Mappy FAQ - Version 1.15 Copyright (c) 1997 by Scott Stone Latest Version found at: HTTP://people.delphi.com/tafoid/mappy.htm Mappy and all characters/game layout is a trademark of Namco, Ltd. All rights reserved. This document may be copied, in whole or in part, by any means provided the copyright and contributors sections remain intact and no fee is charged for the information. Contributors retain the copyright to their individual contributions. The data contained herein is provided for informational purposes only. No warranty is made with regards to the accuracy of the information. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Additional contributions always welcome! Please mail additional information, opinions, playing strategies, corrections and comments to: Scott Stone - tafoid@delphi.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Last update: July 29th, 1997 Contributors: Scott Stone (tafoid@delphi.com) Jim Lemons (lemons1940@aol.com) TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0) What is Mappy? 2.0) Game List - Known/Rumored Mappy Games 3.0) Mappy Arcade Info 4.0) Mappy Playing Strategies 5.0) High Scores ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1.0) What is Mappy? Mappy is a unique cat and mouse adventure game featuring Mappy the micro-policeman, with cartoon graphics the fit the story line very well. Mappy's job is to collect the loot that Goro and his gang of Meowky have stashed in a series of strange houses. The cats chase Mappy around the house, trying to catch him before he can collect all ten items. Mappy has several possible methods of collecting the goods, which makes this game MUCH more than just another Pac-Man rip-off. Mappy was released and produced by NAMCO, creators of MANY arcade classics including such hits as Pac-Man, Galaga and Xevious. Bally-Midway licensed Mappy from Namco for U.S. release back in 1983. There have been a couple of sequels, but none have seemed the capture the pure joy that is encountered from playing the original! It is still enjoyed by many has a solid footing of being an 'Arcade Classic', much in the same vein as Crazy Climber. 2.0) Game List - Known/Rumored Mappy Games Title Released Platform ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Mappy 1983 Arcade Both Standup and Cocktail versions were produced. Standup is perhaps best known for its oversized marquee! Mappy 1983/1984 Nintendo Family Computer (Japanese) by NAMCOT It is not known if this has been released in the U.S. as a single cart. It is available in Famicom Multi-carts and can be played on a U.S. NES with an adapter. Mappy 1983/1984 MSX Computer (Europe/Japan) by NAMCOT This computer was all but unseen in the U.S but versions of many classic arcade games were made for it. Hopping Mappy 1985 Arcade Unknown if this was released in the (Mappy 2?) U.S. Little is know about this game. Can anyone help out??? MappyLand 1987 Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) by TAXAN Variation on the original theme. You must recover presents stolen by the "Guchi Gang" intended for Mappy's girlfriend, Mapico. Mappy 1991 Japanese Game Gear Doubtful if this was released in the United States. Mappy 1996 PSX (Japanese) / Sony Playstation (U.S.) Namco Museum Volume #2. Also contains flawless translations of Xevious, Gaplus, Super Pac-Man, Grobda, Dragon Buster. The very best version BY FAR! Mappy 1997 PC - Windows 95 - Japanese A translation of the original, now on your PC. Part of a CD titled: "Namco History #1". Xevious, Toy Pop and others are also included. An American release is not planned :( Mappy 1997 Macintosh and PC Computers (Soon Amiga) via MAME EMULATOR. Now... an authentic EMULATION of the game is available! Check out for screen shots at: HTTP://people.delphi.com/tafoid/mpscreen.htm and for more details! 