The intent here is to consolidate all the tips and tricks NA discovers so that we're not re-inventing the wheel every year trying to beat Romance of the Three Kingdoms IV or Wayne Gretzsky Hockey.
In other words, you know how Guitar Zombie has a Mutant Virus thread? This is to cover everything.
I appreciate any and all strategies for beating any title in the library, so post away, in here, or in the main thread, and I'll update as quickly as I can
Each of the three campaigns (Middle East/Central America/Indonesia) is self-contained, with 12 missions and an ending. They seem to correspond to Easy/Medium/Hard, but it's not said explicitly. Since the ending is the same, for our purposes it shouldn't matter which campaign you beat.
Despite the manual saying otherwise, there's no reward for beating all three campaigns in one sitting.
Missions within each campaign are almost random in difficulty -- you'll get a stupidly easy one right after a ridiculously hard one.
Several missions can be solved by simply turning 180° from your starting orientation and going forward, and you'll reach the mission goal right away.
After you fire a rocket or missile, locking on to a different enemy will change its target. This even happens with unguided rockets, which is just as stupid as it sounds.
Enemy AA fire can't be dodged. You have to either get lucky, take it out with a missile from a distance, or fly past quickly and take your lumps.
Enemy missiles are hard to dodge but using the trigger to turn faster helps. Missiles approach at the same apparent speed regardless of how far away their launch site was.
Unlike other games, flying low doesn't have much benefit.
Pickup/rescue missions are usually the hardest, and you never have enough rockets for all the enemies you'll face. Try to conserve those as much as possible.
Most enemies won't attack when you've landed, but helicopters will.
A few landing zones are really finicky, and will mysteriously kill you if you try to land at the wrong angle. Mission 11 in Indonesia has a really bad one.
Central America
1 - Destroy 10 tanks
2 - Destroy 5 fuel tanks
3 - Destroy 14 vehicles (NB: you only have 12 rockets, so blow up 2 MiGs with your machine gun to finish up)
4 - Pick up 3 pilots (you'll need to land twice; both sites are close to one another)
5 - Destroy 5 ships (watch out for friendly/allied forces on land)
6 - Destroy 15 tricks
7 - Pick up 1 pilot
8 - Destroy 20 tanks (difficult mission; watch out for a group of friendly/allied forces)
9 - Destroy 2 ships (super-easy)
10 - Drop off 3 groups of 5 soldiers (animation plays out as a pickup; hardest mission in the campaign -- one dropoff is heavily guarded, but if you clear it the other two are mostly undefended)
11 - Destroy 25 vehicles (tricky because of the presence of allied forces; probably worth battling helicopters and frigates to rack up wins, and using long-range guided missiles when possible)
12 - Destroy 6 SAM sites (easy)
Indonesia
1 - Destroy 8 vehicles (easy)
2 - Destroy 15 vehicles (still easy)
3 - Pick up 18 soldiers in 3 spots (may be the most difficult mission in the game -- strong enemy resistance and low ammo, plus one landing zone isn't on the map; get to LZ #1 by rotating to 45° and flying into the R side of that island, eliminating the nearby enemy turrets; then turn to 320° for LZ #2, and take out the resistance on that island; then turn to 60° and make your way to the little island with LZ #3; occasionally, enemies will randomly stop shooting for no apparent reason)
4 - Destroy 20 vehicles (watch out for friendlies)
5 - Destroy 5 SAM sites (tricky, but if you turn around 180 degrees at the start, it's easier to find sites)
6 - Destroy 1 bunker (silly - just turn around 180° and it's right there - you don't even need to use your laser targeter, you can just use a rocket)
7 - Pick up 6 soldiers in 3 spots (difficult, but not as hard as #3; turn to 280° and fly forward to reach LZ #1, overcoming some enemy resistance; then turn 160° to reach the second LZ, followed by 100° to reach the defenseless LZ #3)
8 - Destroy 1 bunker (almost as easy as #6; turn around 180° and follow the shoreline to the bunker; friendlies are present but aren't in the way; bunker takes 2 hits?)
9 - Destroy 30 vehicles (difficult, but combat is straightforward)
10 - Destroy 2 ships (easy as long as you can find the ships - turn around 180° as always and it seems to help)
11 - Pick up 8 soldiers in 4 spots (not as hard as #3; go 10° -- don't blow up the two fuel tanks -- to find LZ #1 near a bunker, eliminating nearby sources of fire, then follow the runway and terrain to LZ #2, which is also by a bunker; then backtrack to the two fuel tanks and hang a right, following the line made by the tanks, to reach LZ #3, where landing is very flaky and you'll sometimes die for no reason; then turn to 60° and fly forward for LZ #4)
12 - Destroy 4 ships (should be easy, but finding the ships can be difficult, and I almost lost the game on this mission!)
Alien Vs Predator
Use the low charge laser attack at every opportunity. This will keep 95% of the game's enemies at bay, including bosses. This is by far the most effective attack against the Level 2 boss, and the final boss
If cornered, use the slide kick. This is especially effective against the Level 1 boss
American Gladiators
Practice each event until you get the awkward controls and mechanics down
Download the manual here (link coming) for all of the various controls
Event 1 - learn where not to stand during the 3rd person segments. Memorize which spot on the targetting grids will register a hit
Event 2 - you want power at about 80% and angle right at 50%. Cannonball as soon as you can and adjust your direction as needed
Event 3 - try to lead your Gladiator into your opponent's path, and don't carry too much momentum into each ramp
Event 4 - take two steps forward, hold back, and start tapping any of the buttons. 10 free points
Event 5 - shove any Gladiator that approaches you and quickly make for the center pedestal from directly above or below
Event 6 - rapidly tap A and press in the direction you need to go. Very finnicky as you'll need specific approaches
Event 7 - luck-based. Hope you're up by 6+ going into this one
Andre Agassi Tennis
Professional difficulty is easier than Amateur since Amateur selects your shots for you automatically and having tactical control is preferable. Playing as a woman makes for a shorter game (4 three-set matches vs 4 5-set matches), but I'm not sure whether the best woman (Cassie Nova) is as reliable/dominating as Agassi
Take up residence on the service line or just before it, and attack everything (but avoid coming all the way to the net). The CPU always serves wide to the same spot, so when returning, stand in the doubles alley and tap B + diagonally into the court, and sometimes you'll hit a clean winner right up the line. (I couldn't do this as reliably in 2016; not sure whether it's my timing, or a result of playing as a female character).
