. At any rate, head down. (Take either ladder leading down.) Room Fifty-One: Carbon Copy This is almost exactly the same as the previous floor. The spikes have much more ceiling room, so cross them now if you haven't already. It's hard to float without taking at least one hit. (Exit down.) Room Fifty-Two: Flaming Droids Stay to the center of the screen as you fall, and you'll pass a bunch of platforms with Battle Attack Droids on them. Look out for the flame jet that ignites under your feet just after you land. Take down the Walker and leave here. (Exit right.) Room Fifty-Three: Major Intersection Here's another of those rooms you'll be seeing a lot of. Open the one-way shutter and proceed to the right end of the cave. Look out for the ceiling spikes when you jump between platforms. (Take the upper right ladder out of here.) Room Fifty-Four: Cliffhanger Pizza You can pass these super slow flame jets with ease. To get the Whole Pizza, jump and cling to the wall when both flames have receded, then continue climbing when the way is clear. Escaping is the easy part; jump off to the left when the fire stops. Be wary of the ceiling flames when you fight the Cyber Soldier at the exit. (Exit right.) Room Fifty-Five: Fast Escape Okay, the goal here is to reach the next Boss (who resides in the room above) unscathed. How exactly do we go about doing that? By doing nothing, of course. Ignore the plasma cannons and concentrate on speed. Jump to the tile in front of you (don't worry about it withdrawing), then jump left to the next platform up. Make a few more hops, and you're in front of the door. (Exit left.) Room Fifty-Six: Boss Walkway It's that time again. Take a diazepam and enter the next chamber. Defeating Scale Tail (Password: 17777H2) Room Fifty-Seven: Scale Tail He may seem impossible at first, but this venomous fellow is actually the least challenging Boss in the game. Here's the trick: lure his attacks out and get him while he's recovering. Tail's most dangerous form of fighting is actually the simplest. He'll lash out with his posterior end in an attempt to trip you up. Jump this as soon as you're in range (it has a FAR reach, and it's very damaging). He'll be vulnerable just after he retracts his tail. Keep this numbnuts pattern going for as long as you can before he tries his other move. If he spits a slow-moving sphere at you, jump it and be prepared. He'll use his huge lungs to blow you first towards the flame (big damage), then suck you over to him, and again toward the fire. The best strategy is to… uh… jump. Hold the directional pad in the opposite direction of the wind and you'll stay, for the most part, in the same spot. DON"T use Mike's hovering ability, or you'll be carried away. This is one of the few combat situations where using Michaelangelo is a bad idea. But what happens if Scale Tail gets tricky? What if, God forbid, he jumps? This can create problems, and if your luck is bad, he'll do it often. You'll just have to jump each tail swipe in the corner, and land the hits when you can. Gliding over him is easy, though, so you can escape him pretty much whenever you want. Be careful, as he likes to follow. Chapter Eleven: Help Splinter (Password: 2H777H2) Backtracking: Return to Room Fifty-Four (the area with the Pizza), and use the ladder leading down. You'll be back in the branching cave. This time look for the ladder on the ground (it can be a bit difficult to spot) and go down there. Room Fifty-Eight: Eerie Music Dispatch the bumbling Foot Soldiers and choose your path. The right side gets you a Pizza and little else, while the left continues your journey. (Take either ladder down, but you'll eventually need to use the left one.) Room Fifty-Nine: Big Bad Jumps The Pizza isn't hard to glide to and escape, but the exit sure is. There's nothing valuable at all on the floor of the main cavern, so get set to float left from the entrance platform. The only technique that works for me is taking the hit so you're immune to the spikes on the ceiling, then jumping and gliding across before the invincibility wears off. Don't step under the falling stalactite near the ladder. (Exit up.) Room Sixty: Jet-Propelled Nightmares If you're adept at handling the flying Soldiers, you'll have no worries. Wait at the top of each ladder for the next one to come swooping down, then let him have it after he passes you. (Exit left.) Room Sixty-One: Splinter's Quarters (Password: 3H77HH2) Take out that magic Key and let your master free. Renter the door he was in, and you'll exit the empty room on the other side of the partition. Use Don to climb up and out. (Exit left.) Room Sixty-Two: More Vertical Action (get it?) Step back a centimeter so the falling stalactite doesn't end up in your head. Proceed cautiously in this area, since chances are good that you'll land on an enemy below. (Exit down.) Room Sixty-Three: The Last Access Card (Password: 4HH7HH2) Duel with the mad bombers (a sticky situation, since everybody's at a different elevation) and use Mike to cross the spikes. If you start the glide high enough, you can wait in the air for the sharp objects to fall before you land. Just over the next hill, you'll pick up the final Card. Hurray. (Exit the same way you entered this place.) Mad Backtracking: Retrace your steps all the way back to Room Forty-Nine, the place with the multiple paths. It's really not as time-consuming as it sounds. In this room, search the upper left corner of the ceiling until you find a ladder, and climb it. Room Sixty-Four: A Necessary Shortcut Because of that damn one-way shutter, you'll be sidetracked through this pointless room. Keep an eye out for any missiles coming at you from Soldiers up ahead. When you actually reach these guys, waste them with the incredibly sophisticated strategy of ducking right in front of them so their shots go right over your head. Ignore the right door, since it just puts you back on the path to Scale Tail. Instead, make your way to the left. If you want to turn back for some inane reason, Leo can drill through the metal blocks to make your trip safer. (Exit left.) A Little More Backtracking: Pass the one-way door and take the ladder up. Continue upward through these next two rooms, and you'll arrive at the level with the locked shutter. Battle rocket-launching Cyber Soldiers until you reach the end. Chapter Twelve: The Final Journey (Password: 5HHHHH2) Room Sixty-Five: Laser Dancing It'll take some fancy footwork to maneuver yourself through this area without being toasted. Jump up as quickly as you can at the beginning to avoid those homing energy balls. You'll want to definitely observe the timing of each set of lasers before you attempt to pass them, or you'll take some big damage. Don't forget you can simply duck a lot of them. (Exit up.) Room Sixty-Six: Foot Lawn Party As soon as you finish climbing, kill the Foot Soldier and his airborne brother. You'll be awarded a Pizza if you climb the first tree. Lay low to avoid the jetpack Soldiers later on, and always wait until they pass overhead once before making your move. (Exit left.) Room Sixty-Seven: Crazy Cavern See those two little dots left on your map? One of those is April, and she'd better have a cure for testicular cancer or something in her possession if this is what it takes to find her. Walk over the first two fire holes before they ignite and wait for the next one to die out. Jump the last one, kicking the flying Soldier in the process, and you'll be on safe ground momentarily. Use the upper platforms to go left, since there's nothing but spikes on the lower level. It's easy to destroy the jetpack Soldiers here, since the low ceiling confines their movement. Jump off the ladder at the end as you climb down, so the flame jet just out of sight doesn't turn your derriere into flambé. (Exit downward via the ladder.) Room Sixty-Eight: Impossible Platforms In what is quite possibly the most difficult task of the game, you'll have to cross a floor of spikes using those annoying receding platforms while contending with airborne Soldiers. Keep in mind that the darker, thicker blocks don't shrink, and you'll have a much easier time here. Always take the time to defeat any enemies in the air while you've got a solid step. When you reach the bomb-tossing Foot, take the hit and attack while you're flashing. Try to make it to the last solid platform before you take out the hovering bad guy, since jumping and kicking is time-consuming. The last challenge before you move on is using Don to cling to the side of the exit platform without being barbecued by the ceiling flame. Just jump when the fire's out, wait for it to withdraw again, and jump up to the door. If you miss this final leap, there's a Whole Pizza consolation prize in the extreme lower right corner. (Exit right.) Room Sixty-Nine: Almost Home You're about to take on a gauntlet of Bosses, but this area poses no problems. You should be pretty used to dodging lasers and flame jets by this point of your journey (if not, how the hell did you get here?), so grab the final Pizza of the game and get ready for the biggest challenge yet. (Exit left.) Room Seventy: Boss Hallway (Password: 1HHHHH2) Who we gonna fight this time? Is it good ol' Shred Hed? Sorry, buddy. Your work has only just begun… Room