_____                 _            _
            / ____|               (_)          | |
           | |      ___  _ __ ___  _  ___  __ _| |
           | |     / _ \| '_ ` _ \| |/ __|/ _` | |
           | |____| (_) | | | | | | | (__| (_| | |
            \_____|\___/|_| |_| |_|_|\___|\__,_|_|          
 __    __            _     _             ______
|  \  /  |          | |   (_)           / _____|
| | \/ | | __ _  ___| |__  _ _ __   ___| |  ___ _   _ _ __
| |\__/| |/ _` |/ __| '_ \| | '_ \ / _ \ | |_  | | | | '_ \
| |    | | (_| | (__| | | | | | | |  __/ |___| | |_| | | | |
|_|    |_|\__,_|\___|_| |_|_|_| |_|\___|\______|\__,_|_| |_|
                        _____
                       |_   _|
                         | | ___   ___
                      _  | |/ _ \ / _ \
                     | |_| | (_) |  __/                     
                      \___/ \___/ \___|

Donations

While I do write all of my guides for free, it does take a lot of time and effort to put them together. If you're feeling generous and want to show your appreciation, I am gladly accepting donations. I don't know exactly what the donations will be used for, but just know that you would definitely be helping me make more quality FAQs! Even the smallest donation amounts are appreciated, and they are a great way to say how much you appreciate the work I do. If you do decide you'd like to donate, please send the donations through PayPal at the e-mail address listed below. Thank you so very much for at least considering this!!

Introduction

Welcome to another one of my FAQs. This particular FAQ covers the Sega Master System game known as Comical MachineGun Joe. This game is a fairly decent, and relatively in-depth for the genre, static shooter. Beyond the in-depth tendencies of the game, however, it is not special in that way.

But, to me, it is somewhat special in another way...

Like many other Sega Master System games, this was developed by Sega and released for the Master System in 1986, but only released in Japan despite most everything in the game, except the manual, being written in the English language. =/ It thusly been over twenty-six years since the release of this game in Japan. And yet, like many dozens of SMS games, it has gone uncovered by GameFAQs in that entire time. The FAQ Contributor Boards, including myself, of GameFAQs have taken it upon themselves to complete at least one FAQ for each and every Master System game, among other consoles.

And so, that is how I came upon this game. Thanks for listening to my ramblin'; hope you enjoy!

Basics of the Game

Controls

Button	Resultant Effects
D-Pad	Move around and change facing
1 Button	Shoot gun
2 Button	Jump
Pause/Start	Pause and unpause game

General Gameplay

This game is a static shooter, in which you can only go along a horizontal path at the bottom of the screen. Your goal is to shoot every enemy that comes at you - they can come from anywhere - while also gaining points by defeating enemies or grabbing items.

Note one thing - you have three lives initially, and being hit a single time *will* kill you. Be very careful here, okay - you can only get lives randomly from finding fruit, or getting 20,000 points, though the latter only works one time.

When defeating enemies, you will gain points. Note, however, there will be a small version that comes up to you. You want to try and get out of its way - it will attach to you, make you slower, and less able to jump. Once a third gets on, you can no longer jump. Get rid of them with three jumps.

Beyond that, it's basically see, shoot, kill. After so long, a boss will pop up. You can consider them powered-up versions of basic enemies for the purpose of this section. We get a bit more in-depth later on.

Beat the boss to go the next level. Beat all six levels to reach Replay Mode, a harder mode, but it is still a looping of the original six.

Items and Pickups

• Bombs: Generally, you'll see pigs go along the upper portion of the stage. Shoot them to find bombs. These bombs will change from blue to purple over time, showing how close it is to exploding. Jump to release the bomb (preferably before it goes purple) and kill every enemy on the screen when it explodes. Note that these do not work against the level boss, El Doba.
• Fruit: There are four main varieties, sort of. By shooting at certain parts of the level, you'll find fruit. There are apples (10 points), grapes or berries (20 points), some weird yellowish thing (30 points), and, at random times, extra lives.
• Red Hat: After killing a number of enemies, a red hat will pop up once per stage (barring your own death). It'll bestow a new power upon you, sort of - it basically lets you shoot faster when you hold down the 1 Button. This ends upon your death or upon entering the next level.
• Spider: After a bomb detonates, a spider-like object appears on the middle of the stage. It ricochets you and your enemies' shots until it disappears eventually. Note that they are always present in the Replay Mode throughout the whole level, although the Saloon never gets one, as usual.

