POWER STONE FAQ For Sega Dreamcast By Chris Murdock ----- Version 2.1 March 11, 1999 ----- IN THIS UPDATE: How to get the Bosses. VMS mini-games Extra Weapons and Items. Advanced Strategy. Additions to the Power Stone Collection. ----- Power Stone is Copyright 1999 Capcom. ----- I don't mind you using this FAQ, but if you're gonna use it for anything else other than personal use, please give credit to the author and the source. ----- This is a FAQ for the awesome fighting game Power Stone for the Dreamcast. Please E-mail me at the E-mail address at the bottom of this document if you have questions or comments. CONTENTS: 1. Basic Operation 2. Menu Translations 3. Basic Gameplay Operation 4. Basic Moves 5. Weapons 6. Combo System 7. Special Moves 8. Characters and Specials 9. Strategy 10. VMS Mini-Games 11. Power Stone Collection 12. Secrets ----- The Dreamcast Virtual Memory card is recommended for this game to save character endings and game data. This game uses up four blocks of memory. ----- 1. BASIC OPERATION NOTE: TO RESET ANY DREAMCAST GAME AT ANY TIME HOLD DOWN A, B, X, AND Y, AND THEN PRESS START! This game can be played with either the digital pad OR the analog pad. There is no real preference as to which one to use, just pick the one that feels more comfortable. X BUTTON = PUNCH Y BUTTON = KICK A BUTTON = JUMP B BUTTON = PUNCH + KICK L BUTTON = PUNCH + JUMP R BUTTON = KICK + JUMP START = PAUSE ----- 2. MENU TRANSLATIONS On the title screen are the following choices: Arcade: This is the standard arcade mode. Versus: Two-player mode. Note that this option will NOT be highlighted if there is not a controller plugged into port B. Power Stone Collection: This is where all the extras that you find in the game are stored. This includes Character endings and so forth. Option: This is the options screen: Game Level: less stars, easier, more stars, harder. Default is 4. Time Limit: how long each round lasts, up to infinite (no Time Limit). Default is 99 seconds. Round: How many rounds each match lasts (default is 3). Damage: How much damage attacks do. The more stars, the more damage is done. This goes for the CPU player as well. Default is 2. Sound: Choose from Stereo (default) or Mono. Vibration: On or Off. NOTE: you will need to purchase the Purupuru pack (force feedback cartridge) for the Dreamcast for this option to be turned on. Button Setup: Change your button setup. Default Settings (IN BLUE) change everything back to default. PRESS START TO RETURN TO MAIN MENU. Load/Save: You can Load and Save the game on this screen. ----- 3. BASIC GAMEPLAY OPERATION This is unlike any other fighting game. You cannot block. You must successfully dodge attacks if you are on the defensive, and dish out attacks when you are on the offensive. Here is the basic gameplay: There are THREE colored gems, red, blue and yellow. These gems are called the Power Stones. Player One (on the left) will always start out with the red gem, and Player Two (on the right) will always start out with the blue gem. As you start fighting, you will sometimes knock out the gem out of the person, and visa-versa, you can have your gem knocked out. About five to ten seconds into the round, the yellow gem will appear. Whoever collects all three gems will transform into a more powerful form of themselves. This is known as the POWER DRIVE. At this time, a power gauge will appear showing how much energy is left in your Power Drive. As you do attacks, your Power Drive meter will go down. At anytime during the Power Drive, you can do a super attack called the POWER FUSION. The Power Fusion move will always use up the remainder of what is left from the power gauge (whether it is full or almost empty). Most of the time your attacks will "home in" on the opponent. This means that even if you are in a different spot and angle from your opponent, all attacks are directed toward wherever your opponent is. Your energy bar is made up of five jewels, each with a vertical yellow bar in it. As you take damage, the yellow bar will disappear revealing a blue bar. The blue bar will slowly regenerate if you do not take any damage during this time. When the entire yellow bar is gone from one of the five jewels, the jewel will disappear. When all the jewels from one person are gone, the round is over. The default is best two out of three rounds. On the lower left and lower right side of the screen is a graphical representation of which Power Stones you have in your possession. When you have all three gems, this is where your power gauge appears. In the bottom center of the screen, there is a green grid which will show the approximate location of the Power Stones when they reappear onto the playing field, with the bottom of the grid referring to the bottom of the playing field, and so on. ----- 4. BASIC MOVES X BUTTON = PUNCH This is a basic punch. Y BUTTON = KICK This is your standard kick. A BUTTON = JUMP This is your jump button. You can jump at anytime, and it is necessary to do so to reach higher areas. You can jump and then go into an attack such as a punch or a kick. Some characters also have a double jump by pressing "A" in the middle of a jump. B BUTTON = PUNCH AND KICK This button has many uses: Throw: When close to your opponent, press "B" to perform a throw. Grab: On a vertical post, you can use this button to grab the post. You can also use it on a hanging post to grab the ceiling (only on certain stages). You can also use it to grab onto things on the ceiling such as a net, or a series of rafters on the ceiling. Once you grab the object, use the controller to move around freely. You only need to press "B" once to grab, you do not need to hold down the button. Grab (objects): You can use this button to pick up most any object on the stage. A circle will appear on an object you can grab and use as a weapon, such as chairs, tables, benches, and so on. Once you grab the object, you can throw it, either upward by pressing KICK after you grab it, or throw/slide it on the ground by pressing PUNCH. You can also grab an object, JUMP, and throw it in the air. With some big characters such as Gunrock or Galuda, lampposts and other vertical beams can be grabbed and used as weapons! Big characters can also throw objects that the smaller characters can't, like a huge circular table! Some characters when in Power Drive mode, can grab larger objects. Catch: pressing the "B" button can catch any object that is sent to you. However, the timing is fairly precise, so be careful. This does not work with larger objects. Grab (weapon): When you reach a treasure chest, you can find a weapon. Simply walk by the chest to open it. Grab the weapon with the "B" button. Once you have the weapon, you can use it with the punch or kick button. Dodge: If an enemy is about to attack you, and they are close range, you can dodge an oncoming attack by HOLDING "B", and then pressing a direction on the controller. This works better if you use the analog controller. ----- 5. WEAPONS There are eight main weapons (the instruction manual refers to them as "Special" Items) in the game. To use these items, pick them up with the "B" button. Weapons show up randomly, usually in treasure chests. Each weapon except for the Bomb and the Molitov Cocktail will have a energy meter showing how "much" of the weapon is left before it is used up (this prevents people from using weapons indefinitely). If you are hit while you have a weapon in your hand, you will lose the weapon regardless of how much was left. For the Bomb and the Molitov Cocktail, if you are hit with these in your possession, you will drop the weapon, causing an explosion! The bomb will continue to tick down to zero. You can still pick it up, but be careful! You can use any of these weapons in the air, however they will fire usually in a straight line, as opposed to a downward angle. All weapons if it hits the opponent will ALWAYS relinquish a Power Stone (sometimes two), so use them wisely! BOMB: This weapon has a timer (usually starting at seven). At zero, it will explode (even if it is still in your hands). A bomb will explode whether it has been picked up or not! PROS: very powerful. CONS: short timer, and it attacks anything. If you get caught in the explosion, you'll take heavy damage. MOLITOV COCKTAIL: This is a liquor bottle with a flame out of it. It has a small range, but unlike the bomb, it has no timer. PROS: will hit the enemy for multiple hits if connected. CONS: small range and blast radius. It can hit you too. SWORD: A long one-handed sword. PROS: Powerful with great range. CONS: A little slow, and hard to use effectively. (There are two different types of swords. They look different from each other, but both do the same thing.) PIPE: Strong steel pipe. PROS: Very good damage. CONS: Medium range, and a little slow. GIANT HAMMER: A large wooden hammer (or is it a mallet?). PROS: Very good damage and the character you hit becomes flat like a pancake! CONS: Slow, and very close range. GUN: A standard gun. It has six shots. PROS: a fast weapon. CONS: hard to aim, and your speed slows down a little when you have one. FLAME THROWER: A very nice weapon. You can hold down the button to shoot out a steady stream of flames. PROS: Powerful and a wide range. CONS: Hard to aim, and your speed slows down when you have it. BAZOOKA: One of the most powerful weapons, it does HEAVY damage. PROS: very lethal. CONS: your speed slows down A LOT, and you only get FOUR shots. ----- 6. COMBO SYSTEM The combo system is fairly simple. For most characters you can string a chain of attacks together with minimal effort. Most characters usually have these strings: P = PUNCH K = KICK T = THROW P, P, P, [P, P] (some characters can go up to five punches) K, K, K, [K, K] (same here, some have up to five kicks) P, P, P, [T] (some characters can add a throw at the end) K, K, K, [T] (same here) You can also mix, such as P, P, K, K, although each character has a string of their own combos. The best advice for combo mastering is to experiment with different strings. For most characters, a Power Stone will be relinquished from the opponent after a successful combo. ----- 7. SPECIAL MOVES When you are in Power Drive mode, your normal attacks like your punches and kicks change, and become more powerful versions. These attacks usually do heavy damage. Once you are also in Power Drive mode, you can perform a special attack known as Power Fusion. To do a Power Fusion, you mush hit either PUNCH + JUMP (L BUTTON) OR KICK + JUMP (R BUTTON) Most characters have two different Power Fusion moves. All Power Fusion moves can be done while in the air. Some characters have an additional Power Fusion move by pressing L or R in the AIR! ----- 8. CHARACTERS AND SPECIALS FOKKER: Power Drive: PUNCH = Power Missile KICK = Power Hariken Power Fusion: PUNCH + JUMP = Power Explosion KICK + JUMP = Power Rocket ROUGE: Power Drive: PUNCH = Flames KICK = Magic Carpet Power Fusion: PUNCH + JUMP = Great Fire KICK + JUMP = Love Dance Power Fusion in air: PUNCH + JUMP OR KICK + JUMP = Skull Fire WANGTANG: Power Drive: PUNCH = Dragon Rays KICK = Dragon's Wind Power Fusion: PUNCH + JUMP = Big Dragon Flash KICK + JUMP = Mutenryuubu RYOMA: Power Drive: PUNCH = Reijinken KICK = Iaizan Power Fusion: PUNCH + JUMP = Mitarezantou KICK + JUMP = Tenchiryuudan AYAME: Power Drive: PUNCH = Hanashuriken (Flower Shuriken) KICK = Oukagakure Power Fusion: PUNCH + JUMP = Hyakkaryuuran KICK + JUMP = Ouka no Mai GUNROCK: Power Drive: PUNCH = Gun Gun Rock KICK = Rock the Crash Power Fusion: PUNCH + JUMP = Rock 'n Roll KICK + JUMP = Ass Kick (?!) JACK: Power Drive: PUNCH = Rolling Slash KICK = Round Slash Power Fusion: PUNCH + JUMP = Killer Dance KICK + JUMP = Misery Rain GALUDA: Power Drive: PUNCH = Sabaki's Light KICK = Tenkuu no Sakebi Power Fusion: PUNCH + JUMP = Tenbatsu's Light KICK + JUMP = Tenkuu no Otakebi ----- 9. STRATEGY Basic Strategy: Since you cannot block, you must move around constantly. One thing is to use your surroundings to your advantage. A lot of strategy is using objects to your advantage. You can throw or slide most anything, and if your back is to an opponent, if you grab an object and try and throw it, your character will jump over the object and slide it behind him/her! The all powerful Jump Kick: One of the best moves in the game is, when you jump, press kick, and you'll do a diving kick. Not only does every character have it, but also it aims toward the enemy, and ALWAYS relinquishes a Power Stone! This move works great on the CPU, but not so much on human opponents. However, it is a good way to get a Power Stone. The power of the Jump: You can do any most attacks in the air, but a good attack is to jump, then press the "B" button to grab. You'll stomp your opponent, and get a Power Stone or two! Advanced Strategy: OFFENSIVE STRATEGY: The number one thing to realize is that getting all the Power Stones does not necessarily guarantee a win. Although you have the potential to do lots of damage with the stone's power, you cannot rely on the stones at all times, especially since you cannot move for a second or two after you have used up the Power Drive. Concentrate on using a wide range of attacks and changing your tactics to keep your opponent guessing. Also move around A LOT, and use the surroundings to your advantage. Objects, such as chairs, tables, posts, etc., regenerate after a while, so you will never run out of stuff to throw! DEFENSIVE STRATEGY: You must defend the Power Stones, as they can turn the tide of battle very quickly. By keeping an opponent from getting a Power stone, you leave them no choice but for them to come at you, and try to attack you. Then they will be prone to mistakes, and you can use this to your advantage. You must also constantly keep moving, and never get cornered or stay stationary. If a special comes at you jump around and move around (sometimes erratically) so you can avoid getting hit. This works about 75% of the time. Weapons, except for the Bomb, have no time limit. Try to keep opponents at bay with a weapon. It may not always work, but it's a good deterrent if you're walking around with a Bazooka! ----- 10. VMS MINI GAMES The mini games use up ALL 128 blocks of the Mini-Game memory in the Dreamcast Virtual Memory Card! As you finish the game with the eight starting characters, you can download VMS games to your Dreamcast Virtual Memory Card. There are three games that you can download via the Power Stone Collection. You will receive Fokker's mini game, then Ayame's, then Gunrock's. If you download Fokker's mini game, you will only receive Fokker's mini game, but if you download Gunrock's mini game, you will receive all three. The coins you receive in each mini game is put in a grand total (So, if you get 30 coins in Fokker's mini game, then 150 coins in Ayame's mini game, you will have 180 coins total toward the hidden options). These games are essential as they open up more things in the Power Stone Collection. Each mini game will award you with a coins, and with 1000, and then 2000 coins, you can open more secret options in the Power Stone Collection. There are three mini games for the Dreamcast Virtual Memory Card: Fokker's Air Race: Controls: A = Speed up B = Slow down You must use your Biplane to get three Power Stones while avoiding the bombs, and the birds. When you get all three Power Stones, you will transform, and every bomb will turn into a coin. Every coin you get will be added to your grand total. Ayame's Shuriken Toss: Controls: A = Use 1 Shuriken B = Use Super Shuriken (gets everything on screen) Use your shurikens to take out the ninjas. You get 1 coin per ninja. You can also take out other targets for more coins. As you get into the game, you will see the Power Stones. As