When serving, aim up the middle, not out wide (the CPU likes to hit screaming cross-court returns on wide serves). If you get into a long rally, just hit a lob and the CPU will frequently whiff on it. The CPU also doesn[t seem to understand the concept of returning to center after hitting the ball, so that helps. Gameplay is very fast so it takes a while to get the timing down.
Ardy Lightfoot
For the golem boss, pogo up to the gem on the pedestal and then drop down. If you crouch with the gem in hand the boss will destroy himself in moments
For the final boss, you need to avoid his lightning by holding up to "hide behind a mirror". On the third phase of the fight, only try to pogo up to him through the first ball of each volley. If you are too slow using the second ball he will jump into you and cause damage
Art of Fighting
Almost every character can be defeated trivially by approaching them with a reverse kick (R) and then throwing them (also R)
When they're down, taunt them to ensure they don't use their special moves
The only exception is Jacky, who can still be taken out easily with fireballs
Get in as close as possible to your opponent and press the d-pad into them while hitting Y. Instead of doing a throw like most fighters you will thrust through them, knocking them down. Get in on them again while they are standing up. Repeat
You acquire a healing item of some sort at some point. This can be invaluable for the final boss fight, and will be used automatically if your life drains.
Battletoads Double Dragon
Select a Lee brother
Use the dash kick. Use the dash kick. Use the dash kick. In the turbo tunnel. Against the bosses. ABDK.
In the Asteroids-inspired level, hold the attack button to bring up a targetting redicule. Once locked, this unleashes a missile that will one shot the UFOs, or even sections of the boss
Against the Shadow Master, leave the lights intact. You'll want to grab ahold of them to avoid his spiked ball attack
The birds can still be juggled in the rappelling section for 1UPs
Collecting x number of power-ups in a row in the turbo tunnel gives you a 1UP
Robo Manus can be cheesed in level 5 by kicking him out of the cockpit before he triggers. This allows you to fight him while he is (mostly) defenseless, though moving too far to the right can still start the actual fight
Blazeon
The final boss can be cheesed by moving through the gate when it opens and then staying right in front of his face, only moving up and down slightly to avoid the green projectiles from behind
Use the mech with the twin "magnets" against the Level 4 boss. It's projectiles will pass through it's defenses. If you lose the mech, position your ship just under where the laser will appear. You will only need to worry about moving right and left to avoid the rockets doing this.
The Blues Brothers
1UPs can be farmed on level 13. Navigate the hazards on top of the dragon collecting as many of them as you can, suiciding if you collect them all. Repeat.
Several stages near the end introduce the game's only real puzzles. You'll need to clear a path for the jukebox so that it it waiting for you at level's end
For Dracula's first form, stand on the third column from the far right side of the arena. If he spawns to your far left, retreat to the low column. If he spawns to your medium left, get him with a cross for two hits. If he spawns to your immediate left quickly whip his face and dodge. If he spawns on top of you, whip him in the face as you retreat to the low column. If he spawns to your right, hit him with a cross to the face and avoid his attack.
For Dracula's second form, you should be able to beat him somewhat easily if you have the cross and 60+ hearts. String out 4 item crashes in order to negate his attacks and heavily damage him, whipping him in-between.
Effectiveness of holy water crash on final form?
Chester Cheetah: Wild Wild Quest
The final boss is a real headache unless you follow this pattern:
At the start of the race, skip to the next step. Otherwise, as Mean Eugene enters from the left after taking a hit, make sure the back end of your car overlaps the front of his by about 30-40%. This guarantees that he won't launch a missile attack, and keeps him from getting in front of you
Drive to the right in tandem with him, heading all the way to the right edge of the screen. If he paces you without stopping or jumping, simply jump straight up onto his car when you've reached the right edge (with him slightly behind).
If he stops along the way, he'll follow a pattern of jumping twice. Head to the right edge of the screen, and just as he jumps for the second time, jump straight up a split-second later. You'll land on his car and he'll take a hit
Mean Eugene can take 16 hits on Hard (fewer on lower difficulties), and you only have 3 lives (plus a bag of Cheetos if you have it from a previous level), so following this pattern is a must -- the fight is an unworkable, cheap mess otherwise.
Combatribes
Rely entirely on the kick, and work most of your opponents vertically. This should make most of the game quite easy. For the boss with the hammer, you need to try and maneuver him just into your kick range while working him vertically. If he starts combo'ing you, try to break free and start again.
Make sure to give yourself maximum continues in the options menu
Contra III
Lives can be farmed on the Level 3 gun ship miniboss. Stand on the far left side of the screen, and kill the enemies it drops. Every 100 kills gives an extra life
Lives can also be farmed on the final level. Trigger the first enemies and then stand in place rapidly switching switching your fire back and forth. Every 50 kills gives an extra life.
The hardest part of the game is the boss rush in the final level. Most of this can be bypassed by hiding on the top of the screen just to the right of your score
(video coming)
David Crane's Amazing Tennis
Don't bother with power serves, they're impossible to control. Use a wide, soft serve instead, but serving from one position (I think it's the near court on the deuce side) will always send your ball out if you aim wide
Serve-and-volley works well in this game, but getting the timing down takes a lot of practice. Don't bother with the dropshot. A sharply angled lob that lands near the service line will often draw a whiff from the CPU, but it's not a foolproof tactic. This isn't a mindless pattern game -- the CPU is scrappy and will whoop your butt until you develop the finesse on your serve and strokes. Trying to blow your opponent off the court will yield a 6-0 6-0 loss.