Seventy-One: Scratch Again At this point, you'll probably be hanging your head in defeat. Me, I loathe games that make you replay every goddam Boss before the end. That's another way of saying, "Hey, we're in a big hurry here, so instead of giving you a fresh new challenge, we're just repackaging the things you've done already. Thanks for the thirty bucks." You can do this, though. It's a realistic goal. Besides having a longer life meter, Scratch is exactly the same as before. Just keep in mind that you can't return for the Pizza before you head to the next battle, and you'll be fine. Room Seventy-Two: Mega Man Walkway I think you know who's on the other side of that door. What are you waiting for? Get in there and take care of business. Room Seventy-Three: Dirtbag the Second If you're a little slow about remembering each Boss's attack strategies, don't fret. It took me nearly a dozen tries to beat this section of the game, but I did it. Just look out for Bag's jumping earthquake attack. It's a pain in the old gonads. Room Seventy-Four: Mega Man Passage Step right into door number three, my friend, where you'll meet the rather crusty fellow we know as… Room Seventy-Five: Triceraton Revisited Mr. T is the same story, just watch out for that damn electricity attack. It's a very good thing that your health is refilled after every battle, because I have the feeling much fewer people would have beaten this game had it been otherwise. Room Seventy-Six: Boss Passage You're almost there. The next guy should be easy. Then, you get to experience the most frustrating fight of the game. I sure can't wait… Room Seventy-Seven: The Return of Scale Tail Scale Tail is the exact same nutbag you fought about twenty minutes ago, so hop in here and tear him to pieces again. If you use your Pizza at any time during these replay battles, you might as well reset the game, because you'll never win against the final Boss. Room Seventy-Eight: Ominous Corridor Who lies in wait behind this last shutter? I'll give you a subtle hint: you've defeated him about sixteen hundred times in the past. The Decisive Battle Room Seventy-Nine: Turtles Unite Dealing With Shredder: You'll make use of everyone in this fight to the finish (well, Leo's drilling is kind of useless). Your main opportunity to hurt Shredder will be when he crouches and delivers a flying kick. It takes him a moment to recover, so this is the perfect time to land a blow. Resist the temptation to approach him head-on; he has a nasty kick that causes big damage and has a long range (this will miss Raph if he's in his shell). Where exactly do the other guys come in? When Shred levitates and splits into multiple images, one of them will solidify and come down on you with a diving kick. Have Raph pull into his shell and freak around the room a little, and he should usually miss you. If the Boss summons a ball of energy in his palm, use Don to cling to the upper corner of the wall. This attack will blaze by underneath you. If he's too close, you'll be in big trouble. Try to avoid losing the Pizza here, if you can. Also, try trading hits with Shredder if at all possible. If he gains too big of a lead on you, you're done for. Taking Down Cyber Shredder: Yeah, it's not enough that you beat up everybody twice, it's not enough that you took Shredder himself to the cleaners, now you need to face an enhanced reincarnation of the villain. What is it with this stupid fixation on a super version of Shredder? To me, this is the programmers' way of saying, "Look, we know we're shamelessly ripping off The Secret of the Ooze, but we feel you American gamers need more challenge in your life. Thanks for the thirty bucks." The offensive strategy here is exactly the same; hit him hard when he uses the flying kick. It's very difficult to get a clean shot at him at any other time. You might notice a few new tricks the Cyber psycho pulls out. He'll levitate while producing the energy sphere, which is much easier to avoid than the stationary version. However, the ground flames it produces are bigger, so make sure to climb up as high as you can, or risk being severely injured. He'll come down from this attack with a drop kick, so wait until he's grounded before you make a move (hovering with Mike is usually a good idea, since he'll often end up in front of you). His other new move is a triangle kick, which is foretold by a quick hop backwards. Stand next to him so he arcs over you, then deliver a punch when he touches down. Make sure to jump away right after this, or you'll be chewing his foot. He often does this jump kick attack multiple times consecutively, so you can