FAQ

What's a Controller Pak?

A Controller Pak fits in the back of the Nintendo 64 Controller and serves as storage area for game data. Blast Corps will use a Controller Pak if one is available, otherwise game information will be saved to the Game Cartridge.

Do I need a Controller Pak with Blast Corps?

Technically, no, Blast Corps has a EEPROM chip in the Blast Corps cartridge where you can save your game. However, if more than one person wants to play Blast Corps, or even if you just want to show it to a friend, I highly recommend that you have a Controller Pak. The EEPROM in the game cartridge only saves one game.

1. Let’s say you have 30 Platinums and are halfway to beating all 57 levels. Your six-year-old brother is not likely to want to attempt the toughest levels to earn a Platinum when he is just learning how to control the vehicles. With a Controller Pak, your kid brother can start his own Blast Corps game from the beginning without erasing your fastest times.
2. A second advantage of the Controller Pak over the Game Pak memory that's often overlooked is that you can save your fastest times for each vehicle on the racing levels. The Game Pak only lets you save your fastest overall time. Sometimes this is helpful to determine which vehicle you should use earn a Platinum Medal.
3. In addition, if you use a Controller Pak to save your game, a Stop Watch shows up on the start screen for each level. By selecting the Stop Watch, you can compare your fastest time on each level with your older brother.
4. And finally, if your brother just can’t stand the Skyfall level, you can become a Guest Player and put up a screaming Platinum time for him.

OK, so I need a Controller Pak. What brand should I buy?

Buy the Nintendo brand Controller Pak. There are third-party Controller Paks out there that profess to store more data than the Nintendo’s own Controller Pak. However, you don’t want to see this message when you have 42 Platinums:

"Error occurred when reading data from Controller Pak. Please reset."

Memory cards that offer more data storage are using compression. Your data can be lost or be corrupted during the compression or decompression process. Don’t let this happen to you.

Why can't you erase a Blast Corps game from the Game Pak?

Actually, you can. It's just that the genius that wrote the Blast Corps Instruction Booklet neglected this essential information. Here's how you do it:

• Turn off the Nintendo 64.
• Make sure the controller in the first port does not have a Controller Pak, then...
• Hold down the Start button on the controller and turn the Nintendo 64 back on.
• This will bring up a menu that says:
  ERASE SAVED GAME!
  ARE YOU SURE?
  NO YES
• Selecting YES will remove any traces of your game forever.

Blast Corps games on the controller pak are best erased from the main menu. However, you can erase any saved N64 game from the Controller Pak in virtually the same way. Leave the Controller Pak in the first controller and press Start when you turn the Nintendo 64 on. You will have the option of deleting any of the saved games on the Controller Pak, Blast Corps or otherwise. This works for ALL Nintendo 64 games that use the Controller Pak.

I have Blastdozer, the Japanese version of Blast Corps. How do I modify my U.S. machine to play it?

Complete instructions are on N64HQ. [Modification Instructions]

Does Blast Corps work with the Rumble Pak?

Early reports on this game in late 1996 said it would be one of the first games to support the Rumble Pak. However, somewhere along the line Rumble Pak support was abandoned. If you have a Rumble Pak in the controller when you turn Blast Corps on, the screen will say:

CONTROLLER PAK IS
DEFECTIVE. POWER
OFF AND REMOVE.

Rumble Pak support might have been a novelty, but I don't believe lack of Rumble Pak support has diminished the game play in any way.

OK, what are the scientists for and where are they?

As a member of the Blast Corps team, you have to assemble an elite team of six scientists in addition to clearing the path to ground zero. The scientists work together to assure that the nuclear carrier is detonated safely. You won't be able to get to Shuttle Clear or the moon until you find them.

The scientists are in the following levels:

• Argent Towers
• Ebony Coast
• Glory Crossing
• Ironstone Mine
• Oyster Harbor
• Tempest City

I used to get a promotion or two every time I sat down to play, but I've been earning Platinums for days now without a promotion. How do the promotions work?

The formula for a promotion is based on a simple premise: a Bronze is worth 1pt, a Silver is 2pts, and a Gold is worth 3pts. You receive a promotion for every twelve points (or every four Gold Medals). A Platinum is worth one more point than a Gold.

Yeah, that's what the manual (and every other Nintendo site on the Internet) tells me. What's the real scoop?

Click thePlatinum Medal.

How do I get a Jet Start?

The jet start in Blast Corps is very inconsistent. Some levels have a light tree and others do not; the jet start is early on some levels and late on others. There are many suggestions on the Internet that advise you to start just before the green light. Some also advise you to start on the fourth bong, but I’ve not had success with either of these methods. My suggestion is to watch the text and press the A button when it has rolled halfway off the screen. Because every level has this, you are able to use the same technique every time. You know when you got it when you see a motion blur of your vehicle after the start.