Playing from the far court is tough, but if you can get the iming for the wide serve down (wait for the ball to drop farther than you might expect), you may have luck by just staying put and hitting back the return to the open court
Demolition Man
Any time you see Simon, quickly tag him with a shot and he'll drop a 1UP
The jump button becomes a fixd direction shot in the overhead levels. This makes beating them trivial
Dino City
Select the 2nd set of characters (females?). This gives you a ranged attack which makes the game waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay easier, especially some of the trickier bosses
Dream TV
To pass each level you need to collect all nine puzzle peices then defeat the end boss
Press the L or R buttons to switch between kids
Pressing the select button will go fullscreen for whichever kid you are controlling
If you have a potion available, position both kids on top of eachother and press "X" to put the second kid in your pocket. (A timer quickly counts down while this is active)
For the first three boss fights the best way to defeat the boss is with having one of the kids in your pocket
Stage 1 KEY #1 Yellow with blue gem Located in the room with the dungeons past the two moving pillars
Opens the wall one level up and left of the ladder
KEY #2 Silver with a blue gem Located, at 10 o' clock, in the room with all the keys and the rotating platform
Opens the door in the middle of the same screen
KEY #3 Blue key with no gem Located in the room with the teeter totter, northeast of the wall that opens up after hitting the switch
Opens the door one level below the teeter totter
KEY #4 Yellow key with no gem Located inside the room that KEY #3 opened up
Opens the door on the lowest level of the tetter totter room
BOSS FIGHT Use a potion to put one of the kids in your pocket
I found the axe to be the most usefull weapon
Jump to avoid the axes while throwing as many axes as possible.
Stage 2 KEY #1 Yellow key with no gem Located in the top left part of the screen, one floor below where the stage starts
Opens the wall on the bottom right of the same floor to allow access to key #2
KEY #2 Yellow key no gem Located behind the wall that KEY #1 opened up
Opens a floor tile just to the left of where the key is picked up
BOSS FIGHT Like the first boss, use the axe and have one of the kids in your pocket
Duck to avoid the throwing daggers and jump to avoid the sword stabs
STAGE 3 BOSS FIGHT Get close to the boss to destroy the bridge then jump back to the other side. The dinosaur will walk towards you and fall into the pit
STAGE 4 There are hidden puzzle pieces behind pillars that are completely covered
If you touch your ship against the back of the end bosses ship it is an instant game over
On offense, make your approach to the goal from the right/left at a near right angle. You're going to want to angle your shot into the opposite top corner of the goal (U+R on the d-pad when moving up the field, U+L when moving down). Once you have the positioning right, you should be scoring with the majority of your shots
FIFA '96
See above
Firepower 2000
Stage 1 boss spawns guys that can be milked for infinite lives
(video coming)
Football Fury
Rely mostly on your passing game. Even though you cannot see your receivers, most of them will be caught. If you have the room, run your QB towards the sideline line of scrimmage. This should cause the secondary to abandon their coverage and try to tackle you, leaving a wide open receiver
Punts can be easily blocked by tackling the punter. Run the defender closest to the sideline around the blockers in a wide arc and dive into the punter before he gets rid of the ball
Full Throttle: All-American Racing
These tips are for the jet skiing option
The game isn't really a true racer, as you're more just trying to beat each of the 6 individual racers one by one. This is done by pulling a certain length ahead of them
The best way to do that is pull just ahead of them, and then hit a nitro to put as much distance between the two of you as possible. You'll know if you suceeded if your guy does a fist pump
To get past the generic racers, pull up just to the right or left of them while repeatedly attacking in their direction.
Buy the upgraded body and upgraded nitros. The body allows you to take more damage, and having 5 nitros in a race will allow you to easily pass all opponents
There are I believe 26 races in total. They more or less are copy and paste jobs, though a few do have an annoying color scheme that will camoflauge any jumps.
The game appears bugged when it comes to using passwords and any nitros you've bought. Try not to have to use your passwords.
On the mine cart level you have two target types; switches and enemy carts. Learn to identity each quickly and/or memorize their order. The enemies need to be killed quickly and the switches need to be shot once. Double tapping them will be your primary cause of death so line up and fire single shots.
On the plane level, move to the top of the screen and slowly do a constant right or left turn. Take down any planes high on the horizon, adjusting height if needed. Change direction or skip past any plane that is too low.
International Tennis Tour
Gameplay:
Press Select on the character selection screen to customize your controls, which I strongly recommend doing. My scheme is similar to Super Tennis: Y = lob, X = topspin, A = slice, B = dropshot, L = flat, R = hard.
Serve with A out wide. Serving from ad court (left) is harder for some reason; you may need to back off a bit to get the ball to stay in. Aces aren't a factor in this game.
Your bread-and-butter shot is the topspin, which almost always stays in, though certain crosscourt backhand volleys invariably seem to go out.
Against serve-and-volley players, lob a lot -- they almost never hit overhead smashes.
Dropshots work well if you're close enough to the net. Hold down and, if they go over the net, they're essentially unretrievable. The dropshot button (or B, in any event) is also used to hit overhead smashes against the CPU's rare lobs.
Hard and flat shots are basically useless since they go long too much, but you can occasionally win a point by slamming a hard shot right at your opponent, whereupon his reply will often go out.
When serving, the most reliable tactic to quickly win the point is to rush forward and hit a crosscourt topspin shot from midcourt or a dropshot from near the net, depending on the surface and the pace of the opponent's ball. If the opponent is a net-rusher, hit a lob instead.
When returning "normally", hit down the line, not crosscourt (but see exploit below).
A strat/exploit for returning serve and winning the point instantly: if you stand in just the right spot and slice your return by tapping A without hitting anything else, the ball will usually dribble over the net for an unreturnable cheapo winner. On grass courts, there are two dots on either side, placed symmetrically at the bottom of the court wear pattern; stand roughly in a horizontal line with the upper dot, and you're in the right spot.
Overall strategy:
The game's goal is to become World #1 at the end of the year; once you're #1 you can skip to the end of the calendar. Winning Grand Slams, the Nations Cup, or the season-ending Masters Cup aren't required, though the fastest route to #1 will have you winning the Australian and French, at the very least.
All tournaments are five rounds (except the Masters Cup which is three). Regular tournaments have either one-set or three-set matches; Grand Slams, the Nations Cup, and the Masters cup are best of five sets. Longer matches = more prize money and bigger ranking gains.
No passwords until the end of the tournament (sigh). Grand Slams drop you into a mandatory doubles tournament after the singles tournament, so you'd have to win two consecutive tournaments to get a password; fortunately, you can forfeit the doubles (see below).
