Roadblasters FAQ
Version 1.1
By chessjerk (John Kearsley IV)
Created - August 13, 2006
Updated - February 18, 2012
Questions? Comments? Contact me:
[email protected]
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Welcome to my Roadblasters FAQ. Tired of regular old shoot-em-up games? Well,
this game may pique your interest.
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Table of Contents:
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I. The Object of the Game
II. Controls
III. Special Weapons
IV. The Enemy
V. List of Levels
VI. Strategies
VII. Credits/Disclaimer
VIII. Version History
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I. The Object of the Game
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The object of the game is to drive the car down a winding road, fending off
other cars, turrets, motorcycles, even various obstacles in the road to reach
the finish line before fuel runs out.
On each level the car is given a certain amount of fuel that slowly decreases
as time passes. Approximately halfway through each level the car receives a
fuel bonus. If the car runs out of fuel at any time, it begins to slow down. If
it comes to a complete stop before reaching a level midpoint or the finish
line, the game is over.
The bottom of the screen details the car's current status, including:
Current score multiplier
Mine detector
Main and reserve fuel tank gauges
Current speed
Current score
Special weapon indicator
If at any time the car comes in contact with an enemy or gets shot by a turret,
the car explodes and a new one is set up in the middle of the road.
At the end of each level, bonus points and additions to the reserve tank are
awarded based on the current multiplier, up to a maximum of 10,000 points. The
multiplier increases by one every time an enemy is shot with the regular gun
(up to a maximum of 10x), and decreases by one with every regular shot that
misses a target. The multiplier does not change as a result of firing the
special weapon UZ Cannon (neither hits nor misses from the UZ Cannon change
the multiplier). All points earned are multiplied by the resulting multiplier
(e.g., if an orange car is shot with a 1x multiplier, the multiplier goes up to
2x and 2x50=100 points are earned).
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II. Controls
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Up - Accelerator
Down - Brake
Left/Right - Turn car left/right
B - Fire special weapons (see Special Weapons section)
A - Fire guns
Select - No use
Start - Pause the game
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III. Special Weapons and Other Items
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At predetermined points of most levels, a plane flies overhead and drops an
apparatus. Drive the car underneath it to catch it and equip it to the car. If
the car crashes, the special weapon is lost. If the car reaches the finish line
with an unused portion of a special weapon, the unused portion carries over to
the next level. If a new weapon is caught while an unused weapon is attached,
the unused weapon is lost and replaced by the new one. There are four different
weapons:
1. UZ Cannon - Rapid fire gun, doesn't affect multiplier, lasts a while
2. Nitro Inject - Very high speed for a short time, 3 uses
3. Cruise Missile - Destroy everything on screen (good and bad), 3 uses
4. Electro Shield - Makes the car invincible for about 5 seconds, 3 uses
Occasionally, green globes appear on the road. Pick these up by driving over
them to increase the car's fuel by a small amount. Destroyed orange cars may
leave orange globes behind. These restore more fuel than the green ones, and
are essential on levels when there is a shortage on fuel to begin with (See the
"Sensors detect fuel globes" explanation in the List of Levels section).
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IV. The Enemy
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Here is a list of the enemies to be faced (point value in parentheses):
Orange Cars (50) - They are the most common enemy seen, and they are the
easiest to deal with. Shoot them once to destroy them.
Blue Cars (100) - These cars cannot be destroyed normally. Certain special
weapons can get rid of them. However, like the orange car, it doesn't launch
any attacks, it simply gets in the way on the road.
Motorcycles (100) - Similar to orange cars, they are destroyed with one shot
but are much smaller and harder to hit than the orange cars.
Rat Jeeps (50) - These tricky rascals sneak up and try to ram the car from
behind. Sometimes a warning is issued at the beginning of the level that they
are coming, but sometimes not. Stay alert for them, especially in the later
levels.
Turrets (200) - These are stationary guns on the side of the road that fire a
steady pattern of bullets. They are easier to shoot on turns since they are
right in front of the car. On straight-aways their shots are easily avoided by
simply driving straight down the middle of the road at maximum speed.
Mine (none) - Next to the reserve tank indicator there is a box that sometimes
flashes along with an audible warning. When it flashes, there are mines are on
the road nearby. Sometimes they can be very difficult to see on the road.
Driving over a mine causes a crash. They cannot be destroyed.
Toxic Spill (none) - These black puddles in the road cause the car to do a 360
degree spin at its current speed, often causing the car to crash directly into
oncoming traffic. Avoid them whenever possible.
Boulders (none) - Don't drive on the shoulder unless necessary to drive around
an enemy. The car slows down dramatically, and if a boulder is nearby, the car
probably crashes into it. Level 35 is odd in that the first enemy encountered
is a boulder in the middle of the road (!). Keep alert for it.
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V. List of Levels
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Each section can be divided into levels, as follows:
Bubble City - 1 to 3
Forest Section - 4 to 10
Desert Region - 11 to 14
Ground Zero - 15 to 18
Crystal Palace - 19 to 22
Weapons Factory - 23 to 26
Power Plant - 27 to 30
Science Complex - 31 to 34
Molten Zone - 35 to 38
Ground Zero - 39 to 42
Bubble City - 43 to 46
Sunset Strip - 47 to 50
Here's a list of each level's message displayed before the level begins, any
weapons available in that level, and any other important notes to consider. The
first four messages seen are simply general tips for playing the game.
