,,,,,. _.,o, JsSSSSsL. [p===\o,. _oO^ssSSs\. O(SSP^*ª/ss]===|SSPQS]==ssss[S**SSS|! )O*YYSSs]SS[]SS|SSsSS/SS****]SssSS/* ~OsSssSSS[SSssSS[SSP= [S;;;;. SSSSSss|! _ ^O====/^\====/L==J L***** **/\***J ,,,,,,TM /m=--,,, ,-=-,,__...,, -=,._ .-=====-,. _.,,, ,,,,, [MMMM] |MMMmmMM]\/sSSSspmmmmMm\|Ssss mMMMMMMMm\ psssSSs\, -=-,|SSS] [MMMM] [MMMMMMMMM\sSS^SS\MMM^MMM|SSS]/MMMMMMMMMM\|SSS^SS*//mMMM|SSS])[MMMM],-=== /mMMM]**\MMmSSssSSSMMMmMM*|SSS]mMMMMMMMMMM/[SSS=SSssMMP\MmSSSs==ssMMmmMMM] mMMMM]^^[MMMm*^^SSS|MMMMm, |SS/\MMMMMMMMmM/[SSSsSSS]MMmmMM[SSSSSS]MMMMMMM] /=MMMM/ NMMMN\ SSSNMN NMM SS| ^*MMMMMMMM [SSSSSS**N/\NMM]SSSSSS/MMMMMMN] ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^^^^ ******* ******* ^ *PPP*******^^^^^^^ =============================================================================== FAQ/Guide & Bad ASCII Art by qqwref =============================================================================== Table of Contents: I. The Basics A. Introduction B. Story C. How to Play D. Game Mechanics II. Playing the Game A. The Objects B. The Items C. The Goals D. The Enemies III. Collecting the Stars A. Funfair B. Snowy C. Grassy D. Sandy E. Fiery IV. Beating the Bosses A. The Big Boo B. Cheep-Cheep Pufferfish C. Petey Piranha D. Tutankoopa E. Bowser V. So, What do I Get? A. Time Trials B. High Scores VI. Miscellaneous Junk A. Legal Statement B. Thank You! C. Version History D. What I Need =============================================================================== I. The Basics =============================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On Auguest 26th, 2004, Nintendo of Japan released a Mario-themed pinball game for the Gameboy Advance. I got a copy, and after playing it for a few days I decided to write a FAQ for it, just because no one else had yet. Here it is. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Story ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- One day Mario, Peach, and some Toads were playing in a fair with a machine that would turn you into a ball and then shoot you at a target. When Peach went in the machine, though, some Goombas turned the cannon and shot Peach into Bowser's Castle. Mario, of course, has to go and save her. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. How to Play ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The controls on this game are pretty basic. If you have played Gameboy or Gameboy Advance pinball games before, they should seem very familiar. D-Pad: Choose option D-Pad Left: Move left flipper A Button: Move right flipper Accept B Button: Use item Decline START: Pause R Button: Move right flipper L Button: Move left flipper ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- D. Game Mechanics ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Super Mario Ball is played in single-screen pinball tables or boards. Each table consists of the flippers, some objects in the middle (usually with a few enemies), and possibly some Star Doors at the top (see Section IIA). When you move your flipper, if Mario is on it he will fly off in a direction based on his speed, direction, and when and where he hit the flipper last. If you hold one of the flippers up, you can get Mario to fly off it. When Mario hits an enemy or object, he will bounce off, and he will fly much farther if he bounces off an enemy or object than if he bounces off a wall. Mario cannot be destroyed, but will go to a lower board if he falls off the bottom and will lose a life if he falls off the bottom of the lowest board. However, Mario can only fall off through the flippers, and you usually start out with a blue pipe between them, so you have some help. You'll get through the game, basically, by hitting lots of stuff with Mario or another object you're juggling. You can do many things by hitting stuff - beat bosses, open cannons and star doors, activate ? Blocks and switches. You can only hit something if Mario is traveling at a fast enough speed; if he is too slow the hit may not register. In Snowy and Fiery, there are short sections in which you are underwater. Below the surface, the game mechanics are different and much slower. When you hit Mario with your flippers, he will fly up into the air, where you can hit floating targets, but if Mario bounces off something he will usually travel along the ground. This can make it easier to hit targets but can also inhibit your ability to collect coins and the like. =============================================================================== II. Playing the Game =============================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. The Objects ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Objects are (usually) found on the game board. Hitting them or collecting them achieves certain things, which are usually good. Object Name: Star Description: This looks like a golden star, and will appear when you complete certain objectives (see Section III). If you collect enough of these you can open Star Doors (see below) and unlock more game areas. Object Name: Star Door Description: This is a door near the top of a board that has a star with a number on it. If you have that number of stars or more, you can hit the door to open it, and then you can go through. In boards with two or more Star Doors, opening all of them will force them all to close, so you'll need to have one (or maybe two, if there are three doors) open at a time. Object Name: Star Key Description: When you beat a level boss (see Section