3.0) Mappy Arcade Info This information is for the ARCADE varion of MAPPY. I have collected this information from various sites on the 'net and my hope is that this can be used to possibly help in making a 100% emulation of this game for the PC! I have access also to scanned schematics to the game and will send it to those who are about to undertake an emulation. Galaga pinouts. This also works on Midway's Mappy game GALAGA/MAPPY PARTS SIDE | SOLDER SIDE ------------------------------------|-------------------------------------- LOGIC GND | A | 1 | LOGIC GND --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- SPKR | B | 2 | SPKR (Not sure of polarity) --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- --- | C | 3 | COIN METER --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- --- | D | 4 | --- --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- | E | 5 | --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- +5v | F | 6 | +5v --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- LOGIC GND | H | 7 | LOGIC GND --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- CREDIT SW | J | 8 | TEST SWITCH (Tilt connected to this) --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- (2nd coin mech also) 1 COIN SW | K | 9 | --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- 1P START | L | 10| 2P START --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- (To rapid fire brd #7) FIRE | M | 11| --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- MOVE LEFT | N | 12| --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- | P | 13| --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- MOVE RIGHT | R | 14| --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- | S | 15| --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- --- | T | 16| --- --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- --- | U | 17| --- --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- --- | V | 18| --- --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- --- | W | 19| --- --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- | X | 20| --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- | Y | 21| --------------------------------|---|---|---------------------------------- LOGIC GND | Z | 22| LOGIC GND --------------------------------------------------------------------------- On the CPU board there is an additional 3-part connector. This is power. It's wired as follows: 1 - +12v 2 - GND 3 - +5v On the Video board, there is an additional 6-part connector. This is the video connector. It's wired as follows: 1 - RED 2 - BLU 3 - GRN 4 - SYNC 5 - VIDEO GND 6 - (Not used) Galaga also has the option of a Rapid Fire board. This is a small board that allows the fire button to be held down and your ship to continuously fire shots at the enemy. Holding this board with the circuits facing you and the connectors on the bottom, the pins are numbered 1-9 (with #3 missing). The top set of connectors (J-1) is used for rapid fire, the bottom set (J-2) is used for single fire. It's wired as follows: 1 - (Not used) 2 - (Not used) 3 - (Not present) 4 - (Not used) 5 - FIRE BUTTON (GND) 6 - LOGIC GND 7 - FIRE (From Galaga CPU board) 8 - FIRE BUTTON 9 - +5v MAPPY OPTION SWITCH SETTINGS dip switch A (5B) SW#1 SW#2 SW#3 SW#4 SW#5 SW#6 SW#7 SW#8 Difficulty level A (default, easiest) OFF OFF B ON OFF C OFF ON D (hardest) ON ON SW#1 SW#2 SW#3 SW#4 SW#5 SW#6 SW#7 SW#8 Sounds provide sound during attract (default) OFF do not make sound during attract ON SW#1 SW#2 SW#3 SW#4 SW#5 SW#6 SW#7 SW#8 Round change Normal operation (default) OFF Rack advance (see below) ON SW#1 SW#2 SW#3 SW#4 SW#5 SW#6 SW#7 SW#8 Freeze video Normal (default) OFF Freeze ON Notes: Switches 3 through 5 inclusive must always be OFF. The Round Change setting allows you to advance through rounds, not picking up points, while it is set to rack advance. To resume playing, turn it off and it will continue from the beginning of the next rack. The defaults mentioned are the factory recommended settings. dip switch B (5E) SW#1 SW#2 SW#3 SW#4 SW#5 SW#6 SW#7 SW#8 Coins per credit - coin switch number 1 1 coin, 1 credit (default) OFF OFF OFF 1 coin, 2 credits ON OFF OFF 1 coin, 3 credits OFF ON OFF 1 coin, 6 credits ON ON OFF 2 coins, 1 credit OFF OFF ON 2 coins, 3 credits ON OFF ON 3 coins, 1 credit OFF ON ON 3 coins, 2 credits ON ON ON SW#1 SW#2 SW#3 SW#4 SW#5 SW#6 SW#7 SW#8 Bonus mice 1, 2, 3 mouse 5 mouse start start 1st Mappy 20000 1st Mappy 30000 2nd Mappy 70000 2nd Mappy 80000 OFF OFF OFF 1st Mappy 20000 1st Mappy 30000 2nd Mappy 60000 2nd Mappy 100000 ON OFF OFF 1st Mappy 20000 1st Mappy 30000 2nd Mappy 80000 2nd Mappy 120000 OFF ON OFF 1st Mappy 30000 1st Mappy 30000 2nd Mappy 100000 2nd Mappy never ON ON OFF 1st Mappy 20000 1st Mappy 40000 2nd Mappy never 2nd Mappy never OFF OFF ON 1st Mappy 20000 1st Mappy 30000 and every 70000 and every 100000 ON OFF ON 1st Mappy 20000 1st Mappy 40000 and every 80000 and every 120000 OFF ON ON 1st Mappy never 1st Mappy never ON ON ON SW#1 SW#2 SW#3 SW#4 SW#5 SW#6 SW#7 SW#8 Starting mouse count 3 (default) OFF OFF 5 ON OFF 1 OFF ON 2 ON ON Notes: The defaults mentioned are the factory recommended settings. 