Tecmo Hit Parade

Codes, passwords, secrets, hints and cheats for game Tecmo Hit Parade

 | L E I A D S |

 GAME: PLEIADS
 PLATFORM: ARCADE
 GENRE: ARCADE SHOOTER
 CREATOR: TEHKAN Licensed to CENTURI Copyright 1981
AUTHOR OF THIS FAQ: Kevin Butler AKA War Doc
 E-MAIL: kevinb(at)technologist(dot)com
 FAQ VERSION: 1.01

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

 UNIT I: INTRODUCTION

1. Legal Stuff
2. Version Information
3. Acknowledgements
4. Welcome
5. Overview

 UNIT II: GAME INFORMATION

6. The Game

 6.1 The Controls
 6.2 The Playing Fields
 6.3 Scoring
 6.4 The Waves

 UNIT III: STRATEGIES

7. Playing the Game

 7.1 Wave 1
 7.2 Wave 2
 7.3 Wave 3
 7.4 Wave 4

 UNIT IV: CONCLUSION

8. Conclusion

_______________________________________________________________________________

To find a particular chapter or subchapter do the following:

1. Highlight the chapter or subchapter name you wish to find.
2. Press CTRL-C
3. Press CTRL-F
4. Press CTRL-V
5. Press CTRL-F
5. You will arrive at the desired chapter or subchapter.

_______________________________________________________________________________

 **************
********************************* U N I T I **********************************
 **************
+=================+
| 1. LEGAL STUFF |============================================================
+=================+

This guide may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal
private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed
publicly without advanced permission from the author. Use of this guide on
any other web sit or as part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and
a violation of copyright. All content in this guide is Copyright 2003 by
Kevin Butler. Only the sites listed below have permission to publish this
work or to display it:

www.gamefaqs.com
www.cheats.de
faqs.ign.com

If you wish to put this guide on your site, e-mail me and ask. Save yourself
the headache of putting up with lawsuits and whatnot because you failed to ask
a simple "Can I post your guide on <insert site>?". If you wish to use info
in this guide, please acknowledge that you have done so.

If you see this guide on any other site then the one listed above, please
e-mail me. If you wish to ask questions or give input to this guide, please
e-mail me. Just have Pleiads as the subject so I know it isn't another kooky
vendor trying to sell me hair gel or another XXX site telling me I have new
friends.

+=========================+
| 2. VERSION INFORMATION |====================================================
+=========================+

Version 1.0 9/16/03: A guide is born.

Version 1.01 5/23/06: Thanks to David Perez for pointing out a few errors in
 my FAQ which have been corrected.

+======================+
| 3. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS |=======================================================
+======================+

The following are a list of people or organizations that have made this FAQ
possible:

My wonderful family (who has had to put up with the tapping on the keyboard)
Tehkan for making a great arcade game
GameFAQ's for putting up this FAQ
David Perez for pointing out the misspelling of Pleiads and the company who
created it in the opening dialogue

+=============+
| 4. WELCOME |================================================================
+=============+

Welcome to my FAQ for Pleiads. Since the game has you continuously playing
through waves until all your men are killed, there is no walkthrough per se.
Instead it will be broken up into the game itself and strategies for survival.
Input is appreciated along with constructive criticism. If you wish to e-mail
me thoughts on this FAQ, better ways of doing things, other strategies, etc.,
feel free. Make sure you put Pleiads as the subject. If you don't, I'm
liable to discard the e-mail as spam.

+==============+
| 5. OVERVIEW |===============================================================
+==============+

Pleiads was a partnership game between Tehken and Centuri. Centuri tended to
partner up with other companies such as SNK for Vanguard or Amstar for Phoenix.
Tehken was a little known company who mostly produced sports type games. There
most well known game is Bomb Jack. Unfortunately, the video game crash of the
early 80's claimed both of these companies as victims; Centuri in 1983 and
Tehken in 1985. This was another game that one played on multiple playing
fields. The scoring system was more unique in the fact it depended on things
you did before you killed an enemy. Pleiads was a loosely based sequel to
Phoenix, which was released in 1980. Good luck defending the earth against the
Martian invaders.