IV) one of these will appear. Collect it for 500,000 points. You can use the Star Keys that you find to open Star Locks (see below) and enter the main part of Fiery. Object Name: Star Lock Description: These locks only appear in the first board of Fiery. If you have a Star Key, go to the Lock that corresponds to the boss you've defeated and touch it to put the Key in. Fill all four of these to open up the rest of Fiery. Object Name: 1-up Mushroom Description: This will give you an extra life. You can get one from the Question Mark, or you can buy one from Toad for 100 Yellow Coins or 25 Blue Coins. Object Name: Question Mark Description: When you complete a Star objective, if you've already gotten the Star from that objective a Question Mark will appear instead. You can also sometimes buy these from Toad for 50 Yellow Coins. When you collect the Question Mark, you will have a slot-machine type thing, where you press A to stop at what you want. These are the possible things you can get: > Yellow Coin. Gives you +2, +5, +10, or double your Yellow Coins > Blue Coin. Gives you +2, +5, +10, or double your Blue Coins > 1-up Mushroom. Gives you a 1-up Mushroom > Pipe x2. Gives you a Pipe x2 item. > Yoshi Egg x2. Gives you a Yoshi Egg x2 item. > Lightning Bolt. Gives you a Lightning Bolt item. > Thumbs Up. Gives you 100,000 points. > Thumbs Down. Gives you 100 points. If you get an item in this way, it will override any item you already have. Object Name: Yellow Coin Description: When you kill an enemy (or hit the bell in Funfair) one of these will appear if this is the first thing you've destroyed since Mario hit the flippers. Collect these to buy things from Toad. Object Name: Blue Coin Description: When you kill an enemy (or hit the bell in Funfair) one of these will appear if you have destroyed something else since Mario hit the flippers. Collect these to buy things from Toad's shop in Funfair. Object Name: Red Coin Description: After inserting a Star Key into a Star Lock, in place of that boss there will be a red switch. Hit this red switch to make eight Red Coins appear throughout the level; collect all eight to make a Star appear where the last one was. Object Name: ? Block Description: This will appear in many different places, especially in boss arenas after you've defeated the boss. Hitting this, if you don't have an item, will give you one; if you already have an item you will just get a Yellow Coin. Object Name: Yoshi Egg Sign Description: You'll see this on the ground, in the middle of a board. It looks like a picture of a Yoshi Egg; use a Yoshi Egg on this board and a podium will pop up. Hit it with your Yoshi Egg to replace the podium with a pillar. Hit the pillar three times to get 5, 8, and then 12 coins, then hit it with the Yoshi Egg to put the Golden Yoshi Egg on the board. If you lose the Yoshi Egg or Mario, you'll abort this sequence. Object Name: Golden Yoshi Egg Description: Play the Yoshi Egg Sign bonus game for this to appear. Get it for a certain number of points (seen on the level select screen) and a coin for each 10,000 points in this award. There are many more objects that aren't important or that are level-specific. They include cacti, black and golden pillars, a block of ice, beehives, mushrooms, and other things. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. The Items ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are many items in this game, and most of them help you accomplish certain tasks by making the game easier. You can find items by hitting ? blocks or by buying them from Toad. If you see Toad waving, go near him for a shop. In the Funfair, enter the blue tent to buy things from Toad for Blue Coins instead of Yellow Coins. Item Name: Pipe Description: When you enter a room, you will have a blue pipe between your flippers. After a while, this pipe will start moving and then disappear. Use this item to get it back. Price: 10 Yellow Coins, or 1 Blue Coin Item Name: Pipe x2 Description: This item acts just like the Pipe, but you can use it twice. Item Name: Super Mushroom Description: Use this item to double the size of Mario (and any Yoshi eggs you are also juggling; see below) temporarily. While he's double size, it is easier to keep him from falling off the table, and he has a higher chance of hitting things. Price: 10 Yellow Coins Item Name: Super Mushroom x2 Description: Again, this is like the Super Mushroom but you can use it twice. Item Name: Mini Mushroom Description: Sometimes, you'll see tiny entrances that you are much too big to fit into. If you use a Mini Mushroom, you will become small enough to be able to fit into these holes. You may also, however, fall through holes in the ground... Price: 10 Yellow Coins Item Name: Star Description: Activate a Star for a few seconds of invincibility. While you're invincible, you will destroy any enemy you touch. Price: 30 Yellow Coins Item Name: Thunderbolt Description: Activate this to destroy every enemy currently on the screen. Some enemies, however, may not be affected by this. Price: 30 Yellow Coins Item Name: Yoshi Egg Description: This will give you a yoshi egg for this board. The yoshi egg will act just like Mario (you can use it to collect items and hit enemies) except that if you lose it you will not lose a life or change boards. Price: 20 Yellow Coins Item Name: Yoshi Egg x2 Description: This is like the Yoshi Egg but can be used twice. Item Name: Red Yoshi Egg Description: After you collect all of the red coins in a course, the red switch will be replaced by a red ? block. Hit this (you must not have an item) for the Red Yoshi Egg. If you activate this egg, you will get the combined effects of a Super Mushroom, a Star, and a Yoshi Egg. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. The Goals ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are a few objectives in this game. The first of these is to collect all of the Stars. There are 35 in total, and if you can beat Bowser with all of them you will get a slightly different ending than if you didn't have them all. Getting them all, however, may take a few hours, so I recommend that you save and exit (the third menu option) when you're done. The other main objective is to get points. This is done as in any other pinball game: hitting things, defeating enemies, and collecting useful items gives you points. While you can get up to 1.5 million points from doing one thing, you will more likely get points in the thousands or couple of thousands until you start doing the bosses. The lowest high score in the score table is 2 million, but you'll probably take a while until you can get this many. You will probably find that, as you can only beat bosses once, if you're going for serious points you will want to start from a new or partial file. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- D. The Enemies ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are, of course, quite a few enemies in this game, and they all act in specific ways. I don't have any official names yet, but when I get them I'll be sure to replace all of the names with the official ones. Name is my name; Where is the place where these guys can be found; and What is a description. Name: Goomba Where: Funfair, Grassy, and Fiery What: Goombas are mushroom people who've decided to work for Bowser. They are the weakest type of enemy - they can be killed in only one hit, and there is no time at which they are not vulnerable. They also do not move very quickly. Name: Boo Where: Funfair and Fiery What: Boos are ghosts who have the ability to become invisible. They tend to only do this, however, when they can see Mario. To defeat them, it is best to go behind them and then hit them in the back, as although they only take one hit they are protected when invisible. Name: Stinger Where: Grassy What: When you hit the beehives in Grassy, or enter them, you will see these hostile enemies. Normally they travel around at low speed, at which time they can be dismissed with one hit when they're near the ground, but when they see Mario they get angry and attack him. When these guys are angry, they can push Mario into places you don't want to go, so be careful. Name: Skating Guy Where: Snowy What: These guys skate around things in Snowy. They come in four colors (red, yellow, green, and blue), all of which are equally weak. They can be taken out in one hit, but they move quickly and therefore are not very accurate targets. Name: Mr. Blizzard Where: Snowy What: This enemy looks like a snowman; this may be because this enemy is a snowman. Mr. Blizzard likes to stand still and throw snowballs at you, which is not very nice as it can prevent you from getting to where you want to go. If you hit one of these with Mario, you'll stun it for a little while, but you can't destroy it without a Star item. Name: Cheep-Cheep Where: Snowy and Fiery What: This enemy is really easy and is only found underwater. If you hit him, he'll die, but since these guys float that isn't always easy. Name: Penguin (?) Where: Snowy What: This is a penguin who appears in one place in Snowy. Hit it to knock it over, then hit it again quickly (before it can get up) to defeat it. Name: Pokey Where: Sandy and Fiery What: Pokeys are walking cactuses endowed with life. They come in two or four sections, and function thus: hitting one will destroy one section, and when all are gone the Pokey is finished. These guys are pretty easy to kill, but take a while. Name: Condor Where: Sandy What: Going through the 2-Star door in Sandy will bring you to a room with four flying Condors and a small pyramid. Hit Mario over the pyramid to fling him into the air, where he just might hit a Condor. Condors only take one hit, but they are disproportionately difficult to kill. Name: Spiky Where: Sandy What: Dropped by Lakitu, Spikies will constantly reemerge. They look like a small enemy with a red, spiked shell. If you hit one, it will flip over, at which time you can destroy it by hitting it again, but you will have to be quick to win as Spikies will continue to appear. Name: Cobrat Where: Sandy What: Cobrats are green snakes that come out of pots. The general idea with these guys is just to kill a lot of them; they take one hit but can be hard to defend against when they come in large numbers. Name: Shy Guy Where: Sandy What: Shy Guys, usually hiding behind large stone pillars, sometimes come out to play and/or taunt Mario. You can destroy them in one hit, but the constant movement of these guys, along with the obstructive pillars, can make it difficult to do that. Name: Fly Guy Where: Fiery What: Fly Guys are basically just blue Shy Guys with propellors on their heads who can fly. These guys are a pain in the neck, but with a one-hit kill they are not hard to remove when you can find them on the ground. Name: Koopatrol Where: Fiery What: Man, I really hate these guys. They are, in my opinion, the most annoying and difficult-to-kill enemy in the game. Koopatrols, you