A jet start is not available for all levels. As far as I know, there is no jet start option for the Train, Thunderfist, J-Bomb, Sideswipe, or Cyclone Suit. A jet start is possible, however, for all vehicles that are accessible on the racing levels.

Again, only SOME of the levels have a "light tree" at the start of the level. Also, there is NO WARNING before the lights go to green and therefore no help for when to anticipate the exact timing. Therefore, I use the title text instead... you know, where it says:

CLEAR CARRIER PATH
4 MINUTES 0 SECONDS

or some such instruction. Most of the time, the jet start will be activated if you press the A button about the time the text has rolled halfway off the screen. On some courses, like Diamond Sands, however, the jet start is activated if you press the A button just after the starting text rolls completely off the screen. You must get a feel on each individual level for when the jet start will be activated. Don't pay any attention to the beeps or the light tree. They won't help you in my opinion.

Still not getting a jet start to work for you? The approximate time to press the A button, for all levels where a jet start is possible, is on the web page for each level.

What's the Homer Simpson technique and where can I use it?

If you park your vehicle next to a building in such a way that your driver cannot exit, then hold the Z button, your driver will say "doh!" a few times, and the structure will explode so he can get out of the vehicle.

Contrary to popular opinion, Backlash is not normally the most effective vehicle with which to use this technique. It is better saved for the Ramdozer. Place the blade of the Ramdozer close to the building you want to demolish. This can improve your time if the building normally requires a box of TNT. See Beeton Tracks, Ebony Coast, and Oyster Harbor. Still want to use the Homer Simpson technique with Backlash? Try Diamond Sands. All other Backlash levels can be done faster the normal way.

Why didn't my Platinum time get saved?

In Platinum mode, you must exit the level back to the Global Map before you shut off the Nintendo 64! You can have the fastest time ever and will never have proof because your time is not saved until you leave the level and return to the global map.

What do you mean when you use a compass direction like North?

My descriptions will often contain compass directions. North is always in the direction that the nuclear missile carrier is facing when one is present. Otherwise, it is the direction that your vehicle is facing at the beginning of the level. East is right, West is left, and South is the direction opposite North of course. If it serves my purpose, I may specify another determination of where North lies in the level description.

You don't really believe that these Platinum times are reasonable, do you? I bought Blast Corps and I think it is probably the most fun you can have on a Nintendo 64. But I do have a question and maybe even a grievance. I have received gold in all the main levels, bonus levels and outer space levels. Then I went through and earned the gold medals for clearing the missile path in record time... and now... it wants me to earn platinum medals? Fine, I'll give it a go..... My question is... Has anybody been successful at earning ANY platinum medals? I have earned one so far, but it was only after playing the same level for an hour. Does ANYONE find that clearing even the first and easiest level in 14 seconds seems to be asking a little much? Breaking all the objects in Magma Peak in less than a minute? Clearing the buildings in Backlash's training bonus stage in 11 seconds? If anyone has any tips or suggestions I would be glad to hear about them. But if you ask me, this doesn't seem like a game that was meant to be totally completed... What a cruel joke.

I would agree that at first glance, the platinum times seem a little outrageous. What the platinum times exist for though, is to get you become intimately familiar with the control of each vehicle. After all, the vehicle control is an inherent part of the game design. Lots of gamers will quit after getting all golds. That's fine. There are no multimedia ending screens that they are missing anyway. How many times have you heard that Blast Corps is too easy to beat? It is easy to begin with. It was meant to be easy because it appeals to a wide audience. This is a game of exploration. Is this really the best vehicle to use for this course? What technique works best? Can I find a faster path? How can I get through this section of the course faster? Live up to the platinum challenge. You'll find this game has more dimensions than you realized.

I have the six scientists, and I have a gold metal in all but 5 levels (Mica Park, Dark Heartland, Lizard Island, Saline Watch, and Magma Peak).Can you go to other planets after getting all golds? There was a clue to that effect when I beat the moon. Also I read somewhere on the Net that it is possible. I was wondering if you could just clarify this for me.

Yes, get the scientists to get to Shuttle Clear and the moon, then finish getting golds on all of the earth levels, and you will be transported to Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Neptune to experience more near zero gravity adventures. Then, get golds on all planets and you can start on the platinum medals.

I have heard that there are other planets beyond past the moon. I found all the communication satellites (no green rings remaining on the global map) and have 60 gold and 14 platinum medals. Why can't I access the levels beyond the moon?

You don't have 60 gold and 14 platinum medals, that would be impossible. To get platinums you have to earn golds on the four bonus planetary levels as well. You have 14 silver medals. Go to the stages where you have silver medals, and play them until you get gold. Then you can go past the moon. You can tell whether a medal is platinum or silver by looking at the design. The platinum medals have a big BC on them, the silvers do not.

Platinum Medal

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