If the message is "Sensors detect fuel globes", the car starts the level with a
low fuel gauge, however, the orange cars in that level drop orange globes much
more often. Pick them up to survive.
If the message is "Rat Jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic", Rat Jeeps are
waiting in that level (see Rat Jeep in section IV). Sometimes this message is
not given in a level with Rat Jeeps. This generally happens in the first level
of a new section, since pre-level messages are never given in this case.
Legend for special weapons:
(1) UZ Cannon
(2) Nitro Inject
(3) Cruise Missile
(4) Electro Shield
# Weapons Messages/Comments
1 N/A None
2 (1) "Shoot opponents for score"
3 N/A "Shooting accuracy increases multiplier"
4 (2) "Reserve fuel awarded based on score"
5 (1) "Catch special weapon to increase performance"
6 N/A "Sensors detect fuel globes"
7 (3)(1) None
8 (1) None
9 N/A None
10 N/A "Sensors detect fuel globes"
11 (3) None
12 (1) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
13 (4) None
14 N/A "Sensors detect fuel globes"
15 (2)(1) None
16 (1) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
17 (3) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
18 (1) "Sensors detect fuel globes"
19 (2) None
20 (4) None
21 (2)(2) None
22 N/A "Sensors detect fuel globes" This level is different from the
other low fuel levels since none of the orange cars drop fuel
globes. There are green globes that need to be collected to
survive.
23 (1)(4) None
24 (2)(1) None
25 (2) None
26 (3) "Sensors detect fuel globes"
27 (2) None
28 (4) None
29 (1) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
30 (2)(2) "Sensors detect fuel globes"
31 (4) None (watch for Rat jeeps)
32 (1) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
33 (1)(1) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
34 (4)(4) "Sensors detect fuel globes"
35 (2) None (watch for Rat jeeps) As mentioned previously, the first
enemy encountered is a boulder sitting smack dab in the middle of
the road. Be alert and swerve around it.
36 (1) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
37 (1)(2) None
38 (3) "Sensors detect fuel globes"
39 (4) None (watch for Rat jeeps)
40 (3) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
41 (4)(1) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic"
42 (4) None (should be "Sensors detect fuel globes")
43 (1) None (enemies consist of orange cars only)
44 (4) None (enemies consist of blue cars only)
45 (2) None (enemies consist of motorcycles only)
46 (1) "Rat jeep wave, Watch for cross traffic" (enemies consist of Rat
jeeps only)
47 (1) None (enemies consist of turrets only)
48 (4) None (enemies consist of mines only)
49 (2) None (should be "Sensors detect fuel globes") The car begins this
level with next to no fuel in the main tank. A full Reserve tank,
as well as collecting all orange and green spheres, is necessary
to survive.
50 (1)(3)(2) "Final Rally, Tanks Full, One Chance" This final level throws
everything at the car (including the kitchen sink), but the car
receives two full tanks of fuel to finish it. Just keep shooting
and collect as many fuel globes as possible since many crashes
await. Good luck!
At the beginning of the game, there is a choice given of where to start: (at
level 1, 4 or 11). Whichever one is chosen, the game progresses until level 14
is cleared, at which time another choice is offered (this time level 15, 19, or
23). Every time four levels are completed, this option is offered, until Ground
Zero is reached. Since there are only two levels after Ground Zero, Bubble City
must be driven through to get to Sunset Strip. This allows for a very quick
completion of the game since tougher levels can be skipped.
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VI. Strategies
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- It is important to master the art of shooting the cars as they approach. At
first the shooting can be very awkward when driving at full speed due to the
curves of the road or the enemies switching lanes. Use the first few levels to
hone the car's shooting skills while the enemies are still easy.
- Keep the multiplier at or near the maximum of 10x at all times. It can be
very easy to have a bad run where the car crashes multiple times and the
reserve tank has to be consumed. With a constantly high multiplier, the reserve
tank is guaranteed to be filled after every level, thus allowing a cushion to
be retained in case a level is very difficult.
- Don't hold on to the special weapons. Use them up when acquired, since (1)
they are lost if the car crashes (which happens a lot in later levels), and (2)
the car can't carry more than one special weapon, and later levels sometimes
have multiple weapons in one level, so don't be shy about using them quickly.
- Don't make a habit of going after the turrets. If they are encountered on a
sharp turn and they are directly in front of the car, great, take them out
while the car turns. But on a straightaway, it is much simpler to just drive
straight through at maximum speed to avoid their shots rather than risk an
unnecessary crash.
- Similar to the turrets, don't go after other tough to hit enemies, such as
motorcycles, especially if they are swerving from side to side, making them
damn near impossible to hit. It is much more prudent to watch their movements
and when they swerve to one side, swerve to the other side to pass them.
- At the end of every level is the same straight stretch of road with 3 or 4
boulders on each side of the road. If the car is low on fuel and this stretch
of road approaches, simply floor the accelerator and race to the finish line.
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VII. Credits and Disclaimer
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This FAQ is copyright 2006/2012 by John Kearsley IV. This FAQ may be
distributed freely as long as it is not altered and I am credited for its
existence.
Thanks go to everyone else involved with the NES FAQ Completion Project, of
which I am proud to be a part. Also, thanks go to GameFAQs.com and CJayC for
hosting a great site. Keep up the good work!
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VIII. Version History
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Version 1.0 - Original FAQ submitted
Version 1.1 - Minor spelling/formatting changes