see, are fortified Koopas with spiked armor. When you hit them, although they will bounce backwards, Mario will not deal any damage. The only way to kill these guys is to smash them against the wall, and even then, if you destroy every one they will all regenerate. Koopatrols are majorly annoying obstacles as well due to the fact that they are large and try to converge around the flippers, preventing Mario access into the Star Doors at the top of the boards where they're located. =============================================================================== III. Collecting the Stars =============================================================================== In this section, I'm going to list all of the stars (along with my own name for them) and how to get them. This game isn't really conducive to a walkthrough, because we all have different abilities and therefore we will all get the stars in our own order. The stars are, however, usually listed by the amount of Stars needed to get them, or at least by their difficulty. The Requirements section lists what you need to have a chance at getting the star. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Funfair ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- STAR 1 (Chomp's Revenge) Requirements: At least one Blue Coin Walkthrough: Do you see that blue tent over to the right? If you have a Blue Coin, that tent will open up. What you have to do is shoot Mario in there. Now, you'll be in one of Toad's shops, except that you buy things with Blue Coins, not Yellow Coins. Choose the Chomp (it will cost you one Blue Coin) and you will start a minigame. In this minigame, you have thirty seconds to try to get rid of all four Chomps. You must do this by hitting them with either Mario or one of the two Yoshi Eggs you have. All four Chomps will constantly go forward; hitting them will make them go backward a little. If they touch the back end of the board, they will disappear. This isn't easy, so you'll have to bring a lot of coins. Try not to lose either of the Yoshi Eggs, because they will help you even more near the end. STAR 2 (Crossfire) Requirements: At least two Blue Coins Walkthrough: Just like in STAR 1, enter the blue tent. For this star, however, buy the Bullet Bill for two Blue Coins. In the Bullet Bill minigame, you have thirty seconds to hit thirty Bullet Bills. The Bullet Bills are shot out of cannons on each side, and travel horizontally through the board. Just try to keep Mario and the two Yoshi Eggs bouncing around for the whole thirty seconds and you should win. STAR 3 (Detonator) Requirements: At least three Blue Coins Walkthrough: Return to the tent and choose the Bob-Omb for three Blue Coins. In this minigame, you will have to destroy ten Bob-Ombs in thirty seconds. When you hit the blue switch here, one Bob-Omb will appear, as long as you don't already have four on-screen and you haven't made ten (in total) appear. For each Bob-Omb, you must hit it (which will make it start flashing) and then either hit it again or wait about five seconds for it to explode. If all ten Bob-Ombs appear and explode, you will win. STAR 4 (Boo's Mansion) Requirements: 1 Star Walkthrough: To start, hit your Mario into the house on the left. The door will be boarded up until you get your first Star. When you enter, you'll be in a room with four Boos. Kill them by hitting them in the back (see Section IID) and you will get this star. STAR 5 (Big Boo's Red Coins) Requirements: 10 Stars, Big Boo beaten Walkthrough: After hitting Mario into the house on the left, go through the 10-Star door. If you've already beaten Big Boo, you will see a red switch here. Hit the switch and you will then have 100 seconds to collect 8 red coins scattere throughout the level. Two coins are in this room; four coins are in the room with the four Boos; and two coins are in the entrance room, with the two Goombas. When you collect the eighth coin, this star will appear in its place. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Snowy ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- STAR 1 (Rainbow) Requirements: none! Walkthrough: In the first board, destroy the red Skating Guy by hitting it. Another one, of a different color, will enter each time you kill one, until you've dispatched four, at which time you'll get your star. STAR 2 (Die, Birds!) Requirements: 1 Star Walkthrough: From the beginning, go through the 1-Star door. You'll see a block of ice and some Penguins. Hit one to knock it over, then hit it again to destroy it; get rid of all four for your complimentary star. STAR 3 (Die, Fish!) Requirements: 1 Star Walkthrough: In the Penguin room, repeatedly hit the ice block until it is over the cracked hole in the ice, at which point it will fall through. If you hit it off-center, it will go off to one side, and you'll have to hit it back in the other direction, but it isn't difficult to get it over the hole. Enter the hole and you'll find yourself underwater (see Section ID for details); kill the three Cheep-Cheeps by hitting them for this star. STAR 4 (Like an Eskimo) Requirements: Mini Mushroom Walkthrough: On the first board, you'll see a very small entrance to an igloo on the upper left. Enter it with a Mini Mushroom and you'll be in a circular room with a mole and a ? Block. What you have to do is to hit the mole many times. Each time you hit it, it will move clockwise one space; if you wait too long between hitting it it will move counterclockwise one space. When you get