******************************************************************************* Vid Grid for Atari Jaguar CD FAQ by BHodges Version 1.0 Created 02/28/09 This document Copyright 2009 by Brian Hodges. 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. ******************************************************************************* Table of Contents I. Introduction II. Getting Started A. Videos B. Practice C. Help D. Options E. Best F. Player G. Save III. Basic Gameplay A. Object B. Controls C. General Strategies IV. Puzzle Attributes A. Puzzle Size B. Puzzle Movement 1. Drag and Drop 2. Slider 3. Perfection 4. Corners C. Video Orientation 1. Normal 2. Upside Down 3. Flipped V. Levels A. Level 1 B. Level 2 C. Level 3 D. Level 4 E. Level 5 VI. Videos A. Aerosmith - Cryin' B. Peter Gabriel - Sledgehammer C. Guns N' Roses - November Rain D. Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced? E. Metallica - Enter Sandman F. Ozzy Osbourne - No More Tears G. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Give It Away H. Soundgarden - Spoonman I. Van Halen - Right Now J. Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit VII. Secrets and Cheats A. Instant Puzzle Solution B. Unlockable Video VIII. Game Review IX. Version History X. Contact Information ******************************************************************************* I. Introduction This is a FAQ for the Atari Jaguar CD game Vid Grid. It contains a list of controls, tips on how to play, and a mini-review. ******************************************************************************* II. Getting Started After pressing B on the title screen, you will be taken to the Video Selection screen. Here you can choose a video to solve or clickon the various boxes for more choices. The current level and puzzle attributes are listed at the top of the screen. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Videos Click on any of the videos to begin playing Vid Grid. Once you have solved a puzzle for a particular level, its border will turn green indicating it has been solved. You can still replay a previously solved puzzle to try to improve your times. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Practice Practice allows you to solve a video with any puzzle attributes you wish. Puzzles you solve here do NOT count as being solved for the level, but your any best times achieved here do count and will be saved. Click on the three boxes on the left to change the puzzle's size, piece movement, and orientation attributes. when you are finished practicing, click on MAIN to return to the Video Selection Screen. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. Help Clicking on Help will give you a brief overview on how to play Vid Grid. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- D. Options In the Options menu you can change which actions the buttons perform and adjust the sound volume. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E. Best Selecting this option allows you to view various high scores and best times. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- F. Player This option allows you to switch, add, and delete player profiles. The current profile will be highlighted green. To switch profiles, simply click on the one you wish to play with. To add a new profile, click on ADD. Use Up and Down on the joypad to change letters and Left and Right to switch to another character. Press B when you are done. Clicking DELETE allows you to delete the current profile. Clicking OK or CANCEL sends you back to the Video Selection Screen. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- G. Save Selecting this box will save your game (of course this only works if you have a Memory Track in the cartridge slot). WARNING: The game does NOT save your game automatically, you MUST do it manually. Be sure to save your game EVERY time you solve a puzzle! ******************************************************************************* III. Basic Gameplay ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Object The object of the game is to unscramble the music video before it finishes playing. There are a total of five levels, each one more difficult than the last. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Controls Joypad: Moves Cursor A Button: Flips Current Piece B Button: Selects Piece Under Cursor Pause: Not Used Option: Brings Up Options Menu 0: Toggles Music On/Off 1: Toggles Cursor On/Off 3: Increases Music Volume 6: Decreases Music Volume Options Menu Pressing Option during gameplay brings up the Options Menu. There are four different options that may appear: SOLVE This will unscramble the puzzle, however it won't count as being solved. REPLAY This option will appear once the puzzle has been solved. It will cause the unscramble video to start playing from the beginning. RESET This will rescramble the puzzle and cause it to start playing from the beginning. MAIN This will allow you to exit the puzzle and return to the main menu screen. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. General Strategies - The puzzles are randomly scrambled, so don't think you can simply memorize the correct move orders! - The puzzle types for each level are always in the same order (I've listed these in the Level section). Use this to plan which order to tackle the videos in. - Enter Sandman is by far the hardest video, so try to finish it early in each level. - Watch the unscrambled videos a few times to get a feel for what they should look like. - In Perfection Mode, drag a piece to where you think it belongs, but wait a few seconds before dropping it so you can be sure it matches. - This may seem obvious, but the easiest way to deal with an Upside Down puzzle is to simply turn your head. - Figure out which videos are easier for each puzzle type, for example, Right Now contains words throughout the video, making it well suited for Flipped puzzles. (I go into further detail in the Videos section). ******************************************************************************* IV. Puzzle Attributes ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Puzzle Size Videos can be scrambled into nine pieces (3x3), 16 pieces (4x4), 25 pieces (5 x5), and 36 pieces (6x6). There are also progressive puzzles: 3-4, 3-4-5, 3-4-5-6. In progressive puzzles, you must solve a video multiple times in one play through. For example, in a 3-4-5 puzzle, it starts out as a 3x3, once you solve it, the video will be immediately scrambled into a 4x4. After you solve the 4x4, it will once again be scrambled, this time into a 5x5. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Puzzle Movement ............................................................................... 1. Drag and Drop In Drag and Drop, you can move any piece anywhere you want. Simply move the cursor over the piece you want to move and hold down B. Move the piece to where you want to drop it and release the B button. The piece will snap into the grid and the piece that was there will go to the empty spot left by the first piece. ............................................................................... 2. Slider In Slider, you can only move pieces vertically and horizontally into the empty space on the grid. In order to move a piece, hover the cursor over that piece and press B. In the solution to a Slider puzzle, the blank square will always end up in the lower right corner. ............................................................................... 3. Perfection Perfection is just like Drag and Drop with one major difference: if you move a piece to the wrong spot, an alarm will sound and the puzzle will rescramble itself. Note: If you are playing a Flipped puzzle and you make a mistake, any "flips" you made will NOT be undone. It's also important to note that an incorrect flip will NOT count as a mistake and cause the puzzle to rescramble. ............................................................................... 4. Corners Corners is exactly like Slider, except that in the solution, the blank square can end up in any of the four corners. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. Video Orientation ............................................................................... 1. Normal In Normal mode, the video plays right side up. ............................................................................... 2. Upside Down In Upside Down, the video plays upside down and all of the pieces are upside down. The pieces CANNOT be flipped. ............................................................................... 3. Flipped In Flipped, the video will play right side up, but some of the pieces will be horizontally flipped. To flip a piece, hover the cursor over it and press A. ******************************************************************************* V. Levels ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Level 1 ------------------------------------------- | Size | Movement | Orientation | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 1 | 3x3 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 2 | 3x3 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 3 | 4x4 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 4 | 4x4 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 5 | 3x3 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 6 | 3-4 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 7 | 3x3 | Perfection | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 8 | 4x4 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 9 | 3x3 | Drag/Drop | Upside Down | -------------|-----------|---------------|--------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Level 2 ------------------------------------------- | Size | Movement | Orientation | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 1 | 4x4 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 2 | 3-4 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 3 | 3-4 | Perfection | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 4 | 5x5 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 5 | 4x4 | Drag/Drop | Upside Down | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 6 | 5x5 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 7 | 3x3 | Slider | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 8 | 4x4 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 9 | 3x3 | Slider | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|--------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. Level 3 ------------------------------------------- | Size | Movement | Orientation | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 1 | 3-4 | Perfection | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 2 | 4x4 | Slider | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 3 | 6x6 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 4 | 4x4 | Slider | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 5 | 5x5 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 6 | 4x4 | Slider | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 7 | 5x5 | Perfection | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 8 | 3-4 | Slider | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 9 | 3x3 | Corners | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|--------------- After completing level 3, you will unlock a bonus music video, Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- D. Level 4 ------------------------------------------- | Size | Movement | Orientation | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 1 | 3-4-5 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 2 | 4x4 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 3 | 4x4 | Perfection | Upside Down | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 4 | 4x4 | Slider | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 5 | 3-4-5 