-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 888888888 88888 88888 8888888 88 88 88888888 8888888 888888888. 8888888 8888888 88888888. 88. 88. 888888888 88888888. .....88.. 88...88. 88...88. 88....... 88. 88. 88.....88. 88....... 88.. 88.. 88 88.. 88 88.. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88.. 88.. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88888888.. 888888888 88.. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88888888. 888888888. 88.. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88. 88.....88 88........ 88.. 88 88.. 88 88.. 88 88 88.. 88. 88. 88 888888888 8888888. 8888888. 88888888 8888888. 888888888. 88888888 888888888. 88888.. 88888.. 8888888. 88888.. 88888888.. 8888888. ......... ..... ..... ....... ..... ........ ....... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Version: 0.5 Status: about half complete. Just another game mode to come along with controls and a few add-ons for completist purposes and that's really all that's still needed. Projected final version due in one week from submission date. Guide written for ZooCube for GameBoy Advance. Author: Lisanne (Lisa Harrison) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- This guide is Copyright 2004 Lisa Harrison. It may be not be reproduced in whole or in part under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. Should you have any questions about issues not raised in this FAQ, or should you wish to contact me regarding seeking my permission to place this guide on your site, please e-mail me: mlleperdu@yahoo.co.uk Please mention this FAQ in the subject line of your e-mail. If you are seeking my permission to put this on your site, please include the URL of your site in the e-mail. If you don't include the URL, the answer will be no. At present, this guide may only be shown on www.gamefaqs.com . If you see this guide on any other site, please notify me through e-mail immediately. Thankyou. ~~ASCII TITLE APPEARS COURTESY OF MATH MURDERER. THANKYOU!~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~CONTENTS~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 1. Introduction 2. Controls 3. Menu 4. Single player Classic 5. Single player KO 6. Single player KO Blind 7. Everything else (random information) 8. Things I learned while writing this guide -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~INTRODUCTION~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ZooCube is a puzzle game, but if you're reading this then I guess you should already know that. A game of this type needs no walkthrough, as one would be impossible to write and to understand since the game is what you make of it, but rather, this guide is intended to help you get the most out of the game and proceed through the various stages of difficulty with greater ease. There is only so much I can tell you though, since success in this game is down to a combination of luck and skill, and knowledge really does not factor into it. The basic principle is to match up pairs of shapes as they float towards a cube which sits in the centre of the playing screen. The cube can be rotated using the D-Pad to get the shapes to land on the side you want them to. As you match up pairs, they disappear. You can stack up to five shapes on each side of the cube (which has eight faces on which you can stack shapes), but once you reach five on one side, the shapes will turn grey and you'll have to match a pair on that side to see the colours again. If you exceed this maximum, the game is over. Remarkably, there is a story in this game, which you can see by leaving the game alone from the start screen and waiting. This will bring up the story, which is basically that there is a mad scientist who has trapped animals in shapes and you have to free the animals by matching up pairs. Sound familiar? The story is virtually identical to that in the Sonic The Hedgehog games, so that's why it may ring more than a few bells. The story element really has no bearing whatsoever on the game though, since this is a puzzle game so it isn't necessary. Still, nice of them to include some sort of story to explain your role in the game rather than just providing a cube and leaving you to it! -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~CONTROLS~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- To follow... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~MENU~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- After pressing the Start key on the main screen, the following menu will appear. To select an option, press A. To cancel a selected option, press B. Options that you can select will appear in green, whereas those you can't yet select will flash red. 1 PLAYER -------- Selecting this option will enable you to play the game in single player mode. Upon selecting this option, you will access the "Game Select" sub-menu. Use the D-pad to navigate up and down and use the A button to change the highlighted part of the menu. Note that some sections will not be available to be changed until you have progressed enough to unlock them. Each section has a variety of choices. I will list them from the top down: o TYPE - this option allows you to select the type of single player game to play. You can choose from Classic, KO and KO Blind, all of which are explained in their respective sections of this guide. o LEVEL SELECT - appearing as a list of seas and oceans, you can only choose to start the game from levels which you have already beaten and therefore unlocked in the type of game that you wish to play. Remember though that the primary objective is to rack up absurdly high scores, so the later you start, the less your head start when it comes to scoring. o START GAME - self-explanatory. o TUTORIAL - selecting this will show a basic tutorial video. Once accessed, you can end the tutorial by pressing the A or Start button. 