it to complete one full revolution, it will yield you its star. This is a pretty difficult star. Note: do not kill the mole with the Star inside the ? Block, because the mole will then disappear and you'll have to leave and enter again. STAR 5 (The Gauntlet) Requirements: 3 Stars Walkthrough: Go up through the 1-Star door and then the 3-Star door. There are four Mr. Blizzards and a ? Block here. Your goal is to stun all four Mr. Blizzards at once, which can be done by hitting them. It would really help you if you had a Yoshi Egg (or a Yoshi Egg x2, or a Red Yoshi Egg), but I've gotten it without using an Item. STAR 6 (Slot Machine) Requirements: 5 Stars Walkthrough: From the penguin room, enter the 5-Star door. Here are four Skating Guys, all of different colors. Whenever you defeat one, a new one of a different color will enter the screen. You have to get them all the same color if you want your star. This isn't too hard, but it may require some luck. STAR 7 (The Pufferfish's Puzzle) Requirements: 1 Star, Cheep-Cheep Pufferfish beaten Walkthrough: After you beat the boss, go and insert the Star Key into the Star Lock and return to the boat to find a red switch, which will create eight red coins to collect when hit. Two are in the boat; two are outside in the water; two are in the original board; and two are in the penguin room. The ones in the water are pretty hard to get, but collecting all will get you your star. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. Grassy ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- STAR 1 (Goomba Family) Requirements: none! Walkthrough: Enter Grassy. On this first screen, you'll see three Goombas. Destroy them to get the easiest star in the game - hitting them once will get rid of them. STAR 2 (Buzz Buzz) Requirements: 1 Star Walkthrough: First, go through the 1-Star door. You'll see a bouncing beehive. Hit it to unleash three Stingers; defeat them by hitting them when they're flying normally and near the ground. You'll get a star for your troubles. STAR 3 (Bowl Over) Requirements: 2 Stars Walkthrough: Go through the 2-Star door to be in a room with three Koopas, a mole, and a ? Block. To defeat the Koopas, hit them once to knock them over, then hit them again to win. You can't defeat the mole. This star will come to you when you kill all three Koopas. STAR 4 (Mini Me) Requirements: Mini Mushroom Walkthrough: For this star you'll need a Mini Mushroom; buy one from Toad when you see him and then save it for here. Enter any of the three beehives in the level and you'll be in a circular arena with a ? Block and four Stingers. Defeat them to get your shining trophy. STAR 5 (Mushroom Madness) Requirements: 5 Stars Walkthrough: Go through the 1-Star door like in Star 2, then go through the 5-Star door at the top. There are five mushrooms and four Koopas here. Be careful with the mushrooms, as they will bounce you in a seemingly random direction when you hit them. Get rid of the Koopas to get your star. STAR 6 (Petey Piranha's Potluck) Requirements: 1 Star, Petey Piranha beaten Walkthrough: After you've beaten Petey Piranha and placed the Star Key in the Star Lock, return to the windmill and hit the red switch. That will make eight red coins appear throughout the level. Two are in the windmill; two are in the board outside; two are in the beginning board; and two are through the 2-Star door. Collect them all for the last star. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- D. Sandy ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- STAR 1 (Mini Cacti) Requirements: none! Walkthrough: Destroy the two Small Pokeys at the entrance board. They pose no threat to you; simply hit them twice to win and get your first star here. If you've already gotten this star, a Lakitu will appear and you will also have to defeat the single Spiny here to get the Question Mark. STAR 2 (Poke the Pokeys) Requirements: 1 Star Walkthrough: From the beginning of the level, open the 1-Star door and enter. There are two Large Pokeys here. Hit each of the Pokeys four times to defeat them and get your star. STAR 3 (Three Dimensions) Requirements: 2 Stars Walkthrough: Enter the 2-Star door on the middle. There are four flying Condors here, a small pyramid in the middle, and two Sphinxes. Hit one of the Sphinxes to raise the pyramid a bit; after a while the pyramid will get smaller. Hit Mario over the pyramid to send him flying into the air, and hopefully you will hit and defeat one of the Condors. Defeat them all for this star. STAR 4 (Lakitu Mischief) Requirements: 4 Stars Walkthrough: Enter the 4-Star door and you will see three Spinies and Lakitu flying around. You have to defeat the Spinies; hit them to knock them over, then hit them again to defeat them. This would be easy except for the fact that Lakitu is constantly dropping more Spinies on you. You'll probably want to save this star for last. You can do it without an item, but I'd recommend a Star, Lightning Bolt (this will only overturn them, you will have to finish them off), or Yoshi Egg. STAR 5 (Keep Them Away) Requirements: 2 Stars Walkthrough: Through the 2-Star door, bring the pyramid up to its maximum size and the door on the bottom will open. Shoot your ball through the door to enter a room with three switches. If you hit the side switches, holes will appear; if you hit the middle switch, the holes will disappear and Cobrats will begin to come out of the four pots on the edges of the board. Defeat 8 Cobrats before they reach the