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 6 | 6x6 | Drag/Drop | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 7 | 3x3 | Slider | Upside Down | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 8 | 4x4 | Corners | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 9 | 6x6 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 10 | 4x4 | Slider | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|--------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E. Level 5 ------------------------------------------- | Size | Movement | Orientation | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 1 | 6x6 | Perfection | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 2 | 3-4-5 | Perfection | Normal | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 3 | 3x3 | Corners | Upside Down | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 4 | 6x6 | Perfection | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 5 | 4x4 | Corners | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 6 | 4x4 | Slider | Upside Down | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 7 | 4x4 | Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 8 | 3-4 | Corners | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 9 | 3-4-5-6| Drag/Drop | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|---------------| Puzzle 10 | 5x5 | Slider | Flipped | -------------|-----------|---------------|--------------- After completing level 5, you will be treated to a short video of a crowd applauding. Afterwards, you will be given a congratulations message and your total score. At this point, the game is automatically saved and you will be unable to play or even practice with that profile. ******************************************************************************* VI. Videos In this section, I list some information about each video. I have tried to include several "markers" to help you solve them. These markers are the approximate time that certain features appear in a video that help tell where certain pieces belong in the puzzle. This is by no means intended to be a comprehensive list, watch the videos a few times yourself to get a feel for what to look for. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Aerosmith - Cryin' Since this video has an actual "plot", it's very easy to remember what's going on, making this one of the easiest puzzles in the game. 0:38 Alicia Silverstone is just right of center, looking to her left. 1:32 The black mustang is going towards the LEFT of the screen. 1:46 While getting the tattoo, Alicia's feet will be in the bottom left. 3:25 While in the diner, Alicia is on the left of the screen looking right. 4:14 The letter in the red phone both will be vertical and just right of the center of the screen. 5:34 Copyright info will be at the very bottom of the screen. 5:40 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Peter Gabriel - Sledgehammer Far and away the easiest video in the game. There are very few cuts and the camera is zoomed in on his face for nearly the entire video. 0:11 The sun (red circle) is perfectly centered. 0:40 Peter's face will be centered (and remain that way for most of the video. 1:43 The video will be flipped upside down. 1:50 Video flips right side up. 2:22 Face turns into fruit. 2:35 Peter's face returns. 3:14 The handle of the hammer will be in the direct middle of the RIGHT side of the screen. 4:56 Copyright info will be at the bottom of the screen. 5:00 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. Guns N' Roses - November Rain This video is twice as long as the others, making it ideal for Progressive puzzles. Like Cryn' there is a "plot", making it easier to remember what is going on. 0:01 At the start of the video, the words "November Rain" will be on the bottom left. 0:46 Candle is center right. 1:06 Flower girl is centered. 2:19 The word "Rainbow" is vertical. 2:52 Axel's mike is dead center. 3:37 Slash walks down center of aisle. 4:15 Camera will be zoomed out, Slash will be on lower right of screen. 4:24 Cross centered. 5:37 Sign says "Guns" on right side of screen. 8:58 Text says video is based on a short story. 9:13 Copyright info at bottom of screen. 9:15 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- D. Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced? The frequent cuts make this video difficult, but fortunately there are frequent vertical "stripes" that make it a little bit easier. 0:17 The book with the letters "DO" on the spine is in the upper right. 0:34 The film strip with the numbers is lined up vertically on the left. This will be followed by a white stripe in the same location. 0:51 The white stripe will now be dead center. 1:10 The white stripe returns in the center. 2:16 The red squiggle will be lined up vertically on the left. 2:46 The white stripe will once again be in the center. 3:56 The stripe makes its final appearance in the center. 4:33 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E. Metallica - Enter Sandman WOW! This is without a doubt the hardest video in the game by a large margin. The lighting is very low, there are frequent cuts, and there is a constant strobe effect. 0:15 The headboard will be on the left side of the screen. 0:36 Again the headboard will be on the left. 0:47 The kid will fall on the left side from top to bottom. 1:23 Stripe on the right side. 3:09 This time the kid falls down the right side of the screen. 3:44 The kid's face will be in the top left. 4:19 The headlights will move across the top from left to right. 5:30 Copyright info across the bottom. 5:37 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- F. Ozzy Osbourne - No More Tears This one is actually pretty easy. First, this is the only video that is letterbox, there are two black strips across the top and bottom the entire time. Second, this is another long video, second in length only to November Rain. Lastly, there is plenty of time between cuts, so it's easier to tell what's going on. 0:01 The red lips are centered, the camera will zoom out. 0:27 The door is on the left. 1:37 The lips will once again be centered. 