2 PLAYER CO-OP -------------- When you select this option, your GBA will automatically check to see whether there is another player linked up for play. If not, the message "No players found" will appear. If this happens, unlink your GBAs and restart them and try again. Selecting this option allows you to play a co-operative game alongside a friend. 2 PLAYER VS ----------- When you select this option, your GBA will automatically check to see whether there is another player linked up for play. If not, the message "No players found" will appear. If this happens, unlink your GBAs and restart them and try again. Selecting this option allows you to play a competitive game against a friend. OPTIONS ------- Select this option to change the in-game settings. Upon selecting this option, the following sub-menu will appear: o SOUND - the options are "SFX", "BGM", "OFF" and "ALL". "SFX" means that only the sound effects will be played. "BGM" means that only the background music will be played. "OFF" means that no sound will be played. "ALL" means that both background music and sound effects will be played. Toggle through to the desired option by highlighting the "Sound" section and pressing the A button. o CONTROL - view and change the default controls here. To see the default controls, please see the section on "Controls" above. o SPEED - enables you to customize the speed that the shapes will drift to the cube. You can choose from: "Milk Float" (very slow) "Bus" (slow) "Freight" (quite slow) "Normal" (speaks for itself) "Express" (a little faster) "Rocket" (fast) "Supersonic" (mind the caffiene) "Light Speed" (now you're just being masochistic) "Warp Speed" (shouldn't you be talking to the voices in your head and setting fire to your padded cell with your imaginary matchstick friends??) o HUD - Choose from "1" (default), "2" or "none". I'm not sure what "HUD" stands for, but the numbers you choose affect the number of shapes you can see on the left hand side of the screen during play in advance of them appearing on the main part of the play screen. o HIGH SCORES - display the high scores. High scores for all types of game play show in the same chart. CREDITS ------- Self-explanatory. View the list of people who made this game happen. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~SINGLE PLAYER CLASSIC~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- This is the default mode for a single player game, and the only mode you can use when you first start playing (other single player modes have to be unlocked to play them). As you keep playing, you will also unlock other areas to choose from when you start the game. Until these are unlocked, you have to start right from the beginning level. As you progress, the levels get gradually more difficult, as you would expect. When the game starts, you will find that you begin with your cube in the centre of the screen. Shapes will slowly drift towards it (assuming you're starting out from the beginning) and you should rotate the cube using the controls listed in the Control section above to get the shapes to land on the faces of the cube that you want them to. The key is to match up pairs of shapes. Netting a pair will get you 25 points, but don't despair as there are plenty of other ways to accumulate points in this game. PIMPING UP A HIGH SCORE ----------------------- Matched a pair? Got your 25 points? Feel the need for an "I'm a big boy, I am" Freudian large score moment? Then you'd better learn how to get nasty... There are several ways of making your score balloon faster than Veruca on Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory. Method number one is to achieve lots of "balance" bonuses. Every time you achieve "balance", the game awards you 1000 points. Simple! You can do this by merely allowing one shape to attach to each face of the cube. Then match a pair and let the next shape attach to the side you just cleared, rinse and repeat ad nauseum. Similar to the above method, you can also take advantage of the "Juggle" bonuses. Each time you match a pair, a little circle will appear on the side you matched from in its stead. Land another shape on this circle and you will receive a bonus, the value of which changes according to the colour of the circle you landed on. BONUS ROUNDS ------------ Whenever you clear the cube of all shapes, you will notice that a variety of random objects will appear around the cube, hovering above each face. When this occurs, you should try to collect as many of them as possible by letting the next shapes to approach the cube drift right through them. Be quick, as these bonus objects disappear fast! The slowest ones to disappear are the green lollipop and the rocket, so if you're still using the slower speed settings or at the lower levels, don't bother aiming for the rest - just head straight for these ones, as they are the easiest to hit and also the highest-scoring. Often though, rather than simply getting the bonus shapes, you will access a "KO Round". This involves a selection of shapes heading straight for the cube, your task being to match them against the incoming shapes that follow with a view to clearing the cube entirely. A meter will appear on the right-hand side of the screen. When it fills, you will have achieved a perfect round and get more bonus shapes for the level that follows! If you don't achieve the "perfect", then you lose the points you accumulated playing this bonus and go back to the main game with nothing gained. Note that you will only be given the exact shapes that you need to clear the cube - nothing more, nothing less. GOOD TACTICS ------------ To succeed at this game, you will need a lot of luck, fast fingers and nerves of steel. If things aren't going your way, don't panic! Remember that you have three smart bombs available to use - to trigger one, press the L and R buttons together to blow up one shape from each side of the cube. Make sure you don't waste these bombs as you may need them later in the game. If one side of the cube gains five shapes, the shapes on that side will turn grey in colour. Whilst this isn't a major hassle in terms of seeing what's there (since you'll still be able to see the outlines of the shapes and they will turn back to their true colour anyway when a matching shape is drifting towards them), it is a pain in several other ways. Firstly, with a chain as long as that, it won't be long before a shape drifting towards the cube will attach to it since it will reach that side faster than the others. So if you make a wrong move, you could be in trouble. You will have to think fast and plan ahead. Make sure to press the B button to get the shape you want at the end of the line and then quickly move it to face an incoming matching shape to pair them off and regain proper control. Try to memorize the controls for turning the axis in all the possible ways as quickly as possible. Ideally, you want to be able to perform these moves on instinct without even thinking about them. Once you have mastered the controls, you have essentially mastered the game. Good luck! -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~SINGLE PLAYER KO~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- In this game type, rather than having shapes drift towards the cube and trying to match them into pairs as they come, you start each sub-level with a few shapes gravitating instantly onto the cube. Shapes will then move slowly towards the cube as in the classic game type, but the shapes will be designed to match against the shapes which start off on the cube. Sound confusing? That's because it's hard to explain! For example, in the first sub-level of the Mediterranean stage, three shapes will hit the cube at the start - typically brown, red and blue. Next, three shapes will drift towards the cube and you have to match them off against the ones already on there. Each level, more shapes will be added at the start to make life more difficult. All in all though, this is a very easy way to play the game. As in the classic mode, the difficulty increases when a larger number of shape types appear, the speed quickens and more than one shape starts heading for your cube at once. As in the classic mode's bonus levels, there will be a guage on the right hand side of the screen which will start empty and gradually fill up as you pair off the shapes. If you fill the guage completely during the course of finishing a level, then you get a "perfect" round and the same bonus shapes will appear around the cube. See the "Everything Else" section for the full list of bonus shapes and the scores you get for clearing them. GOOD TACTICS ------------ As in all modes, PLAN AHEAD! This is the best way to keep on top of the game. If you know you're not going to match all the shapes in this mode, don't panic. Just keep your cool and write off that round, trying to match as many of the remaining shapes as possible. See the tips in the classic mode section for more ideas. There really isn't much you can do though except memorize the controls and keep on practising until you have mastered the game. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~SINGLE PLAYER KO BLIND~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- To follow... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~EVERYTHING ELSE~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Here's all the stuff that didn't really fit elsewhere in the guide... 1. LEVELS --------- The levels are all named after seas and oceans of the world. The numeric rating next to the level name is really the difficulty indicator, so the names themselves have no bearing on gameplay whatsoever, but I thought I ought to include a list anyway. Note that levels are the same for all modes of gameplay. 1. Mediterranean Sea 2. China Sea 3. Arabian Sea 4. Arctic Ocean 5. Atlantic Ocean 6. Indian Ocean 7. Pacific Ocean 2. BONUS SHAPES --------------- Clearing a level of all shapes, or emptying a KO or bonus stage with a perfect run, will cause a variety of small objects to appear next to the faces of the cube. Allowing an approaching shape to pass through one of these objects before they all disappear will net you the bonus score that object carries. Get some fast D-pad action in to net multiple bonus objects with just one shape - this is a good way to get extra points, since they fade away so quickly! 1. Turquoise swirly snake thing - 250 points. 2. Red and white candy cane - 500 points. 3. Orange ice lolly - 750 points. 4. Ice cream cone - 1000 points. 5. Green lollipop - 1500 points. 6. Rocket - 2000 points. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~~THINGS I LEARNED WHILE WRITING THIS GUIDE~~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- o Warp Speed mode makes my eyes bleed. Not literally... o Kronenbourg lager really DOES make my bladder weak. o Animals can become trapped in shapes quite often. Be responsible - always keep your trash wildlife-safe by cutting through the plastic rings that hold beer cans together and removing the lids from tins completely. o If Steve slept with his PR girl, he'd be Becks. According to ChrisOB though, I can't be Posh because "there's only room for ONE Skeletor in the world these days :O". Anyway, Martin G says I crack a smile occasionally so I can't be her anyway.