Lode Runner II: The Bungeling Strikes Back Arcade FAQ version 1.0.1 copyright 2006 by Andrew Schultz schultz.andrew@sbcglobal.net Please do not reproduce this FAQ for profit without my prior consent. However, if you write a polite e-mail to me referring to me(and this FAQ) by name, then I will probably say OK. But if I ignore you that means no--and I am bad about answering e-mail. Sorry. **** AD SPACE: **** My home page: http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Exhibit/2762 ================================ OUTLINE 1. INTRODUCTION 1-1. BASIC LODE RUNNER 1-2. DIFFERENCES FOR THE ARCADE GAME VS EARLY PC 2. CONTROLS 3. SCORING AND LEVEL DIVISIONS 4. WALKTHROUGH (search for 4-(level #) for a particular walkthrough) 5. VERSIONS 6. CREDITS ================================ 1. INTRODUCTION 1-1. BASIC LODE RUNNER Lode Runner's a simple old game. You are equipped with a gun that can dig holes in soft ground, which allow you to fall through them or trap enemies who chase you albeit at a slower pace. If the hole closes over the enemy, he regenerates at the top. Your object is to pick up all the gold in a level full of ladders and ropes and hard ground and even false ground and climb to the top of the level(a flashing ladder in the Arcade case.) If the bad guys catch you or you fall into your own trap and get swallowed up, you lose. The game is grid based so there are only exact spots where you can dig. It was originally created by Doug Smith and has gone through several incarnations on different platforms. Some feature very similar levels across platforms; for instance the NES version takes 50 levels, most of which map to an Apple II level(where the game was originally ported) minus a few rows. The SNES and Turbografx appear to pretty up some old levels without offering new challenges. All ports that maintain the grid structure and basic icons have slightly different AIs and some have completely different levels or neat new power-ups(the PSX version-- LR and LR extra--has bombs which permanently destroy part of a level, or a stun gun), some are wickedly tough(GBA Lode Runner, Apple Championship Lode Runner--not a port, but just a shifting of levels) and some go off in different directions entirely(Lode Runner 2(PC) is 3-d isometric and looks like Q*Bert; Nintendo 64's has you walking almost on wire structures and has some vicious plants that attack you. But it works.) The arcade versions have some old levels and some new ones, but given that the monsters are faster and smarter there's enough fresh air that many that were trivial in old versions of Lode Runner are challenging--especially when you get point bonuses for efficient form. 1-2. DIFFERENCES FOR THE ARCADE GAME VS EARLY PC Of course the arcade version doesn't allow you to create levels, sadly. It's there to eat your money. So it has a selection of pretty tough levels. Lode Runner I has 24 of them; II-IV have 30. Each group of 3 levels has a different set of monsters but the only difference is visual. They don't work together, and they all have the same AI, so they do tend to clump together for your advantage. First thing you'll notice is that your enemies are much faster than in the PC version. Also, aren't stupid. They try to get horizontally level with you and run at you. If you climb up the bottom of the ladder, they won't run away. Hey, it was an arcade game, they needed as many quick deaths as they could get. The icons are arranged a bit differently. The board is 24x32, with people and gold being 1x2 icons. The result is that some platforms that look like they are level with each other, aren't. This means that sometimes when you dig you will have a pit half your size. You can't jump out of it. You have to avoid it. This gets sticky but on the other hand you can grab gold while on a rope if the gold is right below the rope--and you can dig under a rope, although enemies won't fall into the holes you dig. It's more for escape. ~ $ $