Jawbreaker(Apple) FAQ/Walkthrough

Jawbreaker(Apple) FAQ/Walkthrough
version 1.0.0 by [email protected](anti spam spoonerism)

Please do not reproduce for profit without my consent. You won't be getting
much profit anyway, but that's not the point. This took time and effort, and
I just wanted to save a memory of an old game and the odd solutions any way I
could. Please send me an email referring to me and this guide by name if
you'd like to post it on your site.

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OUTLINE

1. INTRODUCTION

2. CONTROLS

3. POINTS AND STRATEGIES

4. GETTING THROUGH A LEVEL

5. CHEATS

6. VERSIONS/CREDITS

================================

1. INTRODUCTION

Jawbreaker is a bit of a rip-off of Gobbler, with the main difference that
Jawbreaker takes away the unfair and random bits, but it also takes away some
other randomness that's really necessary. The result is a relatively easy
game. While Gobbler required patience, Jawbreaker allowed you to be sly and
sneak up behind an enemy, as they wouldn't reverse so often. It's the same
board as Gobbler, basically, but your score is perpetually displayed on the
bottom. It does not, however, replace the high score until the level is
complete.

The copy of Jawbreaker that is on Asimov has a few weird
bugs(Jawbreaker1&11.err). Sometimes the game freezes, and sometimes enemies
go through walls in the corners. This makes for an interesting strategical
twist in that you have to see the whole board.

Other differences are largely cosmetic with the enemy smiley faces
twirling(so they don't block each other out) and the candy cane, lollipop and
candy heart replacing the more nutritious fruits.

2. CONTROLS

Joystick or keyboard is allowed. AZ and the arrows are the keyboard controls.
The only way to stand still is to hit a wall. [Space] starts the game. You
can hold the next direction you want to go.

3. POINTS AND STRATEGIES

There are 2960 points, minimum, in a level of Jawbreaker, with 5 points per
dot or power pill. You have a total of 588 dots and 4 pills to gobble.
Theoretically, there is no maximum for a level, as you can just keep picking
up treasures. But practically, it is 5900 + 3*200(about 3 treasures appear
per level) + 4*(200+400+600+800).

..or is that the maximum? You can, if you are reasonably lucky, get a couple
of monsters and sit in front of the den as they regenerate--all orange.
What's more, when you eat a power pill, monsters go in loops. You'll
recognize them as you play the game. The most important one is around the
pen, but if enemies are going in small loops elsewhere, pick them off. Always
try to have at least one monster to zap--worst case, you can go back in front
of the pen and eat him. Remember monsters always go clockwise there, so if
you go counterclockwise til you get to the right of the pen, you can clean
up. Then, when you hear the tone, get out of the way.

The peach, lime and cherry give no difference in points. They are rather
dangerous to get, because they are in a tunnel, so you are probably better
off just clearing dots nearby. Your main source of extra points will be
ghosts.

Start off the level by going to the sides and into a corner. See which
enemies go where and plan from there. You may also wish to clear out the
tunnels after you hear the tone signifying a power pill's effects will end.

Don't reach in quickly for dots unless you can get to an intersection and go
back. No sense in having to reach in again from the other side.

If a lot of enemies are buzzing around, follow one, especially if you're
being tailed. It's your best bet.

You need to be aware that monsters will kill you just before they touch you,
and if they are right behind you and you turn a corner, they will get you if
you overlap.

Be aware of monsters going off the screen--you don't need to concentrate on
the one in the far corner, just the ones above and below. Look to see if the
walls turn white. You may need to use a bit of peripheral vision.

Playing defense by using power pills to plow through and ignore monsters is
not advisable--I find I usually lose more lives by carelessly eating a ghost
than other ways. Well, maybe you can play perfectly that way, but it's no
fun. You may get bored of the game before game over.

Watch the gutters in the corners where you have a long stretch without turn-
offs. If you take a power pill there and have had trouble clearing them, make
them a top priority.

Move around the edges when you don't have a power pill. When each is nearly
done, clear out an inner loop of dots next to the pen. This should leave you
with very little. You also want to clear the gutters near the top and bottom
edges after eating a power pill, if possible--they could be trap zones later
where ghosts converge from both sides.

Heed the one second warning. Don't try for just one more monster. Timing is
especially difficult since the game stops to bring the ghost's googly eyes
back to the pen.

In order to play tough defense at the pen when powered up, you just need a
part of your Gobbler guarding the exit. Ghosts generally leave the pen pretty
quickly, and if you grab one, the closer you are to the pen, the better.

If you are going to chase ghosts after eating a power pill, it's better to
chase the ones in the center than the one right by you, unless it is a gimme.
Ghosts are as fast as you and can run away. So work out how they'll loop and
cut them off. Having two ghosts in the pen per power pill should give you a
nice bonus. Even one is decent--you should get 2000+4000+6000+8000.