4.0) Mappy Playing Strategies Mappy is a pattern game, but patterns aren't too easy to use. In each round, at the beginning, the cats can go either right or left. Instead of trying to remember numerous possible patterns, the best way to succeed is to use a pattern for the very first part of a given round, then improvise using more of a "system" than a pattern. GENERAL PLAYING TIPS -------------------- 1.) Get greedy, especially in the first 6 rounds! Get the less valuable items first and pick them up in pairs. Your first pair is valued at 2X. The best order is Radio (100 points), Television (200 points), Computer (300 points), Mona Lisa (Painting) (400 points) and Safe (500 points). If you collect all the items in order up to the Safe, the final Safe will be 500 X 6 = 3,000 points! A perfect score for items each round would be: 100+100X2+200+200X3+300+300X4+400+400X5+500+500X6 = 8,500 points! Wow! 2.) Always try to get the Boss cat in the microwaves! Simply put, it will more than double your score. The following table shows the number of cats caught in a microwave and the score derived from it: Cats Score ------------- 1 200 2 400 3 800 4 1200 5 1600 6 2000 7 3000 8 4000 9 5000 10 6000 (Example: Get 6 cats, you get (200+200+400+400+400+400)= 2000 points. If also catch the Boss cat with the 'wave, you will net 2000+1000 Times 2! =3000 X 2 = 6000 points. Not a bad chunk of points... NOTE: 6000 X 2 = 12,000 is the maximum you can get with a single microwave door, as there are never more than 10 cats on the Round at one time. You can only get this if you reach Round 16! (on the standard game). If the difficulty is juiced up, you can get that many cats as early as Round 8! 3.) Lose those cats! If you are bouncing up off a trampoline and a cat is right under you, most of the time, you can land on a level and the cat will not get time to react and will land on the level above yours. This is a very important technique to learn to help you lose a cat and be able to cross a level untouched. Be careful about cats that are bouncing and are RIGHT ON YOU... try to mix it up. Personal observation suggests they like to jump more often to the left off the trampoline. They also like to bail out more often on levels connected to the trampolines. 4.) Keep a count on those cats! If you KNOW there are only 4 cats on the Round and they are all on your screen, that allows you to reach the other side of the screen with confidence. This also allows for proper microwave door management :) 5.) Use all doors to your advantage! Doors are VERY powerful weapons. It can be used to both whack down a cat, it can also be used to 'propel' you along. Closing an open door, if closing your way, will 'throw' you. If a cat is also near the door in front of you, it will be knocked down! Also, if you have a door near a treasure and the Boss cat is behind it, you can get the 1000 points for tagging him and not have to pick up the treasure until you want to. (i.e. when flashing) :) 6.) Save the Microwave doors until ABSOLUTELY needed or HURRY bell rings! ****** This is what separates a good score from a GREAT score. ****** When HURRY comes, 2 cats are added to the fray. Just work from one microwave to the next, waiting for the cats to bunch up and ready themselves for your onslaught! The cats are much faster when HURRY shows which makes collecting treasures in pairs a bit harder. The SUPERCAT (looks like a coin) will visit after HURRY has been going on for a bit. You cannot kill it. If memory serves, you can stun it with a trap door, but it is of little help in the long run. It will kill you, even on the trampolines. If you hear his bell ringing, dart for your last treasures and hope-n-pray! 7.) Uses the house edges! You can bunch a lot of cats together if used properly. This is also good for getting a lot of points when dropping Bells in Rounds 8-10. Just make sure you jump off the trampoline before it breaks! PLAYING STRATEGIES ------------------ Round 1-2: - These rounds are simple. A seasoned Mappy player should be