Each week, play (and win) the singles tournament with the biggest prize fund, and you'll reach #1 after Wimbledon. Since you'll be #2 right before Wimbledon, you might be able to skip Wimbledon and play a smaller tournament instead to save time.
Skip all doubles tournaments and the Nations Cup by pressing Select on the tournament bracket screen, which is an undocumented feature that forfeits your next match. The Nations Cup offers no ranking points and isn't required, while the doubles tournaments pair you with a CPU partner and none of your patterns from the singles matches will work.
With optimal strategies and mastery of the gameplay, expect 25-30 hours minimum to beat this game. It took me over 40, but I had to figure out the calendar, win condition, slice return exploit, etc.
Consult this guide (link coming) or you have almost no chance of successfully navigating through the Barrow Downs or Moria
In-Game references to a map are talking about the maps contained in the manual.
Do not miss a gem, necklace, or book, or you will be doing some massive backtracking
Capture your password before you enter Moria. Passwords around this point of the game seem to go bad in some manner. For this reason you will need to beat Moria in one shot
Do not grab Aragorn's weapon in Moria (and possibly several others) or you will permanently nerf him and make the final boss near impossible
Jimmy Conners Tennis
Serve with L and R waaaay out wide and you'll get tons of aces
Rush the net and hit hard volleys (B) as close to the net as possible
When returning, block the serves back with B, and then rush the net
Occasionally use drop shots (Y) or lobs (X) to change things up or try to elicit an error from the CPU
The toughest adversary by far is Edson, who's very fast and a beast at the net. Barnaby can be tricky, Akira's shots bounce super-high for some reason, and Mueller is solid all-around, but only Edson is dangerous in the long term
Jimmy Houston's Bass Tournament USA
The game is pretty straightforward and all you have to do to beat it is finish in the top 3 in 3 qualifying tournaments, and 1st in the Championship tournament. Below I'll list the name of the Lake each tournament is held on, how many days it lasts, the lure I had the most success with, and the technique I used with that lure. I'll also list how many pounds of fish you'll need to finish in 1st place in each tournament. The game doesn't tell you these amounts, I've just learned them from experience. These amounts will never change. As soon as you reach the required amount, you can immediately weigh in and win the tournament.
You will catch significantly more fish around the outer edges of the lake than in the middle. This is because fish like to hang out near underwater or floating structures such as trees, rocks, lilly pads, logs, etc., which are more frequently found near the shoreline.
Once your lure is less than 20 ft. from the boat you can just reel it back in. I've played this game off and on since I was 12 years old and I've never caught a single fish at a distance less than 20 ft. from the boat.
If you cast out a few times and dont' get any bites, don't give up on that area yet. Use the shoulder buttons to move your boat to the left or right because that huge Bass you need may be lurking just to the side of where you initially cast.
As I mentioned in tip #1, fish love to hang out near trees, rocks or anything similar in the water. So cast as close as you possibly can to anything like that in the area where you've decided to fish. The closer the better, just don't get too close or you'll snag your line.
Always set your hook by pushing up on the directional pad. The other directions will work too, just not as well.
The lures and techniques I suggest below are just that, suggestions. If something I said isn't working, don't be afraid to experiment. Sometimes a fish won't bite a purple frog lure, but will immediately bite a white frog lure on the very next cast.
Lake Fork, TX 1 Day Tournament You'll need 15 lbs of fish or more to finish in 1st place.
Lure I had the most success with: Name: Standard Worm/SLT-Shot Range: Shallow Type: Soft Weight: Light Color: Blue or Purple Technique: Cast your lure, let it sink a little, then reel it in a couple feet and stop. Wait about about 2 seconds and reel it a few more feet and stop. Rinse and repeat until it's time to cast again.
Lake Winnipesaukee, NH 1 Day Tournament You'll need 12 lbs of fish or more to finish in 1st place.
Lure I had the most success with: Name: Tube Worm/Jig Head Range: Middle Type: Soft Weight: Light Color: White Technique: Cast your lure and let it sink to the bottom. Let it sit on the bottom for 2-3 seconds, then reel it in a few feet and let it sink to the bottom again. Rinse and repeat until it's time to cast again.
Lake Seminole, GA 2 Day Tournament You'll need 40 lbs of fish or more over the 2 days to finish in 1st place.
Day 1
Lure I had the most success with: Name: Frog Range: Top Type: Soft Weight: Light Color: Blue Technique: Use in areas where you might find a real frog, such as near floating logs or on lilly pads. Cast your lure and as soon as it hits the water start reeling it back in, only stopping for a split second every 3 to 4 feet. This will keep the lure on top of the water, mimmicking a real frog, which will cause the bass to attack.
Day 2
Lure I had the most success with: Name: Standard Worm/SLT-Shot Range: Shallow Type: Soft Weight: Light Color: Blue Technique: Cast your lure, let it sink a little, then reel it in a couple feet and stop. Wait about about 2 seconds and reel it a few more feet and stop. Rinse and repeat until it's time to cast again.
Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie, SC 3 Day Tournament You'll need 67 lbs of fish or more over the 3 days to finish in 1st place.
Unlike the 2 day tournament just before this one I pretty much used the same lure for all 3 days.
Lure I had the most success with: Name: Standard Worm/SLT-Shot Range: Shallow Type: Soft Weight: Light Color: Blue or Purple Technique: Cast your lure, let it sink a little, then reel it in a couple feet and stop. Wait about about 2 seconds and reel it a few more feet and stop. Rinse and repeat until it's time to cast again.
The elf is the easiest character for beginning players in solo pla
Alternatively the wizard starts as the worst class with the least HP and no shield but ends up the best class. Around mid-game his wand is upgraded to a flamethrower that can hit enemies multiple times per shot.