Scoring

With this, it is worth noting that 20,000 points will net you one extra life, but only the first time you get it. You get nothing beyond there - not at 40,000, not at 60,000, nothing at all.

Action/Item/Etc.	Points Awarded
Obtain an apple-like fruit	10 points
Obtain a grape-like fruit	20 points
Obtain a yellowish fruit	30 points
Kill one enemy	100 points
Obtain a Red Hat item	500 points
Detonate a bomb (ignores enemies killed)	1,000 points
Kill three enemies or more with a bomb	1,800 points
Defeat the El Doba male boss	5,000 points
Defeat the El Doba female boss	10,000 points
Find a secret character	10,000 points
Stay alive in the Graveyard for 90 seconds	100,000 points

Walkthrough

Some Notes (READ!)

The appearance of El Doba, the boss of each level, is based upon how many enemies you kill. To put it like this - you can stay for millennia in a single level, but, if you don't kill anyone, you won't go forward. The enemies will continually come out at you, but they at least start out in a relatively consistent pattern. Or, at least, my five or six playthroughs all luckily ended up the same. =/

In any case, you will need to note that you will need some sort of relative perfection on your playthrough if you want to follow this FAQ. I cannot write about an infinitely-long enemy swarm, but I will at least try to cover the minimal number of enemies and a little more so that you have a decent chance at triggering the boss. In addition, mostly for the heck of it, I'll also tell you, graphically, the locations of the fruits.

As for enemy strategies, there aren't really any - shoot them as they appear and you should kill them before they let off a shot. El Doba isn't even that much harder - if you can grab the level's Red Hat, most of the time, just hold down "1" and you should still remain fine, or you can use a dodge-and-shoot tactic with him.

And, finally, before you get into the actual walkthrough, I strongly suggest reading through the Basics of the Game section.

Again, this section is mostly to note the infinitely-long enemy swarms by comparison to this finite FAQ/Walkthrough, and potential randomness despite the very slight possibility of it due to my consecutive playthroughs. Good luck, and enjoy.

Level 1: Harbor

^l1|Level screenshot. Red circles mark fruit locations.

• Your first enemy will come from the top-right. Shoot him as he appears.
• The next comes from the top-left, behind the building.
• The third will be from within the building itself.
• At this point, a pig will come by. Shoot him and take the bomb.
• In quick succession, two enemies will come from the right side, followed soon by a sniper in the top-left. This is a good chance to use the bomb.
• Your eighth enemy should come from within the building again, and probably yield a Red Hat item.
• The next one will come from the lower-left, so quickly begin shooting there.
• Number ten comes from the top-right again.
• Another comes from the top-left.
• As the next one from the lower-left appears, so should another bomb-holding pig.

After defeating ten or eleven enemies, El Doba will appear in the center of the screen. He's pretty easy - just quickly let off three shots against him and you'll be fine.

Level 2: Downtown

^l2|Level screenshot. Red circles mark fruit locations.

• The first enemy will come from the leftbound path at the intersection.
• The next comes from the rightbound path.
• The third will appear in the lower-left, in your area, so kill him before the others if others remain.
• The fourth enemy will come from the rightbound path at the intersection again.
• At this time, a pig will come by - shoot it for a bomb.
• Soon, an enemy will come from the leftbound intersection path, and another from the top-right window. Use the bomb when these appear.
• Your seventh enemy comes from the leftbound path at the intersection. Take care of him quickly; if you didn't take out the top-right sniper, he'll now jump down at you.
• The next enemy comes from the rightbound intersection path. He should yield a Red Hat.
• The next enemy comes from the lower-left corner.
• The tenth enemy comes from the rightbound intersection path, soon followed by another from the leftbound path.
• Another pig will come - take him down.
• Soon, another enemy comes from the rightbound path, then one from the lower-right corner. Use the bomb for these.

Around this time, El Doba should appear. You know the deal - hold 1, a winner is you.

