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| B O S C O N I A N |
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GAME: BOSCONIAN
PLATFORM: ARCADE
GENRE: ARCADE SHOOTER
CREATOR: NAMCO licensed to MIDWAY Copyright 1981
AUTHOR OF THIS FAQ: Kevin Butler AKA War Doc
E-MAIL: kevinb(at)technologist(dot)com
FAQ VERSION: 1.06
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TABLE OF CONTENTS
UNIT I: INTRODUCTION
1. Legal Stuff
2. Version Information
3. Acknowledgements
4. Welcome
5. Overview
UNIT II: GAME INFORMATION
6. The Game
6.1 The Controls
6.2 The Playing Field
6.3 Scoring
6.4 Game Versions
UNIT III: STRATEGIES
7. Playing the Game
UNIT IV: CONCLUSION
8. Conclusion
_______________________________________________________________________________
To find a particular chapter or subchapter do the following:
1. Highlight the chapter or subchapter name you wish to find.
2. Press CTRL-C
3. Press CTRL-F
4. Press CTRL-V
5. Press CTRL-F
5. You will arrive at the desired chapter or subchapter.
_______________________________________________________________________________
**************
********************************* U N I T I **********************************
**************
+=================+
| 1. LEGAL STUFF |============================================================
+=================+
This guide 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 advanced permission from the author. Use of this guide on
any other web sit or as part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and
a violation of copyright. All content in this guide is Copyright 2003 by
Kevin Butler. Only the sites listed below have permission to publish this
work or to display it:
www.gamefaqs.com
www.cheats.de
faqs.ign.com
If you wish to put this guide on your site, e-mail me and ask. Save yourself
the headache of putting up with lawsuits and whatnot because you failed to ask
a simple "Can I post your guide on <insert site>?". If you wish to use info
in this guide, please acknowledge that you have done so.
If you see this guide on any other site then the one listed above, please
e-mail me. If you wish to ask questions or give input to this guide, please
e-mail me. Just have Bosconian as the subject so I know it isn't another kooky
vendor trying to sell me hair gel or another XXX site telling me I have new
friends.
+=========================+
| 2. VERSION INFORMATION |====================================================
+=========================+
Version 1.0 8/27/03: A guide is born.
Version 1.02 8/29/03: 1. Fixed the playing field picture.
2. Fixed up a couple of strategies.
Version 1.05 8/29/03: 1. Added data differentiating the old and new Namco
versions of this game.
2. Revised the scoring table to put the proper names
of the enemies.
3. Renamed the screen items to their proper names.
Version 1.06 8/30/03: Fixed a couple of errors.
+======================+
| 3. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS |=======================================================
+======================+
The following are a list of people or organizations that have made this FAQ
possible:
My wonderful family (who has had to put up with the tapping on the keyboard)
Namco for making a great arcade game
GameFAQ's for putting up this FAQ
+=============+
| 4. WELCOME |================================================================
+=============+
Welcome to my FAQ for Bosconian. Since the game has you continuously cycling
through space battles, there is no walkthrough per se. Instead it will be
broken up into the game itself and strategies for survival. Input is
appreciated along with constructive criticism. If you wish to e-mail me
thoughts on this FAQ, better ways of doing things, other strategies, etc., feel
free. Make sure you put Bosconian as the subject. If you don't, I'm liable to
discard the e-mail as spam.
+==============+
| 5. OVERVIEW |===============================================================
+==============+
Bosconian was another in a long line of games in the partnership of Namco and
Midway. Bosconian took the space theme and created something a little more
quickly paced. It was the first game to feature the continue function. This
enabled players to go as far as they wanted as long as they had the quarters.
The game itself never quite gained a real wide following since other Namco/
Midway games were still drawing a lot of business. A couple of these notable
games were Pac Man and Galaga. Still, the game play proved to be unique since
one was able to "wrap around" the screen to the other side giving one the
feeling that there were no size limits in the game. Although the enemy
fighters never fire on your ship, they move faster and attempt to ram it.
Other hazards included asteroids and mines to ensure that this would be a
battle to the death. Good luck in fulfilling your mission.
***************
******************************** U N I T II **********************************
***************
+==============+
| 6. THE GAME |===============================================================
+==============+
Bosconian is a two-dimensional arcade shooter style game. You are responsible
for destroying all the space stations during a round. To frustrate your
attempts are enemy fighters, space debris, enemy formations, and the space
stations themselves. If you make it through that round, many more await you.
Being an intergalactic hero isn't all that it's cracked up to be.
____________________
/ 6.1 The Controls /__________________________________________________________
--------------------
The controls on this game are very easy. It may, though, take just a little
bit of time to get used to them.