able to consistently score over 20,000 points before the end of the 2nd round. - Rounds 1+2 start with 3 cats + the Boss cat. - You should be able to get most items in pairs on these rounds, possibly ending with a 6X. - Get all of your treasures except the last one (or pair) before the HURRY comes. This allows you to spend time getting points. (please refer to GREED in the general playing tips) :) Round 4-6: - A bit more difficult. A score of 60,000 points after round 6 is not uncommon. - Try your best to get the pairs of treasures. Remember: They don't HAVE to be in ORDER (100-500) to gain 6X, just in pairs. - 4 cats + Boss cat are on these rounds. - You should get a LOT of points off microwaves (at least 5-10k per round). - Remember, you can walk up in the attic. Use this to your benefit. - The Supercat comes out deceptively early on these rounds. Be cautious! It will begin moving IMMEDIATELY after it's alarm rings, where on other screens, it lands on a level and gets stunned before it starts. Round 8-10: - 5 cats + Boss cat are located here. - Getting treasure in pairs is not recommended unless you are VERY GOOD :) - Use bells to bunch together cats for a nearby microwave for BIG POINTS. - Pick up treasures as quickly as possible, due to HURRY time coming quicker. - Scores of 100,000 after Round 10 is about normal. Round 11-14: - 6 cats + Boss cat at start of rounds. - HURRY occurs VERY QUICKLY, as does the coin. There is little to no time to spend on getting pairs unless you are very brave (or greedy) :) - ON these rounds are 'TRAP DOORS'. They are flashing sections of level when you walk over them, it disappears and all the cats that follow will fall to the level below and be stunned like they were hit with a door. They have been known to stun Supercat (Coin). Also, use trap doors to 'bunch' cats together for maximum microwave points. - The Safes on these rounds are located on a dead-end. You must have a clear shot at the Safe before even attempting. The best times to get these are right after a microwave or using a TRAP DOOR. Leaving one for last also helps. - Not much time for scoring (unless you are lucky). Shoot for 150,000 before end of Round 14. Round 16: - 7 cats + Boss cat at start of round - A lot like level one, with modifications to the location of the doors. - VERY FAST cats, even before the HURRY rings (which is usually within 10-20 seconds). - Basically, do whatever you can to survive, using any/all techniques shown above. Round 17+: - Same as Round 16 except this level starts your sequence of boards again. (Level 17 = Level 1, 18=2... etc) - ABSOLUTELY NO GREED is suggested nor endorsed up here... you'll get enough points just running away :) BONUS ROUNDS ------------ Round 3: Bust the balloons and work your way to the left ASAP. You must get all the the red balloons yourself. Round 7: Again, quickly bust the balloons. Breaking some trampolines will be needed to complete. Round 11: Bust all of the balloons except the one on the very top left of the screen above the Big Cat balloon. When you get the Big Cat, he will travel up and bust the last balloon for you. Round 15: Bust all of the balloons except the one on the very top, right of the Big Cat. When you get the Big Cat, he will travel the to the right, jump on the trampoline, and get the last balloon for you. 5.0) High Scores The following are MY Personal High Scores for Mappy. All High Scores are for the Standard (default) difficulty settings. Mappy (Arcade) - 357,370 (Round 26) * Achieved on June 23rd, 1997 at FUN SPOT - Merideth, NH Mappy (Playstation) - 336,180 (Round 21) * Achieved on July 16th, 1997 at my home - Milton, Vermont Mappy (MAME-PC) - 240,840 (Round 17) * Achieved on July 20th, 1997 at my home - Milton, Vermont Mappy (NES/Famicom) - 303,920 (Round 28) MappyLand (NES) - 310,240 (Round 3-3) I would like information as to the NATIONAL HIGH SCORE on the game (a big thing back in 83-84 in magazines like Joystik, Electronic Games). I'm pretty sure the National High Score for this game is about 600,000 but if you can find something in print, anything will be appreciated. If you have some information or would like to start a 'TOP 5' of sorts, please send in your scores. I will depend on the honor system for this, unless your score outrageously high, a screen scan or photo might be needed :) END DOCUMENT