 ***************
******************************** U N I T II **********************************
 ***************

+==============+ 
| 6. THE GAME |===============================================================
+==============+ 

Pleiads is a two-dimensional, space shooter style game. It seems that the
Martians aren't happy at home so they have decided to invade earth. Of course,
all that stands between the earth being successfully invaded or failure of the
Martians to invade is you and your trusty fighter. You will fight through two
waves of enemies to do battle with the Martian Space Battleship. Once you make
it past that point, you will be recalled back to earth to again take on some
more Martian invaders. It's kill or be killed as this fast paced drama
unfolds.

 ____________________
/ 6.1 The Controls /__________________________________________________________
--------------------

The controls on this game are very easy. It may, though, take just a little
bit of time to get used to them.

- A left motion button

- A right motion button

- A fire button

- A hyperspace button

 __________________________
/ 6.2 The Playing Fields /____________________________________________________
--------------------------

Pleiads actually consists of four playing fields. Each playing field happens
in the same exact order as the waves progress. After you make it through wave
4, you go right back to wave 1 again. I have included an example of what these
fields look like:

 +--------+
 | WAVE 1 |
 +--------+

 +-------------------------------------------------------------------+
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | __ |
 | (__)<-UFO |
 | |
 | [][]<-FLYING MARTIAN |
 | /\ |
 | \/ [][] |
 | /\ |
 | \/ ___ |
 | [___]<-WALKING |
 | | | MARTIAN |
 | | | |
 | | | |
 |____________________________________________[ ][ ][ ][ ]<-BARRIERS_|
 | |
 | \ / RADAR ( ) ( ) |
 | +--+ | | ||
 | | | \ / +---+|
 | | |--+ | ++ | ||
 |-+ | | | || | ||
 | | | |/ \| -++-| ||
 | | | |---|<-YOUR FIGHTER | | ||
 | | | | | ||
 +-------------------------------------------------------------------+

 +--------+
 | WAVE 2 |
 +--------+

 +-------------------------------------------------------------------+
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | __/\__ <-SPACE MONSTER |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | /\ /<-FIRE |
 | ____/ \/___ |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | | |
 | |/ \| |
 | |---|<-YOUR FIGHTER |
 | |
 +-------------------------------------------------------------------+

 +--------+
 | WAVE 3 |
 +--------+

 +-------------------------------------------------------------------+
 | ##### <-CURRENT SCORE FOR |
 | ( ) BATTLESHIP |
 | /\ |
 | +---------+ +---------+ |
 | \ / |
 | + + |
 | /\/ \/\ MARTIAN SPACE |
 | / \<- BATTLESHIP |
 | +______/\__/\__/\__/\__/\______+ |
 | \/ \/ \/ \/ \/<-EXHAUST FLAMES |
 | UNDER CHAMBERS |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | |
 | | |
 | |/ \| |
 | |---|<-YOUR FIGHTER |
 | |
 +-------------------------------------------------------------------+

 +--------+
 | WAVE 4 |
 +--------+

 +-------------------------------------------------------------------+
 | |
 | \ / RADAR ( ) ( ) |
 | +--+ | | ||
 | | | \ / +---+|
 | | |--+ | ++ | ||
 |-+ | | / | \ || | ||
 | | | (-- --)<-TARGET -++-| ||
 | | | \ | / | | ||
 | | | / / \ \ | | ||
 |----+--+ / / \ \ +---+---+|
 | /-------------\ |
 | / / \ \ |
 | / / \ \ |
 | /---------------|---------\ |
 | / / |/ \|<-PARKED FIGHTER |
 | / / |---| \ \ |
 | /--|\---------------------------------\ |
 | / |/ <-FLAG \ \ |
 | / | / \ \ |
 | /-------------------------------------------------\ |
 | / / \ \ |
 | / / | \ \ |
 | /-----------------------|/ \|-------------------------------- \ |
 |/ / |---|<-YOUR FIGHTER \ \|
 | / \ |
 +-------------------------------------------------------------------+

You control your fighter through these four screens.

 _______________
/ 6.3 Scoring /_______________________________________________________________
---------------

Scoring is a little complicated in this game due to the fact it depends on hits
made on the Martians in the later waves.

