Dip this thread in water to reveal - Let's Play StarTropics!

#Title#
There's something about NES music that connects with me. Years ago, I spent countless days discovering lost NES classics and listening to NSF files, and I discovered that music really makes these games and defines their experiences. Even for the games that had more space for text and comprehensible translations, it was the music that really told the story. The primitive sounds and simplicity make the songs easier to remember, a plus since a song you can't remember is ultimately a song with no importance.
StarTropics may not have the soundtrack of Mother or Final Fantasy III, but its music is an important part of the adventure, especially how it uses the music to toy with the player. In an effort to convey that effect, I am including music cues.

If you wish to follow along, you can download the NSF or (NSFE) file and the player of your choice. Alternately, if you're using FireFox (and you should be), install Foxytunes to add this neat little interface that plays the files directly from this page.

I've been curious about this game ever since I used to read Nintendo Powers in the local library without owning a NES. I look forward to seeing this one.

Let's get started.


If this doesn't look familiar to you, I pity you. StarTropics borrows many things from Zelda, the first of which is this. No matter what you call your file, the game will refer to you as Mike. The only purpose the name serves is to keep your progress distinct from your little sister's.
Of particular note here is the Chapter review option, which lets you replay a chapter you've previously cleared. Very handy for getting important screenshots you may have missed...






The real Coral Sea is in Australia and home of the Great Barrier Reef. In this game it's probably meant to be generic South Pacific. In either case, it's a hell of a helicopter ride from Seattle.


#New Chapter#


#Overworld#
I land on this cute little helipad here. A shourt jaunt east brings me to the village of Coralcola, with Uncle Steve's lab visible in the lagoon.

I think this place could use some rain. Then again, most of these dwellings are want of roof.
#Town#
"The people here are very friendly, and they all seem to know my uncle."
]






Well, he doesn't seem happy to see me.



Who am I?! Everyone else seems to know. I suppose being rooted to one spot limits the gossiping you can do about incoming Americolan teenagers.

Uh-oh...

The Chief's hut is the big roofed building in town. Let's see if he knows what's going on here.

#Southern Cross#
"Listen Mike!
I have some...
Bad news...
Last night...
Try not to be too upset... but...
Your Uncle...
Dr. Jones...
Has been..... abducted!

We must keep this from the islanders so they don't panic.
You are the best hope of rescuing Dr. Jones.


(Classic But Thou Must)
Good! You're brave. Take this Island Yoyo.
You may think this Yoyo™ is just a toy, but it's very powerful.
Mike! You're an ace pitcher. Use it!

Mike, it looks peaceful around here... but in the dark below...
Many monsters have appeared these last few years.
Don't let them get you!
Mike, the fate of your uncle in in your hands.
Find a tunnel in the village and hurry to Dr. J's laboratory."



Well, damn. All I wanted this summer was to hang out in the tropics with my beloved uncle, go fishing, get some sun, and flirt with Miss Coral '90. Now I'm being thrust into a dark dungeon to solve his kidnapping and fight foul, evil, never-before-seen beasts with a Yoyo™?


That's more like it.

Inside, we are greeted by a staircase and a strange character:

"Your uncle was abducted because he found a secret in the lost ruins!
I have great hope that you will succeed in rescuing Dr. Jones.
Just like your North Star, island sailors look for the Southern Cross.
Mike! Many wild monsters await you in the dark below,
but remember! The magic of the Southern Cross is always on your side.
Now begin the test of Island courage! Good luck!"



#Dungeon#
These stairs mark the entrance and exit of nearly every dungeon; a welcome sight after a grueling journey.

Our first room has a few weak slugs and a locked door. You probably have already noticed the Zelda-style lifemeter. That's just the first sign of Zelda's influence on this game. The locked door that opens when all the monsters die is the second.

But first, let me explain how StarTropics controls, since it's a huge sticking point when taking a modern look at the game:

This game is divided into grids. Most games are. But unlike his hero Link, Mikey can't rest in between tiles. Once you get him moving, he's going to that next tile and you can't stop it. If you attack while moving, you'll pause, then continue when the attack is finished. If you attack repeatedly, it will naturally take longer to reach the destination tile. Also, you can change your facing while moving. You can use this to your advantage with longer range weapons to attack perpendicular or even opposite your movement, especially when jumping.

Jumping is also strange. Normally Mike only can jump straight up, making dodging difficult. If you're next to a tile you can (slowly) jump one square onto the tile. If you're next to a hole (or the equivalents of water, lava, etc.) you jump over the adjacent tile. Luckily, the game doesn't let you walk into holes so you don't have to worry about timing, in that regard. Just make sure the gap's only one space wide.

The green tiles in the room are the bane of the modern gamer, one that doesn't have the patience or tolerance for crap us retros have. That's because you can't WALK on the tiles. You have to jump on them. Jump, jump, jump, tile to tile. It's a big hit to mobility on a system that was a bit clunky to begin with.

As long as you keep the grid in mind, though, you'll do fine.