you take out the Power Stones, you will get 5 coins per Stone. When you get three Power Stones, you will earn another Super Shuriken (you only start off with one). When you are done, your coins are added to your grand total. Gunrock's Slot Machine: Controls: A or B = spin slots You can bet your coins in a slot machine. This acts like a real slot machine as you can lose money. Highlight how many combinations of slots you want (up to five, and one coin per line), and use either the "A" button OR the controller to stop the slots. When you get three in a row, it will ask you if you want to go Double or Nothing. If you decide, you will have to match one slot. ----- 11. POWER STONE COLLECTION As you clear the game and get coins in the mini games, pages will be added to the Power Stone Collection. Here are the pages, and the requirements to get each one. Page 1/15: Extending Staff Requirements: Beat the game once on any level with anyone. You will get a new weapon, the extending staff. It extends itself to the opponent! Page 2/15: Gattling Gun Requirements: Beat the game a second time on any level with a different character. You will get another new weapon, the gattling gun! It has a ton of ammo, but each shot is relatively weak. Page 3/15: Ray Gun Requirements: Beat the game a third time on any level with a different character. You will get another weapon, the ray gun, which has very decent power and range, and will hit the opponent multiple times. Page 4/15: Shield Requirements: Beat the game a fourth time on any level with a different character. You will get the shield. It will block EVERYTHING, including specials. The shield has a meter showing its durability. When the meter is gone, the shield is used up. You CANNOT attack when you are equipped with the shield. Page 5/15: Virtual Battle Requirements: Beat the game with Kraken. You will get the option to play the Arcade game in first person mode (behind the back). Page 6/15: Dual Battle Requirements: Beat the game with Valgas. You will get a two player version of the Virtual Battle. It is split screen. Page 7/15: Fokker's Mini Game Requirements: Beat the game a fifth time on any level with a different character. This allows you to download this game on the VMS. Page 8/15: Ayame's Mini Game Requirements: Beat the game a sixth time on any level with a different character. This allows you to download this game and Fokker's game on the VMS. Page 9/15: Gunrock's Mini Game Requirements: Beat the game a seventh time on any level with a different character. This allows you to download this game and the other two mini games on the VMS. Page 10/15: Play as Kraken Requirements: Beat the game with all eight characters. Page 11/15: Play as Valgas Requirements: Beat the game with Kraken. Page 12/15: Play as Final Valgas in Versus Mode Requirements: Beat the game with Valgas on LEVEL 8. I did it the first time without continuing, however, I am not sure if the game will give you Final Valgas if you continue. Page 13/15: Art Collection Requirements: Get over 1000 coins in the VMS mini games. This shows character and concept artwork, as well as arcade artwork. Page 14/15: Ending Collection Requirements: Beat the game with any character(s). This shows what endings you have. Page 15/15: Sound and Music Test Requirements: Get over 2000 coins in the VMS mini games. This allows you to play all sound effects and music from the game. ----- 12. SECRETS When you finish arcade mode on any difficulty level, with any character, you will open up a new options screen called Extra Options. Here is the translation of the Extra Options screen: Power Stone: How many Power Stones are on the field. Either, 3, 4, or 5. Since you only need three to change, playing with five Stones makes the game more interesting! Power Gauge Timer: Toggles whether the Power Gauge is shown or not. Extra Item: This option (default is OFF), will add new items into the game! The new items include food, which refill health, and a new weapon, an extending staff. As you finish the game three more times, you will get the gattling gun, the shield, and the ray gun. Extra Damage: This toggles whether multiple hits do more damage than normal. Round Display: Toggles the Round Display on or off. Normal Damage: What each normal attack does in a damage percent. Default is 50%. Special Damage: What percent of damage special attacks do. Default is 100%. DEFAULT SETTINGS (in blue): Changes everything back to default. ALTERNATE COSTUMES: Press L + R and then press "B". FREE CAMERA MODE: Hold down "A" after you win and you can move the camera freely. Pressing "A" will automatically zoom in on the character, so let go of "A" to zoom out. ----- SPECIAL THANKS: I got so much positive feedback on this FAQ, that there are too many people I want to thank. In particular, I want to thank Duy Le and Jae Austria for giving me the boss information and other information to help me finish this FAQ. I also want to thank Trey Morita for some of the secrets in the game. Thanks guys, you're the best! I also want to thank Mike Cottrell, who gave me the information on the VMS mini games. Thanks Mike! ----- Well, that's it. E-mail me at murdockl@hotmail.com if you have any comments, suggestions, or complaints. Patrick Hofmann