Toypop: Strategy Guide ====================== Compiled by Alan Kwan --------------------- Created 13 August 1997 Toypop is a 'dynamic puzzle' arcade game released by Namco back in 1986. It has been included in Namco Museum #1 for the Playstation. This article is a stage-by-stage strategy guide for the game. Because of the assumed typical disposition of players of this kind of games, this article does not deal with the general, principle strategies and concepts of the game, leaving such to the players. This article assumes possession of such knowledge and skills by the reader, and serves basically as a reference for the field contents (stages) of the game. For your reference, this article is intended for players who can clear stage 7 with 1 player, or stage 14 with 2 players with reasonable consistency. If you have not yet reached at least that level of expertise, this article may still be useful to you, but it is also recommended that you try to work out the general strategies for the game, which I think would be of more help than knowledge of the field contents, should you want to play this game well. The data in this document has been collected by me myself, and may be subject to errors and omissions. Please send corrections, etc. to me (mailto:tarot@netvigator.com). Scoring Table ------------- soldier 10 car 20 tank 30 trump 40 robot 40 monkey 40 balloon 50 Wizard 5000 Witch 20000 weapon 20 special(7*) 20 power-up 20 heart 50 clothes 0 1UP 0 diamond 100 x 16 apple 100 candy 50 shortcake 100 donut 200 bamkuhen(?) 300 all clear 500 time 10 per sec. Key --- header: the enemy list displayed as you enter the stage s : soldier c : car a : armored car (tank) b : balloon t : trump (card) r : robot m : monkey W : Wizard order: the actual order that enemies appear in the stage. "..." indicates that the list may be incomplete. There may be errors. clothes: whether you will find clothes in the stage. hidden path: whether there are hidden paths in the stage. "no" merely means that I have not found any yet. end: my recommendations for the weapons to take into the next stage. There may be errors and imperfections. "???" indicates that I am not prescribing any specific recommendations, leaving it to the players, probably because the decision is non-trivial. "+" indicates added importance, and "-" indicates that the weapon is not very important. If you are playing 1 player, until Box 20 the recommended weapon is the one listed first (before the comma). There are no recommendations for 1 player after Box 20: Toypop is basically a 2 player game, and beyond that point the goings are too hard with 1 player. Get a partner! lack: weapons needed against some enemies in the stage, but cannot be found in that stage. Perfect: some advice on clearing the stage with the all clear bonus (for defeating all enemies). Safety: some advice on clearing the stage without the all clear bonus, by grabbing the hearts and running for the door while enemies are still alive in the stage. Box 1 ----- header: sc order: scsc clothes: no hidden path: no end: tyre, tyre Perfect: Easy. Grab a tyre, shoot everything, open all the boxes, and get (almost) everything. Box 2 ----- header: sca order: scas clothes: no hidden path: no end: bomb, tyre Perfect: Rather easy, especially with 2 players. Box 3 ----- header: sbc order: sbcsb clothes: yes hidden path: no end: tyre, (pin or tyre) Perfect: Note that your shots can hit enemies even when they are in a wall, and the balloons should not be too much problem. You want to start the stage with a bomb, so that you can find a pin quickly. Box 4 ----- header: csbt order: csbtb clothes: yes hidden path: no end: - fire, fire The first stage that is somewhat difficult. Safety strategy is recommended for 1 player. Perfect: Well, beware of time out. Start the stage with a tyre and a pin. Safety: Try to delay killing enemies by leaving boxes and bottles as obstacles; as long as the weaker enemies are intact, the stronger ones (balloons and trumps) won't appear. If trying this with 2 players, you won't need a pin, so start with two tyres. Box 5 ----- header: atb order: ataba clothes: no hidden path: no end: + pin, + pin Perfect: Beware of the Magic Stripping Hand. Try to disclose all the boxes in the upper part of the screen when you have the bomb. Box 6 ----- header: bs order: bsbsbs clothes: yes hidden path: yes end: + 7 + * ; fire Perfect: Fight all the balloons. Pick up the lone fire at the end if feasible, but more important than that, deploy the tornado or star shot. The balloons charge at you directly right at the start, so it is best to enter the stage with a pin or two. Box 7 ----- header: Wstc order: Wstctc clothes: no hidden path: yes end: don't bother Beware of the punches near the start. Perfect: With the tornado or star shot, it should be rather easy. Safety: If you don't have the tornado or star shot, just grab the hearts and run. Use the teleportal wisely to evade enemies. Box 9 ----- header: srb order: srsbrb clothes: no hidden path: no end: - bolt, - bolt Perfect: It may be a bit tough at the beginning, because the bolt cannot kill the soldiers. If you killed the Wizard in Box 7, you should be getting your first 1UP in here. Box 10 ------ header: mt order: mtmt clothes: no hidden path: no end: - fire, fire Perfect: Beware of time out. Safety: When going to pick up the hearts at the bottom of the screen while enemies are still around, try to have the two players go together. Otherwise, enemies of the wrong type often appear and trap you in a dead end. Box 11 ------ header: bts order: btsbtb clothes: yes hidden path: yes end: don't bother Perfect: Though the enemies are rather strong, it's mostly standard fare. The hidden