Now, with the slugs dead, the door opens.


Next room. Same deal.


A pretty pattern, but we don't have time to gawk.


Wait, I can't reach that rat...

Stepping on this tile caused a big, red button to appear. Not only does it act as a stepping stone, it also opens the door.



This next room's a double-wide, with a scrolling screen. Nothing to really note, though.



The star is one of the stranger pickups I've seen in a game. When you collect 5 of them, you get heart. Normal hearts also exist, but are less common.



Two switches, two doors. Left or right? Let's try left.



Whoops. I meant right.



What? Let's go back.



Look, a switch! Why don't I press it and see?



This switch blows a hole in the wall, introducing us to a new way to traverse between the rooms. Unlike doors, blown walls will stay open if you visit the room again. Die, however, and they reset like everything else.



A chest appears!! The chest blocks your way!!



Switches open chests. This one contains torches, a weapon with more range and power than the Yoyo™, but with limited uses. A second switch opens the door.



Here's the first of the Zelda expies, the Keese (known here as Nocto). They move diagonally, OFF THE GRID, but are easily dodged and dispatched. This room is also the restart point if you die. Lose all your lives, though, and it's back to the beginning of the tunnel.

#Danger Zone#
That's an ominous tune...
Here's a Rope. I mean, Looper. Nearly identical to one of Zelda's Ropes, he'll charge you if you line up with them, but until then he'll just sit there.
The narrow branch off to the left contains another snake and a dead end.



What was that sound? First, let's get some more torches, then...


#Hidden Area#
Sweet. A soothing tune greets us in this room. A calming, healing tune; one of safety.



The medicine recovers five hearts when used. To use meds and other items, pause the game and hit down.



Hmm?


More medicine! That's a lot of potential life considering I only have 3 hearts.


More? Sure, why not?


WHAT?


#Death#
What a devious trap! Due to the way you enter rooms, there's no chance of escape here. And it's still playing the Sanctuary music! I somehow missed this room the first time I played this game at the age of 11. Upon finding it in my second game I felt so betrayed by the music, since all the other Sanctuaries are completely safe; respites from gruelling battle.
I recall at least one account of a Tyrant playing this game for the first time on VC, finding this room, and promptly quitting forever. He didn't want to play a game with a bunch of BS traps. I understand the sentiment, but ironically this is probably the most unexpected one in the game. It's the folks like him that I am doing this for.

Continuing:


Dying has bereft us of our torches and medicines. We won't need all that firepower though: it's the first dungeon.



One last room, then...



#Boss#
Our first boss, the C-Serpent. Wait in the middle until his mouth opens, fire two torches, then jump to the side to avoid his attack. Sometimes he won't fire and just hang his mouth open, asking for a rapid-fire Yoyo™-ing.


Like all good NES bosses, when defeated he glows radioactive and screams when defeated.



#Victory#
Here lie the Skeletal remains of the C-Serpent
Beginning of time-1990
RIP


The panel generates a switch that opens the door. And off we go.

#Overworld#
Free of the dankness of the evil tunnel, I am congratulated and my useless points tally up.



Everytime you enter or exit a dungeon, the game saves.



This naked dude blocks my path:

"Mike! You know Dr. J has a submarine, called Sub-C.
The ID code to start the engine of Sub-C is 1492."



"Please get on board Sub-C in the laboratory.
I wish I could tell you more, but I'm afraid of...
of..."



Terrified, he lets me pass. There's definitely danger afoot, my friends!




#Sub Cockpit#
This ROB-alike makes these adorable robot sounds when he talks!
He takes my ID code automatically. I don't have to type anything in. (That comes later!)


#And He's off!#
The villagers wave and wish me good luck as I sail off on my perilous journey...

<hums the happy little tune that opens each level>

Which isn't to say that some of the other traps aren't, as the kids say, weak sauce. There are some leap-of-faith tile puzzles, where the next tile doesn't appear until after you jump later on. Lousy design even then.

I have a request. Before the end of this LP, could you give us a report on the taste of that paper? We'll give you a pass on eating or otherwise consuming, which I assume means "grind into powder and inhale".

I have always hoped beyond hope,

That Mike Jones would be one of the fighters in a Smash Bros. game.

I still hope.

Star Tropics is so awesome.

Even if Mike drifts like a Japanese racer when you move him.

And the game isn't all that well designed.

Star Tropics is love.

Also, for some crazy reason: They renamed the "Yo-Yo" on the VC version to "Island Star".

Or possibly main-lining it.

Iloved this game as a kid. I beat it repeatedly and constantly tried to better my time. I think my best was somewhere just north of 3 hours. That said I tried to replay this when we did it as a Fun Club, and I found the controls and level design to be infuriating. I'm glad someone else is dealing with that so that I can relive my childhood memories!

This is why I HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE StarTropics. This. This is such a dick move.

(Fun LP though!)

I just beat this game a few days ago. I look forward to uncovering stuff I missed (ex: the Sanctuary trap) in your playthrough.