Hidden continues can be found in chests hiding behind the scenery. This will make beating the game exponentially easier
I found three of these continues (locations pending)
Rely on the running game. Sweeps from the I-Formation are especially effective, as are tosses and off tackle. Utilize the motion man for an extra blocker. Hurdle to beat the defenders that reach you and use speed burst if you get seperation
Your defense is unstoppable. Rely mostly on the 3-4 or 4-3 and blitz often. Switch to Nickel or Dime if they face long yardage. Speed rush the left side of the line with the DE, lined up wide. You should get several sacks a game with dives into the quarterback
Madden NFL '95
Select the 49ers
Your passing game is unstoppable. Rely on the Shotgun and hit routes up the field or across the middle. The Hail Mary seems bugged against most defenses, and should be a guaranteed touchdown
If necessary, roll out with Young to the wide side of the field and run for the first down
Madden NFL '96
Select the 49ers
You'll want to rely on the running game, and scrambling with Young. Depending on what the defense lines up in, you can bring the motion man in to block the defensive end, and usually run for big yardage with the QB. This may not always work if the DE beats the block, or if the CB decides to crash down. But Young has the speed for easy 20-30 yard gains.
On defense the primary threat is the passing game. For whatever reason Dime seems to be less effective than Nickel.
Madden NFL '98
Select the Packers
I had offensive luck with running plays up the middle, bringing the receiver in as an extra blocker, passing plays to the RB coming out of the back field (I had to backpedal quite a bit to give him time, but that also seems prone to holding calls), and long passing plays out of the shotgun, often to the fullback. Generally anyone who is matched up 1-on-1 with a CB or a LB is an easy completion
Mega Man X3
You can acquire a set of gold armor by acquiring every item in the game EXCEPT FOR THE CHIP UPGRADES. Those are found in pink Dr. Light tubes, and are indicated on the map (once you have the helmet upgrade) by "????"
The armor itself is found in the first Dr. Doppler stage in a pit not long after the first boss. Move through the left wall at full health to acquire it. It will make the endgame exponentially easier
Metal Marines
I generally try to place two of my bases up in easily attackable locations so that the COM wastes Metal Marine attacks on them, which will give you breathing room early in the mission
For many missions you can use a strategy of rapidly building up your finances with tons of supply depots. Once you're earning $6+/second, build up compact base that has upgraded AA up-front, with radar support, followed by a line of upgraded marines, followed by upgraded missiles. Then try to put up a web of AA in front of that.
I've never been able to successfully build an ICBM as they are too weak, too expensive, and take to long to construct. Don't even bother.
After building marines set their weapon to the anti-Metal Marine gun
Once the missions start to get harder you're going to need to get efficient with your attacks. Find online maps, or construct your own, because you're going to need to raid the enemy with your marines while also keeping them alive. This mostly means avoiding their own marines, and targeting AA so that you can bring in your missile afterwards. Send in one marine at a time, and manually control him so that you can avoid the gunpods while destroying weak AA and infrastructure. Or send in three upgraded marines and overwhelm them with brute force. Many bases can be left defenseless by taking out several AA with these style of raids.
Rely on the inside game, cruise around the defender for an easy shot at the basket, rebounding if necessary
On defense play against the inside game, looking for blocks and rebounds
The AI will often fail to clear the ball when necessary, giving you an advantage
NBA Live '95
Set mode to Arcade
Select the Sonics
Relentlessly push their players around to rack up steals
Push the fast break every opportunity you have. You have unlimited sprint, and the dunks and layups can almost never be defended by the AI
Fade away jumpers are virtually unstoppable
NBA Live '96
Set mode to Arcade. Configure series to shortest number of games
Select the Magic
Follow steps from NL95
NBA Live '97
Set mode to Arcade. Configure series to shortest number of games
Select the Bulls
Follow steps from NL95
NBA Live '98
Set mode to Arcade
Select the Bulls
Follow steps from NL95
NCAA Basketball
On offense, the PC will stick to your player like glue. Your best best is to keep the ball in your guards' hands, and try to get your defender screened on another player. This will allow you to either drive to the basket for an easy layup or dunk, or take a wide open shot from behind the arc. Uncontested shots seem to have a >80% chance of going in
On defense, park under the basket and try to contest and shots near the basket. Pressing into the shooter as he lets go seems to be pretty good at making them miss
NCAA Final Four Basketball
Your best bet on offense is shots from under the basket. If you can drive with one of your guards and get positioning so that you are directly under the hoop, most of your shots should go in, and you will rack up a decent number of fouls too. Experiment with different placements until you find the sweet spots.
On defense I would sit in the key and wait for them to drive the lane or try to get it inside to the post. If you swarm the shooter and spam the jump button contested shots have a high miss rate
NCAA Football
On offense I found wide runs to be nearly unstoppable.
On defense just sit in a pass coverage defense and bring a safety up to stop the run if necessary
Nobunaga's Ambition
Reduce it down so you've only got 1-2 active fronts -- it's all about that strategic positioning, getting to the point where you can attack from territories without leaving them vulnerable behind you
I broke through to success when one of my enemies conquered 3-4 territories and I was able to attack the one in the middle that separated the two halves of his kingdom. Either I struck right after he'd conquered a territory (leaving the origin fief vulnerable), or right after that fief had a rebellion or was attacked by another daimyo.
After that I consolidated for a bit, then attacked his HQ, killed him, and the other territories instantly became mine. I also made a pact with Shingen or Tokugawa, don't remember which, that made my life easier for a while by reducing the threat from one border. Eventually they attacked me anyway, but by then I was able to crush them.
Oh, also, unlike ROTK, moving supplies seems to be 100% reliable in this game, at least on Level 1 and when your kingdom is contiguous. So as soon as you have a territory unbordered by the enemy, use it to constantly send gold and rice to your other fiefs.
The "Bribe" command in battle is a godsend, especially on defense. If your troops' morale is high (and you've got enough of them), it can seriously whittle down your foe's strength and increase yours. You should offer 1 gold more than the size of the unit you're trying to bribe. If you're attacking and your army is smaller than the defending army, I think that also comes into play.
You can see your health (and other stats) by just viewing your own fief, can't you? I think you've got until age 70 before it starts to be a major issue. I had a major windfall when my biggest opponent died, and I was able to pick up a couple of his fiefs.
Once you're down to 1-2 active fronts, start pumping all of your resources into those fronts so you can churn out massive numbers of trumps to overwhelm your opponents.