Level 3: Saloon

^l3|Level screenshot. Red circles mark fruit locations.

• The first enemy comes from behind the counter. He's hard to hit - try getting near and shooting up and right.
• The next comes from the top-right.
• The next comes from the lower-left.
• At this point, if you didn't kill the bartender, he'll jump out from behind the counter.
• The next enemy comes from the upper-left.
• The next two enemies will be in the top-right, one of which will repeatedly duck behind the counter and shoot until dead.
• Enemy number seven is from the top-left.
• By this point, if the duck-and-shoot guy in the top-right is not dead, he'll jump from behind the counter.
• The eighth enemy comes from the lower-right. This one or the duck-and-shoot guy should yield the Red Hat.
• The next enemy will come from the top-right and walk at you. Quickly get rid of him.
• Another enemy will do the same.
• Another enemy will come from the top-left.
• In quick succession, you'll deal with an enemy from the top-right, bottom-left, and a duck-and-shoot guy in the top-right.
• Enemy number fifteen will come from the top-left, soon followed by a guy from the bottom-right.

If the dude from the bottom-right appeared, take care of him before El Doba. El Doba usually appears around 15 kills. Beyond that, same red-coated dude (who may be a lady) as usual.

Level 4: Graveyard

^l4|Level screenshot. Pale yellow circles mark fruit locations.

• In quick succession, enemies will come from the top-left, middle-right, and top-right.
• Then, in quick succession, from the bottom-left, middle-left, and top-right.
• Around this time, a pig will come along. Shoot him.
• Enemies will soon come from the top- and middle-left. Now is an ideal time for the bomb.
• A ninth enemy will come from the middle-left.
• A tenth will come from the top-right, probably yielding the Red Hat.
• The next enemy will come from the bottom-right, followed by another from the bottom-left.
• In quick succession, you'll meet more enemies from the top-left, middle-right, and top-right.
• Enemies then come from the middle-left, lower-right, top-left, middle-right, and top-right.

Around this time, after your twentieth enemy or so, El Doba will come out. He should be easy to take care of if you stay on the left side and shoot him as he arrive.

Level 5: Midnight

^l5|Level screenshot. Pale yellow circles mark fruit locations.

• The first enemy will come from the leftbound path at the intersection.
• The next comes from the lower-right corner.
• The next will come from the rightbound intersection path.
• A fourth will appear in the top-right window and jump down soon if not taken care of.
• The fifth will appear again from the rightbound path at the intersection.
• A pig should appear around now; quickly shoot it and take the bomb.
• Very soon afterwards, an enemy will come from the lower-right, and one from the upper-left. Use the bomb on them.
• Another enemy will very quickly go across the top of the screen shooting at you. You'd probably be better dodging him because ...
• ... another enemy will come at you from the lower-left corner.
• The tenth enemy will come from the rightbound path at the intersection and should yield a Red Hat.
• Soon after the previous one appears, another will appear from the leftbound path at the intersection.
• In quick succession, enemies will come from the top-right window, and each intersection path.
• In quick succession, after that, enemies will come from the top-right window, lower-left corner, and right intersection path. During this time, a pig will also appear - maybe you'll want to use his bomb?
• Another enemy will come from the left intersection path.

Around this time, El Doba should appear. You know the deal - hold 1, a winner is you.

Level 6: Fairyland

^l6|Level screenshot. Dark-blue circles mark fruit locations.

