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Curiousity #01, Curiousity #02, Curiousity #03
| Curiousity #01 | Updated: 11/5/00, 12:47 AM EST |
| Subject: Level Select/Debug Mode, Emulator Only | |
| Debug info? Yes, believe it or not, Debug Mode has been found for Sonic Pocket Adventure! But not for the Neo Geo Pocket! ...Confused? You should be. ^_^ There are a couple of codes floating around the net (most notably one at GameSages(!)), that won't seem to work on the game regularly. Try as you might, the keycodes do squat. Just write 'em off, and assume the people are lying? Curiously enough, these codes _do_ work! The problem is, they only work for an emulator. (And currently, only one specific one.) It's strange, but partially makes sense. A notable (but now defunct) Neo Geo Pocket Color emulator, R.A.P.E.? (Rather (Have) A Pokémon Emulator? And yes, I do know what the initials spell out, please don't send me complaints or debates about it, it's pointless since the emu's dead), was seemingly designed with Sonic Pocket Adventure specifically in mind. A lot of bench marks were set by it in the emulator's development, and there are fixes in the game to temporarily accomodate the ROM. No, the ROM itself isn't hacked, but the emulator is set to trick it sometimes. For instance, I've never seen Link Mode work before. I don't have anyone around to link to. O_o In a fit of boredom, I went ahead and tried it (mostly to get the picture of Sonic asleep). Imagine my surprise when Sonic jumped up with the text, "Link Established!" The emulator tricks the game into thinking there's a Tails (although Tails doesn't do anything). While this does make it pretty much a single player game...  ...It still works. ^_^ But apparently, there seems to be something set internally in the NGP emulator, that isn't set on a standard NGP. A sort of developmental flag, perhaps? One of the first things discovered was you could reach a debug like state of spinning by switching back and forth between applications and the emulator. It was later refined to pressing both buttons at the same time (the NGP emulator is still under development, when you switch windows it inputs a press of "A" and "B" buttons by accident. But then, the most interesting discovery of all... merely by pressing "Option" on the SEGA Logo (again, only in the emulator), you view this screen:  And you thought a Link Mode fix was neat? Yes, development menus are still in the American version (one can tell the ROM is American because of 2 menu graphics). Unfortunately, no code has yet be found to access these on the actual NGP. They might never be, it might be determined by something internal. Let's hope that's not the case, and if it is, let's hope for an NGP GameShark. ;> (Note from the future: *snort*) Let's see, we've got "Beginning" and "Continue", both of which lead to this screen:  The difference between "Beginning" and "Continue" is one starts you off on that level with no previous stats, "Continue" starts you off with the stats of your saved game (although that doesn't matter much, since the emulator does not support battery backup, and so far plans not to permanently). You can jump to any zone, even Chaotic Space. You can also visit any Special Stage you want to! One thing to worry about is there are four "test" levels. The first two, on the main menu, I suggest you avoid. It's actually the demos playable, and they will crash the emulator. The second two, in the "Special Stage" menu, DO work, although the second one doesn't end (it also shows off a flaw about rings not visible at the top when the tunnel is going up). The first one, however short, will give you a Chaos Emerald! One other interesting thing to note: You can't lose the special stages if you have the correct debug settings selected. Even if you completely throw it, ramming into spikes, you're guaranteed the emerald. Even the developers got lazy. ;> "Go to Room" just lets you go to the Puzzle, Trial, Link, and Options rooms. Backing out of them takes you back to the debug menu. You cannot use the cheats to view completed photos, as far as I can tell. Ahh... "Direction":  Yes, many of the animations are available for viewing here. Oddly enough, "Title_Logo" doesn't seem to work, but "Opening" does. This isn't all of the animations, but not a bad amount, plus it has both good and bad endings. And now, Debug Options. ^_^ There'll be several of them, most self-explanatory. Muteki might be a little confusing, but basically it lets you switch between Sonic and Tails via the "B" button. You are also impervious to damage. "All Clear" means it sets your game so you've defeated all of the levels (you don't get all of the photo pieces though, I think).  This is a picture with all of the Debug options on. You can turn on as many or as few as you want. ^_^ And finally, the Sound Test:  The instructions are all there. "BGM" is background music, and "SE" is sound effects. Bank? I'm not sure, it changes automatically when you play sounds sometimes. R.A.P.E.? never supported sound in any public releases, and AFAIK there's yet to be another NGPC emulator with the hacks necessary to open up the debug menus, so the sound test can't be easily exammined. And that's it. ^_^ I hope you've enjoyed your little guided tour through SPA's Debug. Curious where to get the emulator? Since "Moonlit Coalition" is up for sale, with the R.A.P.E.? link no longer working, you can find the emulator here (31k Zip). As for the ROM? Well... Well, since you can't even easily purchase the game in America, there's no point in withholding the ROM. O_o Check the index page of this section for the link to the ROM. Enjoy. ^_^ | |
| Curiousity #02 | Updated: 11/05/00, 1:14 AM EST |
| Subject: Altered Menu Artwork | |
For some odd reason, the artwork for the "Trial" menu was changed for the American release of SPA (which, coincidentally, came before the Japanese release, but the artwork has been seen in pictures before the game's release as well as in the Japanese version's.) The Japanese version has much more "original" artwork for the selections, but the American artwork looks less casual. (Although because of this change-over, the "Advanced" artwork has Sonic's legs miscolored in both the regular selection, and the "Ranking List" selection!) | |
| Curiousity #03 | Updated: 11/05/00, 1:35 AM EST |
| Subject: Special Stage Beta Win Pose | |
  How'd we all miss this one? O_o Son-Sonic has pointed out that a picture on both the back of the SPA box, as well as in the manual, shows a different win pose than the final does. (Compare, the left is from the back of the box, the right is from an emulator.) While one might suggest the frame MIGHT be transitional, between the regular walking and win pose, and unfortunately we have no easy way of checking that at this time, but the sprite would only be visible for a short amount of time, taking a screenshot of it would be difficult and unlikely to be accidentally captured. Likewise, the style of the sprite looks a little too "classic" (probably why it was redrawn). Thanks to Son-Sonic for the lead. | |
-Kulock
Last Updated: 11/5/00
