___ _____ ___ _ _____ _____ _ __
| \ | __| | O \ | | | _ | | ___| | | / /
| |\ \ | |__ | / | | | | | | | | | |/ /
| |/ / | |__ | O \ | |___ | |_| | | |___ | |\ \
|___/ |_____| |___/ |_____| |_____| |_____| |_| \_\
Copyright Athena 1991
Written By Brian P. Sulpher
E-mail:
[email protected]
Version 1.0
Dates Written: March 23rd to March 24th, 2006
I dedicate this to the NES fans out there, as this one is part of the NES
FAQ completion Project of 2004-2006, courtesy of the FAQ Contributor Board.
We honour the most truly awesome and great system... the Nintendo
Entertainment System! Never mind about Atari, Commodore 64, Colecovision,
Sega Master System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Genesis, or
any of the newer systems, we all know that the good old NES is where true
gaming is at!
Also, for Cougar. I miss you, and I hope you are living it up in the
afterlife as you did in this world. You will always be in my memories, and
you will never be forgotten.
Also, In memory of Howler and Koonce. You two never had a good start in
your lives, but you had a good time when you spent your time at my house.
It was oh so unfortunate that you both had your already tragic lives cut
short, but I can only hope that I helped make your life a more enjoyable
experience. You too will be missed, but not forgotten.
-----------
Version 1.0
-----------
-Submitted guide on March 24th, 2006
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-----------------------------Table Of Contents------------------------------
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1) Introduction
2) Controls
3) Rules
4) Pieces
5) Scoring
6) Strategies
7) Final Word
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------------------------------Introduction----------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) Deblock appears to be a Tetris clone at first glance... and it really
sort of is. However, unlike other clones it tries to take a unique
perspective on the puzzle giant, with four sided piece entry points,
and the entry pieces not in control of the player, instead using the
A Button and B Button to flip the entire Block Group stack around to
interlock it with the incoming pieces. Definitely not the typical
Tetris clone, it actually warrants a play or ten due to the original
ideas showcased, especially considering Tetris clones were a dime a
dozen by 1991!
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--------------------------------Controls------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2) This section will list all of the controls you will need to know to
become a Deblock Master!
D-Pad : Each direction will move the Block Group in the corresponding
direction.
SELECT : No apparent use.
START : Pauses/unpauses the game.
B Button: Turns Block Group in play counter-clockwise.
A Button: Turns Block Group in play clockwise.
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---------------------------------Rules--------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3) This section will review the rules of Deblock. This may be easy to
understand, but mastery of the game will take a fair bit more work.
-The small cursor in the middle of the screen at the start is the basis for
the Block Group. It can be moved, dragging the Block Group attached to it
along for the ride.
-As each block falls into play, the Block Group will attach the piece once
it has firmly touched the Block Group. Note that not every piece needs to
be played, but if three straight pieces pass through the play area without
being used the game will end.
-The other way for the game to end is to have the Block Group overlap with
an incoming piece as soon as it appears on screen.
-The way to reduce the Block Group is to finish off an entire square by
completing the colour line around the Group Block. The remaining colours
will be compacted down into the colour level that is one closer to the
central cursor.
o---------o
| Example |
o---------o
___________
Key |
|
X - Cursor |
Y - Yellow |
B - Blue |
P - Pink |
|
___________|
_ _ _ _ _ _
|Y|Y|Y|Y|Y|P|
|_|_|_|_|_|_| _ _ _ _
|B|B|B|Y|P| |B|B|B|Y|
|_|_|_|_|_| |_|_|_|_|
|B|X|B|Y| -------\ |X|B|
|_|_|_|_| -------/ _|_|_|
|B|B|B| |B|B|B|
|_|_|_|_ |_|_|_|
|Y|Y|Y|Y|
|_|_|_|_|
-As you can see, collapsing the stack will also remove extra blocks as well,
so do not worry about building further out than the line that is being
targeted for removal, as many of those outside blocks can be dispatched
without manually clearing them.
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------------------------------Table Of Pieces-------------------------------
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4) This section will look at what each piece looks like, and the name for
each piece.
o--------------o
| Square Block |
o--------------o
+-+-+
| | |
+-+-+
| | |
+-+-+
o------------o
| Tall Block |
o------------o
+-+ +-+
| | | |
+-+ +-+
| | AND | |
+-+ +-+
| |
+-+
o--------------o
| Corner Block |
o--------------o
+-+-+
| | |
+-+-+
| |
+-+
o--------------o
| Single Block |
o--------------o
+-+
| |
+-+
o-----------o
| "L" Block |
o-----------o
+-+
| |
+-+
| |
+-+-+
| | |
+-+-+
o-------------------o
| Reverse "L" Block |
o-------------------o
+-+
| |
+-+
| |
+-+-+
| | |
+-+-+
These are the same way I will draw the strategies in a couple sections,
so refer to this section if you are confused then.
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----------------------------------Scoring-----------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
5) This section will look at the scoring patterns of the game.
-When the pieces hit the pile, they will award a set amount of points,
determined by how long it takes for the piece, from the time it appears on
screen till the time it joins the Block Group, with the longer time for
connection meaning fewer points. The points range from around 200 to as
low as 20.
-Clearing a coloured square will award points, increasing base value from
500 points for Blue Squares by an additional base value for each square
(ie Blue Square is 500, Yellow Square is 500 + 700,
Pink Square is 500 + 700 + 900, etc.)
-Whenever a Yellow Square or further out square is cleared, any additional
Squares that are formed during the shrinking of the remaining blocks will
result in Bonus Points being added to the score.
-If every single block is cleared from play on a Square clear, the resulting
Bonus formula applies:
20000 x Level Number
This is a great way to run up the score, but be wary of looking for it too
much, as three straight skipped blocks will result in an automatic end of
game.
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---------------------------------Strategies---------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
6) This section will look at great ways to run your score up, and to make
your game play a little easier.
a) Always try to keep the Block Group stack in the middle of the screen.
This will allow for pieces that appear, giving them room to appear
without worry of the piece appearing on top of the stack. Also, this
will also leave more time for maneuvering and flipping of the Block Group
stack, making for more effective and proper placements of the incoming
pieces.
b) At the beginning of a game (or level if playing on B Type), try to be
selective on which pieces to add to the cursor. Through proper
selection, the bonus points for leaving no blocks attached to the cursor
will be far easier to score than later on when the Block Group stack is
growing at a very fast rate.
c) If a Square is blocked off from completion, do not worry about it and
instead concentrate upon completing the next Square out on the Block
Group stack. When the next square is completed, the pile will collapse
inwards, often completing that trapped square, scoring bonus points in
the process!
d) Do not be afraid to let a piece pass through the playfield unused. It is
sometimes better to ignore a piece, particularly when the next piece
coming into play is considered.
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--------------------------------Final Word----------------------------------
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7) As is the usual, this walkthrough is copyright property of Brian P.
Sulpher, 2006. The only website, group, person, etc. to have access to
post it is www.gamefaqs.com, www.ign.com, www.retronintendo.com, and
www.honestgamers.com. You must ask for permission before posting this,
as doing so without consent is a violation of international copyright
law.
If you liked it, hated it, have anything to add, then please E-mail me at
[email protected]. You can also contact me through MSN messenger
through the same E-mail address.
With some rather glaring similarities to Tetris, Deblock has enough
differences the king of all puzzle games to qualify and stand as its own
game. With the unique approach if moving the Block Group stack around
instead of the incoming pieces, it becomes imperative for the player to
learn how to arrange the mass of blocks appropriately to make use of the
incoming pieces to the best potential possible.