Stage 7 boss spawns little critters which can be milked for max lives
(video coming)
Porky Pig's Haunted Holiday
In the first section of the last level (Castle), look for a hidden launch pad next to one of the fountains. This will let you bypass most of the section, and rack up a number of 1UPs
Power Piggs of the Dark Age
The final level is by far the longest and hardest. Finding the first two checkpoints will make it exponentially easier
The first one is up and to the right of the area where you run across the dragon boss. Ride the platform up to it.
The second one is in the area where there are a dozen platforms that take you for rides in different directions. Ride the platform that takes you back to the left.
Prehistorik Man
Make sure to get the three heart containers on levels 13, __, and 19. These permanently increase youre health
For the "wheel" level, you need to jump just after clearing each jump in order to gain enough altitude
For the final boss, you can jump onto the right side of his head when he appears on the far right. You'll probably take a hit, but you can get in 10+ hits and take him down fast
Pro Sport Hockey
You'll want to turn off penalties and shorten the period length to 2 minutes, because you're looking at a minimum of 98 games played
When your goal is on the north end of the rink you can easily score goals by sailing high shots (hold A) over teh goalie's head. For this you need to be just behind the blue line, and directly above the goal. Practice weaving down the rink to juke out the defender's and then sliding into position with your stick raised so that you can quickly get the shot off before being tackled.
When your goal is on the south end of the rink I have my best luck doing fast low shots (hold B) coming in from the lower right or lower left. These can be trickier, and seem to require some luck, so you'll be mostly leaning on getting your wins from the other period(s).
On defense, the CPU will score most of their goals by darting past the net and trying to slip it a low shot through the corner of the goal. Trying to position your defender in front the goal so you can either tackle them as they approach, or block the shot with your body
The game has unlimited continues so you only need to bash your head against the wall until you see the end
To defeat the helicopter, take out the weapons, the rotor, and the small sprite on the very bottom of the chopper
To defeat the bus, destroy most parts of the body twice, the hood, and the small piece of the frame above the door
To defeat the final boss just keep plugging away at him. There is no indication you're doing damage but eventually he will die
Rise of the Robots
Most opponents can easily be beaten by keeping up a barage of jumps kicks to their face
If that doesn't work (it won't against the 2nd-to-last opponent) stand back and guard, and let them jump into you. Block the attack and then counter with a low heavy kick. Repeat.
R-Type III
Do not try and max the score at 10,000,000. If you reach this score and die, the game immediately ends
The first form of the last boss can be speed killed with a single fully charged shot at point blank range
In order to kill the final form of the last boss, you must fire your force pod into his mouth to finish him off
The manual/comic book is an important part of the game as it contains secret codes that access hidden areas with power-ups, etc.
The final boss fight is almost impossible without using the code from the manual
Space Football
Turn the system off, take the game out. Smash with hammer.
Failing that, I had my best luck on most levels with the fastest pilots.
If the level's navigation makes carrying the ball into the goal nearly impossible to do easily, just park in the endzone and hope it flies into you. This actually works incredibly effectively on a number of levels
If you take the lead, the best strategy is often to then play defensively. Depending on the layout that may mean parking near your endzone and constantly pelting your opponent and/or the ball to keep him from getting on the offensive. Or just constantly pursue the ball as this often disrupts your opoonent as well
For level 25, good luck. You'll probably just want to keep aiming for the corners of the array of obstacles around your goal (the push on your vehicle should drive you diagonaly across the goal, while hoping you just happen to receive the ball immediately beforehand)
Space MegaForce
The power shot (weapon #6) can be used as a bullet shield while charging
Speed Racer
You only need to get 3rd place in the races, so your primary objective is staying away from other cars so you don't blow up. This is especiallly important in the beginning when they are bunched up
You can clear your way through them early on with the saw blades. Once your in the clear, just use turbos. Since the AI has major rubber-band syndrome, I would save them until the end of the race
For the Great Alpine race, just use the tires for added traction. There is also a twist at the end where the track tells you to take a left but you need to keep going straight. This happens around the 10-11 mile mark. You'll know if you took the wrong turn if you suddenly start dropping in place
Spider-Man/X-Men: Arcade's Revenge
Though a well-known trick, the 1UP loop in Gambit's first stage (jump above the 4th green globe w/o collecting it) is a game-changer that substitutes for the continues/password this game should've had. It's present in the Genesis version too, so it doesn't seem to be a glitch and is fair game.
Stargate
For the Anubis fights, you're gonna want to go into them with a stock of grenades, which you will lose if you die. Don't die. Find a spot to camp where you can quickly hit him a grenade or chase him off with gunfire and stay put. For the final Anubis fight I find this to be the starting platform. If you do die on this fight, re-stock grenades (they respawn)
You'll need to collect 7 runes and 7 nuke parts in order to get the credits. To ensure you do not miss any, you'll probably want to follow a Youtube longplay along as you progress
Rune #1
Rune #2
Rune #3
Rune #4
Rune #5
Rune #6
Rune #7 - To the right of the platform that takes you to the final Anubis fight
Nuke #1
Nuke #2
Nuke #3
Nuke #4
Nuke #5
Nuke #6 - Inside the Pyramid. After destroying the 6 door locks, you'll need to find it before entering the doorway that gives you the final password
Nuke #7 - To the left of the doors to Ra
Sterling Sharpe's End 2 End
Pick the Cowboys
You can pick up first down's 95% of the time if you just run a direct snap out of the shotgun every play. Just head upfield, don't try to juke or dodge or anything
Hail marys also seem to be ludicrously effective. Just wait for your receiver to get behind the coverage as you can throw for infinte distance, backing up if necessary.
On defense, sit in nickel or dime and move your MLB back into coverage as well. You'll disrupt their passing game, leading to sacks, and your line should be able to still handle any runs
Stone Protectors
Select Cornelius
Rely mostly on the microphone special attack (Up-Left, Up, Up-Right + Y). This will instant kill all enemies, heavily damage all bosses, has unlimited usage, and little to no cooldown
If cornered, use a barrage of punches (X) which is near unstoppable against most enemies, especially if off-screen
Super Aquatic Games
Race events - tap A and B as fast as you can, tapping Y if you need to hurdle an obstacle
Seal event - you lose if the targets are awakened and then scared off. Blue balls awaken them in bunches, bright balls immediately scare them off. Hit the red balls in the air with angled jumps. Do not jump for the blue balls; they are too quick. If you see an alarm clock jump into it before it goes off
Bait event - easy, just constantly re-fill your pail, and drop multiple lines of bait per column to ensure the fish goes down
Trampoline event - do 6 of each trick combo. The three tricks are done by pressing Y + Forward/Back/Up (on the D-pad), and are dependant on the direction you are facing. So you'll need to 6 instances of Y+Forward,Y+Forward, 6 instances of Y+Forward,Y+Back, etc. You'll also need to land on the opposite trampoline each time.