• Enemies will from come the lower-left corner and rightmost mushroom in quick succession.
• A speedy-shooter will go across the screen heading left around this time. It is better to dodge him and get the one behind him.
• Shoot the pig coming across the screen for a bomb.
• Soon, enemies will from the tree trunk and the lower-left corner. Now is an ideal time to use the bomb.
• Your next enemy will shoot from the left mushroom.
• One more soon comes from behind the leftmost tree.
• Another enemy will come from within the larger tree trunk itself.
• A sniping enemy will pop in and out of the leftmost treetrop to try and get you. Seriously take care of him.
• Another enemy will come from the right side, followed soon by an enemy from within the tree trunk.
• A pig will walk across the screen. Shoot his bacon and take his bomb.
• Enemies will soon come from the left mushroom and lower-right corner. Now is a good time to use the bomb.
• An enemy will come from within the tree trunk, followed very quickly by one in the lower-left corner. Take out the latter first.
• In quick succession, you'll deal with enemies in the right mushroom, a speedy-shooting enemy from the right, and a relatively stationary dude following him. Focus on the right side before they come.
• The twentieth enemy will come from within the tree trunk.
• Enemies will soon come, in quick succession, from the lower-left corner, left mushroom, and left small tree. I'd focus on them in that order as well.
• Another enemy will come from within the tree trunk.
• Another sniper enemy will appear in the left tree.
• A relatively stationary shooter will eventually come from the right side.
• An enemy will pop out from behind the smaller tree.
• As said enemy does, a pig should come out from the right side. He takes priority.
• As you shoot the pig, enemies should come from the lower-right corner and the tree trunk. Definitely use the bomb now.
• In quick succession, you'll meet enemies from the left mushroom, lower-left corner, right mushroom, and right side.
• You'll find another enemy coming from the right.
• Soon, enemy number thirty-five will leave the tree trunk.

Sometime around now, El Doba will come out of hiding. He's closer, and therefore harder, than before. However, if you are already on the left side, you can easily shoot him a few times as he comes out before he even gets a shot at shooting!

"Replay Mode"

After finishing Level 6: Fairyland, the game can be said to be both done and still unfinished. The game will loop through the six levels after beating El Doba in level six indefinitely until you lose all of your lives.

There are no real differences in the levels now, except a noticeable randomness in enemy formations, a spider always present in every level (except the Saloon), and somewhat-harder enemies.

So, in a way, you can consider yourself done after Level 6, and, from there on out, it's a high-score-run which I am unable to help you on. Good luck!

Secrets 'n' Stuff

A Graveyard Treasure

For this, you merely need to stay alive in the Graveyard for 90 seconds. Do not take a hit, and do not activate the boss. In other words, pretty much just try to live - don't kill enemies. Once you pass the 90-second mark, the stage will suddenly grow dark and you'll earn a whopping 100,000 points. This can be done every time you visit the level.

Allusions and Illusions?

For this, you need to meet two conditions.

• At the start of the stage, the hundreds digit in your score must be a zero, one, four, or five.

• The first shot in a stage you fire must kill the third enemy that appears.

If these conditions are met, you will see a hidden character and earn 10,000 points. This hidden character can often be an allusion to some myth or story if you think about it, so pay attention.

El Doba's True Form!

For this to work, you need to beat El Doba, the boss of all stages, before he lets loose ten shots. It doesn't matter if those shots hit you, but he cannot let ten go. It is also possible to do so if you already fought the female El Doba in the previous level.

In the next stage, if you don't lose any lives, you'll find a different version of El Doba, a female version, as the boss. This boss is harder than normal, fires faster, and takes five hits to kill, but also yields 10,000 points.

Invulnerability

During a stage, pause during the time you are still alive, then press the 1 Button eight consecutive times, then unpause to be invulnerable. Almost nothing will kill you. However, if you wear a bomb and it explodes, you still die, and this has a tendency to void the invincibility cheat, so be careful about that. Finally, this has a tendency to, for some reason, not take effect as well as it should in Fairyland for unknown reasons.

Credits

In no particular order...

• Sunset Kid:
  • He made a useful FAQ for this game on Neoseeker, which I perused.

• tim_roast:
  • For providing me with Sunset Kid's own FAQ to this game.

• GameFAQs, Neoseeker, and Supercheats:
  • For being the most amazing FAQ-hosting sites I know.

• CJayC, SBAllen, and Devin Morgan:
  • General sucking up to the GameFAQs admins. =P

• Me (KeyBlade999):
  • For making this FAQ. =P

• You, the reader:
  • For hopefully enjoying this FAQ.

Version History

• Final:
  • First and likely only version of this FAQ completed.
  • Time: 2:30 AM 12/20/2012.

Legalities

This FAQ may not be reproduced 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.

ｩ 2012-2013 Daniel Chaviers (a.k.a. KeyBlade999).

If you would wish to contact me concerning this or my other FAQs, use this e-mail: keyblade999.faqs@gmail.com, or PM (Private Message) me on the GameFAQs message boards.

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