Neoseeker : Pyramids of Ra FAQs : Pyramids of Ra FAQ/Walkthrough

Pyramids of Ra FAQ/Walkthrough

by KeyBlade999   Updated to vFinal on
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  • Game: Pyramids of Ra
  • Console: GameBoy
  • File Type: Formatted FAQ
  • Author: KeyBlade999 (a.k.a. Daniel Chaviers)
  • Version: Final
  • Time of Update: 1:00 AM 1/24/2013
  • File Size: 15.4 KB



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Introduction

Welcome to another one of my FAQs. This particular FAQ covers the GameBoy game known as Pyramids of Ra. Pyramids of Ra is a rather old puzzle game, released for the GameBoy around 1991. It is perhaps one of the most extensive and addicting puzzle games I've ever seen, containing approximately 24,000 levels in all.

It has been twenty years since the release of this game. And yet, like hundreds of GameBoy 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 GameBoy 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

Game Controls

Button Resultant Effects
D-Pad Move the ball.
A Button Only used in entering passwords.
B Button Increase speed.
Start Button Pause/unpause game; shows passwords, too.
Select Button Opens the options menu.


Gameplay

You'll begin the game by seeing a video-like tutorial of the various types of tiles, which shall be discussed in a moment. After this long tutorial (you can skip it with the Start Button), you'll find yourself at the key entry screen. There, you can enter one of the ~24,000 acceptable passwords. (They are not in here. Don't bother asking.) If you don't have one, press the Start Button at this screen to play from the beginning.

Each level consists of a gridded field with numerous tiles on it. You'll want to make a path going from your starting "S" tile, taking out all of the breakable tiles on the way, to reach the start again. You will move around by using the D-Pad, and you can speed this up by using the B Button. Pretty simple, isn't it? Doesn't seem like there could be ~24,000 levels...

... until you toss in the other types of tiles! Not all tiles are the basic white ones that just take one bounce to deal with. The following section will deal with the various Tile Types. An additional factor to consider would be the dashed energy meter at the top of the screen, which will denote how much time is left until you are forced to move in a direction - the game beeps when there's around two or three seconds left.

Anyways, that's the main object of the game. Progress from the start, break all breakable tiles, and return to the start. You'll progress faster if you are successful on the first try of a level, up to 100 levels at a time; conversely, you'll go slower if you take multiple tries. There is no definite way to control the levels you go to in this game, so you're mostly on your own. It controlled primarily by how much time you spend on each tile in the level, and even the slightest hesitation could screw it up, and you won't really know until you hit back on the "S" tile. (Not to mention that ~24,000 levels would take me years and 15+ MB of text to do.)

See the Strategies/Tips section if you want some general help, or feel free to e-mail me if you need help on a specific level (send the password, too) - my e-mail is in the Legalities section. The game ends at the end of the series of levels, which can take you anywhere from 240 to 24,000 rooms to reach. Good luck!



Tile Types

^l2|Start/End. The Start/End Tile:

This tile is the one you'll begin the level on and end it on, if you are successful. You will begin the level here and have an indefinite period of time to think about your strategy, what you want to do here, the meaning of life, whatever you need - the energy meter will not deplete! But always try to leave a way back here, or you may end up stuck.


^l3|One-bounce tile. The One-Bounce Tile:

This is the most proliferated tile throughout the numerous levels of this game. It is also the most basic. You are allowed to land on it, then jump off to shatter it - it only is strong enough to last for that one jump. Along with the two-bounce, three-bounce, and unknown tiles, you must eliminate all these and return to the start to finish the level.


^l4|Two-bounce tile. The Two-Bounce Tile:

This tile is much like the one-bounce tile; however, the darker shading represents a higher level of resilience. You are allowed to land on it, then jump off twice to shatter it. Along with the one-bounce, three-bounce, and unknown tiles, you must eliminate all these and return to the start to finish the level.


^l5|Three-bounce tile. The Three-Bounce Tile:

This tile is much like the one-bounce tile; however, the darker shading represents a higher level of resilience. You are allowed to land on it, then jump off three times to shatter it. Along with the one-bounce, three-bounce, and unknown tiles, you must eliminate all these and return to the start to finish the level.


^l6|Jumping tiles. The Jump Tile:

This tile is rather special. Unlike the previous three tiles, you cannot destroy it. Instead, when you land on it, you'll go in the direction it points for two tiles. You'll skip over the first tile, and land on the second if one is actually there.


^l7|Rotating jump tiles. The Rotating Jump Tile:

Some of the jump tiles you come across will look like the screenshot to the right - they rotate. This means you must time your jump on them to go in the desired direction. Their function is like that of the regular jump tile - skip over one, land on the second - but, again, rotating.


^l8|Moving tiles. The Moving Tile:

These basic tiles ... well, move. They are among a number of other moving tiles, but this one has nothing special associated with it. It cannot be destroyed either. Especially when near gaps, you'll need to time your jump accordingly, and, remember, just because you get on heading to the right does not mean you have to get off still heading right.