Ballon popping event - you can pop the ballons several ways. First, you'll occasionally see winged insects; if you jump on one of those it will launch you in air, letting you easily pop a ballon or two. The second option is trickier; hopping on the shelled insects (without spikes) at an angle that launches them in the air. You'll then need to catch them, and then throw them at a ballon. If you get hit at any point in that process you'll lose your insect
Relay event - Start by tapping A and B, hitting Y when it tells you to. When you reach the seal, use the D-Pad to move and jump over the enemies. You'll need to juggle a ball past them and launch it into the starfish. With the starfish, collection 6-7 baits and then move to the end of the platform. Finish the race by again tapping A and B and hopping over obstacles
Super Batter Up
Fielding
There is no option for automatic fielding in Super Batter Up. Moving fielders into proper defensive positions is the player's responsibility, and there is little room for error. You must be able to predict the ball's trajectory immediately after it leaves the bat and instinctively take control of and begin moving the fielder that is in the best position to make the play. If you hesitate for even the slightest moment, you will have a difficult time recovering.
It is also critical that you understand how to move your fielders into proper defensive positions without being able to actually see them because on fly balls to the outfield, your outfielders will be offscreen during the majority of the ball's flight. Super Batter Up doesn't even display a mini-map of the field in a corner of the screen, as most baseball games do, that shows you the movements of all the players on the field.
My advice is to play several exhibition games where you simply practice fielding. Don't concern yourself with winning or loosing, just practice fielding until you feel reasonably comfortable with it. Believe me, if you don't have a good handle on this aspect of the game, you have no shot at winning.
Hitting
Press and **HOLD** the swing button to ensure that you're making a full-power swing. You want to be hitting fly-balls to the gaps or line-drives through the infield. If you just tap the button or if you release it too early, you'll make a low-power check-swing, usually resulting in an infield dribbler or a pop-up.
To ensure that the ball makes contact with the "sweet-spot" of the bat, follow the inside/outside movements of the ball after it leaves the pitcher's hand. In response to this movement, slide your hitter latterly within the batter's box to keep things squared-up. You'll notice the CPU batters constantly making these adjustments.
Simultaneously pressing down on the D-pad as you hit the ball imparts a greater chance for a fly ball. Pressing up, imparts a greater chance for a ground ball. I could find no strategic advantage in trying to hit fly-balls. In fact, I'd recommend against pushing down on the d-pad. However, there is a quirk in the defensive AI that causes the defense to prioritize getting the runner out at first over getting the lead runner out, so if you can get a man on second with no outs, you can hit groundball sacrifices (by pressing up on the d-pad and, maybe, using a check-swing) with your next two batters to move the man on second to third, and then to home. This was my primary method for scoring runs.
Pitching
You have a three-man rotation, but your starting pitchers can throw every other game, so you only need two good starters. Relievers can throw every game.
The sinkerball in the dirt is probably the most effective pitch in the game for producing strikes, but only a select few pitchers can throw it effectively. To keep the hitter guessing, move a tick or two left or right on the mound between sinkerball pitches.
Curveballs that start outside and break back over the plate can also be effective, especially when thrown on the inside where they can jam the hitter. However, like the sinkerball, only a select few pitchers in the game can throw these kinds of curves effectively. Moreover, the velocity of your pitches randomly varies, which gives each curveball a unique breaking-point, making it difficult to throw back-to-back curveballs in the same groove.
If your pitcher runs out of stamina and starts visibly panting and sweating between pitches, get him off the mound! He'll get rocked when he's in this condition.
Baserunning
Remember, you have to manually advance unforced runners and also manually tag-up after fly-ball outs.
It's vitally important to get your baserunners into scoring position, so be aggressive on the basepaths! If you hit a ball to the outfield and you can see that a fielder isn't immediately in position to make a play on the ball, try to stretch the hit into a double. If you have a fast runner, try to stretch it into a triple. It's easy to retreat back to first or second if you doesn't look like you'll be able to make it to the next base.
If you get a man on first, steal 2nd base. It's difficult to get a good jump, but if you're off, you can retreat back to first with little danger of getting caught in a rundown.
Team Selection
Don't just pick any old team. This isn't a forgiving game. Picking a "bad" team makes winning exponentially harder.
I consider shutdown pitching and speed on the basepaths to be the most important considerations when selecting a team.
On the title screen, if you press the right shoulder button 6 times, then the left shoulder button 6 times, and then press "start", you will be taken to the team view screen. Press left and right here to scroll between teams. Press down to show a team's bullpen. None of the data columns are labelled, but batting stance, batting average, homeruns, and stolen bases should be obvious. It's not clear to me what the final three columns represent, but I'm pretty sure the leftmost of the three columns is the player's speed rating (max 6).
On the bullpen screen, ERA and stamina should be obvious, and I believe the first two of the last four columns represent left and right curveball rating, but I don't know which is which. The third of the last four columns is sinkerball rating. I have no idea what the last column is.
Again, I would recommend picking a team with speedy runners and a bullpen with at least two pitchers who have sinkerball ratings of 10 or higher. Relievers with high sinker ball ratings AND high stamina are especially valuable because they can throw for multiple innings AND they can throw every game, unlike starting ptichers who can only throw every-other game. You can sub-in these relief pitchers in the first inning of a game--effectively making them starters--for the "bad" starting pitcher in your rotation.
Super Buster Brothers
On level 40, head to right when the level starts. Stay in this area carefully controlling the number of bubbles unleashed until either the herd is thinned, or you're forced out by small bubbles coming from below. Finish the level from the middle platform, being mindful of unleashing small bubbles; if they get under you they will have angles on you that are too low to shot, forcing you back out of the middle
Super Chase H.Q.