1:49 There will be a "T" centered above the lips. 2:02 The red chair is on the left. 2:07 The red chair is now on the RIGHT. 5:36 Ozzy is in the lower left, waving. 7:21 Copyright info appears at bottom. 7:27 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- G. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Give It Away The frequent cuts make this one difficult. There is one trick I figured out, for most of the video, you can see the treeline in the distance (it goes horizontal all the way across the screen). Lining this up first makes the rest of the puzzle a whole lot easier. 0:01 The "scorpion" guy is centered. 0:15 Chad (the drummer) has horns. 0:34 The guitar neck goes horizontal across the screen. 1:00 Anthony steps to the left. 1:09 Lips are on the right of the split screen. 1:19 Now the lips are on the left. 2:39 The guitar neck is vertical on the right. 3:31 Lips are on the left. 4:34 Copyright info appears on lower left. 4:38 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- H. Soundgarden - Spoonman A VERY difficult video, there are frequent cuts and overlays, so it's next to impossible to tell what's going on. At least the lighting is much better than Enter Sandman ... 0:35 Eye goes down left side of screen. 0:44 Screen scrolls left to right. 4:26 Copyright info at bottom. 4:33 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I. Van Halen - Right Now This video has text throughout, making it a prime candidate for Flipped puzzles. (I decided to be lazy and only list a few of the phrases :p) 0:11 Right now, Ed is playing the piano. 0:21 Right now, people are having unprotected sex. 0:31 Right now, blacks and whites don't eat together that much. 0:46 Right now, God is killing Moms and dogs because he has to. 1:02 Right now, there's a bomb factory at work. 1:20 Right now, oil companies and old men are in control. 1:42 Right now, youth is king. 2:10 Right now, science is building a better tomato. 2:30 Right now, Mike is thinking about a solo project. 2:38 Right now, your parents miss you. 2:50 Right now, no one is safe from loneliness. 3:14 Right now, she is going on with her life. 3:30 Right now, Ed's got his hands full. 3:40 Write now. 3:53 Right now is harder than it looks. 4:11 Right now, we must be going. 4:18 Video ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- J. Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit You will unlock this video after completing level 3! It's above average in difficulty but not too bad. You will always see one of four things: the band, the cheerleaders, the crowd, or the janitor. 0:29 Kurt is centered. 1:39 Janitor is centered. 2:15 You can see the cheerleader's letter "A" on the right of the screen. 2:34 Kurt is centered. 2:41 Basketball hoop is on the left (only time it's not centered on top). 3:02 Cheerleader's letter "A" is centered. 3:10 In this long shot, Kurt starts on the right, moves to the left, then to the center. 3:35 Janitor centered. 4:39 Copyright info at bottom (lasts for ten seconds). 4:49 Video ends. ******************************************************************************* VII. Secrets and Cheats ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Instant Puzzle Solution I got the following code from atariage.com: During a puzzle, press 4 + 7 + 8 + B to instantly solve the puzzle. (If you are working on a progressive puzzle, you will need to repeat until all puzzles have been solved.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Unlockable Video The instruction booklet mentions that if you manage to complete Level 3, you will be rewarded with a special bonus. That bonus is a 10th music video, none other than Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit! This video will only be available in profiles where it has been unlocked. (I have to give Atari kudos for this, most "rewards" in games are pretty lame and not worth the effort it takes to unlock them. I also thought it was pretty cool that they kept this a secret, it's not even mentioned in the instruction booklet's music video credits section!) ******************************************************************************* VIII. Game Review This game really surprised me! I was expecting this to consist of a couple of pixelated, poor quality videos from some indy bands I'd never heard of. Instead I got ten full-length videos of surprisingly good quality from such legendary names as Nirvana, Metallica, and Jimi Hendrix! While having ten complete music videos on one disc may not seem like that big of a deal, you have to keep in mind that this game was released before such things like DVDs and YouTube existed. Just having these videos alone without any gameplay at all would have made it worth a purchase. Vid Grid is a must own for any fan of the Jaguar CD system. Pros + Game contains ten music videos, from artists you've actually heard of! + All of the music videos are complete. + It's possible to just forgoe the puzzle solving and simply watch the videos. + Many different puzzle types means there's something here for gamers of all skill levels. Cons - The later levels of this game are EXTREMELY difficult. - While the videos are on par with other CD movies, they certainly aren't DVD quality. ******************************************************************************* IX. Version History 1.0 02/28/09 Created FAQ. ******************************************************************************* X. Contact Information You can contact me at Bhodges080@aol.com I would appreciate hearing what you thought of this guide and any thoughts you have for improving it. Be sure to let me know if I have missed anything. ******************************************************************************* End