- An eight-way joystick
- A fire button
_________________________
/ 6.2 The Playing Field /_____________________________________________________
-------------------------
Bosconian consists of one playing field. The playing field itself is broken up
into parts. You have the main screen that shows the small part of space your
fighter is in. On the right side is a radar display which only displays the
positions of the space stations and any enemy formations coming to attack you.
Right above that is the current condition which can be GREEN, YELLOW, or RED.
Above the left corner is the FORMATION heading. When an enemy formation is
detected, it will display that formations configuration. The playing screen
looks like this (of course, larger then normal):
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| ENEMY BASE | |
| | |
| /-\ /-\ | |
| | | | | | |
| / \-/ MISSILE \-/ \ | |
| / / \ BAY / \ \ | |
| /_\/____+--+V +--+___\/-\ | |
| | |___/ |/\| \__| |<-CANNON | |
| \-/\ \ |\/| / \-/ | |
| \ \ +--+ +--+ / / | |
| \ \ / \ / / | |
| \/-\ /-\ / | |
| | | | | | FORMATION |
| \-/ \-/ +----------------------|
| | CURRENT CONDITION |
| \ / +----------------------|
| \/<-P-TYPE | RADAR |
| MISSILE | |
| | |
| | | |
| /|\ | . .<-ENEMY |
| |<-YOUR FIGHTER | . STATION |
| | . OR |
| | . ENEMY |
| | FORMATION |
| | . |
| | |
| | . |
| | |
| | |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
You control your ship through these screens.
_______________
/ 6.3 Scoring /_______________________________________________________________
---------------
Scoring in this game is relatively simple:
I-Type Missile (Looks like fighter) : 50 points
P-Type Missile (Looks like boomerang) : 60 points
E-Type Missile (Looks like Enemy Base Missile): 70 points
Space Rocks : 10 points
Mines : 20 points
Spy Ship (announced by synthesized voice : 200-400 points
stating "Spy Ship Sighted")
Enemy Station Cannon : 200 points
Enemy Station Missile (E-Type Missile) : See Missile Type scores
Enemy Station : 1500 points
Enemy Formation : 500 or 1000 points
Control Fighter in Formation
(The off-colored fighter) : 90 points
Other Fighters in Formation (One of the three : See Missile Type scores
types of
missiles)
You start the game with 1, 2, 3, or 5 fighters. You get a free man (maybe) as
follows:
15,000 and 50,000
20,000 and 70,000
10,000, 50,000, and every 50,000 points thereafter
15,000, 50,000, and every 50,000 points thereafter
15,000, 70,000, and every 70,000 points thereafter
20,000, 70,000, and every 70,000 points thereafter
30,000, 100,000, and every 100,000 points thereafter
_____________________
/ 6.4 Game Versions /_________________________________________________________
---------------------
There are five versions of this arcade game that were made. Namco made three
and Midway made two of them. They are all the same except the new Namco
version. Therefore, I will refer to these as the new Namco and other versions
(the two Namco and two Midway versions). The reason I am mentioning this is
due to the fact that the Enemy Base setup is different between these two
versions although the strategies talked about in Chapter 7 are the same. Both
versions have the same Enemy Base setups, but they are in different order as
the rounds go up. This is also true regarding where your fighter starts at.
For example, the setup for RD 4 on the other versions is the same as the setup
for RD 6 on the new Namco. Below I have put the radar pictures for the first
five rounds of both the new Namco and the other versions. This way, you can
tell what version you are playing (x is where you start at):
+----------------+
| OTHER VERSIONS |
+----------------+
+------------+ +-------------+ +--------------+ +--------------+ +------------+
| | | | | | |. | | |
| | | | | | | . | | |
| | | | | . | | . | | |
| . | | | | . . | | | | . |
| . | | . | | . . | | . | | . . |
| | | . | | . . | | . | | . . . . |
| . | | . | | . | | . | | . |
| | | . | | | | . | | |
| x | | | | x | | . | | x |
| | | x | | | | . x | | |
+------------+ +-------------+ +--------------+ +--------------+ +------------+
+-----------+
| NEW NAMCO |
+-----------+
+------------+ +-------------+ +--------------+ +--------------+ +------------+
| | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | . | | |
| | | | | . | | . | | . |
| | | . | | . . | | . | | . . |
| | | .. | | . x . | | . | | . x . |
| . | | . | | . . . | | . | | . . |
| . | | | | | | . | | . |
| . | | | | | | . . | | |
| x | | x | | | | x | | |
+------------+ +-------------+ +--------------+ +--------------+ +------------+
****************
******************************** U N I T III *********************************
****************
+======================+
| 7. PLAYING THE GAME |=======================================================
+======================+
The action starts immediately as soon as you start your game. Your fighter
will be put on the screen. Your radar display will show how many space
stations need to be taken out. The radar doesn't show, though, all the space
debris all over the place and the enemy fighters (unless they are in
formation). Your fighter stays in the middle of the screen.