Save your nitros for the bosses at the end of each level. Killing the later ones in one life without 3 of them is basically impossible without every nitro
For the helicopter at the end of level 5, as best I can tell you need to keep a wide berth and avoid some of its shots in order to trigger the animation where it flies away from you while staying low. This appears to be the only placement where it can successfully be shot down by your ally.
You can also ram the chopper and toke it out yourself in one blow, but I'm unsure how this works
Super RBI Baseball
Set the defense to automatic.
Use the bunting exploit to easily score as many runs as you think you'll need to win. Once you get good at pitching, 5-10 runs should be more than enough. Theres a FAQ out there for the game that describes the exploit in more detail.
Play as the Montreal Expos. On the lineup screen, swap the slower "Fletcher" for the faster "Frazier". Montreal is the only non-historic team in the game that can field a lineup in which every player has a speed of at least 4, which makes the bunting exploit that much more effective.
To strike out a batter, throw a medium-speed breaking ball tight inside for strike one, then throw one just out of reach on the outside corner for strike two, and, finally, throw one either further outside or back tight inside for strike three.
If you're trying to bat the old-fashioned way, it helps to listen for the audio cue when the pitcher releases the ball. A high-pitched "woosh" means he's throwing a fastball, a medium pitch "woosh" means a normal pitch, and a low-pitched "woosh" means a changeup.
Double-check your passwords when writing them down because 2 looks like Z, 5 looks like S, etc.
Super R-Type
You can speed kill the stage 1,2,3 bosses with a single fully charged shot at point blank
Super Smash TV
Try to pin Scarface in the corner with the machine gun and orb. As long as your fire is constant, you should be able to prevent him from acquiring any momentum to escape
Take the upper route on stage 3 for significantly less enemies
Aim for the $ arenas for more opportunities for extra lives
Super Tennis
Play as Phil who can hit aces very consistently: aim wide (including repositioning yourself to one side), and hit A+R at the same time. When you get it right the CPU will always whiff
You have to "rein in" your shots constantly since the game loves to send your balls long; pressing X + away from the net is the most reliable bread-and-butter stroke, a topspin shot that usually stays in. Never hit a lob from near the service line, it always goes long. Adding spin with R is always helpful for control
Play from the back of the court -- serve-and-volley doesn't work well in this game. Brian is the only dangerous opponent before Don J. Hitting short lobs and returning the CPU's overhead to the open court is a high-risk but fairly effective tactic against those two
Super Troll Islands
There are 50 levels to complete with no saving or password options
Most levels can easily be completed by taking your time and being careful, while avoiding leaps of faith when possible
Enemies do no respawn
If you are too slow, an unkillable enemy will spawn that hunts you down, but this time limit is generally pretty forgiving
Super Turrican
For some early 1UPs, head immediately left upon starting the game. Then, jump onto the first power up "box" and shoot more hidden boxes to reveal a path up to a high platform
By far the hardest part of the game is the train level near the end. To make the series of jumps, you must begin the jump from the extreme right edge of some of the platforms. Test out just how far off a platform you can push your sprites before you fall; the game is very forgiving in this regard.
Super Valis IV
Before the boss rush, make sure to collect (and use) the armor upgrade and then fill up your inventory with heals and attacks
Boss Rush #1 - for the first guy, use the triple shot or the "wave" attack so you can keep your distance from him at all times. If he does the double jump learn to maneuver under him without taking damage
Boss Rush #2 - for the second guy, I like to use the homing dragon. Not only can it hit him offscreen, but it will let you know which direction he is coming from so that you can dodge and counter him
Boss Rush #3 - this guy becomes trivial once you get him into his pattern. Once he starts flying back and forth, learn to jump just before he comes onscreen so that he flies harmlessly over you. Do this until he floats back down at which point you can run up and start spamming attacks into his shins. Rinse and repeat.
Boss Rush #4 - for this guy you should have multiple heals and armors ready to use. He will heal over time so it can become a battle of endurance. Learn his patterns, and how to move under his glide attack so that he can't pin you in a corner
Be sure to grab the 1UPs and health refills on top of buildings in the last level (the plane ride). They're easy to overlook!
Troy Aikman NFL Football
Select the Cowboys or 49ers
On offense run your HB or FB through the line, hammering Y the moment you snap the ball. You'll average 8+ yards/carry and rarely fumble (do not run your QB, he will). You will score on every single drive if you do this, pending a rare fumble
On defense drop your MLB back into coverage. Read the play and react...
If its a pass get on the nearest WR. The QB will often become befuddled and take a sack, or throw into double/triple coverage for a pick. You can still be beaten over the top, that is best countered by a deep zone or blitz
If its a run, shadow the back and wait for him to turn up field. Nail him head on with a diving tackle to drive him back and prevent him falling forward or breaking your tackle
Tuff E Nuff
The only tough fight is Jade. Your best choice against him is Vortz.
Knock Jade down, then as he gets up do a standing weak kick with B (which he'll block), followed by a stomping throw with B. He can't counter this pattern, and will fall in no time -- though knocking him down in the first place isn't altogether easy
I was able to win every match by staying close to my opponent and hammering the A button (grab?). Once both meters are depleted, throw them down one last time and then press A over them to pin them
War 2410
In general, camp your bases for the added defense, and the healing power of the center spot. The AI is practically nonexistant and will split their forces and futiley attack your stronghold. Always keep your heavy tank/artillery units behind a line of defense as they are your greatest asset
In some missions it is to your advantage to consolidate your forces in one location. This also has the added advantage of forcing the AI to chase you, which will often split their forces.
War 3010
Once again the AI is practically nonexistant so you are going to use that as your primary advantage for overcoming their sheer force in numbers
Memorize the attack ranges for all of your various units (it will be 3-5). You'll want to maximize the number attacks that outrange an opponent so that they cannot counter. You can also finish off enemies with equal or longer range as a dying enemy does not counter.
If you have a refueler, protect it, and keep your distance from the enemy, allowing a maximum number of turns to heal
Asteroids give massive defense boosts. Position all of your units on belts when given the chance and wipe out the incoming enemy
If you position a scout unit on certain planets you will automatically pick up upgrades. I found several in the last few missions by chance.