Flying Martian : 30 points (Last one of the wave is 130 points)
Walking Martian: 80 points
UFO : 150 points

Space Monster (small) just entering screen : 50 points
Space Monster (large) after entering screen: 100 points
Space Monster with one wing burning : 200 points
Space Monster with two wings burning : 400 points
Each hit on a Space Monster's wing : 20 points

The Martian Space Battleship has a different scoring system. It is dependent
on how many exhaust flames you put out with laser fire. The chamber must be
open for you to put out the fire. The scoring starts low on the first cycle of
four waves and increments up from that point. Your sixth visit to the Martian
Space Battleship has the potential to yield the most points. This is how the
Martian Space Battleship is scored:

 +-------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
 | CYCLE # -> | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
 | FIRES OUT | |XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX|
 | v |XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX|
 +-------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
 | 1 | 100 | 200 | 300 | 400 | 500 | 600 |
 +-------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
 | 2 | 200 | 400 | 600 | 800 | 1,000 | 1,200 |
 +-------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
 | 3 | 400 | 800 | 1,200 | 1,600 | 2,000 | 2,400 |
 +-------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
 | 4 | 800 | 1,600 | 2,400 | 3,200 | 4,000 | 4,800 |
 +-------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
 | 5 | 1,600 | 3,200 | 4,800 | 6,400 | 8,000 | 9,600 |
 +-------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+

Every cycle after the sixth gives the same amount of points as the fifth cycle.

During the landing sequence in wave 4, you get points for the following:

Collecting flags : 100- 600 points
Successful landing: 500-4,000 points plus a fireworks display per 500 points
awarded (i.e. 1500 points yields three fireworks bursts)

You start the game with 3, 4, 5, or 6 lives. You are awarded bonus lives at
3,000 and 30,000 points, 4,000 and 40,000 points, 5,000 and 50,000 points, or
6,000 and 60,000 points.

 _________________
/ 6.4 The Waves /_____________________________________________________________
-----------------

The waves in Pleiads are arranged in a specific order. After you complete
wave 4, it cycles again back to wave 1. The only difference is in some of the
scores and the enemies get faster. Below are what is in each wave:

+--------+
| WAVE 1 |
+--------+

This is the space attack wave. You must destroy the 16 Martians that are
attacking. These Martians usually come in waves of three or four Martians be
attacking wave. Once you are down to the last two attacking Martians, the
colors of the game change to "dusk" and the Martians change to a light blue
with a dark purple border.

+--------+
| WAVE 2 |
+--------+

You get attacked by eight Space Monsters. They start off small and a hit any-
where destroys them. Once they get big, only a hit to the middle will destroy
them.

+--------+
| WAVE 3 |
+--------+

You get to deal with the Martian Space Battleship. In addition, there are 16
escorts to also contend with.

+--------+
| WAVE 4 |
+--------+

You have just gotten an SOS that the earth is being attacked. You must
navigate around the parked fighters and land on the target to go back to wave
1 to do battle again.

 ****************
******************************** U N I T III *********************************
 ****************

+======================+
| 7. PLAYING THE GAME |=======================================================
+======================+

When you start the game, your fighter will be in the middle at the bottom of
the screen. You will see a city on either side at the corner, two radar dishes
to your left, and some fighters and missiles to your right. This is the
beginning of wave 1.

 ______________
/ 7.1 Wave 1 /________________________________________________________________
--------------

- There are three types of units you need to be aware of and what they do:

 - Flying Martians fly in a zig-zag pattern and drop bombs along their
 route. The bombs are pretty easy to avoid.

 - Walking Martians lay barriers across your field of fire. The Martians
 can shoot through the barriers but you must destroy them to be able to
 shoot the Martians. The barriers themselves are worth no points.

 - UFO's rarely fire at your fighter. Instead, they attempt to ram and
 destroy your fighter. They move in a quicker zig-zag type pattern.

- The two radar dishes are very helpful so you need to protect them. They not
 only warn of a new wave of Martians, but they also take pot shots at the
 Martians. If they score a hit, you get credited with the points.

- Other items on the screen serve as cover for your fighter.

- Once you are down to the last two fighters, be ready because they tend to do
 more chaotic moves to avoid getting hit while dropping bombs at the same
 time.