^l9|Scarabs. The Scarab:

On the hunt for the pharaoh Scarabeus, you'll also find a number of bug-like enemies. This are the lone true enemies in the game. However, if you land on them, you'll need to redo the level - after all, bugs are gross! =P All kidding aside, you do want to dodge these. Observe their route and plan accordingly. You'll want to time your jumps over these like the reverse for moving tiles.


^l10|Vertical flip tiles. The Vertical Flip Tile:

This tile is more or less a random implementation. What this does is flip the entire level over vertically along a middle horizontal line so it is effectively mirrored. This won't really affect your strategy for solving the level, though - the layout is only mirrored, so if you account for that, you should be fine. There are also moving varieties of these.


^l11|Horizontal flip tiles. The Horizontal Flip Tile:

This tile is more or less a random implementation. What this does is flip the entire level over horizontally along a middle vertical line so it is effectively mirrored. This won't really affect your strategy for solving the level, though - the layout is only mirrored, so if you account for that, you should be fine. There are also moving varieties of these.


^l12|Reverse direction tiles. The Reverse Direction Tile:

This is one of the more painful-to-deal-with types of tiles. When you land on it, your D-Pad directions are reversed like so:

Before After
D-Pad Up D-Pad Down
D-Pad Down D-Pad Up
D-Pad Left D-Pad Right
D-Pad Right D-Pad Left

They will remain reversed as such until you land on another one of these tiles, at which point your controls will return to normal. And, yes, they can also move.


^l13|Unlimited tiles. The Unlimited Tile:

Sometimes a blessing, and sometimes a curse, these unlimited tiles cannot be destroyed. They are effectively indestructible by any means, so, basically, you want to use this sometimes as a hub during the level to branch off of if needed. Bounce on it all you want (though you'll never be able to bounce on it more than eight times, mathematically observing), it'll never go away.


^l14|Unknown tiles. The Unknown Tile:

Our final tile is quite an enigma - literally! Whatever is beneath this, although presumably predetermined to keep levels solvable, is not revealed until you bounce off of it. Usually, it'll be one of the one-, two-, or three-bounce tiles, though.



Strategies/Tips

  • Think ahead. At the start of a level, the energy meter will not actually count down until you move a tile in any direction. Try to plan out various routes to go along and see if they work. You have plenty of time at this point, so calm down.

  • Work from the outside inward. It may not be the perfect strategem for every level, but it works pretty well in many of the levels I've played. You'll want to try to go along the rim first before working inward. Often, this can even lead to a spiraling type of solution to the puzzle. Just remember to leave a path back to the start.

  • Branch off. This is a technique primarily involving the two- and three-bounce tiles and the unlimited tiles. As is readily noted in the tutorials prior to the start of actual gameplay, you can use the multi-bounce tiles to go from the multi-bounce tile, off to a group that is to the side, then return and go along the main course. Use this to your advantage. It'll, early on, usually only be one tile, but keep aware of the potential to need to loop back to the multi-bounce tiles.

  • Speaking of multi-bounce tiles... Early on, especially, the game will often place two right next to each other. While this is not always the proper solution to that individual puzzle, you can often go from one multi-bounce tile to another, back, then to the second one and continue on, if it were two-bounce tiles. But, again, plan ahead first and make sure you don't accidentally isolate needed tiles!

^s1|Zig-zag!
  • Zig-zagging. Sometimes, especially when you use the rim-runner strategy, you'll find that certain tiles will become unreachable as you continue on, or may create paradoxical situations in which you'll lose if you try to go for that one tile. Zig-zagging among the tiles can be best. For example, look at the image to the right and study it, especially the light-green sections in the right picture. True rim-running can screw up here, because you're left with one tile jutting out, which, with one-bounce tiles, will result in a failure here. However, if you widen what you define as the rim at certain points, and zig-zag along them, you can make it through the level. This isn't just for two tiles - it can be three or even four off, depending on the level and situation.

  • Keep track of those passwords!! In the course of a single game, you're guaranteed to play at least 240 levels, and could easily play into the thousands. It would be horribly inconvenient for you to actually lose all that progress, wouldn't it?




Credits

In no particular order...


  • Darkstar Ripclaw:
    • The provision of a manual scan of 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:
    • Done for the foreseeable future.
    • Time: 1:00 AM 1/24/2013.


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 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.


Allowed sites for my FAQs Forever-Banned Sites
GameFAQs (www.gamefaqs.com) CheatCC (www.cheatcc.com)
Neoseeker (www.neoseeker.com) Cheat Database (www.cheat-database.com)
SuperCheats (www.supercheats.com) Cheat Index (www.cheatindex.com)
Cheat Search (www.cheatsearch.com)
Cheatstop (www.panstudio.com/cheatstop)
Game Express (www.gameexpress.com)
Mega Games
Cheats Guru (www.cheatsguru.com)




This is the end of KeyBlade999's Pyramids of Ra (GB) FAQ.

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