- Be aware that the enemy missiles are faster then your ship. This means you
will have to learn to use the joystick proficiently so that you can maneuver
away from these enemy missiles attempting to commit suicide on your ship.
- At the beginning of the round, quickly look at your radar to determine where
the Enemy Stations are. Then quickly figure out a systematic way of
destroying them since time is one's enemy in this game. Just because they
are lined up in a row doesn't mean that the missile bays are facing the same
direction.
- By that same token, your ship fires lasers from both the front and back.
This means if anything is trying to "sneak" up on you, they won't stand a
chance.
- Use the space debris to your advantage. You score points regardless of
whether you hit the enemy, or if you use other means to assist, such as the
mines or rocks. Just keep in mind that the space debris doesn't return
until the next round.
- The Enemy Stations can be destroyed two ways:
- The first way is to fire a shot directly into their missile bay. This
is easy to do on the first two rounds. By round three, the missile bay
has a door which opens and closes to make it more of a challenge. After
round three, the station will fire a missile if your fighter is in the
missiles path. You can easily destroy this missile with your ship.
- The other way is to destroy all six cannons around the space station. This
method also enables you to get more points in the long run. To do this,
though, means you will have to deal with more enemy missiles since you
have to constantly loop around to hit the cannons. In addition, the pods
fire back on your ship.
- Enemy Stations can be oriented with the missile bay facing left/right or
up/down. Keep this in mind if you are taking on multiple stations in one
area. While you are pounding on one Enemy Station, three more may be firing
at your ship to prevent you from destroying your target.
- The warning conditions tell you how safe it is for the moment:
- GREEN means no enemies within view.
- YELLOW means enemies present.
- RED means that you have taken too long and the enemy is now moving twice
as fast to ram you.
- You will also hear synthesized voice prompts stating either "Alert,
Alert" or "Condition Red" regarding these conditions.
- At regular intervals, a formation of enemy missiles will head toward your
ship. You can see what the formation of these enemy missiles are in by
looking at the area above the top, left corner of the radar. This will show
you if they are in a line, checkerboard pattern, etc. You will also see
this formation (represented by a red dot) on your radar screen. Some quick
tips for tangling with formations:
- Enemy formations always appear as a control missile with four missiles.
- If you destroy the control missile, the other missiles will spread out.
You can still destroy them but it is much harder to get the points for
taking out the entire formation.
- Try to maneuver in such a way as to be able to rapidly hit all the
missiles. This is of course barring the fact there is no other things
(rocks and mines) in the way that can destroy these missiles. This works
well when they are in a line. If they are in a checkerboard pattern, you
will have to move back and forth so you can hit everything but the
control missile.
- A synthesized voice stating "Battle Stations" will announce when a
formation is present.
- As mentioned before, if you take too long to take out the Enemy Stations,
the condition will go to RED and enemy missiles will pour into the area with
the only intent of ramming your ship. You will know this also by the sound
the machine makes.
- Continue to fly erratic patterns (unless you are going after Enemy Stations
or formations) because the enemy missiles do move quicker then you do plus
you will probably be able to take them out more effectively.
****************
******************************** U N I T IV *********************************
****************
+================+
| 8. CONCLUSION |=============================================================
+================+
This was another one of those games that was relegated to a corner while the
more popular games took center stage. Considering the games that were out, it
was no wonder that this game didn't get played a lot. The game itself did
prove to be a challenge. The premise of the game was easy, it was just trying
to execute that premise that was a real pain. Instead of the quiet explosions
of other games, the fighters and space stations on this game really did go out
with a bang. This couple with the fact that everything had one purpose during
the game: That purpose being to destroy your ship. The action was fast paced
and you couldn't let your guard down for a moment or you would end up as space
debris. It seemed like quick reflexes and just plain luck enabled somebody to
survive. I know I spent many hours playing this game because it could be quite
addictive. Unfortunately, it is very rare to find this machine anywhere. How-
ever, through the miracle of emulation, a whole new generation is realizing
what we "old" folks enjoyed those many years ago. In addition,
www.shockwave.com is bringing many of these classic games back. Check out
their site to see what ones are there. I hope this guide helps you in being
able to get the most amount of gameplay for this game. If you do have other
ideas or thoughts, please e-mail me and share them. Who knows, maybe I'll
start a Q&A Chapter in this guide if enough people ask the same questions.
Anyway, thank you again for reading this guide.
To see other FAQ's I have written please go to:
http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/recognition/32691.html
~~~ No trees were harmed in the making of this FAQ ~~~