Oddly enough, the Startropics games were only released in the United States and Europe. Mike Jones is largely unknown to Japan. As such, I don't think he'll ever come up in a Smash Brothers game.

Coincidentally enough, MoltenBoron and I had a big discussion on StarTropics on Friday. Something with a name that ended in Cola came up and we wondered if that was one of the StarTropics villages. After much research, we found that it wasn't, but it left me humming the title theme to StarTropics and being called big dorks by the other people there.

Yeah, I know. NA exclusive. How weird is that?

And it's why it makes me all the more SAD!

I don't care what anyone else says, Star Tropics is awesome. Carry on.

Is it me or does that paper look delicious right now?

Oh man Star Tropics is one of my main and happiest childhood videogaming memories. I tried playing it again not too long ago and gave up somewhere on the second island, so this is awesome!

The paper is also my favorite dongle/feelie of all time.

Why the hate for that room? There are so many worse things that this game throws at you in terms of unfairness. I've always loved that room as it's a fitting punishment for greed.

When my fiance was a kid, he played a rental of this game. Thus he did not have that delicious delicious letter. The tragedy of that will one day become clear...

I, meanwhile, know little about this game and when I clicked on this thread I expected to see a space shooter.

Because video games shouldn't punish you for greed. Collecting as many resources as possible is pretty staple as far as game mechanics go (especially in a game like StarTropics where the player is almost always starved for resources).

I guess I can see making an exception for games where stealing, pillaging and piracy are considered evil acts, but StarTropics isn't that game and isn't even anywhere near the same ZIP code as that game. The death room isn't clever or funny or fair, it's just mean.

It is a proud tradition.

That's not punishing you for greed, that's rewarding you for charity. If picking "money" or "more money" gave you a Game Over, you'd be in the same ballpark.

It's also worth pointing out that those types of options tend to come up in RPGs, which reward the player for picking up every single treasure box they set their eyes on, as well as ransacking the pots and jugs and underwear drawers of every citizen in all the land. =)

The only moment a video game's made me feel guilty was KOTOR. I was absent-mindedly ransacking a guy's room right in front of him (as you do in RPGs) and he said something along the lines of "Take what you want! Please don't hurt my family!"

Made me feel like a right bastard.

This was the first game that I ever called the NP Hotline for. Like a lot of people, I had rented the game and never got the letter that was supposed to come with it.

You and me, friend.

I'm really looking forward to this LP. It's one of very few Nintendo games I've never really played.

I think that there are two ways to look at that room:

1. You're minding your own business, and then die. Complete nonsense; no game should punish you without warning. I quit.

2. You're on a dangerous, Indiana Jones style adventure. Traps and danger lie beyond every corner, and sometimes you just die. Gather your things and try again.

I certainly understand the frustration. In fact, people who think the second way might be touched in the head a bit. But they are also the people who are able to like La-Mulana, an even more Jones-style adventure. Sometimes you have to give yourself up to and enjoy the danger and mystery, not get hung up on it.

I'd like to point out that in no time during any of the four movies does Indy ever "just die". He almost dies a lot, though, becayse that's a lot more fun.

Hmm... there's a lot more I could say on this topic but it's outside the scope of an LP thread. I'll go put it where it belongs. =)

♪New Chapter♪

♪Sub-C♪


As we begin our search for the Doc, we are accosted by a dolphin chirping some gibberish at us.
Luckily, Nav-Com speaks fluent Delphinidae:




Not far to the east is a small island with a lighthouse. We dock on the beach and enter.

♪Overworld♪



How are we going to get there? That dock is inland, and the Sub-C can't travel in the light blue shallows. I'd need to go through the walls...


That sparkle is the indicator of a hidden passage on the high seas. Sometimes they can only be seen from certain locations, so a careful eye is needed when this comes to play in later chapters. Here they won't appear until you speak to the lightkeeper, but you can go through them if you know where they are.



Let's Play: Zelda at Sea! But how do we get it?



"So you're looking for a boy dolphin. Sorry, but I have not seen him.
But early this morning I saw a bottle on the beach.
I wonder if it's a clue to the lost dolphin."

I can't imagine a scenario in which that could be true, but let's check it out anyhow.



There it is, but how is it reached?

If you've got a sharp eye, you can notice a slight deformity in the landscape. Or, just press your face to the rocks.



How fortuitous of us! I'm sure this note would have reached Mike eventually, but the Coral Sea Postal Service is inefficient and understaffed. Best that we were able cut out the middle man.

Wait! Evil Aliens!!? Just what was Uncle Steve working on?
Let's return to the Sub-C and enter our new code.

♪Cockpit♪


A submarine that submerges? Fascinating! Let's try it out on this dark patch of water over here.



A few dives bring us over to this side of the island. Reefs block our escape, so let's see what's in that there cave. A missing dolphin son, mayhaps?



But first, a little detail snags us some extra health. Notice that I got 2 free hearts just by finishing the last chapter. This prize takes us to a max of 6.