center for the Star; to get the Question Mark you will have to defeat 12 Cobrats. STAR 6 (Continuous Replenishment) Requirements: 2 Stars, Mini Mushroom Walkthrough: Inside the pyramid, use your Mini Mushroom to fall through the tiny grate in the center. You'll be in a circular room with a ? Box. Cobrats will fall from the ceiling so that there are always six; after you've killed about 25 of them they will stop falling down. Defeat the remaining few and claim your Star. STAR 7 (Shy Guy Stealth) Requirements: 2 Stars Walkthrough: Inside the pyramid, hit the left switch to make a hole appear. Fall through that hole and you'll be in a room with two switches and five pillars. When you hit the left switch (don't hit the right switch, it will take you to Tutankoopa) five Shy Guys will appear and begin to periodically run between the pillars. Defeat them all for the Star. Note that when you can't see them you can't hurt them. STAR 8 (Shy Guy Dancing) Requirements: 2 Stars Walkthrough: Inside the pyramid, hit the right switch and fall through that right hole, then hit the right switch again. This room has one pillar, and four Shy Guys will come out and start dancing. Try to destroy them all before any return to the pillar; if any get back they will replenish each other. If you do get rid of all four before they return to their hiding place, you'll get your star. STAR 9 (Tutankoopa's Treasure) Requirements: 2 Stars, Tutankoopa beaten Walkthrough: Inside the pyramid, hit the right switch, go down the hole, and hit the left switch; or hit the left switch, go down the hole, and hit the right switch. Either way, you'll be led to Tutankoopa's room. If you've already beat him, hit the red switch to initiate your customary red coin hunt. Two are in this room; two are back in the Cobrat room; two are down the left hole, with the five pillars; and two are down the right hole, with the single pillar. Collect the last one to have a star appear. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E. Fiery ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- STAR 1 (Careful Now) Requirements: All 4 bosses beaten Walkthrough: After you've beaten all four bosses, go to the first board of Fiery and put the Star Keys in the Star Locks. This will open up a gate at the top of the level. Enter the gate and you will see five Fly Guys who you have to defeat. This is reasonably difficult because there is a cannon, possibly Toad, and three Star Doors (including the garishly huge Bowser door), so try until you can do it. STAR 2 (Obstacle City) Requirements: All 4 bosses beaten Walkthrough: From the room in Star 1, fall back into the Star Lock room and you will see three Fly Guys. You know what to do. There is a problem with this, though: the Star Locks are huge obstacles which will do their best to prevent you from being able to hit the Fly Guys. They're not very good at preventing you, but be careful anyway, OK? STAR 3 (1st Regiment) Requirements: All 4 bosses beaten, 17 Stars Walkthrough: From the Star 1 main room, enter the room on the left. There are 2 Koopatrols here; you have to hit them against the walls to win. Try to do it early, because once they congregate on your flippers it will be much more difficult. You'll get a star for winning this battle. STAR 4 (2nd Regiment) Requirements: All 4 bosses beaten, 21 Stars Walkthrough: Instead of entering the left room through the 17-Star door, enter the right room through the 21-Star door. This star is more difficult because there are three Koopatrols and a hole in the ground, but it shouldn't be a problem to you by now. STAR 5 (Petey Piranha Again) Requirements: All 4 bosses beaten, 19 Stars Walkthrough: Enter the left room, then enter the left room again through the 19-Star door to face 6 Goombas and then Petey Piranha again. He isn't any more difficult than the previous verion, but beating him again will net you one million points (wow...) and a nice Star. STAR 6 (Big Boo Two) Requirements: All 4 bosses beaten, 25 Stars Walkthrough: Enter the left room, then enter the right room through the 25-Star door. Fight the four Boos here, then the Big Boo, for another million and another star. STAR 7 (Pufferfish Part 2) Requirements: All 4 bosses beaten, 21 Stars Walkthrough: Enter the right 21-Star door, then fall through the hole in the upper middle of the screen. You'll face six Cheep-Cheeps and then the Pufferfish himself, who this time starts with two small spiked Cheep-Cheeps but otherwise isn't harder, for your large reward. STAR 8 (Tutankoopa Twice) Requirements: All 4 bosses beaten, 23 Stars Walkthrough: Enter the 21-Star door, then go in the 23-Star door on the left. Inside, you will fight four Pokeys of the tall variety (hit each four times) before you fight Tutankoopa again. This time, I think he's a little faster, but I could be wrong. Anyway, defeat him for your (possibly) last star! =============================================================================== IV. Beating the Bosses =============================================================================== You can only begin to get stars in Fiery when you've beaten the first four bosses. Each of these bosses takes three hits, each hit giving you 10,000 points and the final one giving you 500,000 points, the Star Key for that world, a circle of coins, and two ? Blocks. You must take the Star Key and put it into the corresponding Star Lock in the first board of Fiery, which will open up the Red Coin switch, and if you do this for each boss you'll unlock the other boards of Fiery. After you get enough stars, you can go through the Star Doors in Fiery and fight other versions of these bosses. The bosses aren't any more difficult, but they will give you 100,000 points for hitting them and 1,000,000 points for defeating them now. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. The Big Boo ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To get to this boss, you'll need ten Stars, so you probably won't be doing this one first. From the beginning screen in Funfair, go into the house, then go through the 10-Star door, which will take you to The Big Boo's mansion (and boss arena). The Big Boo is just like any other Boo in that it disappears when it can see Mario. You have to hit Mario behind it, so that it's turned around, then quickly shoot Mario into his back. Do this three times to beat The Big Boo. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Cheep-Cheep Pufferfish ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To get to this boss, go to Snowy, and go up through the 1-Star door. You'll see four Pengis circling around a large block of ice. Hit the ice a few times until it reaches the crack in the ice, and it will fall through. Go through the hole and Mario will be underwater, under the ice. The game mechanics underwater are a little different; see Section ID for more details on this. Anyway, hit the three chests (in any order) and the sunken ship here will turn to face you and open up. Hit Mario through here to get to the Cheep Cheep Pufferfish's lair. The Cheep Cheep Pufferfish is spiked and cannot be hurt when he is in his normal form. There are two targets on the far side of the room; you must get Mario to hit those targets, and when he does a Bob-Omb will come out. If you heave the Bob-Omb at the Pufferfish (treat the Bob-Omb like you would a Yoshi Egg) the Pufferfish will expand for a while, during which time you must hit him with Mario. This will damage the Cheep-Cheep Pufferfish. After you've hurt him, the Pufferfish will create two small spiked Cheep-Cheeps. These are just like the boss except smaller, but hit one with a Bob-Omb and it will give you 5,000 points and die. These are only shields for the boss; disregard them, and hit the boss three times to win. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. Petey Piranha ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is one of the easier bosses. In Grassy, hit Mario up through the 1-Star door. You will see a blue switch and a windmill. What you have to do is hit the switch, which will stop the windmill, and then enter the windmill. Petey Piranha is in the middle of a completely round arena. If Mario goes near Petey when Petey's facing him, he will be eaten and spat out. Be careful when Mario gets spat out, because Mario will be hit right at the ends of the flippers. Don't move them, or Mario will most likely exit the windmill. Anyway, if Mario hits Petey when Petey is looking another direction, Petey will be hurt. Petey Piranha won't start trying to eat Mario until you've hurt him once; hit him three times to finish him off. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- D. Tutankoopa ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go into Sandy, then up through the 2-Star door. You will see two statues on the far end of the board, a small pyramid, and four Condors circling overhead. If you hit one of the statues, the pyramid will grow, but after a while it will shrink; if you can make the pyramid grow four times it will have a door, which will open. Enter. There are three switches here; hit either the left or the right switch and a hole will appear. Fall through the hole and there will be two switches in the new board. One of them will open a hole; hit the switch on the opposite side of the side you fell from. For example, if you fell into the left hole hit the right switch. Fall through this new hole to battle Tutankoopa. Tutankoopa is, in my opinion, the most difficult of the four bosses. There are two large pillars near the back of the arena. Hitting on has the effect of a Super Mushroom and a Star. However, Tutankoopa keeps creating balls of energy which chase after Mario at high speed and, if they hit him, strip him of invincibility and make him tiny. If you can hit Tutankoopa when Mario is large and invincible, and while Tutankoopa is standing in the middle with arms raised. Hurt him three times to get the Star Key. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E. Bowser ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bowser is the final boss of the game. In Fiery, after you've unlocked the rest of the board, go up one board and then go through the 15-Star door. Bowser is right in here. In this arena, there are two Thwomps with chains, two wheels on the wall, and a blue switch, along with Bowser. You have to spin Mario around the outside of the arena, spinning the wheels, which will raise the Thwomps a bit. When the wheels aren't spinning, the Thwomps will descend, but if one of the Thwomps is at the top it will stay there. You have to get one of the Thwomps to the top, which will activate the blue switch; hit the blue switch to knock over Bowser, then hit him to get 100,000 points and deal some damage. When you've done this three times, you will enter Bowser's second phase. This second phase is definately easier than the first, though it isn't a free break. Bowser is a ball, albeit a very large one, and you must juggle him and Mario together. Note that if Bowser isn't moving Mario will push him away easily. Get Bowser to hit one of the places where the wheels were three times to create a huge gap, then hit him through that hole to get 1,500,000 points and the ending. =============================================================================== V. So, What do I Get? =============================================================================== What do you unlock for beating the game? So far, all I've found is the Time Trial levels, and I've beaten Bowser with the full 35 stars. I'm sorry there isn't much stuff, but it appears that Nintendo simply couldn't get any more beautifully rendered 3D graphics on a GBA cartridge. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Time Trials ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Time Trial levels are, basically, levels in which you try to go through the level and beat the boss as quickly as is humanly possible. I haven't played it enough to have any high scores, but you can send in yours if you want. I'll put a high score list when I get some scores. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. High Scores ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You can, of course, still play to try to get high scores. This, along with the Time Trial levels, appears to be the limit of the replayability in this game. Here are some of the best ways to get points, for those who don't know: > Bosses. Beat as many bosses as you can, because they'll net you 630,000 points (at least, more if you get the coins) for the first few, and then another 100,000 for putting the Star Key in the Star Lock. They'll also let you get to Fiery, where you can get tons of points and more... > Stars. Get as many stars as you can with each Mario, because each one gets you more points and because when you lose your Mario you get... > End-of-Mario Bonus. Depending on how many stars and coins you collected, you'll get quite a few points. Killing enemies is good to get coins; so is the... > Golden Yoshi Egg. Use a Yoshi Egg on a board with a Yoshi Egg Switch on the floor and then hit it into the pedestal a few times. You'll get 25 coins and then the bonus, which ranges from 200,000 to over 2 million points and quite a few coins as well. But this pales in comparison to the... > Fiery Bosses. In Fiery, beating bosses nets you 1.3 million points each, and defeating Bowser will give you 1.8 million. This is the best way to get points, if you can make it here. The entire thing revolves around bosses. When you enter a level, you will not be able to exit until you've beaten the boss, so make sure to practice getting to and beating bosses if you want a high score. The Time Trials levels are excellent for this. =============================================================================== VI. Miscellaneous Junk =============================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A. Legal Statement ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This game guide is Copyright 2004 by qqwref, aka MZRG, aka MikeyZRG, aka Michael Z. R. Gottlieb. It is illegal and immoral to profit from, include in a publication without permission, or claim ownership of this guide or any part of this guide, unless you are the author. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- B. Thank you! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- People to who thanks are due: The staff of Nintendo, for making this game; Me, for writing this FAQ; CaptainDrakesGhost, for posting a bare-bones list of the stars; Tidalwave and Gersson Oviedo for the following information: How to open the Boos' door (Gersson) Number of Cobrats to beat in the upper temple (Tidalwave + Gersson) Differences between original and Fiery bosses (Gersson) Petey Piranha starts eating you after the first hit (Gersson) Number of times to hit the block of ice in Snowy (Tidalwave + Gersson) Snowy 5 confirmation (Tidalwave + Gersson) Tutankoopa can only be hit with raised hands and in the center (Gersson); Hoffman Frenchman for the information of the Golden Yoshi Egg bonus game. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- C. Version History ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 0.1 - Sept. 6, 2004 - Made ASCII art Wrote Table of Contents Finished Sections IIB, part of IIA, IIIA, VC, and VD 0.2 - Sept. 7, 2004 - Wrote complete Section IV Created Sections VA, VB, and all of I Finished Section IIA First submission to GameFAQs 0.3 - Sept. 10, 2004 - Wrote Sections IIIB, IIIC, and IIIE Wrote Section IIC (Goals) and IID (Enemies) Added underwater movement to ID (Game Mechanics) Added/Wrote Section V; renamed V to VI 1.0 - Sept. 17, 2004 - Added info from Tidalwave and Gersson Oviedo Wrote Section IIID - finally complete! 1.1 - Sept. 29, 2004 - Added Golden Yoshi Egg bonus game info from Hoffman Frenchman. Expanded Section V to Section VA and VB. Wrote VB. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- D. What I Need ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This FAQ is not completely finished yet. There are still a few things I need: > Official names of enemies, bosses, items, and objects > Any more items I may have missed > More complete story > How to unlock the Time Trial levels > How many Cobrats you have to beat in the lower temple, after you fall through the hole, to get the Star there > What you have to do in Sandy to get Lakitu to drop Spinies in the opening board [yes, Boo, takes half of all coins that you have]