shave off his health quickly. No matter what strategy you use, he's gonna take lots of trial and error and a little luck, so patience is a good thing to have on your side, too. When you finally manage to bring down the madman, he'll cough up the very last Key, which is used about fifty feet from here. Room Eighty: The Home Stretch If you somehow manage to die in this room, please let me know by mailing me at phunruss@hotmail.com. I've tried myself, but it would take perseverance. The flame jets here are a joke. Walk right through them if you want, and use the final Key on the locked door. You've just beaten the hardest TMNT game the world has to offer. V. Special Tricks and Secret Surprises Being that this is a Konami game and all, I'm convinced there's a code of some sort hidden in here, but for now anyone interested will have to make do with the few Easter eggs we've discovered… Password Play: Savvy players may have noticed a couple of variables in the password system. The second to last character dictates the length of your life meter, while the last letter starts you with a specified number of continues. Check out this list for the full scoop. Password (example: 1HHHHXY) if X is… then… if Y is… then… 0 6 life bars 0 0 continues 1 8 life bars 1 1 continue 2 8 life bars 2 2 continues 3 10 life bars anything else not valid 4 8 life bars 5 10 life bars 6 10 life bars 7 12 life bars 8 8 life bars 9 10 life bars B 10 life bars C 12 life bars D 10 life bars F 12 life bars G 12 life bars H 14 life bars The life meter trick is limited, though. For example, you can't start at the first battle with Scratch using fourteen life bars. Also, certain numbers will only work in specific areas. If one letter doesn't work for the effect you want, just try a different one that gives the same result. Needless to say, you can pick any number of continues anytime you want. Cheating to Win Well, here're a couple of the usual Game Shark codes to assist you if you have one. Personally, I frown on these devices (honestly, I'm just too cheap to run out and spend money on one), but if you're up for a hollow ending with no sense of achievement whatsoever, be my guest… 0103FAC0- The description for this is "infinite lives", but how exactly does that work? 01064CC1- Here's the code you want to beat the game. You're utterly invincible! Thanks to the Game Software Code Creators Club for these gems. I didn't quite have the drive to hunt down Game Genie codes, but I'm sure they're out there somewhere. VI. The Perfect Treat For an Ailing Friend Just for plodding through this aimless FAQ, here's a special recipe that will bring tears of joy to your loved ones if you make it right. It's kind of fattening, though, so don't go serving it to the couch potatoes around the neighborhood. The Stuff You Need: - ½ cup of margarine - ¾ cup sugar - 1 cup finely cut dates - 1 tablespoon dairy creamer - ½ teaspoon salt - 1 teaspoon egg - 2 tablespoons water - 3 cups oven toasted puffed rice - 1 teaspoon vanilla - ½ cup powdered sugar The Stuff You Do: 1. Spread the puffed rice on a baking sheet. Toast it in an oven at 350 degrees until it's brown. 2. In a large saucepan, melt ½ cup margarine over low heat. Add the dates and all the sugar to the mix. Stir that mess until it boils. 3. Remove the pan from the stove and add 1 tablespoon creamer, 1 teaspoon egg, and all the water. Stir it more. 4. Boil it all for two minutes while you stir. Turn off the heat and stir in 
the vanilla extract and the puffed rice. 
5.	Chill the mixture for 90 minutes to two hours (whenever you can roll it 
into little 1-inch balls). Roll these in the powdered sugar. 
6.	You'll get about six dozen cookies. If you managed to do this without 
starting a fire or causing any accidental fatalities, consider yourself a 
culinary master. 
 Special thanks to Chef Lophe's Phe-Nominal Cookbook for the info on this 
awesome dessert. Too bad most of the other recipes are various health foods. 
Yech.
 
 VII. The Small Print
 The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and their mutagenically spawned counterparts 
are products of the imaginations at Mirage Studios. This Game Boy game was 
created by Konami Co., Ltd. 
 Okay, now for the important stuff. Nels Grizzbar is a copyright of Mr. Bum, 
and is used with permission. (Sorry if I didn't really ask you, Nick.) The 
McPhun Corporate Environment, along with this entire document, is owned by Mr. 
McPhun and defended heavily by paid mercenaries. Thanks again for checking 
this thing out, and have a nice Christmas (or a happy Hanukkah, or a crazy 
Kwanzaa). And don't forget about that Boxing Day, either.