 ______________
/ 7.2 Wave 2 /________________________________________________________________
--------------

- The Space Monsters all start small. They come from the top doing a lazy
 zig-zag pattern. It is a good idea to try to take out at least four of
 them.

- Once they get large, they start to do erratic zig-zag patterns across the
 screen. At the same time, they are dropping bombs toward your fighter.
 Your goal is to flame one of their wings. If you do this, it forces them to
 go straight down until the wing fire is put out. They will still be
 dropping bombs, but at least they will be going straight down.

- If at all possible, try to flame both wings of each of the Space Monsters
 remaining before destroying them. You get a lot more points for it.

- One trick some players do is to go all the way to the left corner on the
 remaining Space Monster. It lines up in such a way that the bombs miss your
 fighter. Then you just keep hitting the fire button, which results in you
 constantly hitting the wing (20 points a hit). Some players rack up a
 couple of thousand points before the Space Monster is coming down too fast
 for them to hit.

 ______________
/ 7.3 Wave 3 /________________________________________________________________
--------------

- Your goal on this wave is to extinguish the five exhaust flames under the
 Martian Space Battleship. You can only extinguish a flame when the chamber
 door is open. They open and close at random times but if you are trying to
 put out the fifth flame, it will open and close quickly.

- Try to remain under the battleship as much as possible so you can quickly
 extinguish the flame. Sometimes the door opens and closes quickly.

- The only points you will get for the Martian Space Battleship will be from
 the number of flames you put out (See Chapter 6.3 for more details). This
 wave is your biggest point getter (and easier) in the game.

- If you destroy all 16 of the escorts before you put out all the flames on
 the battleship, then the wave is over and you get whatever points the
 battleship was worth.

- Conversely, if you destroy the battleship before you destroy the 16 escorts,
 the wave also ends with you getting full points for the battleship. The
 points being dependent on the cycle you are on.

- This time, you are only attacked by the Flying Martians and UFO's. They
 will either come in from the sides by the battleship or they will exit one
 of the chambers above the flame (or where the flame used to be). Again, the
 Flying Martians will drop a volley of bombs while the UFO's will just try to
 ram your fighter.

 ______________
/ 7.4 Wave 4 /________________________________________________________________
--------------

- When you first approach the airstrip, take a quick look around it to see
 where the other fighters are parked and where the flags are located at. In
 the later levels, the spacing becomes very tight so you will need precision
 movements to navigate around.

- Your fighter will be constantly moving so you will need to adjust it left or
 right constantly or it will drift in whatever its last direction was.

- If you have a chance to get a flag, and it doesn't put you into a bad
 situation movement-wise, then get it. If not, just concentrate on getting
 to the target.

- Your main goal is to get into the target dead center to get the maximum
 points for landing.

Once you complete wave 4, the cycle begins anew.

 ****************
******************************** U N I T IV *********************************
 ****************

+================+
| 8. CONCLUSION |=============================================================
+================+

Looking at this game, it just seemed like another space shooter. Even the
demonstration play didn't negate that observation. The only thing, before
playing it, that made it look different was the fact that there were more
enemies mentioned then what the demo showed. After we started to play the
game, we realized there was much more to it then met the eye. The four waves
concept was a pretty good idea and it definitely made the game a lot more
enjoyable. The variable scoring was also interesting since it provided a
challenge to the player to get the most amount of points from objects in the
game. Sometimes you would sit for a long while avoiding the Martians shots as
you attempted to extinguish that last flame on the Martian Space Battleship.
Docking was also a challenge since you wanted the flags and to get the perfect
4,000 point docking bonus. A lot of quarters were put into this machine, but
it was worth it. Unfortunately, it is very rare to find this machine any-
where. However, through the miracle of emulation, a whole new generation is
realizing what we "old" folks enjoyed those many years ago. In addition,
www.shockwave.com is bringing many of these classic games back. Check out
their site to see what ones are there. I hope this guide helps you in being
able to get the most amount of gameplay for this game. If you do have other
ideas or thoughts, please e-mail me and share them. Who knows, maybe I'll
start a Q&A Chapter in this guide if enough people ask the same questions.
Anyway, thank you again for reading this guide.

To see other FAQ's I have written please go to:

 http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/recognition/32691.html

 ~~~ No trees were harmed in the making of this FAQ ~~~