4. GETTING THROUGH A LEVEL

While levels speed up, the time monsters are vulnerable(7 seconds, with a 1
second warning) is constant. So you actually have more ways to chase monsters
down when they are green, or to catch them in the loops when they are orange.
There is no really tricky strategy here other than to take care of stuff when
the enemies are gone. And if they won't leave, eat a power pill in another
corner and make them. That is slash-and-burn. You can probably hide out in a
corner for a long time, well away from them, then move in to the next place
they desert. Because of how the random walk works, you will see them coming
to the corner long before they have a chance to get there--and that includes
getting trapped.

The map is below. Note the board is not completely symmetrical--I've
exaggerated the size of the boundaries, but on each edge, just-above is 1
shorter than just-below. And the loops by the dots are similar. The gutters
in the corners are especially tricky to get to, and I recommend you start by
going to the lower left first, then the upper right. If you are just trying
to survive, you can use one power pill to clear out the center bits, where
monsters are most likely to congregate. Then you can use one pill for each of
the corners, possibly crossing over if you are able to finish one corner
before eating the pill. Basically if you can clear off a loop near the edge,
do so, and keep a body-width away from the enemies at all times. As long as
you have one power pill per corner area to clear, you should be able to sail
through.

The map below(note you get 5 points for staying in place and getting killed:)

+--------++---------------+ + + +-------------------------+
| || | | | | |
| ...... || ............. | | . | | ....................... |
| . . || . . | | . | | . . . |
| . || . || . ++------- . +--+ . +--+ . ------++ . ------- . |
| . || . || . ++------- . . . ------++ . ------- . |
| . || . || . || . . . || . . |
| . || *..... || ............................. || . . |
| . || . || . . . . . || .....*..... |
| . || . ----|| . | . ----- . ----- . | . || . . |
| . . . | . . . | . . +-----+ . |
| . . . | . . . | . . | | . |
| ................ | ..................... | ...... | | . |
| . . . | . . | . . | | . |
| . || . . | . || +-----+ || . | . . | | . |
| . ----|| . || . | . || | | || . | . || . | | . |
| . ----|| . || . | . || | | || . | . || . | | . |
| . || . || . | . || | | || . | . || . +-----+ . |
| . . || . . || | | || . . || . . |
| ........... || ..... || | | || ..... || ........... |
| . || . || | | || . || . |
+---- . ----|| . ----|| ! | ||---- . ||---- . ----+
+---- . ----|| . ----|| ! | ||---- . ||---- . ----+
| . || . || | | || . || . |
| ........... || ..... || | | || ..... || ........... |
| . . || . . || | | || . . || . . |
| . || . || . | . || | | || . | . || . +-----+ . |
| . ----|| . || . | . || | | || . | . || . | | . |
| . ----|| . || . | . || | | || . | . || . | | . |
| . ----|| . || . | . || | | || . | . || . | | . |
| . || . . | . || +-----+ || . | . . | | . |
| . . . | . . | . . | | . |
| ................ | ..................... | ...... | | . |
| . . . | . . . | . . | | . |
| . . . | . . . | . . +-----+ . |
| . || . ----|| . | . ----- . ----- . | . || . . |
| . || . || . . . . . || .....*..... |
| . || *..... || ............................. || . . |
| . || . || . || . . . || . . |
| . || . || . ++------- . . . -------++ . ------- . |
| . || . || . ++------- . +--+ . +--+ . -------++ . ------- . |
| . . || . . | | . | | . . . |
| ...... || ............. | | . | | ....................... |
| || | | | | |
+--------++---------------+ + + +---------------++--------+

5. CHEATS

A page on Al Amaloo's wonderful site,

http://www.gamewinners.com/apple_ii/Jawbreaker.htm

has a way to get infinite lives in Jawbreaker.

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6. VERSIONS/CREDITS

1.0.0: sent to GameFAQs/Honestgamers 4/17/2009, complete.

Thanks to the usual GameFAQs/honestgamers gang, current and emeritus. They
know who they are, and you should, too, because they get/got some SERIOUS
writing done. Good people too--bloomer, falsehead, Sashanan, Masters, Retro,
Snow Dragon/Brui5ed Ego, ZoopSoul, War Doc, Brian Sulpher, AdamL, odino, JDog
and others I forgot. OK, even Hydrophant in his current not-yet-banned
message board incarnation. I am not part of his gang, but I want him to be
part of mine.
Thanks to the NES Completion Project for keeping it going and especially for
Da Hui for pointing out this game to me.
All you people at honestgamers, YELL AT ME if I forgot you and you deserve to
be in there. I mean, it's partially because of HGWars I wrote this FAQ, and I
want to add to this in the future.