path near the upper-left corner lets you short-cut the spiral. Box 12 ------ header: smr order: smrmrms clothes: no hidden path: no end: - bolt, (- wave or - bolt) Perfect: Beware of time out. Go for safety clear if things get sticky. Be flexible. Try to get most or all of the diamonds early: that is easily worth more than the all clear bonus. Box 13 ------ header: cstm order: cstmst clothes: no hidden path: no end: tyre, tyre Perfect: Many enemy types and fewer weapon items. How good are your basic skills? Again, be flexible and go for safety clear when it seems that you should. Box 14 ------ header: scb order: scbcsb clothes: no hidden path: yes end: ++ * + 7 ; + pin, pin Perfect: There is so little time to do so many things: disclosing so many boxes, getting two diamond boxes, and deploying the special feature, in addition to the usual enemies and hearts. The hidden paths in the upper left and right parts of the large heart shape would help. Box 15 ------ header: Wbrmats order: Wbrmatbs clothes: yes hidden path: yes end: pin, bolt Safety: First-timers are likely to be shocked when they see the header. Without the use of the special feature, this stage is plain nightmare. Even with the special feature, one should think about getting the hearts after defeating the Wizard, or time may run out. There is a hidden path in the upper center. Perfect: If you get the star shot at the right timing, it may happen, but primarily concentrate on safety clear and get the hearts as you kill enemies. Be content with the Wizard bonus. The duration of the tornado is too short. Box 17 ------ header: srbm order: srbmsbm clothes: no hidden path: no end: bolt, bolt Perfect: Testing your basics, but enemies are rather fast. There are no clothes from here until Box 23. Box 18 ------ header: rct order: rctrc clothes: no hidden path: no end: * ; tyre, tyre Perfect: How good are your basics? Box 19 ------ header: cmartsb order: cmartsbs clothes: no hidden path: no end: bolt, + wave Safety: All 7 enemy types! Don't think about points in here. In late stages, the primary source of your points are diamonds and Wizards. Box 20 ------ header: srmcb order: srmcrmcb clothes: no hidden path: no end: - pin, pin lack: wave Perfect: Even with a second player wielding the wave, this stage isn't easy. Safety: Without the wave or special feature, this stage is quite tough. Box 21 ------ header: sab order: sabsabs clothes: no hidden path: no end: - pin, + pin Perfect: Beware of the punches on the right, and blow away the Magic Hand boxes with the bomb, and there should not be any problems, especially with 2 players. Box 22 ------ header: rt order: rtrtr clothes: no hidden path: no end: 7* ; ??? Perfect: Should we hang on to the pin for Boxes 25 and 26, or should we enjoy our time here and worry about those balloons later? You don't want to start the stage with a bomb: you have more control on terrain that way. Easy diamonds at the start. Box 23 ------ header: Wsrc order: Wsrcsrc clothes: yes hidden path: no end: ???, + pin Don't commit suicide on the two time bombs right at the start! This stage is not too hard. You won't find pins in this stage. Box 25 ------ header: crbs order: crcbrs clothes: no hidden path: no end: *7 ; bolt, ++ pin lack: pin Safety: If you don't have the pin, stun the balloons with the bolt. Perfect: Start with pin and wheel. Box 26 ------ header: bmts order: bmtmbs clothes: no hidden path: no end: wave, fire lack: pin The balloons come charging at high speed right at the start. Don't get killed before you can do anything! Come prepared. Box 27 ------ header: smtar order: smtamtrs clothes: yes hidden path: no end: fire, bomb Box 28 ------ header: tsab order: tsabta clothes: no hidden path: no end: + fire, + pin Box 29 ------ header: tsbc order: tsbctbt... clothes: no hidden path: no end: wave, tyre lack: fire, pin Do you have the right weapons to start with? There are only two tyres in the stage. Box 30 ------ header: msrc order: msrcmrcr clothes: no hidden path: no end: + 7 + * ; pin, + bolt Box 31 ------ header: Wbr order: Wbr... clothes: no hidden path: no end: + pin, bomb lack: bolt Box 33 ------ header: smbc order: smbcm clothes: yes hidden path: no end: tyre, wave lack: pin Box 34 ------ header: cmartsb order: cmartsbs clothes: no hidden path: no end: bomb, (pin or bolt) Safety: Much the same enemies as Box 19. The terrain is more open, but the enemies are much faster. Box 35 ------ header: sab order: sabab clothes: yes hidden path: no end: bomb, (bomb or + bolt) Perfect: A relatively easy stage in the late game. No bolts in here, though. Box 36 ------ header: smacr order: smacrm... clothes: no hidden path: yes end: bomb, wave lack: blot Box 37 ------ header: smartb order: smartbms clothes: no hidden path: yes end: fire, pin The hidden paths are in much the same positions as last stage. Box 38 ------ header: tbcrm order: tbcrm clothes: yes hidden path: no end: + 7 + * ; ++ pin, fire Box 39 ------ header: Wsbtcmr order: Wsbtc... clothes: no hidden path: no end: bomb, + pin lack: pin Box 41 ------ header: atcrbm order: atcrb... clothes: no hidden path: no end: ??? lack: pin Safety: Which weapons should we take out of the stage? Normally, we'll choose 2 out of tyre, wave, or bomb ... Box 42 ------ header: csm order: csmc clothes: yes hidden path: no end: don't bother An easy stage, whether perfect or safety clear. Box 43 ------ header: tsrb order: tsr... clothes: no hidden path: no end: + bomb, + bomb lack: fire, bolt, pin Safety: This stage is not very hard to clear even with 1 player, as long as you preserve the boxes as obstacles and don't make the balloons appear. The bombs are helpful somewhat against the Witch in the final battle.